Page 65 of The Cornish Cream Tea Bookshop
‘Semantics.’ Finn waved a dismissive hand.
‘Not really,’ Thea said, frowning. ‘You’re saying the opposite of what you mean.’
‘Thea is a word pedant,’ Finn explained to Ollie.
‘I care about language, as I’m sure Ollie does, also being a book lover.’
‘I do,’ Ollie said, ‘and itshouldbe anti-Christmas rehab. That’s not being pedantic at all. Scrooge rehab, maybe.’
Finn sat back in his chair. ‘Fine. But whatever the right term is, Meredith is fully in the swing of things this year, and I think the pageant’s going to be even bigger.’
‘It was fairly impressive last year,’ Max said, wrapping his hands around his pint glass. Ollie got stuck gazing at his long fingers, and when she looked up, she saw that Thea was watching her closely, an amused expression on her face. ‘Meredith worked with the council to organise it,’ Max told her. ‘Her friend Anisha is on the planning team, and together they put on this incredible event. There were stalls, a parade, a carol concert. I told you that Meredith sings in a choir, didn’t I?’
‘You sang in front of the entire town?’ Ollie asked, turning to her. Meredith nodded, and she and Finn exchanged a look that she couldn’t interpret. ‘I read about the pageant on the website. It sounded amazing.’
‘And A New Chapter’s going to be part of it this year,’ Thea said. ‘With Sophia Forsythe-Hartley.’
‘Oh yes,’ Ben said. ‘A month ago, I had never heard of this person. Now I’m reading one of her books.’
‘You are?’ Meredith asked, laughing.
‘Thea suggested I get myself clued up before the event. This is clearly a big deal.’
‘Are you enjoying it?’ Finn asked.
Ben nodded, his expression thoughtful. ‘It’s not my usual genre, but it’s already got me gripped, and the sense of atmosphere – the descriptions of Cornwall – are spot on.’
‘Interesting,’ Finn said. ‘Maybe I need to get in on the act.’
‘You should start with the first book in the series,’ Ollie said, ‘because it makes much more sense if you read them in order. We’ve got good stock in the shop at the moment.’
This eventhadto go well. She had clearly messed up with the decorations workshop, even though Thea hadn’t seemed as concerned as Becky about her mistake, and she was only just back in her boss’s good books after the cooking disaster. She shouldn’t be assigning so much meaning to it – she thought of what Liam had said about finding meaning everywhere – but she was already seeing Sophia Forsythe-Hartley as her Christmas saviour.
‘This launch is going to be the talk of the town,’ Ben said. ‘I was doing a job at Cecily Talbot’s house the other day, and—’
‘Cecily Talbot the Instagram influencer?’ Ollie asked, surprised.
‘Yup. She lives a couple of miles out of Port Karadow. Anyway,’ he went on, ‘we were chatting, I mentioned Thea and the bookshop, and she said she’d already bought her ticket for the Sophia event. It looks like it’s going to be at least as big as the Christmas pageant.’
Ollie sat back. ‘Cecily Talbot liveshere,and she knows about our event?’
‘And, obviously, the bookshop,’ Thea said. ‘I meant to tell you, but it’s been so busy the last few days, I forgot.’
‘Wow, though.’ Ollie took a large sip of wine, and felt Max’s hand on her waist.
‘OK?’ he whispered in her ear. His breath tickled her skin in a way that made her feel warm all over, but couldn’tquite dispel the sudden flare of anxiety. She’d come to rely on Max over the last few weeks, but she’d been too ashamed to tell him about the dressing down Becky had given her. She had made an obvious, careless mistake, and she couldn’t bear him thinking badly of her.
‘Course.’ She turned to give him a reassuring smile. He was so close, and he looked so concerned and so handsome, his dark brows lowered, his lips slightly pursed. Her brain was a few seconds behind her body, and before even she’d realised what she was doing, she’d leaned in and kissed him. As soon as they touched, she was reluctant to move away, and what started out as a peck became purposeful and lingering. When she pulled back, Max was looking at her with surprise and – she hoped she wasn’t misinterpreting – happiness, and her heart was pounding.
She turned back to the rest of the table, and saw that they were all grinning. Thea caught her eye and winked. The day before, her boss had described Ollie and Max as ‘quite friendly’, but it seemed she had already suspected it was more than that.
So much for taking it slowly, she thought, as Max went to get another round, and the conversation turned to festive plans and menus, and the horrifying idea of a Christmas Day swim in the sea. Still, it wasn’t her fault, was it? She wasn’t sure anyone would be able to resist the charm, the looks, the downright goodness of Max Holden. She was just lucky that he seemed to like her, too. In the same way Meredith had needed Scrooge rehab, perhaps Ollie needed a sanctuary away from Max, before her feelings for him burrowed right through her and settled in for the long haul.The problem was, she had absolutely no inclination or desire to stay away from him. It was already far too late for that.
‘Are you sure you want to walk me home?’ Ollie asked, when they’d split into pairs and said their goodnights outside the pub. The cold December air was hazy with mist, a quiet settling over the town the further from the centre they got.
‘I’m not letting you walk home alone,’ Max said. ‘I’m fully aware that you’re an independent woman who can take care of herself, but the walk to Foxglove Barn is creepy enough in the dark, and with the added fog, it’s terrifying.’
‘So what you’re saying,’ Ollie replied, nudging him then slipping her arm through his, ‘is that you’re walking me home because, if you were in my position you’d be frightened, so you assume I am, too.’
