‘Did you get the photo too?’ He’d moved on to the shelving inside what had been the cupboard. His wrist rotated with the screwdriver in his hand as he released one of the fixed pieces of wood. ‘I found it on the floor, although I guess it might not be yours…I put it next to the bag.’
His voice trailed off and she went back into the front of the bakery and from beneath the counter where her bag had been, she pulled out the black-and-white picture that was most definitely hers. Usually tucked in her bag, it must’ve fallen out when she tugged the notepad out last night in their enthusiasm to carry on dreaming up names for the renovated bakery. Sometimes it was like there were two sides to her – the woman who was together and owned and ran a business, and then the sap who couldn’t get over the man she’d once fallen in love with.
Jade went back through the kitchen. ‘I’ll leave you to it then.’
‘Boyfriend?’ Linc asked, his gaze not shifting from the shelf that was taking quite a bit of strength to release from its position. The tendons in his arms twitched while he moved it this way and that and once he’d got it, he turned and slung it out of the back door onto the pile.
‘Sorry, what?’
‘The photo,’ he said, screwdriver in his hand once again, multitasking as they talked. ‘Boyfriend, right?’
‘Oh. Er, no. Not anymore.’
‘Dumped?’
Was he taking the mickey out of her? Or was that usually the sort of information he demanded of someone he barely knew? Whichever it was, she didn’t appreciate it, especially not this early and especially not with a headache that lingered insistently. ‘I don’t see that that’s any of your business.’
He looked at her then. ‘I apologise, that was rude.’ She was about to at least smile politely back when he continued with, ‘I’m right though, aren’t I?’
‘Again, none of –’
‘My business,’ he shrugged. ‘I get it. But if you ask me, carrying a photo of your ex around with you is hardly a recipe for being happy.’
‘Yeah, well, I didn’t ask you, did I?’ It riled her that he’d seen the photo and he’d got it in one – carrying it around with her wasn’t helping her to move on. But having that pointed out only made her feel a whole lot worse. ‘Just keep the noise down, it’s very early. And not only for us but for the rest of the village too.’
He gave her a salute, which didn’t go down well and sent her marching off back to the house hardly caring that the rain was coming down relentlessly; her hair was so wet when she got in that she had to give it a good rub with a towel.
She stomped into her bedroom, pulled down the roman blind again, climbed into bed and snuggled beneath the duvet. The side of her head was sore from the collision with the piece of wood and her hangover was here to remind her that it was the last hurrah for her for a while – because last night had not only been a celebration, it also marked the path of the way ahead for Jade. She hadn’t shared it with anyone else but she had a plan way beyond the business and dreams of what might have been. She had a way to move forwards that not everyone might approve of, but one that she’d come to terms with some time ago, and now she was ready for it.
She only hoped her sister would support her in this as much as they had each other’s backs with the business.
Chapter Two
Why did he have to wind up the first woman he came across in the Cove? He was supposed to be coming here to help, not cause trouble.
Linc’s auntie Etna had called him early evening yesterday, which wasn’t all that unusual as they talked regularly, but this time she’d got hold of him to ask if he wanted to come and stay with her in Heritage Cove, where she owned and ran the local tea rooms. She’d told him there was an urgent situation – a friend of hers needed help with a job renovating a bakery; a second pair of hands was the way she’d described it. As it was, Linc had been in laid-back mode given he’d wrapped up supply teaching a few weeks before the end of term and, with not much else on the horizon, he’d agreed. And it was a bit of extra cash between jobs, which was always a good thing. He’d been to the village a handful of times over the years, though never hung around for long, but Etna had still insisted on selling it to him, rambling on about how beautiful it was, how she longed to see more of him, how staying with her would be a change of scene and the perfect antidote to his problems. ‘It’ll give you a new perspective,’ she’d told him. ‘It’ll help you to de-stress, doing something entirely different.’
Linc had never held a long conversation with Etna, or anyone for that matter, about his problems, or misgivings, or whatever it was you wanted to call them. Because there was nothing concrete. Nothing had happened to which he could attribute his being in a rut, being all over the place, not really happy – whatever description you wanted to label it with. It wasn’t that a singular thing had occurred, it was a lot of things that had built up gradually along the way and he’d never really found his place again. This was one of the reasons he’d never taken another permanent teaching position. He didn’t want the same faces, people getting to know him on a deeper level and asking him questions. He wanted to sort his head out a bit and know what direction he was going in before anyone else asked him that question. And he wasn’t quite there yet.
Etna’s last proclamation had been that by coming to the Cove Linc could find the person he was deep down inside. He’d laughed at that part and told her he’d have to dig really deep to have much of an epiphany. She’d merely brushed off his sarcasm and told him she’d happily find him a very big spade to do so. And while he didn’t believe this sea change would do much at all, Etna had always been able to read him better than anyone else could. And so he’d taken her up on the offer and he’d arrived in Heritage Cove late last night.
‘I hope I didn’t annoy any other locals,’ Linc told Harvey when he came into the bakery kitchen just before midday. ‘It was early, but I was eager to get started and I kind of forget the time when it gets light so early. I’ve never been one to laze in bed, even when it is pouring with rain.’
‘Hey, my last guy let me down big time so don’t apologise for anything,’ said Harvey. ‘I had visions of not getting this done in time, and it’s the girls’ livelihood. I don’t want to mess with that. So, you might have ruffled a few feathers,’ he added with a grin, ‘but there’s no real harm done.’
Linc didn’t want to mess with the bakery business either. He got the impression Jade wouldn’t let them get away with much. They’d only met briefly but already he sensed she was strong, decisive and, he suspected, used to having the last word.
‘Jade will recover,’ Harvey assured him. ‘I’ll smooth things over. The girls were all out last night, she’s likely nursing a hangover – much like Melissa. I had to take her a cuppa in bed this morning and she told me not to open the curtains.’
‘Not a morning person?’
‘Never was. And she’s particularly bad after a late night.’
Harvey had brought along a heavy-duty trolley and Linc helped him manoeuvre the largest of the two commercial ovens onto it and shift it a good few feet away from the wall, alongside the smaller one he’d already managed to move himself, so they could clean around the back. Both ovens would be removed for flooring and slotted back into position at a later date.
‘Another smaller oven will be delivered soon enough,’ Harvey told him, pointing to where it would go. ‘Over there, in what will be Jade’s baking corner.’
Most of the fixtures and fittings were to be stripped out, creating one enormous space and blank canvas. But as well as the ovens, the industrial fridge would become part of the new tapestry too. Harvey positioned himself one side of it, Linc took the other and, using the same trolley, they shifted it out of its comfy position. Linc got on with the cleaning – the tangle of cobwebs, plenty of dust, a good few marks on the walls to add to the many others left behind once cabinetry was torn from its position. Any holes or dents would need to be filled, walls would need to be smooth and clean, all in preparation for a spanking new kitchen.
