‘Glad you came?’
‘I am, to be honest. Although I won’t have too many or my head will hurt when my alarm gives me the rude awakening in the morning.’
‘Yeah, I’ve been witness to your fury – those poor loaves and bread rolls, not to mention the cupcakes, if they’re on the receiving end of your temper.’
She gave him a playful shove on the arm. ‘I wasn’t that bad. OK, I was a bit, but I apologised. Both times.’
‘Early mornings must be hard in the winter.’
‘They are, believe me – it’s pitch-black leaving the cottage and for a good few hours after that, and then when it gets really cold and icy it’s difficult to motivate myself to climb out from beneath my duvet. The festive recipes keep us going, though, and Etna brings round the odd hot chocolate or coffee to keep our spirits up. You’ll have to come back to the Cove and see The Street all lit up for Christmas.’
‘Unless I stay…’ She’d been hoping he’d say that but did her best not to look too happy. ‘I’m talking with Mrs Wideman tomorrow, or should I say I’m having an interview? I’m not sure. All I know is we’re meeting at the waffle shack so it can’t be too formal.’
‘It does sound rather laid back going to the waffle shack. Perhaps you could win her over with Daniel’s menu, there’s plenty to choose from.’
‘I know, he’s forever offering me something on the house. I’ll be enormous if I keep taking him up on it.’
Not from where she was standing; he looked as fit as the day he’d arrived. ‘You could, alternatively, play her a song on the guitar. Perhaps that could form part of the interview.’
‘I like the way you think.’
‘You’re brave to play here.’ She looked around at the crowds, the vast audience. ‘It doesn’t bother you?’
‘Not at all. I’m more nervous playing to a bunch of disinterested teens than I am to a crowd of people influenced by the evils of alcohol,’ he said with a raise of eyebrows that almost met the floppy hair across his forehead. ‘I was happy to play when Terry overheard me talking about the guitar the other day. He and Kenneth were in the tea rooms and Etna suggested some live music at the pub and volunteered my services.’
Jade laughed. ‘She doesn’t want to let you go, that’s why. She’s doing all she can to keep you here with us.’ The wordushovered in the air between them and mingled with the thick, sweet scent that wafted in the breeze from the tall orange honeysuckle bush.
‘Kenneth is in the tea rooms a lot,’ Jade remarked.
‘They’re definitely keen on each other,’ he agreed. ‘Question is, who will make the first move?’
She had the feeling he might be hinting at each of them rather than his auntie and the local. ‘It’s good to see her so happy,’ she said instead of trying to read a deeper meaning. ‘And whatever else happens, they’ve got a good friendship. It’s not nice to be lonely; I’m glad she has company.’
‘Me too. And I think company is the reason she was so ready for me to come and stay, and now Dad. She might love the business but she knows there are other things just as important.’
‘Talking of work, tell me, what do you enjoy about your job the most?’
‘Is this practice for my interview?’ When she pulled a face he said, ‘I love it when I find kids who are passionate about music.’
She sipped the cool, crisp, spritzy wine. ‘And what happens with the ones who aren’t?’
‘Sometimes their heads can be turned.’ He outlined some of the extra-curricular things he’d done in the past, the personal touches he added to his lessons. ‘I haven’t been able to do that so much without a permanent position.’
‘And that’s why you’re interested in the one here?’
‘It feels like the right time. But still, even with a permanent position, I need to be careful not to overstep and be too pushy, but keeping kids interested is half the battle in my job.’
‘I’m sure it is. We have quite a few parents in at the bakery after the school run and you hear a lot, working behind the counter.’
‘Believe me, I know. I heard a lot – some of which I’d rather I hadn’t – working in the tea rooms.’
‘Like what?’
He came closer to ensure nobody heard but her and when he whispered in her ear, he was so close she could feel his breath in the place just below her earlobe, tickling and making her shiver as he told her he’d heard two mothers having a conversation about getting Botox and one of them floating the idea of a boob job.
‘At least it added an element of fun to your day,’ she suggested.
He swigged his beer. ‘Definitely. And I heard another guy tell his mate how much it hurt to have a back, sack and crack wax.’
