Page 99 of The Village Shop for Lonely Hearts

‘I agree,’ said Tom, putting his fork down with a look of disgust on his face as he stared at his half-eaten food. ‘Let me know where I can find some and I’ll be right there.’

‘I suppose we could always buy some ready meals and just nuke them in the microwave,’ said Mike.

‘Sounds delicious,’ drawled Tom, rolling his eyes. ‘And there was me thinking that home-made should be just that.’

Josh listened into the conversation, barely taking it in, but he did wonder whether it was worth pursuing some more ready meals in the shop. Amber had mentioned tired commuters a while ago. Was there a market there? But the trouble was that it might not make any difference anyway.

‘You OK?’ asked Tom, looking across at him.

Josh sighed. ‘Decent food or not, it still doesn’t get the punters past the door.’

‘And they’re all heading the other way now that the road to town is open again,’ said Tom, guessing the truth.

Josh nodded. ‘Exactly. Everybody will head back to the supermarket and that’s that. And there’s no chance of passing trade where we are.’

Tom nodded thoughtfully but remained silent.

On the next bar stool along, Dodgy Del gave a start. ‘You know what, there might be something in that. Leave it with me.’

Josh and Tom looked at each other before exchanging a shrug of shoulders. Josh had no idea what Del was talking about, but it was unlikely to make a difference.

He said as much on the phone to his brother when they spoke later in the week.

‘Look, you’ve done your best,’ said Pete. ‘You’ve taken care of Mum and the shop for the last couple of years. But isn’t it time to take care of you now?’

‘Have you been reading Mum’sCosmopolitanagain?’ drawled Josh.

‘Ha ha. Very funny,’ said his brother. ‘Look, Mum was talking when she was over here. She’s quite happy to let the shop go now.’

Josh gulped. ‘She is?’

‘I think you’ll be surprised when she comes back from New Zealand. She doesn’t want to be tied to it any more. It was a big thing for her to come abroad and the break has done her good. She’s got plans for the future and they don’t include running the shop any more.’

‘But it was always Dad’s dream too,’ Josh told him.

‘Yeah. Exactly,’ said Pete. ‘Dad’s dream, not yours, mine or Mum’s.’ He paused. ‘Look, think about it. You could get a visa and come out to join me. You’ll get a job with no problems. Especially with your sales skills. You can stay with me for a while until you get on your feet.’

Josh frowned. ‘Sounds as if you’ve thought it all through.’

‘I’ve talked about it with Mum, like I said. She knows you haven’t been that happy either. There’s no shame in saying that it didn’t work. Dad wouldn’t want you to waste your life in Cranbridge.’

But as he got off the phone to his brother, Josh was filled with doubt. No, he was certain his dad wouldn’t want him to be unhappy. But he wasn’t as miserable as he used to be. He was beginning to feel at home in the village with his friends. The shop was struggling financially, but there was hope these days that perhaps their fortunes were changing. The shop looked great. He had finally found his foothold as to what type of business he wanted to run.

And then there was Amber.

But she was thinking of leaving soon. So, maybe he should do the same.

41

One morning, Amber had just placed the latest delivery of potatoes into the appropriate crate next to the tractor, when the bell above the door rang.

She looked up as a lady came in with a large box. ‘Hello,’ she said to Amber. ‘I’m not sure if you remember me.’

‘You’re Lesley,’ said Amber, thinking fast. ‘You donated all those lovely cakes just after the storm.’

‘That’s right,’ said Lesley, smiling. ‘What a good memory! Look, I hope you don’t think this is cheeky, but I’ve made some more. They were supposed to be for a massive party that’s been called off and now I’m stuck with them all. There’s lemon drizzle, Victoria sponge and cherry cake. All home-made. I’d hate to see them go to waste, so I wondered if you wanted to try and sell them in your shop? With a cut of the profit for you, of course.’

Amber looked across to Josh, who came over and carried on the conversation with Lesley. They agreed the commission on each cake whilst Amber displayed them by the counter. Then they priced each cake up accordingly and waited to see if they would sell.