Page 26 of A Scottish Highland Surprise

A spark of hope flashed across her face. “Thank you so much, Ms Harkness. I really appreciate it. I’ll go straight home and do that now.”

“It’s Sophie,” I insisted. “And there’s no immediate rush.” But Cass Dunlop was already striding away from the shop, with an optimistic bounce in her step. She drew to a sudden halt and spun round in her silver trainers. “Oh, and I hope you come up with a name for your shop soon. We all need a cup of cheer now and again!”

I watched her march off again with renewed purpose, her red leather bag swinging off her shoulders. The emerging sun was glancing against shafts of burgundy in her hair.

Her parting words lodged themselves in my head. “We all need a cup of cheer now and again.” A cup of cheer… No, hang on… How about The Cup That Cheers? I conjured up an image of a lilac and white painted sign swinging in the breeze above the shop from a silver pole. The words “The Cup That Cheers” were dancing across it.

It was catchy, heart-lifting and memorable.

An excited smile broke out across my face. I liked it. I really liked it.

The decision was made. That was it. That would be the name of the shop.

I glanced down at my watch. Bloody hell! It was well after midday.

I picked up speed as I headed towards the bakers up on the corner to bring back lunch for me, Mum and Dad.

I had better not return empty-handed to The Cup That Cheers, I thought to myself with a lurch of excitement. The workers would require fuel!

Chapter Twelve

No sooner had I arrived back at The Cup That Cheers (each time I repeated the name in my head, I liked it more) with our sandwiches, than my phone let out its familiar ping.

It was an email from Cass Dunlop, not only attaching her CV and a reference from Mrs Cotter, but also another from a florist she worked with for two years on Glasgow’s south side.

I set the sandwiches down on the counter and smiled to myself. She was certainly keen.

As we sat in a semi-circle on folding chairs that Mum had insisted we bring with us, I relayed the name I’d decided on for the shop and explained it was inadvertently suggested by Cass Dunlop.

Mum dished out three takeaway cups of her tea from her chrome flask. “Oh, was that the young woman I saw you talking to? That’s such a cute name for this place.”

Dad took a passionate bite of his bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwich. “It’s very memorable as well. So do you think you might take this Cass on?”

I savoured the ripe Wensleydale cheese in my salad sandwich. “I haven’t had a chance to read her CV yet, but from first impressions she seems suitable and she has solid retail experience.”

“See?” beamed Dad with a dollop of satisfaction. “Things are starting to come together already.”

He shot Mum beside him a knowing look. “And now you’ve decided on a name for the shop, I’ll speak to Finn and he can have a word with that artist son of his about designing a sign for you.”

“Thanks, Dad. That would be great.”

He thrust one finger in the air. “Oh, and that mahogany desk you were refurbishing, love. I can collect it from your flat in the next day or two and bring it down here for you. That will be one less thing for you to worry about.”

“If you could, I’d really appreciate it. Thank you. “I took another bite of my lunch and chewed, as I surveyed the bare, clean surroundings of my new business. Maybe Dad’s philosophy about things happening for a reason had some substance after all.

I spent the rest of Monday making sure the interior of The Cup That Cheers was spotless for Ally and Finn to begin the decorating tomorrow morning.

And even though they already had strict instructions from me on what shade of paint to use and where, I had typed up a brief note, clarifying Lilac Heather for the walls and Scottish Mist for the ceiling, shelves and counter, with the colour scheme extending into the store room and what would be my office.

I folded it up and slid it into an envelope, marked for Ally and Finn’s attention. Dad watched me place it on top of the counter. “You are your mother’s daughter all right!”

I managed to contain myself until the next afternoon, before dropping by The Cup That Cheers to take a look at Ally and Finn’s progress.

I’d spent part of the morning reading Cass’s very impressive CV and the sparkling references supplied by Mrs Cotter and Flower Power, the other florist’s that had employed her for a couple of years. When I rang Mrs Cotter and the owner of Flower Power, a lady by the name of Flora Graham, they both enthused about Cass, extolling her reliability and her conscientious attitude.

That was good enough for me. I made up my mind to ring her and offer her a part-time position before the end of the day.

Then I would riffle through more catalogues, selecting what I considered suitable teapots and crockery sets to sell in the shop. I felt like a child on Christmas Eve waiting for Santa, once I’d ordered them online!