Page 66 of The Seaside Cocktail Campervan

They’d shared a brief, tender kiss in the hallway as he was about to go. And then that was it. No plans made to see each other through the week. No, ‘I’ll call you later.’ And that kiss had weirdly felt more like a goodbye than the start of a lovely new adventure for them both. Jack had seemed strangely sad as he left. Surely, the pair of them should be bouncing with excitement; they’d had such a brilliant night, after all. They should be all loved up and planning the next date. Argh, she needed to calm down, she was acting like Tigger, and it was no good for her mental state.

Lucy headed back in, closing the cottage door which she then leant back against with a sigh, wondering what really had just happened between them. Her heart was telling her one thing, but her head something else entirely.

Damn it, she couldn’t even get on the phone to friend Becky for some girlie advice. Her best mate would bloomin’ well kill her if she knew what she’d been up to last night, and more particularly, who with. It was the first sex she’d had in two whole years. And boy, how good had that making love with Jack been. It was the first time in a very long time that Lucy had opened up her heart and her home, and let someone in. She hoped to god she wasn’t going to regret it.

She gave Daisy a pat on her way back to the kitchen. ‘Well, Dais, what do you make of all that, then?’ She figured that the dog had about as much chance of working out what was going on with Jack Anderson, as she did.

With the day now stretching emptily ahead, and her heart feeling a little wobbly, Lucy knew she’d be better keeping busy. She made another coffee, then gave her mum a quick call, snapping up her offer of supper with her in Rothbury that evening. She also decided to call in at her brother’s house en route, and catch up with them all this afternoon; she definitely felt in need of a big hug with Freddie. That emotional conversation about Jack’s tragic brother was still fresh in her mind. She couldn’t imagine life without her sibling, and her gorgeous little nephew. In fact, yes, she’d bake a cake this morning to take along with her, they’d love that. The Italian Chocolate Cake came to mind. She’d check out the ingredients and see what she had in her pantry cupboard, then whizz to the village shop for anything else she might need.

Back in her kitchen a half-hour later, baking helped to take her mind off what had happened in the past twenty-four hours … though not quite enough. She could still almost feel Jack’s touch; her body a little achy from the night before in a tantalisingly sensual way. Once the cake was in the oven, and putting her misgivings aside, she fired off a text to Jack, thanking him again and saying what a lovely night that had been.

She headed off to her brother’s mid-afternoon, enjoying a pot of tea and slices of her home-made cake with the family. She sat outside with Olly and Alice, watching as toddler Freddie and Daisy the dog made laps of their grassy back garden; Freddie giggling all the while. For all Daisy’s diva antics, she was extremely tolerant with the little boy. It was like she knew he was small, different from the big humans somehow. It was a delight to see them ambling about, and it made them all smile.

Olly got up to join in the fun, taking out a small football for a gentle kickabout. Daisy barked at it first of all, then managed to nudge it with her nose, with Freddie giggling alongside. Lucy was so thankful for her brother, and for the wonderful relationship they had.

‘So, how’s it all going then, Lucy? Tell me all about the pizza van.’ The girls were sat together on a low wall, Alice turning to her with a smile. ‘Olly seemed to have had a great night when you went off to do the birthday bash. He said your pizzas were amazing and that you did brilliantly. I even heard him telling your dad about it on the phone.’

‘Ah, that’s good.’

Her dad had in fact phoned her since then and asked all about the business and how things were going. He was at least showing some interest in her new venture, though still not totally enamoured with her decision to leave a steady job. She did try and visit him and his partner, Jo, every few weeks, and once in a while they’d come up to see her at the cottage too. She still loved her dad dearly, and wanted to keep in touch, but everything had changed so much when he left her mum. That security, their family unit, broken. Yes, it was all many years ago now, and Lucy got along fine with his new partner and had tried to make the best of things. But in all honesty, life had never quite felt the same. Life seemed that little bit harsher since that fragile teenager had learnt about love and the breaking down of relationships the hard way.

‘And how are you all doing?’ Lucy pulled herself from her thoughts. ‘I bet little Freddie is keeping you busy as always.’

‘Definitely. He’s a bundle of energy right now … into everything. I have to admit I quite enjoy my two work days, when he goes off to nursery.’ She gave a grin. ‘Thank heavens he sleeps okay. Bed at 7 p.m. for him, and a large glass of wine for me.’

‘Hah, I don’t blame you.’

‘Aw, but look at him with Daisy there, sharing the ball. He’s a joy really,’ Alice conceded. ‘Wouldn’t be without him … both of them.’ She looked across the garden to where her boys were playing with a look of pride, of love.

It was lovely to see. It seemed very much that Olly and Alice had a good sound relationship, and that warmed Lucy’s soul.

She gave a silent sigh. Would she ever be able look at someone like that?

Chapter 35

Lucy checked her phone as she pulled up outside her mum’s just after 4 p.m., having gone straight on from her brother’s place. Oh, Jack had replied to her message this morning. Her hand trembled a little, and how daft was that, she told herself, as she read:

Yeah, I had a good time too. X

Well, it wasn’t the most romantic response, but … he’d obviously enjoyed himself. For all his charm and chat behind the bar, in real life he was obviously far more reserved. But maybe that was just the way he was, and maybe Lucy was just learning to see the man behind the mask. She sat for a few moments, clutching her mobile, but nothing else came through and she held back from pinging back a reply. She didn’t want to be the one left waiting again.

She stepped on out of the Jeep. It was good to be having a bit of family time this afternoon; Lucy found it grounded her. She’d made a second, smaller cake for her mum, and she’d stopped off at the local Co-op to pick up a bunch of cheerful pink roses. Flowers always brightened up a house, and sometimes, even though Sofia had several close friends in the village, and had lived on her own for many years now, Lucy sensed that her mum needed a bit of a pick-me-up now and again.

Sofia’s face beamed as she opened the door to her daughter. ‘Oh, how pretty! And cake too. Have you made that? My, I am being spoilt today. Thank you, pet.’

‘Well, it sounds like I’m getting spoilt too. Roast chicken for dinner, did I hear?’

‘Yes, well it’s always a bit of a faff to do a roast just for one, but now you’re here, it’ll be a joy to make it for us.’ Sofia grinned. ‘I’ll put the kettle on, shall I? And we can go and sit out the back a while.’

‘Now that sounds perfect.’

Her mother’s house was small, tidy and semi-detached, set halfway up the hill in the rural market town of Rothbury. The moorland landscape surrounding them was high and dramatic, rising nearby to the Simonside peaks, with the river below running through the valley at the centre of the town. Sofia’s little garden had a neat patio and a grassed area, with a few well-tended shrub borders. On a day like today, it was a little suntrap too.

Sat with tea and shortbread biscuits (they were keeping the cake for dessert, so as not to spoil their appetites), with a buzz of bees from the fragrant white-petalled rose bushes and tall hollyhocks beside them, Sofia was keen to find out how everything was going with the pizza horsebox business.

‘Well, it’s been going from strength to strength these past weeks,’ Lucy was delighted to announce.

Yes, her reputation was building, her online presence growing, and bookings were starting to come in more regularly. So, as well as her weekly Alnwick market slot, she generally had two other bookings to attend as well. All Fired Up was finally turning a profit, and she had received some great reviews. She was feeling much more confident in her own abilities. Seeing Jack at these events had been a bonus too, but … after last night, she wondered how that would now be. She’d just have to wait and see … and well, she felt her cheeks flush, Mum certainly didn’t need to know about that side of things.