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‘Okay.’ Brooke pulled the door open and paused. Chairs were spread out around the perimeter of the hall, and a long table—presumably where the children would eat their party food—stood proudly at one end, party hats and party blowers sitting at each place. At the other end of the hall, a bouncy castle shaped as a castle took pride of place, children raced around the hall in front of speakers blasting out party music and bounced on and off the bouncy castle. She looked around, trying to spot Wendy and Hudson.
‘There they are. By that table with the birthday cake on.’ Max pointed opposite them.
Taking his hand, Brooke led the way towards them, weaving around clusters of toddlers spinning to the music or holding hands and dancing. ‘Hi, Wendy. Happy birthday, Hudson.’ Brooke held out the present.
‘Aw, thank you. What do you say, Hudson?’ Wendy ruffled his hair.
‘Thank you.’ Taking the present, Hudson ripped the paper to reveal the set of dinosaur figures Max had helped Brooke choose.
‘You’re very welcome. I hope you like them.’ Grinning, Brooke watched as he ran across to his friends, holding the dinosaur set in front of him.
‘Thank you. He loves dinosaurs. Elsie told me about you staying on at the bakery?’
‘Yes, she’s offered me a job for the summer.’
‘That’s brilliant news. Welcome aboard.’ Wendy hugged her.
‘Thanks. It’s such a relief. And to be perfectly honest, I’ve never had a job that I actually enjoy before so I couldn’t have wished for anything more.’
‘I get that. Working at the bakery is a bit like being paid to hang out with friends.’ Laughing, Wendy turned to Max. ‘Thank you for coming.’
Stepping forward, Max hugged her, too. ‘Thank you for inviting me.’
‘I’d better go and start getting the party food out. Although I’m sure Elsie and Ian have it all under control, I want them to actually sit down and enjoy themselves, too.’ Wendy laughed.
‘Do you need a hand?’
‘No, don’t worry. There’s not much to do. Thank you though. Go and enjoy yourself. Just watch Harry for me, will you? He’s itching to get on that bouncy castle and I’ve told him he needs to wait until the kids are eating.’
Max chuckled. ‘That sounds like classic Harry.’
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‘THANKS FOR THIS.’ CONNORjoined Brooke in the kitchen. ‘I hear you’re becoming one of the permanent bakery lot?’
‘Yes. Just for the summer, but I’m really pleased.’ Brooke poured orange squash into small plastic cups while Connor placed them on a tray.
‘That’s great news. Wendy loves working there, so I’m sure you will.’ Connor rolled his eyes. ‘I know you’re working there now too as a volunteer, but you know what I mean.’
‘Yes, I do. I used to work for a hotel chain where my boss was someone to avoid big time, so the bakery is just completely different from anywhere I’ve worked before. As Wendy said, it doesn’t really feel like a job, more of an excuse to spend time with friends. And Elsie is so great.’
‘She really is. I’m so pleased she and Ian, my uncle, finally got together. It’s nice to see good people find their happiness with each other.’
‘Oh, what do you mean, finally?’ Brooke diluted more squash in the jug before filling the cups again.
‘They fell in love with each other years ago. And I mean decades ago. I used to visit the bay to stay with Ian quite a bit when I was a kid and even to me it was obvious the feelings they had towards each other were more than friendship but neither one wanted to admit it for fear of ruining what they had together.’
‘Oh, that’s a real shame.’
‘It is. Now, we’ve just got to get them down the aisle.’ Connor laughed.
‘I thought they were engaged?’
‘They are, but being as it’s taken them decades to go on their first date, I dread to think how long it will take them to actually get married if they’re left to their own devices.’
Brooke laughed. ‘You’ll have to keep dropping it into conversation.’
‘Oh, we do. They’ve been talking about it a bit more, so hopefully...’ Connor crossed his fingers. ‘And hopefully, now you’ve taken on the bakery job over the summer, it might just give Elsie a bit more free time to think about weddings.’
