AllFreeNovel
Share Us
‘Haha, yes you were.’ Leaning against the back counter next to Brooke, Diane held out her hand. ‘Come on, then. Let’s have a look.’
‘I thought you had a partner? Harrison?’
‘Harry. Yes, I do, but I can help you look. Come on, give me your phone for two minutes and I’ll find you a date.’
‘Here you go. This lot should keep us going through the lunchtime rush.’ The kitchen door swung shut behind Heidi as she walked towards the bakery counter, two trays packed full of cupcakes and cookies in her hands.
‘Great. Thanks.’ Diane took one of the trays and slid it beneath the glass counter. ‘I’m so glad you’re working here until your start your job at the council. I have a feeling the lunchtime rush will be even worse than the breakfast rush was.’
‘If it’s that bad, I might just stay at home tomorrow.’ Heidi laughed.
‘You wouldn’t. You wouldn’t leave your lovely friends in the lurch now the school holidays have started.’ Diane held her palm against her chest, a look of mock-shock on her face.
‘Umm, let me think... Nah, probably not.’ Heidi swapped the tray she was still holding with an empty tray.
‘Anyone for an iced latte?’ Teresa placed three tall glasses of iced latte on the counter.
‘Ooh, you’re a star. Thank you.’ Taking a glass, Diane gulped half of it down.
‘Thank you.’ Stepping forward, Brooke took one of the glasses and looked across at the coffee and cake area in the middle of the large bakery. Most of the tables filling the space between the bakery counter and the wedding counter which lined the far side of the bakery. Elsie had reintroduced Wendy and Molly to her before the bakery opened. She’d told her Wendy was the one responsible for decorating the gorgeous wedding cake on display whilst helping Molly with planning the weddings. She could see them talking a happy couple through the range of wedding cakes on display.
‘Hey, you never know in a few months that could be you and the date I choose for you.’ Diane gulped the rest of her latte down before placing the glass back on the counter and holding out her hand.
‘What’s this?’ Heidi looked across at Diane.
‘Brooke is going to let me find her a date from one of those dating apps she’s on.’
‘You’re brave for letting her do that.’ Heidi laughed.
‘I’m not going to.’ Brooke smiled as she heard the familiar chirp of a notification and pulled her mobile from her apron pocket.
‘Hey, what are you saying? I found Harry, didn’t I? So my tastes can’t be that bad. Unless you’re trying to say something?’ Diane grinned. ‘I may have to tell Harry this conversation.’
‘Haha, no, Harry’s lovely, but it’s one thing finding a date for yourself and quite another choosing someone else’s. Brooke might have completely different tastes to you.’ Heidi laughed.
‘It’s fine. I think I’ve got a date this evening, anyway.’ Brooke grinned as she typed a reply into her phone.
‘Seriously? You’ve been here for a day.’ Diane opened and closed her mouth.
‘Well, I couldn’t find my Mr Right back home in Birmingham. Maybe that’s because he’s been hiding down here.’ Brooke shrugged. She’d lost count of the number of dates she’d gone on in the past two years since splitting from her long-term ex. She didn’t even want to know. With most of them, she’d realised within the first few minutes that they hadn’t been right for her. They either had a completely different moral compass to her or it had become clear they weren’t interested in a serious relationship. No, when the local pubs had begun to get her ‘usual’ drink ready before she’d ordered and had begun offering her an alibi if she wanted an excuse to leave the date early, she’d realised that maybe she just wasn’t meant to find her soul mate in her local vicinity and being here could be the perfect chance to finally find him.
‘Fair enough. You never know, he may be hiding in the bay.’ Diane nodded.
‘This one, Benjamin, is from Trestow? Is it close?’
‘Yes, that’s the nearest town. Where are you going to meet him?’ Heidi stepped forward to serve a customer. ‘Remember to let one of us know all the details and to meet him in a public place. Don’t go anywhere alone with him.’
‘I won’t. He’s coming to pick me up from here anyway, and I think we’re just going for a walk along the beach.’
‘As Heidi says, make sure you stick to the busy places. They’ll still be a ton of tourists about at that time, so just don’t let him take you to the cove or anywhere quiet.’ Diane turned to serve another customer as a group of people walked through the door.
‘I will.’ Brooke slipped her phone back into her pocket and collected the empty latte glasses. She had a good feeling about this date. Benjamin would be her first date since her gran had passed away. She’d had three months to herself, and now she was ready to get back into the dating game. Benjamin’s messages had been lovely and although she’d only started speaking to him that morning, she was a firm believer that you needed to meet someone to see if there was a connection. There was no point in messaging for weeks and weeks before agreeing to meet. Benjamin obviously felt the same way or he wouldn’t have asked her to meet this evening.
Weaving her way between the customers, she took the empty glasses through to the kitchen and placed them in the dishwasher.
‘All okay out there, love?’ Elsie began scooping cake mixture into cupcake cases.
‘Yes. It’s just beginning to get busy again.’ Brooke closed the dishwasher door and straightened her back again.
