Chapter 7

SEVEN

Florrie was adding more copies of The Night Before Christmas to the display of children's festive books by the door. It was one of her favourite childhood Christmas stories. She had fond memories of her mum reading it to her at bedtime as they snuggled up together, Florrie delighting in the rich illustrations. She still had the book slotted safely in one of the bookcases in the attic at Samphire Cottage, keeping company with the many other treasured books from her childhood. All the same, she couldn't resist a quick flick through right now.

Leah, the bookshop's young assistant, was serving a customer at the counter, chatting away in her usual friendly manner. She reminded Florrie of herself at that age; a hint of shyness about her, her love of books shining through. In a recent conversation, Florrie and Ed had discussed showing their appreciation for the young girl's hard work and dedication by adding a generous bonus to her Christmas wages. Leah was an asset to the bookshop and fondly thought of by their customers.

Florrie checked her watch, her heart giving a little leap. There was just an hour to go before the "grand reveal". She caught Leah's eye, and they shared a smile that told of excitement and anticipation.

Just then, the bell above the door jangled merrily, a blast of chilly air rushing in. Florrie turned to see Maggie easing herself in and hurriedly closing the door behind her.

‘Ooh, it's lovely and toasty in here after being out there – it's bloomin' freezing. There's definitely snow on the way.' She gave a shiver before spotting her friend. ‘Now then, Florrie,' she said, smiling broadly as she waddled over to her.

‘Hi, Mags.' Florrie beamed at her. Maggie was a colourful sight in her berry-red boiled wool coat, stretched over her enormous baby bump, set off by a multi-coloured stripy scarf and lime-green velvet cloche pulled down over the dark waves of her hair. Her cheeks were flushed, and her nose was glowing red from the cold. ‘So, how's things?'

‘Good, thanks, despite being the size of a very large hippo.' Maggie patted her bump. ‘Not to mention being rushed off my feet with Christmas orders, not that I'm complaining. Mind, I haven't a clue what I'd have done without Jean – she's been a real star and her work is amazing. I just hope she doesn't get fed up of making bears when Baby Marsay here makes his or her appearance.' A cloud briefly crossed her face. Jean Davenport not only helped out at the bookshop, but she also worked for Maggie, assisting with her hand-crafted bears.

‘I'm sure that's not going to happen, Mags. Only the other day she was in here saying how much she loves it, and she enjoys working with you,' said Florrie, keen to allay her friend's concerns which she knew had been troubling her the closer she got to the baby's arrival. ‘I've never seen her looking so happy. What with Jack coming into her life, and her keeping busy here at the bookshop and up at Clifftop Cottage with you, it's all made a real, positive impact on her life. I thought she was never going to get over the loss of Mr H. Now she says she's glad she hasn't got time to dwell on it.'

‘Well, that's good to hear – seems we're helping each other out.' Maggie's expression brightened. ‘Anyroad, you haven't half got it looking wonderful in here.' She glanced around the shop, her eyes shining. ‘Ooh, and I love the garlands. Are they the ones you were telling me about, with the little books on them?' She went to take a closer look, her footsteps soft over the carpet. She gave a gasp of delight. ‘Oh, they're gorgeous .'

‘Thanks, we're really chuffed with them.' Florrie added the last book to the display and made her way over to her friend.

‘Oh, wow! That's the Christmas tree made of books you were telling me and the lasses about. It's adorable!'

‘Isn't it?' said Florrie, the smell of frosty air that clung to Maggie's clothes floating under her nose.

The bell above the door rang out again as another couple of customers arrived. Florrie glanced across to see mother and daughter Susie and Sophie Frampton who were regular faces at the bookshop. Both looked around, beaming broadly as they took in the decorations. Florrie greeted them with a warm smile. ‘Hello there.'

‘Hello,' Susie said cheerily. ‘Thought we'd get here early, take a look at the books before it gets too busy.'

‘Good plan. We've just taken delivery of Jenna Johnstone's latest book and it's selling like hot cakes. I know you're a fan of hers,' said Florrie.

‘Ooh, thanks for the tip off. I've been waiting for it to come in. Sophie's come to look for some book ideas for her Christmas list to Santa, haven't you, Soph?' she asked her six-year-old daughter.

Sophie, who was wearing a woolly hat with a huge pom-pom on the top, smiled shyly and nodded, setting the pom-pom bouncing.

‘My mum used to bring me here to do that, too, when I was little.' Florrie smiled kindly at Sophie. ‘I used to get very excited about it, especially Santa's grotto. And do you know what? I think his elves must've paid us a visit through the night because when Ed and I got here this morning, it was all set up at the back of the shop.'

The little girl's eyes grew wide. ‘Really?'

‘Yes. It's all sparkly and pretty. Would you like to take a peek?' Florrie asked.

‘Ooh, that would be lovely, wouldn't it, Soph?' Susie said.

‘Yes,' Sophie said with an adorable lisp, excitement dancing across her face as she slipped her mittened hand into her mum's. The gap in her wide smile revealed she'd had a recent visit from the tooth fairy. ‘Is Santa in the grotto?'

‘He's not here at the moment, but he sent us a message saying he'll be here on Fridays and Saturdays.'

‘We'll have to book a slot for that, Soph,' Susie said, before heading towards Santa's grotto.

‘So, flower, are you all set for "the great reveal"?' Maggie asked, making jazz hands.

‘Yep, everything's ready. This is the calm before the storm.' Florrie felt excitement flutter in her chest.

Maggie chuckled. ‘From what I can gather, it's generated a lot of interest. People were talking about it in the street just now. I can't wait to see what Ed's come up with this time, especially after that amazing autumn one – that was so cosy, got me feeling all snuggly. It's going to take some beating.'

‘He let me have a look at the display last night, and I can tell you it's absolutely gorgeous – I reckon it's the best yet.' A thrill rippled through her as the images filled her mind. ‘He's just adding the final Christmas decorations to the reading room. My mum and Jean are in there with him, setting out the nibbles.'

‘Great stuff. I had to come into town to catch the Post Office before it closed – I had a load of orders to send out. Bear dropped me off while he nipped to the decorators and said he'd meet me here. Thought I might as well pick up that book on Landies we were talking about while he's otherwise occupied.'

‘Ooh, good idea. It's in a bag under the counter. I'll get it for you once Leah's finished serving Mrs Bakeford.'

With Mrs Bakeford heading out of the shop with her purchases, Maggie made her way over to Leah who reached under the counter and retrieved the book. ‘There you go,' she said, handing it to Maggie.

‘Thanks, flower,' she said, waiting while Leah stamped her loyalty card and took payment.

‘Right, is there anything I can do while I'm waiting for Bear to land? Knowing what he's like, he could be a while in the DIY store.' Maggie rolled her eyes affectionately as she slipped the book into her roomy bag. ‘He seems to find such places fascinating.'

‘I can't think of anything right now, Mags, everything seems under control and, anyway, shouldn't you be taking things easy?' Florrie asked.

‘Pfft! Have you been talking to Bear? He's stuck on repeat at the moment, always telling me to sit down and put my feet up.' Maggie chuckled. ‘And I keep telling him I'm pregnant, not ill! Honestly, I'd get nothing done if it was up to him.'

It hadn't escaped Florrie and Ed's attention how Bear had been fussing around his wife like the proverbial mother hen, always checking she was okay, making her cups of tea and keeping her well-supplied with her favourite lemon sherbets that she'd developed an insatiable craving for. ‘Tell you what, it's been a while since we've had a cuppa. You could always stick the kettle on, if you like?' Florrie checked her watch. ‘And since it's not long before everything kicks off with the window reveal, you and Bear are welcome to hang around for that.'

‘Sounds good to me. I'll go and get that kettle on.' Maggie rubbed her hands together as if she meant business. ‘Tea okay for you, Leah?'

‘Perfect, thanks, Maggie. Milk and one sugar, please,' Leah said politely, flashing her a smile just as another customer arrived.

‘Ooh, I knew I had something to tell you,' said Leah, watching as the customer headed over to the Sci-Fi section, her smile suddenly exchanged for a frown.

‘Oh?' Florrie headed over to her, no clue as what it could be.

‘I don't want to worry you, especially today of all days,' Leah said, lowering her voice.

Her words immediately set alarm bells ringing in Florrie's ears. She had a feeling she wasn't going to like what she was about to hear. ‘But…'

Leah shot her an apologetic look. ‘That creepy guy, Dodgy Dick, has been sniffing around again. Don't worry, he didn't come inside.' She raised her hands on seeing Florrie's eyes widen with alarm. ‘It was earlier this morning. Wendy was with him. They'd parked up in front of the shop and he spent ages looking at all the other window displays while she strutted off somewhere, done up to the nines as usual. He was on his phone most of the time, sneering in that horrible way he has, but he kept glancing over at the bookshop. Mind, I made sure he knew I was watching him. He's so slimy .' Leah gave a shudder as if to emphasise the point. ‘I meant to tell you earlier but with us being so busy I haven't had a chance until now.'

What? No! The mere mention of Dodgy Dick was enough to set panic loose in Florrie's stomach. He was the local frontman for an out-of-town company whose practices were decidedly shady. His reputation had become so bad recently, some people had even started to refer to him as a gangster. And from the way he swanned around town in his top-of-the-range four- wheel drive, his glammed-up wife, Wendy, at his side, an ever-increasing air of intimidation about him, it was a role he seemed to relish. But what had got Florrie in such a spin was his involvement with Ed's parents when they'd been trying to get her and Ed to sell the bookshop. Dodgy Dick had been part of the reason Ed had hot-footed it out of town, with his relentless campaign to get his hands on the business. What had started off as pushy had become intimidating to the point of being sinister. Disappearing was the only way Ed could think of to get him and his parents to back off. The tactic had worked at the time, but Florrie felt her concern building as to the reason behind Dodgy Dick hanging around outside the bookshop today. Something told her he hadn't been simply killing time.

By Ed ignoring his father's calls and texts, had he unwittingly forced his parents to crank their plans up to the next level and involve Dodgy Dick once more? she wondered. She sincerely hoped not.

Florrie swallowed down the lump of concern that had risen up into her throat, conscious of her galloping heart rate. She mustered up a smile, adopting a breezy tone. ‘Thanks for letting me know, Leah. He was probably just killing time while he waited for Wendy. Unfortunately, his unsavoury manner has a habit of making us suspicious of every little thing he does, even going to buy a newspaper from what I've heard.' She gave a small laugh, hoping the young assistant hadn't picked up on her concern. ‘I wouldn't give it another thought. Mind, I think it's probably best you don't mention anything to Ed. I don't want the likes of Dodgy Dick to take the edge off all his hard work – he's been looking forward to this evening. It would be a shame for anything to spoil it.'

‘No probs.' Leah beamed at her, apparently convinced. ‘Dodgy Dick so isn't worth that.'

Though nausea had started swirling in Florrie's stomach at the implications of the unscrupulous businessman's interest, there was no way she was going to let what she'd just learnt spoil this evening. Mustering all her strength, she pushed Dodgy Dick and Ed's parents out of her mind with a hefty nudge and turned her thoughts to the magical window displays Ed had put so much effort into getting perfect. Nothing was going to detract from the event they'd been working so hard towards. They all deserved to enjoy it.