Chapter Five

E rin finished wiping the counter before straightening her back. Leaning down, she rubbed at her calves.

‘How have you found your first day?' Diane turned the door sign to Closed and leaned her elbows on the corner, looking at her.

‘I've really enjoyed it. Everyone seems really nice and welcoming.' She rolled her ankle. ‘It definitely wasn't my best idea to wear new sandals on a day I'd be on my feet all the time, though.'

‘Ha, no, I've made that mistake many times before, too.'

‘You've been caught breaking in high heels before a night out before, I believe.' Brooke laughed.

‘Oh, yes.' Diane grimaced. ‘Now that was painful.'

‘I bet.' Erin smiled. ‘Apart from that, though, I've really enjoyed today.'

‘That's good to hear. At least we've not scared you away.' Brooke picked up her handbag.

‘Imagine that, in the summer holidays, too. Now that would be painful for us two left.' Diane swapped her apron for her bag. ‘Wendy and Molly will be in tomorrow, so you'll get to meet hem too.'

‘Great.' Erin waved them out before locking the door behind them.

‘All okay in here, love?' Elsie pushed open the kitchen door, her apron half over her head as she took it off.

‘Yep, all good, I think.' Erin looked around the large bakery. Everything looked tidy and clean, as though it was in its place.

‘Perfect. Now, I'm off out to meet my husband, Ian. He's spent the day with Max, Brooke's partner, looking at cars, and I'm meeting them at the pub with Brooke. Why don't you come along and get some dinner with us?'

‘It's okay, thanks. I'm going to a restaurant called Baywater Delights, with a friend of mine who's recently moved down here.'

‘Oh lovely. Daisy and Ollie own Baywater Delights. It's a wonderful place. You have a friend in Penworth Bay?' Elsie folded her apron.

‘Yes, Tim Johnson. He moved down about three months ago now.' Three months and two days precisely.

‘Oh, Tim, Tim.' Elsie tapped the side of her head, thinking. ‘Yes, I know him. He's got his own roofing company, is that right?'

‘Yes, that's right.' Erin grinned. Tim would be happy to hear that the local residents of Penworth Bay knew his company.

‘Such a lovely lad. Really helped Wendy and Connor when they were having a spot of bother with their guttering a couple of weeks ago. The clip had slipped or something and Tim fixed it for them for free. He said it only took a few minutes, and he didn't feel right charging.'

Erin nodded. ‘That sounds like something Tim would do. He's got a heart of gold.'

‘If you find yourselves finishing early or anything, feel free to pop up. I think we'll be in the pub most of the evening chatting about cars before Max and Brooke make a decision, anyway. Tim's welcome too, obviously.' Elsie laid the folded-up apron on to the counter before turning to the door. ‘And enjoy your night, love.'

‘Thanks. You too.' Erin watched as Elsie let herself out before picking up her bag too. She just had one thing to do before she left.

Pulling her mobile from her bag, she scrolled through to her social media account and searched up Kyle's name, her shoulders slumping as soon as she got to his account. Still nothing. He hadn't put up any new posts since the day he'd told the virtual world that their relationship had ended. She closed the tab and tapped her mobile against her forehead. She knew she shouldn't care, but she just couldn't help herself. Something was wrong. He'd always been the one to tell the world what he'd been up to. From photographs of the food he was eating for dinner to tagging himself in various locations when he travelled for work, he'd always been on there.

And now, nothing? Was he still upset after the breakup? He didn't really have a reason to be. Not more than her, anyway. It had been Kyle who had ended things, Kyle who had out of the blue told her their marriage was no longer working and he didn't feel any number of therapy sessions would help recover the love they once felt for each other.

She knew he was alive, of course. And she'd seen him more than a handful of times at work when he'd visited the office she'd worked at and she hadn't been able to avoid him. Now that awkwardness would definitely be something she wouldn't miss when she moved to America.

She shrugged and slipped her phone back into her bag. It was none of her business. He may have just decided to take a sabbatical from social media. Maybe more people should follow in his footsteps. Perhaps she should.

She pulled open the bakery door before locking it behind her. Now, though, she was going to focus on Tim and the lifelong friendship which they were about to put on hold.

As she walked across the promenade towards the restaurant, Erin looked out across the sand. There were still groups of people enjoying the evening sun, swimmers and dog walkers included, but a serene atmosphere had replaced the earlier excitement of the day. She grinned as she felt her worries about Kyle disappear. She was here to enjoy and to look forward, not back.Besides, he might post something tomorrow, it being his birthday.

Looking back towards the restaurant, Erin squinted. Was that Tim, leaning on the low wall surrounding the car park? Yes, it was, but what was he holding? Flowers. As she got closer to him, he pushed himself from the wall and came to meet her. ‘Hi.'

‘Hey, Erin.' Pausing in front of her, he ran his fingers through his hair before holding out the single sunflower, its stem wrapped in pale blue tissue paper. ‘I saw this and thought of you.'

Taking the sunflower, Erin smiled as she touched the soft petals. ‘Thank you. I love it. Sunflowers are my all-time favourite flowers.'

‘I know.' He nodded towards the door. ‘Shall we?'

‘Yes, please. I'm starving and know exactly what I'm going to order already.'

‘The mac and cheese?' He pulled the door open, letting her through first.

‘Haha, absolutely.' Stepping into the restaurant, Erin paused as she looked around. In front of them, a bar stretched across the lefthand side of the wall, with tables and chairs filling the space opposite and large windows offering a view of the ocean. ‘It's beautiful in here.'

‘It is. I've only been a handful of times, but you can't beat it for the atmosphere, the views and the food.'

Erin nodded as they stopped in front of the bar, waiting to be seated. Who had he been with? From the looks of it, it was the perfect destination for a date night. Unless he'd started seeing someone new? Just as she turned to ask him, someone came forward holding two menus.

‘Hi, good evening. How are you, Tim?' The woman smiled as she looked towards Tim before looking back at Erin. ‘And you must be new around here, is that right? If so, welcome to Penworth Bay.'

‘That's right, I'm just volunteering at the bakery along the seafront for a few weeks.' Erin indicated behind her in the general direction of Elsie's bakery.

‘Oh, you are?' The woman grinned, her eyes sparkling in the softly lit room. ‘I used to volunteer at Elsie's, too. That's why I first came to the bay. I'm Daisy. It's so lovely to meet you and I should say welcome to Elsie's bakery family and to the bay in that case.'

‘The bakery family?' Erin shook her head. Was that what Daisy had said? ‘I'm Erin.'

‘Yes, the bakery family. That's what Elsie calls us all, her volunteers past and present. And their families too, of course.' Turning, Daisy waved towards a man carrying two plates from the back. ‘Hold on, I'll just introduce you to my husband, Ollie.'

After serving the plates to a couple sitting near the door, Ollie joined them. ‘Hello.'

‘Ollie, you know Tim, and this is Erin, who's volunteering at the bakery.' Daisy waved the menus towards Tim and then Erin.

‘Lovely to meet you, Erin, and good to see you again, Tim.' Ollie hugged Tim and patted him on the back before turning to Erin. ‘How's it going over at the bakery?'

‘I only got here this morning, but it's been super busy today.'

‘I can imagine. The bay attracts tons of tourists in the summer months, particularly in the summer holidays.' Ollie glanced back towards a door leading from the main area of the restaurant. ‘Talking of which, I should probably get back in the kitchen. Great to meet you though, Erin, and I'll see you both at the pub tomorrow?'

‘The pub?' Erin frowned. She wasn't sure why she'd be going to the pub.

‘Oh yes, the pub quiz! We have a bakery family team. It's always a fun night. I'm sure Diane and Brooke will tell you all about it tomorrow.' Daisy began leading the way towards a table by the window.

‘Sounds like a good night out.'

‘It is.' Daisy smiled as she passed them the menus. ‘I should probably get back to doing my job, but I'll come and get your orders in a mo.'