Chapter Seven

D iane dropped the coins into the till before turning to Erin. ‘You'll come then? It'll be a great night. It always is. Isn't it, Brooke?'

‘Yes, it sure is.' Brooke passed across a paper bag full of rolls to the customer in front of her.

‘And we win now. Sometimes.' Diane shrugged. ‘I mean, before, when there were only a few of us, we'd always lose. Literally always, but now we win at least fifty per cent of the time.'

‘Yes, I'll come. Daisy mentioned the pub quiz to me yesterday.' Erin turned back to her customer and slid a box of cupcakes across the counter. ‘Thank you. I hope you enjoy them.'

‘I'm sure I will. I just hope I can sleep better tonight and put the worrying to rest.' The woman slid her reading glasses onto the end of her nose and began rummaging in her purse, pulling out coin after coin.

‘Sorry to hear you've not been sleeping. I hope everything's okay.' Erin began sliding the coins off the counter and into the palm of her hand.

‘It is. Really it is. I just have a problem with some crows and the felt on the flat roof above my porch. I've always been afraid of birds, ever since being attacked by a swan as a small child.' The woman shook her head and chuckled to herself. ‘Of course, I know there's more than a little difference between a swan and a crow, but you know what fears are like. They play on your mind.'

‘That doesn't sound good. What have the crows done to your roof?' She began counting the coins into the till.

‘By the sounds of it, they're pulling up the felt. I don't know. It might be nothing and I'm not even sure if they're crows; they may well be rooks. Is it rooks or crows which fly in a group? I can never remember.'

‘I'm not sure.' Erin closed the till and looked up. ‘I do know a great roofer who I'm sure would happily come out and check your roof for you, though.'

‘You do?'

‘Yes. Hold on, I'll just scribble his number down.' She picked up a pen and a paper bag and scribbled Tim's number down before pausing and tapping the end of the pen against her chin. ‘Umm, I'm not sure whether he uses a different number for his business or not. Just tell him Erin gave you his number.'

Taking the paper bag with Tim's phone number on, the woman clasped Erin's hand. ‘Thank you, dear. I shall give him a call and hope for a good night's sleep.'

‘No problem. Take care.' Erin waved as her customer left before turning back to Diane.

‘Ooh, you went to Daisy and Ollie's restaurant?' Diane raised her eyebrows as she rearranged the bread baskets at the end of the counter.

‘I did, and it was lovely there. And the mac and cheese...' Erin licked her lips.

‘Oh yes, Ollie's mac and cheese is the best!' Diane looked over her shoulder. ‘So, er, who did you go to dinner with?'

‘Tim. He lives down here now and runs a roofing company.'

‘Ah yes, I know Tim.' Diane smiled a slow smile and winked at Brooke.

‘No, no, it's not like that.' Laughing, Erin held her hands up, palms forward. ‘We're just friends.'

‘Just friends who dine at Baywater Delights of an evening, the restaurant with the best view of the romantic sunset over the ocean.' Diane nodded slowly.

‘It's true! We've known each other for years. Since school.' Erin shook her head.

‘Uh-huh. We believe you, don't we Brooke?'

‘Honestly, it's true. Neither one of us feels anything more or anything less than a lifelong solid friendship.' Shaking her head, Erin grinned. Her and Tim? Together?

‘That's what they all say.' Diane glanced towards the door to the flat above as Ian walked through before looking back to Erin. ‘Here, Ian and Elsie are prime examples.'

Letting the door close behind him, Ian looked from Diane to Brooke to Erin and back again. ‘What are you teasing the poor girl about now?'

‘Me? Teasing?' Diane placed her hand over her chest dramatically. ‘Would I ever?'

‘I think the more appropriate question is, would you ever not?' Ian grinned, his eyes lighting up.

‘Thanks for taking my side, Ian.' Erin laughed. ‘I'm being accused of being in love with my best friend.'

Nodding slowly, Ian turned to her. ‘Ah, now in that case, I'm not sure I'm quite the impartial observer you might hope I am.'

‘What do you mean?' Erin picked up the tongs, ready to rearrange the quickly diminishing doughnuts.

‘That's how me and my Elsie began, as friends. And it took us a fair while to admit our true feelings to each other.'

‘See, it's not such a ludicrous idea.' Diane pointed the cloth at her before scrubbing at a smear of icing on the counter.

‘No, but me and Tim really are just friends.' Erin leaned down to rearrange the doughnuts.

‘As long as you're not wasting years of your life trying to tell yourselves something different, love.' Ian turned towards Brooke. ‘Now I'm off to look at another car with Max. He thinks it could be a strong contender. Why don't you come along? You'll be driving it too.'

‘Ah, I can't just leave. This is the lull before the lunchtime rush.' Brooke glanced around the bakery. Three tables in the coffee and cake area were taken and Wendy was talking to a couple at the wedding counter, showing them various cakes on display.

‘We'll be okay, won't we, Erin?' Diane indicated Erin.

‘Yes, I'm sure we will.' Nodding, Erin watched as a man with a baby strapped to him in a blue baby carrier walked through the door.

‘Come on, love. We can check with Elsie on the way out.' Ian picked up Brooke's handbag and held it out towards her.

Brooke looked at Diane and Erin. ‘I feel bad just abandoning you both, especially when we all know it'll get busy again soon.'

‘Don't be daft. We'd be doing lunch breaks soon anyway, so there'd only be two of us on.' Diane held up her hand, palm forward. ‘And before you start fretting about covering lunches, I'm sure Elsie would be happy to jump on.'

‘Yep, come on. You know she would.' Ian nodded to Diane and whispered his thanks. ‘Thanks.'

‘Okay, okay. I feel bad though, just have that on record.' Brooke slipped her apron over her head and hung it up.

‘Well, there really is no need. I can't remember the number of times you covered for me in the run up to my wedding.' Diane held her hand out for Brooke's apron.

‘Thanks.' Reluctantly passing across her apron, Brooke turned to Ian and took her handbag. ‘Come on then, Grampy, let's go and buy this car.'

AFTER WATCHING THEM disappear through to the kitchen, Erin glanced across at the man with the baby who had made his way towards the coffee and cake counter. ‘I hadn't realised that Brooke was Ian's granddaughter.'

‘Yes, they didn't find each other too long ago, though. Brooke's mum had been adopted, and Brooke only found out after she'd passed away. That's what brought her to Penworth Bay. She was looking for him.'

Having finished rearranging the doughnuts, Erin placed the tongs down. ‘Oh, that must have been a difficult time.' She couldn't imagine losing her mum and finding out her mum had been adopted and all at once too.

‘Yes, it was. For everyone involved as Ian hadn't realised he'd had a child in the first place and then to find out he was a dad and his daughter had passed away all at the same time.' Diane shook her head sadly. ‘It makes you realise you need to live in the moment, doesn't it?'

‘Yes, it does.' Erin glanced towards the door, unsure of what to say.

‘They've been a great support to each other through it all and Ian is so made up to be a granddad to her.' Diane smiled.

‘I bet.' Her own grandma had been her rock when first her dad had left and then her mum had passed away and when Erin had lost her too, it had been Tim who had picked up the pieces and put her back together, Tim who had been the one she could confide in about everything she was feeling. Erin frowned. She hadn't really thought about it at the time, she'd had too much occupying her mind, but now, looking back, it seemed odd Tim had been the one to get her through those dark times rather than her then-husband, Kyle.

‘You okay? You look miles away.' Diane touched her lightly on the forearm.

‘Sorry, I was.' Shaking herself from her thoughts, she smiled. ‘Anyway, let's talk about something nicer. When did you get married? I'm guessing it was fairly recently from what you said to Brooke, so congratulations.'

‘Thank you.' Diane wriggled her naked ring finger. ‘I don't dare wear my rings to work, knowing me they'd end up in a cupcake or something and the number of times I lost my engagement ring...' Diane laughed.

‘I don't blame you. I was always losing my rings at work.'

‘You're married?' Diane slapped her hand over her mouth. ‘And there was me teasing you about being in love with your best friend. I'm so sorry.'

‘Haha, don't be.' She automatically touched her finger, the indent of her wedding band still slightly visible a year later. ‘I'm not anymore. We split up last year.'

‘That must be tough. I'm sorry to hear that.'

‘Thanks, but it's okay.' Erin shoved her hands in the pocket of her apron. Anything to stop her from touching the empty ring finger. ‘It was difficult, but these things happen, and I've got to move on.'

Diane nodded; her face clouded with sympathy.

‘Besides, I have Tim. I really don't know how I would have got through everything without him.' She smiled. ‘He's always there for me.'

Diane raised her eyebrows.

‘Haha, not in that way, in a completely utterly friendship way.'

‘Fair enough. I won't bring it up again.' Diane pulled her fingers across her lips as if to zip them shut.

‘Thanks.' At least that idea had been put to bed. She and Tim? Nope, that wouldn't happen. Not in a million years.