The Cornish Cream Tea Bus

by Cressida McLaughlin

  ‘I do know that,’ Charlie said. ‘But it’s more complicated than just saying sorry. I know I was in the wrong, but I just … I don’t know if …’

  ‘All your “knows” and your “don’t knows”. Go and get it over with, lass. Then you can focus on the rest of your life.’

  The wind was whipping the sea into a frenzy when Charlie powered up the hill the following evening. It snatched at her hair and the hem of her cardigan and all but pushed her back down again. She hoped it wasn’t trying to tell her something.

  Myrtle was right. She had put off seeing Daniel for long enough. But it felt like some barrier had come down since the revelation about Lauren and she was scared of stepping forward into unknown territory. First there had been the fact that she had been unwaveringly irritated by him, and then there had been Oliver, and then the possibility that he’d closed her bus down and might have been lying to her all along.

  Now all that was left was Daniel – and the undeniable truth that she was hopelessly, overwhelmingly attracted to him. Of course, since she had wrongly accused him of trying to shut down her business, he might never want to speak to her again but, even if there was no chance for them, the least she could do was apologize.

  The evening sunlight glinted off the windscreens in the hotel car park, making everything seem polished and shiny. Charlie smoothed down her skirt, wished she had a compact with her to check the wind hadn’t made a Picasso of her carefully applied make-up, and headed towards the doors. She had left Marmite with Juliette, not wanting her cute companion to be a distraction.

  She stepped into the peaceful foyer and was met by a pretty, mousy-haired woman with a wide smile.

  ‘Welcome to The Crystal Waters Spa Hotel,’ she said. ‘How can I help you this evening?’

  Charlie was caught off guard by the new face. ‘I’m looking for Daniel Harper, if he’s around?’

  ‘One moment, please.’ She picked up her phone, dialled a number and spoke a few quiet words. Then she hung up and gave Charlie the full beam of her attention. ‘He’s in the restaurant, but he said he’ll be here in five minutes. Please take a seat.’ She gestured to the low sofa and Charlie did as she was instructed, resting her cake tin primly on her lap, her hands, palm down, on top of it. The lemon tarts had been a moment of inspiration – or desperation – but baking was what she was good at and she hoped Daniel would appreciate the gesture, even if he couldn’t forgive her.

  The time dragged on. The receptionist gave her a cheery smile. Then a slightly apologetic one, and then, after another five minutes had passed, she picked up the phone again. As she did, Charlie heard footsteps. They were soft, the sound dulled by the thick carpet, but she knew that they were his.

  ‘Oh!’ the receptionist said brightly as he appeared. ‘There you go.’

  Charlie shot to her feet, almost dropping her lemon tarts.

  Daniel’s lips twitched. ‘Charlie Quilter,’ he said. ‘What a pleasant surprise.’

  ‘Daniel, I …’ She swallowed. ‘I wanted to see you.’

  ‘And here I am. How can I help?’

  ‘Could we, maybe …’ she gestured in the vague direction of his office.

  A frown flickered across his face, there and then gone. ‘Sure,’ he said.

  She followed him across the wide expanse of reception, admiring the way his strong body fitted so snugly into his white shirt and black trousers, acutely aware that, if he was able to forgive her and was his usual, commanding self, then she was really in trouble.

  He led her into the neat office with the peace lily and the photo of Jasper and gestured for her to sit on the sofa. He pulled his desk chair round to face her, dropped into it and leaned forward, his elbows on his knees.

  ‘I am so sorry about Lauren,’ he said, before she’d had a chance to speak. ‘I can understand if you think I should have known about it, but I swear to you I didn’t.’

  This was not what she’d been expecting. ‘I didn’t think you should have known. How could you have?’

  ‘Because she was my colleague, my right-hand woman. She was tenacious, had a great work ethic, I just didn’t realize that—’

  ‘That she was in love with you?’ Charlie said softly.

  Daniel rubbed the back of his neck. ‘I didn’t think she would allow any personal feelings to override her professionalism. I never saw it coming.’

  ‘Well, if it makes you feel any better, neither did I.’ Charlie picked at a thread on the hem of her skirt. ‘Daniel, I’m here to apologize to you. I even made you some lemon tarts.’ She gestured to the box she’d put on the corner of his desk.

  ‘You’re bartering for my forgiveness with tarts?’

  ‘You loved them, that first meeting on my bus. They’re made with love and extra calories,’ she added, her cheeks flushing. ‘That’s what Hal used to say about my cooking. It never sounded ridiculous coming from him.’

  ‘Made with love?’ Daniel echoed.

  ‘I should never have accused you,’ Charlie said hurriedly. ‘But it was the day Josie appeared, Oliver made it seem like you were—’

  He put his hand over hers. ‘You don’t need to explain. It’s not as if I haven’t rubbed you up the wrong way occasionally.’ His grin cut through his solemn expression. ‘Though if it hadn’t mentioned Crystal Waters anywhere on that notice, I would have been pretty pissed off if you’d come to the same conclusion.’

  ‘I wouldn’t have.’ She moved her hand back, so she could lace her fingers through his.

  ‘You promise?’ His voice was suddenly rough.

  ‘Promise,’ she whispered.

  ‘You think it might be time for us to stop this, now?’

  ‘Stop what?’

  ‘This. Confrontation. Winding each other up.’

  ‘When, Daniel, have I ever wound you up?’ She gave him a withering look, and he laughed.

  ‘So you agree?’

  ‘I agree that there are better things we could be doing with our time together.’

  ‘Oh?’ he asked. ‘What are those?’

  Still holding his hand, she tugged gently, and he took the hint and joined her on the sofa. It was only a narrow two-seater, so his knee was pressed against hers. The top button of his shirt was open and she could see the dark definition of his collarbone, the hollow at the base of his throat.

  ‘We could start with this.’ She slid her hand into his hair, pulled him towards her and kissed him. He hesitated, frozen for a second, then he responded, his lips moving against hers. He wrapped his arm around her waist and drew her closer, until her chest was pressed against his. Charlie let the kiss take over, let his touch and his taste overwhelm her. He tasted sweet: sweeter than her clotted cream, sexier than her dark chocolate ganache.

  ‘That,’ he said, when they eventually broke apart, ‘was a surprise. I had hoped, but never thought—’

  ‘You thought that I had too much sense to ever be truly attracted to you?’

  ‘No, I knew you were attracted to me, I just never pictured you seducing me like this, in my office, of all places. Don’t you have any professional boundaries?’

  ‘I do when it comes to my bus, but Crystal Waters? Not so much.’

  Daniel laughed softly. ‘I suppose that’s fair, considering I was the first one to set a bad example.’

  ‘Exactly. Imagine if any of the guests had found you luxuriating in your own hot tub?’

  ‘Want to go back there?’ He brushed a strand of hair out of her eyes and pressed a kiss to the side of her mouth.

  ‘Could we guarantee being alone?’

  He shook his head.

  ‘Then, no. Not as our … next team meeting.’ She smiled.

  ‘What are you thinking?’

  She took his hand again, rubbing her thumb over his palm. ‘I’m thinking your place, Monday night, after this three-day event. When my head is entirely empty of gingerbread cookie designs and fondant recipes.’

  ‘Monday night?’ He couldn’t hide his disappointme
nt and it was Charlie’s turn to laugh.

  ‘I have one full day left to prepare and I want to be able to focus on you,’ she said. ‘On us. I want The Cornish Cream Tea Bus to be at the back of my mind for once and, as utterly desirable as you are, I can’t guarantee that until after the weekend. Do you want to share me with Gertie, or have me all to yourself?’

  ‘As much as I would rather keep you here, and make use of every inch of this sofa, I think I can wait until Monday night. I’ll drive back from Sussex as quickly as I can.’

  ‘You’re not going to be at the market?’

  Daniel shook his head. ‘It’s my mum’s birthday. One thing I can’t rearrange or send my apologies to. But I will be back to see you on Monday, and I hope I’ve made up for my absence in my own small way.’

  Charlie frowned, but Daniel just grinned, stood up and pulled her to her feet. ‘You’d better get going,’ he said, ‘before my last thread of willpower snaps.’ He left her with a long, lingering kiss and then, when Charlie was feeling a little flustered, and a lot annoyed with herself for not giving in to his suggestion about the sofa, he led her out of the office and back into the foyer.

  ‘Oh Daniel,’ the perky receptionist said, ‘Mr and Mrs Hathaway have got a hot tub session in half an hour, and the previous user said one of the jets wasn’t working. Could you take a look?’

  ‘Of course.’ He turned to Charlie, looking entirely composed, only the slight ruffle of his hair where she’d mussed it up giving anything away. ‘I trust I’ve left everything to your satisfaction?’

  ‘Almost,’ she said, smiling. ‘But I think I’ll feel a lot better after our next meeting.’

  ‘I agree. We should be able to tie up those loose ends next time round. I’d better get going, but,’ his voice softened, and he squeezed her arm, ‘I’ll see you soon?’

  ‘You will,’ she said. ‘Monday night.’

  He began walking away, then turned back to her, stopping on the shimmering gold design in the floor. ‘And good luck this weekend. Not that you need it, but you know you will always have my full support.’

  She did know, and now, Charlie realized, as she stepped out into the last of the day’s sunshine, she had so much more than that, too. For once, she couldn’t wait for her food market to be over, because there was something even more tempting waiting for her on the other side.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  The day before the bank holiday extravaganza was Charlie’s birthday. It was a fact only Juliette and Lawrence knew, and Charlie had thought she had got away with it and would be able to spend her time in Juliette’s kitchen, baking everything she needed for Saturday, thinking dreamily about seeing Daniel again. She was wrong.

  Juliette bounced into the kitchen, wished her a happy birthday and told her she was booked for two hours over lunch. Charlie protested, but her friend promised to help her with whatever baking she needed to do when they got back and told her she wasn’t allowed to spend the whole day working.

  Which was how she found herself on board Gertie, a blackboard outside announcing it was ‘Closed for a Private Party,’ with Amanda, Flora, Jem and Jonah, Reenie, Juliette and Lawrence, and a whole load of food that she hadn’t made

  There were prawn and mayonnaise sandwiches from Amanda; Jonah and Flora had made some rather wonky but delicious cheese scones, and some less wonky chocolate-chip cookies, and there was even a Victoria sponge from Reenie. Charlie was beyond touched, a couple of tears threatening to spill out when she’d been pushed to the top deck and they’d all shouted ‘surprise!’

  The only thing that could have made it better would have been Daniel, but she was holding their rather successful reunion close to her chest, at least until after Monday. Her feelings for him were blooming, but it was a private bloom, a secret garden she wasn’t yet ready to share.

  ‘Are you rethinking tomorrow?’ Reenie asked as Charlie took a bite of prawn sandwich and murmured appreciatively. ‘Bet you’re worried your stuff isn’t up to scratch, now.’

  Amanda chuckled. ‘As much as I love my children, I don’t think Charlie has anything to worry about.’

  ‘That’s only because I’ve been spending most of my time working on the burger recipe with Benji,’ Jonah said. ‘These were knocked up in half an hour.’

  ‘Half an hour,’ Flora chimed, mimicking his superior tone.

  Everybody laughed.

  ‘All the plans are coming together, then,’ Amanda said. ‘Food for this place, obviously, will be perfect – there are more food trucks than ever before – and SeaKing Safaris has got a full schedule of pre-booked tours.’

  ‘I’m going to skipper one of them,’ Jonah said proudly.

  Amanda sighed. ‘No you’re not, Jonah. We’ve talked about this. You’re not old enough, and if you did, our insurance would be invalid. One day, of course. I know you’re more than capable, but it just isn’t possible.’

  Jonah folded his arms. ‘I could do it in my sleep.’

  ‘Something I suggest you don’t try,’ said his mum, ruffling his hair. ‘You’re still my boy, Jonah. Don’t get ahead of yourself. There’s plenty of time to be an adult and, believe me, you’ll wish you hadn’t raced to get there when you realize how tough it can be.’

  A contemplative silence fell over the group and Charlie felt the mood drop like a stone in a pond. ‘Aren’t you with Benji in the burger stand, anyway?’ she asked.

  ‘I’m doing both. Organizing the queues for the boat trips and helping Benji with the burgers when I’m free.’ Jonah nodded, his young face cast in steely determination.

  ‘A very confident young man,’ Reenie said affectionately. ‘You’ve got a touch of Daniel Harper about you, did you know that?’

  Amanda laughed. ‘I hope you mean that as a compliment!’

  ‘Oh, I do,’ Reenie said. ‘Most definitely. Keep the cheek to a minimum, Jonah, and you’ll have all the good parts and none of the flaws.’

  ‘I did invite him today,’ Juliette said, glancing at Charlie. ‘But apparently he’s away for the weekend. He might not come to the food market at all.’

  ‘I don’t suppose he needs to.’ Amanda shrugged. ‘He’s been promoting it on the hotel pages and I’m sure some of his guests will turn up. Though it is a bit of a shame the whole village won’t be there.’

  ‘Does anyone want another drink?’ Charlie asked, unsure she could hold her poker face while they were talking about Daniel.

  She took orders and went downstairs, made fresh cups of tea and coffees, and Amanda’s usual sugary latte. She got most of the drinks on a single tray and edged back up the staircase as carefully as she could. She could hear Reenie commanding the attention of everyone else on the bus.

  ‘The council couldn’t afford to resurface the car park and replace all the streetlights. They probably have that sort of budget for the whole of North Cornwall, never mind a single village.’

  ‘And why do it for a bank holiday food market, anyway?’ Amanda added. ‘It’s only three days.’

  ‘What they should have been focusing on,’ Lawrence cut in, ‘if they were going to do anything for this weekend, was Crumbling Cliff.’

  ‘Oh yes,’ Amanda said. ‘I heard about Charlie almost getting stuck. It sounds awfully scary.’

  ‘And we don’t want any visitors to have the same – or a worse – fate,’ Juliette added. ‘If they don’t know about the dangers, what’s to prevent them stopping to look out at the view like she did?’

  Charlie slid up the final steps and put the tray on the table. ‘I was an idiot. I wasn’t thinking clearly about where I was, or what the dangers might be. But I did phone the council a couple of days ago. They admitted they hadn’t followed up on Daniel’s original enquiry and they couldn’t promise anyone would come out to look at it before the weekend, and it’s too late now. But didn’t you get some cones and tape to rope off that part of the cliff, Lawrence? We just need to stop people being careless when they drive around the bend.’

&nbs
p; ‘I’ve got a load of stuff from work, and Martin, my boss, is coming round later this afternoon to help me put it up,’ Lawrence said. ‘It’s not as good as something permanent, but it should hold for three days. You know, I never knew running an event like this involved such a humungous bloody to-do list. I just put the tents up.’ He grinned, and Juliette rubbed his arm.

  Charlie felt a swell of love for her friends, for their kindness over the summer, and for Juliette’s insistence, all those months ago, that she come and visit them. She watched as Reenie meticulously cut a cookie into quarters, and Jem stuck her hand in the butter, then brought it forcefully to her face. Jonah was scribbling something in his notebook, his brow furrowed, tongue protruding.

  ‘I’ve left my drink in the kitchen,’ she murmured, but nobody seemed to notice as she slipped back down the stairs.

  She leaned against the counter and looked at the text she’d received from her mum an hour ago, a follow-up to the phone call they’d had early that morning. She’d been walking Marmite along the blustery beach when her mum had called her to wish her a happy birthday.

  ‘Your dad’s doing a lot better now,’ she’d said, once Charlie had told her about her birthday plans – or what she’d believed them to be at the time. ‘Your success with Gertie has really perked him up. We went to the summer fair last weekend, you know, down on the field, and people in a couple of the other foodie places were singing your praises about these markets and whatnot.’

  ‘That’s great, Mum. I’m so pleased to hear about Dad.’

  ‘And you, darling. Be pleased with yourself, too. What you’ve achieved is no small thing, and your dad and I can’t wait to visit. Which leads me on to my next point.’

  ‘Oh yes?’

  ‘Bea Fishington and The Café on the Hill. It’s decision time, Charlie. She’s expecting you back in the next couple of weeks.’ Charlie’s heart had plummeted at her mother’s words, and she had chatted on without really listening, while around her the waves crashed and the wind whipped strands of seaweed across the sand. She’d ended the phone call with her mum’s words echoing in her head.