by Nicola May
‘How exciting! Show me a pic of your dress. And don’t be silly, I can buy my own outfit.’
At that moment, Theo launched his bottle again and started to wail, causing Hot to wake up and dart from his bed in the corner and start barking.
‘Here we go again,’ Titch grumbled. ‘I’d better take him home and feed him properly. Hot – shut it! I’ll send you the link to the dress, Rose. Oh, and I’ve put your post on the stairs.’
‘Don’t forget, you’ll soon be having one of these too,’ Rosa reminded her friend, picking her noisy dachshund up from the floor to quieten him. He immediately began licking her face.
‘Hmm. “Too” and “soon” being the operative words.’ Titch bit her lip. ‘I need to speak to Jacob, as I think I may have been a bit rash in my decision. A ten-month-old, a tiny new puppy and a wedding to plan might be just a wee bit too much all at once. OK, must go. See you, Rose.’ And Titch made her way out onto the street, now bright with sunshine and teeming with tourists.
As soon as Rosa put Hot back down, he started to jump up at her legs, whining for more cuddles. ‘Hush now,’ she told him. ‘If it’s like father, like son, I don’t think I could cope with two of you either.’
Josh was now calling down the stairs to her. She stroked Hot’s snout and put a Back in 20 minutes sign on the shop door. ‘Come on, let’s go upstairs and see what your daddy wants.’
As Hot tore up the steep staircase ahead of her, Rosa glanced down at the post in her hands. A bright pink Jiffy bag stood out, with Rosa’s name and address written on it in an untidy scrawl. She hadn’t remembered ordering anything online. Intrigued, she ripped it open right away. Inside she found a one-page letter written on lined paper torn out of a notepad, and attached to a brown hard-backed envelope. The note read:
Dear Rosa
We wanted to see you before we left for London, me and Alfie, that is. But our train tickets were for a set time and I couldn’t afford to change them. We ended up climbing over the fallen tree and walking all the way to the station. Look at me talking about money, when what you did for me was priceless. I’m the sole carer of Alfie, see. His dad, my son, is away at the moment and his mum – well, she ain’t around any more neither. I love both my boys to the moon and back. I didn’t know what to get you. I mean, what is the price of a life? Alec gave me your details and I was just going to call you, but I felt words weren’t enough for what you did, so I saw this and had to get it for you. I’m hoping to work some extra shifts so that we can come back down as we’d love to meet you properly.
May the brightest star always shine down on you and bring you happiness.
Yours gratefully,
Tina and Alfie Green
As Rosa stood, taking this in, Josh shouted downstairs: ‘You coming up to see me, wifey, or not? I’ve got something to show you.’
‘Ooh, promises! One sec.’ Rosa opened the brown envelope and felt emotional as she looked down at the celestial certificate in her hand. Tina Green had named a star after her and called it ROSA’S STAR. An inscription underneath simply said:
You didn’t just save Alfie’s life, you saved mine too x
CHAPTER 8
‘Here, let me read it.’ An agitated Rosa grabbed for the newspaper which Josh was now teasingly holding high above her pretty head. Hot was running around them excitedly on the landing, barking so incessantly that they didn’t hear Titch coming back in downstairs to retrieve the bag of shopping she had forgotten to get out of the fridge.
The couple went into the lounge and sat down on the sofa. Josh was busy quickly reading to the end of the article before handing it over. ‘Wait a minute!’ he exclaimed, a frown appearing on his face.
‘What’s up?’
Josh handed the local newspaper to Rosa. ‘What would you want to say that for? We’re not even sure what we are doing yet.’
Rosa read the headline aloud: ‘“Brave Cockleberry Bay Resident Plans to Give Her Corner Shop Away for Free”! What the hell? I didn’t say that, I swear. And that photo – my dress looks so short!’ One of the two shots was of her reaching up to tie an inflatable to the pole outside; a little bit of her knickers was on show. The other one was taken outside the café, close to the beach wall, showing where she had jumped in to save Alfie. ‘Little shit!’ she said angrily.
‘Who?’
‘Oh, Scott Wilde, the reporter. He’s not only mangled my words, he’s taken that photo without me even knowing. I look a right slut.’ The more she read down the article, the more incensed she became. ‘Stupidly, I trusted him, thought he was OK, not like the others. I should have known better.’
‘Don’t let it get to you.’ Josh sat next to Rosa on the sofa, pushed her short dress up and rested his hand on the soft skin of her thigh. ‘You do look hot though.’
Far more interested in the column inches that confronted her, Rosa brushed her husband’s hand off and started reading intently. ‘Blah blah about the rescue, but, oh no, he’s obviously pulled this from the podcast of the radio interview I did all that time ago.’ She read aloud:
‘Not only is Rosa Smith a complete heroine of the moment, saving the life of holidaymaker four-year-old Alfie Green, she is giving away a little goldmine of hers, the Corner Shop in Cockleberry Bay – for free. Yes, readers, FOR FREE! Her great-grandfather Ned, who many inhabitants of the Bay will remember with fondness, left her the shop in his will, under the proviso that it must never be sold but given to somebody who truly deserves it. Here’s a thought: maybe there are golden tickets in the dog food, Willy Wonka-style? I suggest you all go along, form an orderly queue and see what you need to do to get hold of it.’
‘Maybe that isn’t such a bad idea,’ Josh interjected. ‘Trial random people.’
‘Josh, I’m surprised at you. You just don’t get it, do you?’ Rosa was close to tears. ‘This is so important to me and my family.’ The word ‘family’ didn’t flow off Rosa’s tongue easily. She had spent too many years growing up alone with just herself and her demons – not even realising she had any family of her own until she inherited the Corner Shop.
‘I mean, how are we going to do this?’ Josh continued. ‘Titch would be your obvious choice, I guess.’ Titch was just about to call out goodbye from halfway up the stairs, but on the mention of her name stood silently and listened as Josh went on, ‘But although she’s great with the customers, she’s not the brightest spark in the box when it comes to management and figures. And you want the legacy of your great-grandparents to be a success, don’t you, not a half-baked attempt at keeping the shop running.’
Titch’s mouth fell open. Not wanting to hear any more, she quietly went back down the stairs and made a quick exit.
‘Titch wants the flat, not the shop.’
‘Have you asked her?’
‘Not directly. In fact, I don’t think we’ve ever discussed it. Josh, this is a huge decision for me to make, so I’d appreciate you being less flippant about it and not so rude about Titch. I’d trust that girl with my life, and remember, I had help with the figures side of the business when I first arrived. There is always a solution. She’s a shrewd cookie, that one.’
‘OK, calm down. Sorry, I love her too. That was just me with my business head on talking.’
Still annoyed at her husband’s instant dismissal of her friend, Rosa told him, ‘Anyway, Ritchie’s parents have set their son’s sights on running the chip shop when they retire soon, and Titch has already said to me that she’s happy to help part-time here while Theo is not of school age, but with a view to eventually working with Ritchie.’
‘That makes sense, so whatever happens, she will be fine.’
‘Yes, of course she will. Titch is always all right. She’s a survivor, like me.’
‘There’s a flat above the chip shop, isn’t there?’
‘Yes, but Ritchie’s parents love it in the Bay so they are going to stay living there, I think.’
Hot, who had gone off to sun himself and watch next do
or’s cat on the wall from the balcony off the lounge, came running in and pushed his wet nose against Rosa’s bare legs. She began playing with his silky brown ears. ‘What do you say, boy? Or shall we just stay here and be done with it?’
But the dachshund had spotted a favourite toy peeking out from under the sofa – a smelly piece of rag that used to be a squeaking squirrel – and he now began to systematically try to rip it to pieces, holding it in place with his two front paws.
Josh carried on over the noise. ‘What about your mother?’
Rosa opened her mouth to reply, then clapped a hand over her nose. ‘Ugh! Hot, that’s disgusting.’ Then she went on, ‘What’s wrong with you today, Josh? This isn’t a straight business decision. It must come from the heart. And don’t be silly about Mary. I’m sure Queenie and Ned didn’t envisage her taking over and she wouldn’t want that either. She’s quite happy with her few shifts at the Co-op and covering for us here in emergencies. It would be far too much for her anyway, with her bad chest. She even gets out of breath walking the few yards from the Co-op to home and back nowadays.’
Used to his wife’s passionate outbursts, Josh put his arm around her. ‘OK, calm down. Let’s wait until I’m back from New York and maybe I can help you make a proper decision then. It’s not as if we have a new house to move into yet, anyway. There’s no time limit, is there?’
Rosa’s mood changed from red to green in seconds. ‘Not for that, no.’ Moving her husband’s hand back onto her thigh and kissing him gently on the lips, she said seductively, ‘I think I’m ovulating.’
Standing up, a now-smirking Josh moved her hand to the hardening bulge in his shorts, saying, ‘Quick. Let’s go and make some puppies of our own.’
CHAPTER 9
‘One thing! All I ask for is one thing!’ Rosa was greeted by a huffing woman exiting the café door at speed. Her mop of red fluffy hair was covered by a big white sunhat.
‘Sorry?’ Rosa questioned.
‘Oh, it doesn’t matter,’ the disgruntled one replied haughtily and continued round the beach path towards South Cliffs, her flowery maxi-dress flowing behind her.
Rosa greeted Sara and asked, ‘What was that all about?’
Sara said wryly, ‘Oh, you haven’t met her yet, have you? That was Vegan Vera – well, that’s not her real name, it’s Bergamot Hamilton-Jones.’
‘Bergamot?’ Rosa snorted. ‘Queen bloody B by the sound of her!’
‘Hmm, yes, she is quite a handful. Anyway, she’s just moved down from London. Messy divorce, from what I can gather. And already going on at me for not having oat milk or vegan sausage rolls. Now I know this is the thing of this day and age, and I am up for saving the planet in many ways, as you know – but food? I offer full-fat milk, meaty sausages from nearby farms, ditto bacon, real fresh butter and thick, crusty white bread. All locally sourced, all delicious.’ She shook her head. ‘This is a breakfast place, after all, not a bloody health retreat.’
Rosa laughed. ‘I do hear you, but–’
‘No need to “but”, Rosa. I had made a mental note for us to discuss that very topic this morning. I am mindful that we could be missing out on a bigger market and I am also aware that there are a lot of people who have allergies these days. When I was a kid in the Sixties, we used to eat dirt! Where have all these allergies come from? I remember just a few kids having eczema and asthma, but that was about it. Maybe we should start selling mud pies too, who knows?’
‘I reckon you’re just resisting so that Piers Morgan comes to visit us and congratulates us on sticking to our principles. He was ranting on about veganism again on breakfast TV just this morning.’
‘Oh Rosa, you do make me laugh. But don’t you dare tell Alec about my Marmite crush on that man. You see, I reckon Piersy baby would be putty in my hands once I’d given him a large portion of our famous Cockleberry Clotted Cream Victoria Sandwich, don’t you?’
‘Yes, all of a sudden it would be Alec who?’ They both collapsed in laughter.
Rosa tied her apron behind her neck. Despite it being early, a couple of families were already in – probably from the campsite at the top of the hill, she thought. The sea was millpond-calm and the early August sun just poking through.
‘I can’t believe how quickly the beach has been cleared,’ she remarked, beginning to stock up the fridge with Devon yoghurts and bottles of locally made fruit drinks.
‘I know,’ Sara agreed. ‘That’s teamwork for you. Another big truck came down early this morning to take away the piles of recycling.’
At that moment a couple of the guys from Sea & Save came in, Nate being one of them. Today his long dark hair was tied back in a neat ponytail. He still looked familiar to Rosa. She hoped that she hadn’t slept with him on one of the drunken nights in her past, but then remembered with a feeling of relief that the only guys she’d had sexual relations with down here were Lucas Hannafore and Joe Fox.
‘Get me a coffee, please, mate. I’ve left my wallet at home,’ Nate said casually to his colleague as he headed off to the toilet.
The other fellow, who was in his early sixties, grumbled, ‘These ruddy newbies – they expect it all.’
Newbie? Rosa was sure Nate had said he had worked for them for two years. The young man was back within seconds. ‘Did you ask them?’ he pestered the older man.
‘Give me a chance, lad.’ His companion was busy paying for the drinks.
‘Ask what?’ Rosa enquired brightly.
Nate took a slurp from his sugar-laden coffee and put it back down on the counter. ‘Well, as you know, we had lots of casualties from the storm, so many in fact that we haven’t got enough space back at the wildlife centre to put them all. We wondered if you knew anyone around here who might offer to be a temporary hospital.’
‘There’s nowhere suitable here, I’m afraid,’ Sara told him.
‘I’ve got a walled back-yard area,’ Rosa said thoughtfully, ‘but I’ve also got him.’ She pointed down to Hot who, exhausted from a run on the beach, was asleep in his café basket at the side of the counter.
‘It’s just two gulls, we have them in cages in the van.’ Nate became slightly animated. ‘There’s no problem with your little dog, but if you can keep him away from them that would be best. All you need do is talk to them and feed and water them. They do get a bit feisty being penned in, but they should be right as rain in a couple of weeks or so. The vet has given them a good going-over and their wings just need to heal before we can set them free. The charity will pay you for the food if you take them.’
‘I…er…’ Rosa thought she should maybe speak to Josh first before she added yet another task to her To Do list.
‘I’m staying at the Ship until we are done,’ the lad continued, ‘so I can always pop in and help, if need be.’
The older guy nodded along to Nate’s words, then said to Rosa: ‘Why not come and have a quick look at them, young lady?’
‘Well?’ Sara asked as Rosa reappeared a couple of minutes later, looking guilty.
‘Of course I’m having them – you know what a sucker I am. They look so vulnerable. I will get Josh to help me put a rack up outside so that Hot and any other visiting hounds won’t bother them.’
‘That’s great. And knowing you, Rosa, they will obviously need names.’
‘Already chosen.’ Rosa grinned. ‘Flotsam and Jetsam.’
CHAPTER 10
Rosa was just standing on the opposite side of the road, checking how the Corner Shop window display looked from the outside, when she noticed Nate walking up the hill towards her. He was quite short, but his muscly frame gave him proportion and there was something attractive about him. Rosa often thought that about people, men and women alike. A person could have the most beautiful face, but if they had no charisma or sex-appeal, this in turn made them not beautiful at all.
‘Hey. Just thought I’d pop in and see how the gulls are doing?’
‘Aw, that’s kind. They are noisy buggers, but I have s
een an improvement, definitely,’ Rosa told him.
‘They are lucky to be in the care of such a brave and generous lady.’ Nate paused. ‘As stated in the Gazette.’
‘Ah, that. Look, it was nothing.’
‘Not to the family of that kid you saved it wasn’t, I’m sure.’ He followed Rosa across the road and into the shop. ‘So, this is the famous Corner Shop you are giving away, is it?’ He looked around at the packed shelves. ‘Are you mad?’
‘I was lucky enough to inherit this place from my great-grandfather. It has brought me fortune and real happiness, and so I am standing by my part of the deal that I pass it on to somebody who truly deserves it. I want it to carry on being a shop and being of the same benefit to the locals and tourists of Cockleberry Bay.’
‘So how do you plan to find this “right person” then?’ Nate made inverted commas with his fingers.
‘I’m not sure,’ Rosa said truthfully. ‘I’m hoping the universe might guide me.’
‘You believe in all that baloney then?’
‘Well, I do believe in the Law of Attraction, yes: the simple belief that positive or negative thoughts bring positive or negative experiences into a person’s life. My mother is very spiritual.’
‘Mary Cobb – that’s your mum, isn’t it?’
‘You know a lot about me, don’t you?’ Rosa was puzzled.
‘Let’s just say that woman called Edie who makes my breakfast at the pub likes to talk.’ He paused. ‘And about everyone down here – not just you, it seems.’
‘Ha, yes. Edie Rogers, Chief Stoker of the Cockleberry Bay Gossip Train, strikes again.’
‘So how long has your mum lived here?’ Nate asked.