‘Sounds lovely,’ said Amber.
‘Josh is opposite you and I’m only next door in the double bedroom,’ said Cathy. ‘So you’ve got company whilst you’re here.’
Amber wasn’t so sure that Josh would want her in such close proximity after their dunking in the river earlier.
‘It’s a lovely room,’ carried on Grandma Tilly, in a sort of daze. ‘I do miss the view.’
‘But not the stairs, eh?’ said Cathy, in a bright tone. ‘And your bungalow is lovely and you can see the river from your lounge window.’
Tilly nodded, although Amber thought that the accompanying smile was a little forced.
‘You might not like my flowery wallpaper though,’ said Grandma Tilly.
‘I’m sure it’ll be fine,’ Amber told her, thinking back to the shabby room she had rented in New York.
‘Perhaps Josh can give it a lick of paint to cheer it up whilst Amber stays with us,’ said Cathy. ‘I’ll have a word with him.’
Amber was nonplussed. Surely Cathy understood that she was just passing through for a couple of days before flying out to New Zealand to join her parents? OK, so she hadn’t booked her onward flight yet as she was just waiting for her deposit to come back from her landlord on the room she had rented in New York. But once she had enough to pay for the airline ticket she would be leaving.
‘I’m sure this is all a bit of a comedown after your glamorous time in New York,’ said Cathy, with a kind smile.
Amber shook her head. ‘Not at all,’ she told them, not wanting to admit how distinctly unglamorous her life had been up until that point. She had bought some new clothes in the Manhattan shops, some of which were currently en route somewhere in her lost suitcases, the rest being shipped on to New Zealand. But most of her money had been swept up into the high cost of living in one of the most expensive cities in the world.
‘It’s so nice to have company, for a change,’ said Grandma Tilly, reaching out to help herself to a biscuit. ‘We get a bit lonesome around here these days.’
Amber hesitated. ‘Doesn’t the shop keep you busy?’
They both exchanged a sad look before Tilly turned to face Amber once more. ‘At one time, we were rushed off our feet. When I ran the shop with Bill, my husband, it was the hub of the village. But that was a long time ago. After he died, Cathy, Todd and the boys moved in.’ Tilly gave a little shrug of her shoulders. ‘But times change, don’t they? People pass away or move on. Now most of the folk in the village are strangers. They come home from school and work and close their front doors. Time was when you would keep your doors unlocked as neighbours were always popping in and out. But, like I said, that’s ancient history. Now it’s all deliveries from that big supermarket and Amazon. Nobody comes by that often.’
Amber let them chat on about the business, which all seemed pretty precarious. But they remained cheerful despite the fact that there was a lack of customers. She wondered whether perhaps Cathy’s famous husband, Todd, had made so much money from his guitar playing that their lives were relatively comfortable and that the struggling shop wasn’t that big a deal.
After they had finished their coffee, Cathy persuaded Amber to head downstairs to the shop once more. ‘Josh will show you around properly now that you’re all nice and dry. I’ll tidy up and then we’ll follow you down,’ said Cathy.
Amber went down the wooden staircase and stopped, hesitating as she really didn’t want to face Josh again so soon after falling into the river.
So she stood and stared around the stockroom instead. She looked at the many piles of boxes, all fighting for space. And then at the rusty tractor as well. What was it doing inside? And what on earth did they need a small tractor for anyway? She couldn’t understand the reasoning behind it.
The sound of heavy footsteps clattered down the staircase and Josh nearly ran her down as he rushed into the room beside her.
‘Hey,’ he said.
Amber noticed that he had also got changed and was now wearing a different pair of jeans and sweatshirt. He must have been changing in his bedroom but hadn’t joined them afterwards for coffee and biscuits. He was probably avoiding her, she thought.
His dark hair was still a bit spiky from where it had been wet and she had to concede to herself that he had grown into a good-looking man. She found herself wondering whether he had a girlfriend and what he was doing stuck in such a quiet village.
The silence stretched out as she tried to think of something to say.
‘I was just wondering about the tractor,’ she eventually said, forcing herself to stop staring at him.
‘It was my dad’s,’ he told her. ‘He bought it to try and get it going, but he never got round to doing it up before, you know…’ Josh’s voice trailed off.
‘I’m sorry.’ Amber felt bad, having brought up what must be painful memories. ‘You must miss him.’
Josh nodded. ‘Yeah. Anyway, the tractor’s stuck here,’ he carried on, before adding under his breath, ‘like a lot of other things around here.’
Amber didn’t know what to make of this so remained quiet.
Cathy and Tilly were making their slow way down the stairs.
‘Haven’t you made it into the shop yet?’ said Cathy as they finally reached the bottom.
Amber shook her head.
‘Come on then,’ said Josh, turning away.
So Amber followed him into the shop, with Cathy and Tilly close behind.
As she tried to find somewhere to stand without knocking anything over, easier said than done with everything so crowded, Cathy went over to the long counter which was in the far corner.
‘So!’ she said, in a very jolly tone. ‘What do you think of our little empire?’
Amber smiled and nodded her approval, all the time praying that her face didn’t show how she really felt about the state of the place. It wasn’t good, she thought, staring around. The interior was so dated that it gave off a very tired and old-fashioned feel and not in a country-charm kind of way either. On top of that, the place was packed with shelving units right up to the ceiling, which meant it also felt very crowded and almost suffocating. Every available surface, including the counter where the till stood, was piled high, but it was all so random. There was washing powder and loo rolls. Then newspapers. Eggs. Plastic toys. It was a real mish-mash of goods. There were also a couple of fridges, but whereas one held a small amount of milk and cheese, the other two were dark and switched off. Presumably so they could hold yet more random stock.
Amber found herself thinking that if she lived in the village, she probably wouldn’t come in here either.
But, to her surprise, the bell above the front door jangled as somebody came in. A man in his late sixties weaved his way through the narrow aisles, carefully picking up a newspaper as he moved.
‘Good morning,’ he said, finally making it to the counter.
‘Good morning, Frank,’ said Cathy, smiling. ‘How are you today?’
‘Not bad,’ replied the gentleman. ‘It’s a right miserable day out there though.’
‘Let me introduce my goddaughter, Amber,’ said Cathy, gesturing towards Amber, who was still standing in the middle of the shop. ‘She’s staying with us for a while.’
‘Lovely to meet you,’ said Frank.
Amber nodded. ‘You too,’ she said, as always somewhat uncomfortable about being the centre of attention.
‘She’s just flown in from New York,’ said Cathy, with a proud note in her voice.
‘So good they named it twice.’ The gentleman laughed, patting his pockets as if searching for something. ‘Good Lord, I’ve forgotten my pound coin,’ he said, with a sigh. ‘I’m getting so forgetful.’
‘It doesn’t matter,’ Cathy told him. ‘You can pay us tomorrow when you come in.’
But Frank was still frowning. ‘I’ve got my debit card on me if that helps. Don’t like not paying my way.’
‘We don’t have a card system here,’ said Cathy. ‘Besi
des, we know where you live, so there’s no escaping just yet!’
‘Well, if you’re sure,’ said Frank, picking up his newspaper. ‘I’ll be in first thing to pay off my debt.’
‘It’s fine,’ said Cathy. ‘We’ll see you tomorrow.’
After the bell had jangled that the customer had left, Josh went over to the till. ‘And that is why we need a new till and contactless payment,’ he said in a pointed tone to his mother.
Cathy laughed. ‘No, we don’t! This works fine.’
From what Amber could make out, ‘this’ was an extremely old-looking till. It was pretty ugly and not very handy for the modern era, she guessed. Once more, she thought back to Saks Fifth Avenue where nearly every purchase was on a card. But, of course, this was just a small corner shop, not one of the world’s biggest department stores.
‘The customers can’t pay by card at the moment,’ said Josh, clearly getting cross. ‘Not everyone has cash on them these days.’
‘We’re not having this argument again,’ said Cathy in a firm tone of voice, before glancing at Amber. ‘Not in front of our guest.’
Amber shuffled from foot to foot, wishing she was somewhere else.
As mother and son glared at each other, Amber softly excused herself and weaved her way through to the front of the shop, keen to get away from the awkward atmosphere.
The bell jangled as she opened the front door and she stood for a moment on the wooden veranda. Despite the overcast day, the view was sensational. She looked around the riverbanks, the trees all glowing with the warm autumnal colours of gold and red.
At least she was sheltered from the drizzle, she thought, before glancing up and realising that she was standing under a massive gap in the roof of the veranda and that it was leaking. She shuffled away from the leak and looked at one of the large bay windows. Like everything else in the shop, it was packed full of all manner of goods, none of which were remotely enticing. Peering around at the other window, she realised it was equally dismal.
For a moment, she let her imagination run riot, thinking back to the many designs she had created in both London and New York. They had been everything from fantasy to modern and eclectic. Of course, any such design would be totally out of step with sleepy Cranbridge Stores.
And what about the inside of the shop? There were no real displays. It was chaotic. There appeared to be no system or organisation regarding the stock, which was piled up everywhere. Cathy didn’t want to update anything. Josh was unhappy. It was a mess.
She wished she could do something to help. But then she remembered that she was only here for a short time as a favour to her mum. She had promised to pop in and ensure that Cathy was well and happy. Perhaps one out of two wasn’t bad.
In any case, Cranbridge Stores would continue without her anyway after she was gone. Besides, what difference could she make? Her expertise was with large department stores. It was probably best that she left well alone, she told herself.
But she took one last wistful glance at the windows before she headed back inside.
4
As the day wore on, it became increasingly obvious that Amber’s luggage was not going to arrive that day. Or possibly the next day either. Amber was now stuck in Cranbridge with no clean clothes of her own.
‘So what are the airline doing about it?’ asked Cathy, sat on the chair behind the till. It was almost five o’clock and, as per the rest of the day, there didn’t appear to be any sign of an afternoon rush in the shop.
Amber shrugged her shoulders, rereading the email from the airline. ‘They’ve offered reimbursement, but I just want my clothes. They’ve promised that they’re tracking them down and will send on my cases as soon as they find them.’
‘Well, I’m sure they’ll turn up soon,’ said Cathy. ‘If you need any toiletries, I’ve got lots upstairs and you can always help yourself to whatever you find in the shop. In the meantime, you’re welcome to borrow my clothes. I know they’re probably a bit old-fashioned compared to what you’re used to.’
‘Thank you, that’ll be fine,’ said Amber, anxious to reassure her.
There was no denying that her illness had taken its toll on her godmother. The once vibrant woman had an air of sadness about her.
Amber glanced through to the back room where Josh was unpacking some boxes. She wondered where on earth he was going to place any new stock, let alone bring in any customers to buy them.
‘I guess it’s always this quiet on a Monday?’ asked Amber, hoping her question didn’t offend.
Cathy gave her a sad smile. ‘It’s quietened down a bit since that massive supermarket opened up five miles away. Most people shop there instead.’
‘What a shame,’ said Amber.
‘I didn’t really take any notice at the time when it opened,’ Cathy told her. ‘It was just after I lost Todd. I was too grief-stricken to even think about competition and profit lines. But Josh was worried from the first moment he heard about it.’
And possibly with good reason, thought Amber.
‘Do many people live in the village?’ she asked, wondering about the local customer base.
‘About 500 in Cranbridge itself,’ said Cathy. ‘And a couple of hundred more in the tiny hamlets beyond that. There’s Cranley, of course. That’s slightly bigger. That’s where Willow Tree Hall is. You know, the stately home? That seems to be getting in a whole load of visitors these days. They’ve diversified, of course.’
‘In what way?’ asked Amber, wondering whether they could take any ideas from a more successful business
‘They’ve got their own cider press now,’ Cathy told her. ‘So they’re bottling and selling local cider. There’s a tea room as well that’s just opened. And they hold a monthly market. I took Mum there last month as a treat and there was such a diverse range of stuff to buy.’
‘Maybe Cranbridge could do something similar,’ suggested Amber.
She inwardly gave herself a little shake. She didn’t need to get involved as she was leaving for New Zealand hopefully in a few days.
‘I’m not sure who would be up for that kind of challenge,’ said Cathy, frowning. ‘A market would be a big thing to organise. Anyway, we like things the way they are. My father had the shop laid out differently, of course. But Todd liked it like this and so that’s how it should be. How it’s always worked. Things will change for the better, you’ll see.’
The trouble was that Amber couldn’t see how business could pick up with the shop being so overcrowded and unappealing. But it appeared to be Cathy’s lifeline to her late husband and Amber could understand how she wanted everything to remain the same.
‘Let me go and check that I put a blanket on your bed,’ said Cathy, standing up suddenly. ‘I don’t want you feeling cold overnight.’
‘Please don’t go to any trouble,’ said Amber.
Secretly, the jet lag was kicking in and she longed to lie down and go to sleep, but she hadn’t the heart to tell her godmother.
Cathy disappeared into the back room and up the stairs. Amber glanced the same way and realised that Josh had disappeared as well.
For the first time, she was alone in the shop. For a moment, she daydreamed how she would change the look and feel of the place if it were hers. The oak beams would stay, of course. But it would be so much prettier. Warmer. Some fairy lights here and there.
Then she shook herself out of her reverie. Owning and running a shop had never been a dream of hers. Besides, she had no talent for that kind of thing. She was just a window dresser. That was all.
She had figured that nobody would come in so when the bell above the front door jingled, she was somewhat amazed.
She hesitated before standing up, glancing once more at the back of the shop, but Josh and Cathy were still nowhere in sight.
‘Good afternoon,’ said an elderly gentleman, as he weaved his way through the shop. ‘I don’t think we’ve met. I’m Stanley.’
‘Hi. I’m Amber,’ she told him, a
bit surprised at having to introduce herself to a complete stranger.
‘Well, it’s nice to have some young blood around here,’ said Stanley, his grey eyes twinkling as he smiled at her.
‘So, what does that make me?’ drawled Josh, as he came back into the shop carrying a box. ‘Part of the fixtures and fittings?’
Amber relaxed, grateful to see him smile for the first time since they’d met earlier that day. At least he could take over dealing with the customer.
‘It makes you both a welcome sight having spent two hours on the bus getting to and from my hospital appointment this morning,’ said Stanley.
Josh put down his box and frowned. ‘Is everything OK?’ he asked.
Stanley nodded and continued to smile. ‘Just a check-up,’ he replied. ‘But thank you for your concern.’
‘Well, I thought something was amiss when you didn’t come in at half past nine for your newspaper.’
Amber watched as Stanley’s smile faltered slightly. ‘Yes, my routine was a little out of kilter today. Normal service resumes tomorrow.’
‘Glad to hear it,’ said Josh, riffling through the box and sighing. ‘Otherwise Amber will think that we have no customers at all.’
‘And how is your dear lady mother today?’ Stanley asked.
‘She’s fine,’ said Josh, looking around as if realising that she was missing. ‘Where is she?’
‘Upstairs,’ Amber told him.
‘Good,’ said Josh, looking relieved. Obviously, the worry with his mother’s health still weighed heavily on him, thought Amber.
‘And what brings you to Cranbridge?’ asked Stanley, turning to look at Amber once more. ‘Not that I’m complaining, of course.’
Amber blushed.
‘She’s my mother’s goddaughter,’ said Josh, after a lengthy silence. ‘Her best friend’s daughter.’
‘Indeed?’ Stanley’s eyebrows shot up. ‘Would that be Denise Spencer?’
Amber was amazed and nodded. ‘Yes. That’s my mum. How did you know?’
The Village Shop for Lonely Hearts Page 3