She removed the snip from the back of the door; the B&B wasn’t open to the public just yet. Cait and Jude had become an unintentional tourist information centre over the years, but Cait had come to enjoy pointing people in the right direction. If it meant tourists could “stumble” upon an unexpected trail, it made it all worthwhile.
The sound of footsteps on the landing caught Cait’s attention as she added the newspapers to the rack in the lounge, the local station playing on the radio on the windowsill. She poked her head around the door, a flash of rich auburn hair in her line of sight. Wow, she’s pretty. Harper was slightly taller than Cait, perhaps an inch or two, but that was the perfect height, you know? The ideal ratio for hugs…or the likes of.
“Hey, mornin’,” Harper said, zipping her hoodie up as she reached the hallway. “Could I scrounge a cup of coffee before I see what the damage is at home?”
Cait reached for a piece of laminated card. “Here. Pick breakfast, too.”
“Cait, it’s really okay.”
Cait didn’t know why Harper felt as though she was putting her out. It was her job to be on hand. “Please.”
“I’ll just have some toast.” Harper perused the menu. “Oh, my God. Eggy bread?”
Cait offered a full smile. “My favourite. Not many order it, but my parents used to make it every Sunday when I was a kid. It reminds me of better times. Happier times.”
Harper blew out a breath. “I could really use a reminder of better times.”
Cait noted the pain behind Harper’s vivid blue eyes. “If you can’t remember them, you create them. And living here is very good for starting over.”
“I’ll take your word for it.” Harper handed over the menu. “And a helping of eggy bread…if there’s any going begging.”
“Absolutely. Follow me.”
“I thought she didn’t want breakfast?” Jude frowned, disposing of a scrap of bacon from a guest’s plate. “This is why we tell guests we need breakfast orders by 7 the night before.”
“It’s a few slices of bread and a couple of eggs.”
“So?”
Cait spun around, sighing. “So, since you’re in a mood again, you can put some extra bacon on the grill for me, too.”
“She hasn’t even paid for her room yet.”
“Jude,” Cait warned, pointing a spatula at him.
“Don’t Jude me! She will probably take off without paying.”
“Of course. And I’ll have to chase her an entire block to get it from her. Do you have any idea how ridiculous and miserable you sound?”
“I just…I think you forget that this is a business.”
Cait’s eyebrows shot up with surprise. Had Jude really said that? “Since I’m the one who hasn’t been out with friends for six months or dated in years, it’s hard to forget.”
“Sorry,” Jude said, opening a fresh packet of bacon. “Why don’t you arrange a girl’s night out for next weekend, and I’ll be on call?”
“Really?” Cait’s entire body buzzed. She’d missed so many nights out lately. Tourism and staycations had her working seven days a week. By the time she got upstairs each evening, she didn’t have the energy to even watch TV let alone head into town. It was the same routine every night. Shower, then bed. “I’ll call around. See who can make it.”
“You deserve a night off.”
And she did. Jude had never been as on the ball as she was when it came to the B&B. Cait had to be sure everything was how it was supposed to be, but Jude? He buggered off down the pub with his mates on a Friday night. Saturday too if he could get away with it. Then there were football games, golf, and anything else he could use as an excuse to not work.
“So, do you have any bacon ready?” Cait plated up two lots of eggy bread, offering Jude a flutter of her eyelashes as she spied crispy bacon ready and waiting to the side of the grill.
“That…was mine.”
“And what do we always say?”
Jude clenched his jaw, his nostrils flaring. “It’s all about the guest experience.”
“Amen, brother.” Cait took a pair of clean tongs from the dishwasher, helping herself to the bacon Jude was keeping for himself. “Now, I’m sitting down with our new guest for breakfast while trying to keep her sane and not worrying about her house issues.”
“Sure you are.”
Cait froze, turning back to face Jude. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing. You just seem really giddy this morning. You know, since our guest arrived.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” Cait would admit that she found Harper interesting, those blue eyes had pulled her in the moment she stepped outside the B&B last night. But sitting down to breakfast with Harper really didn’t mean anything. Cait wasn’t that stupid. Harper was way out of her league.
Jude eyed Cait. “You can’t say she’s not easy on the eye. And you said she was here with her girlfriend last time, so we both know she bats for your team.”
“Bats for my team? It’s not 1998, Jude. Nobody says that anymore.”
“Deflecting.” He waved a spatula in the air, laughing. “Just…don’t go out there fluttering your eyelashes like you did to me. I don’t want to have to come looking for you to find you in a compromising position. No thanks.”
“Charming.”
Cait’s belly fluttered. Did Jude offering to stay home and on call next week mean that he wanted her to get out there and look for someone she could spend her time with? What time? Cait laughed, shaking her head. She didn’t know what “time to herself” was anymore. She hadn’t done for as long as she could remember.
Harper sat at a table in the corner of the breakfast room, her eyes glued to her phone. Cait didn’t know whether she should turn around and leave Harper in peace, or whether she should do her job and provide breakfast.
Have I been giddy? No, she hadn’t. She had merely been herself. Something Jude didn’t see often because he was never around for breakfast. The only reason he was here this morning was because the young lad Cait employed had broken down on the way into the town. It also explained his mood. God forbid he should help out with the business he part owned.
Cait cleared her throat, stepping up to the table Harper sat at. “Eggy bread. And I’ve thrown some bacon on too for good measure.”
“Yes. My kinda woman.” Harper’s eyes widened, and she held up her hands. “Sorry, I didn’t mean…you know. I just love bacon.”
Cait understood. She wasn’t sure she’d ever be anyone’s kinda woman. But she could live in hope.
“You love bacon. Got it.” Cait studied Harper, satisfied that she wouldn’t be rejected if she joined her for breakfast. “Would you mind if I shared this table with you?”
“No, of course not. Take a seat. At least when I call my mum to tell her everything has gone pear-shaped at the house, I can also reassure her that the people here are lovely and haven’t left me to fend for myself.”
“I called my handyman before I left this morning. He’s getting here for midday.”
“Wow. That was quick.”
“Well, I’m sure you want to get into your new home and get everything set up. It’s a beautiful house.”
“Yeah.” Harper slumped her shoulders. “It feels like it’s not going to work out for me. The place is far too big for one person, but I can’t bring myself to let it go. I really want it to work here.”
“Do you have a job lined up?”
“I work from home. Graphic design.”
“Oh, well that makes life easier for you while you’re here, I suppose. If you need any extra space while you’re staying with us, just let me know, and as soon as a bigger room is available, I’ll swap you.”
“Cait, you don’t have to do that.” Harper reached her hand forward, stopping mid-air before it rested on Cait’s. And then she pulled it back completely, clearing her throat. “Sorry.”
“I want to. Things are beginning to slow down here, so I expect a few empty rooms for a
number of weeks now. The Christmas and New Year period are settling down, and the weather isn’t great, so that means I can have five minutes to myself…and spare rooms.”
Harper glanced around the breakfast room, frowning. “I haven’t seen your husband this morning. Is he not working today? It seems kinda busy for you to be on your own.”
“My…husband?”
“Yeah. The guy who is always around here. Jude. We met him last time.”
“Christ, if Jude was my husband, I’d have lost the will to live by now.”
Harper wasn’t the first to assume Cait was married to Jude, but Cait was slightly disappointed that Harper’s gaydar wasn’t going off around her. Perhaps she should work on that.
Harper blushed. “Sorry. That’s what I get for assuming and being nosey.”
“Jude is my brother. We’ve co-owned for 5 years, but I think he forgets that fact a lot of the time.”
Harper offered a lopsided smile, sympathy in her blue eyes. “Let’s you get on with everything here?”
“Yes, but he’s great. When he’s around.”
“Well,” Harper paused, picking up her cutlery and tucking into the eggy bread, “I think you’ve done a great job. This place is so cosy and welcoming. I was dreading being turned away last night.”
“I’m happy you enjoyed it enough to consider us this time around.” When people came back, it meant a lot to Cait. There was no shortage of B&B’s on the main road that ran from the town to the lake; she knew competition was rife.
“We found you on the Cumbria Pride website. Callie wanted somewhere that we could be ourselves, so thanks for having a gay friendly B&B.”
“It’s important.” Cait followed Harper’s lead, enjoying her breakfast without interruption from guests. “Before we took on this B&B, I was on a short break elsewhere with an ex of mine. And while we didn’t feel completely alienated, we did get those looks. You know…are they together, aren’t they? Are they best friends? Did we want separate rooms?”
“God, I hate that.” Harper shook her head, moaning in delight as she demolished her breakfast. If she was surprised by Cait’s ‘coming out’, she certainly didn’t show it. “This is so good, by the way.” She helped herself to the coffee in the cafetiere already on the table, offering Cait a cup. Cait smiled and nodded. “Why do people do that? I mean, I love to people-watch, but I don’t sit there wondering if they’re going to bed with one another at the end of the day.”
“I don’t know. I suppose some people are just inquisitive.”
“Nosey, you mean?”
Cait laughed, lifting her coffee cup. “Or that. Yes.”
Harper lowered her fork, leaning in closer to Cait and lowering her voice as she said, “So, where are all the lesbians?”
Cait snorted. “Not here.” She really had wondered over the years if anyone significant would come into her life, but at 41, she was still single, still looking, and still depressed at the thought of never growing old with someone. “But don’t take my word for it. My life revolves around this place, so it’s not often I get the chance to even look around.”
“I think you need to give yourself a day off,” Harper said, smiling as she relaxed back. “You never know what’s out there. This time next year you could have just spent Christmas with the love of your life.”
“Mm. I think I’ll settle for some friendly company. It doesn’t bring as much drama with it.”
Harper took her phone from the table, pushing her seat away and getting to her feet. “You could be on to something there. I was willing to share a house with a woman who’d been cheating on me for several months. Single may just be the answer to a happier life.”
Cait’s heart sunk. Was being in a relationship these days so bad? Harper believed so, but she had just been through a breakup. Cait was ready to explore. She was also ready to put her foot down with Jude. If she were ever going to have a life outside of the B&B, he would have to step up and take ownership of something. Anything.
“Thank you for breakfast, but I need to get to the house. Can I come and find you when I get back later to sort out payment for the room?”
Cait smiled. “Of course.”
Chapter Three
“Okay, love. All fixed.” Darren, the handyman, came from the kitchen. “You had a burst pipe. I’ll come back in a couple of days to fix the electrics. It’s pretty damp down here.”
“I thought it would be a pipe, but I haven’t been here, so I don’t know how it happened.”
“Did you have the heating set to come on? It was the radiator in the kitchen.”
“No, not that I’m aware of.”
Harper leant against the windowsill, folding her arms across her chest. They’d had a new thermostat installed the last time they were here, but Callie had set it so that the pipes remained at 5 degrees at all times when the heating was off. It was a new feature to prevent burst pipes during cold snaps and lack of use. Harper had turned the heating on for a few hours a couple of days ago via the app on her phone, but she hadn’t played with any of the settings.
“Huh. That’s odd.”
“Well, it’s fixed now so that’s the main thing,” Harper said, running a hand down her face. “What’s the damage? And do you prefer cash or transfer?”
“That’s already taken care of.” Darren opened the front door, his toolbox in one hand. “But Cait loves the Mediterranean restaurant on the lake if you wanted to thank her. She won’t take any money from you, so that’s the next best thing.”
Harper offered an appreciative smile. Cait likely wouldn’t want to go to dinner with her, she was a busy woman, but it was something she could consider. She’d certainly been good company this morning during breakfast. “Good to know. I’ll look into booking a table.”
“She’ll look after you around here. She’s a bloody saint.”
“Yes, she is. I’d have been lost without her last night.”
“I’m sure she’ll need a hand with something at some point. We all work together around here to keep one another happy.”
“It’s a nice area. It’s just a shame this happened.”
“You’ll be fine. Cait spoke very highly of you this morning. And you’ve been here before, so give it a little time and you’ll know plenty of friendly faces.”
“Well, uh…thanks.” Harper avoided the frown she was almost wearing; Darren didn’t need to know she was confused about anything he’d just said. Cait spoke highly of her? Why? “I’ll book that table. And thanks for your help, too. You’re not a carpet fitter by any chance, are you?”
“Ask Cait to give me a call once you’ve ordered a new one. I’ll fit it for you.”
“Oh, I was actually joking, but that would be really helpful.” Harper felt another weight lift as Darren smiled over his shoulder, waving as he made his way up the hill.
She really did have to thank Cait, but she wasn’t sure a meal on the lake would cut it. If it hadn’t been for the wonderful B&B owner or her approachable nature, Harper really would be up shit creek without a paddle.
Harper took the stairs two at a time, rushing into her bedroom. She’d brought her laptop up here when she arrived this morning, not wanting to place it down somewhere that was soaked. And downstairs, she didn’t have many options when it came to a dry spot. She could set up home on top of the kitchen units, but something told her that wasn’t ideal right now.
She hooked her laptop up to the hotspot on her phone and brought up local florists in the area. Flowers always made someone smile, right? Harper wouldn’t know; Callie rarely did anything remotely romantic.
Whoa. No romance going on here.
Harper suddenly stopped what she was doing. Would Cait think she was trying to get her into bed now that she knew she wasn’t married to the guy she worked with? Surely not. Flowers were sent by people for all kinds of reasons. Births, deaths, special occasions. And this was a special occasion because Cait had really pulled Harper out of the shit this morning. And yeah, C
ait was gorgeous, too.
Harper sat for a moment, chewing her lip. It’s just a thank you. Or was it something more, deep down in Harper’s subconscious? She had caught herself staring once or twice this morning. Hell, she’d almost held Cait’s hand.
Way too good for you. She shook her head and snorted. “Get real and get a grip.”
She ordered an arrangement to be delivered this afternoon, leaving a note attached that read: You’re a saint. Yes, they may have been Darren’s words, but they were spot on when it came to describing Cait. Now, Harper just had to call her ex before she tackled the dripping wet carpet downstairs.
She tapped in a familiar number, waiting for the call to connect.
“Harper?”
“Hey, can you talk for a few minutes?” Harper flopped onto the edge of her bed, a headache fast approaching.
“If you’re quick, yes. I have to get to work.”
Harper turned her watch towards her. “It’s almost 2 in the afternoon. Shouldn’t you be there already?”
“Late night…”
Yep. Harper didn’t need to know that. But she was sure Callie was grinning on the other end of the phone.
“Well, uh…I just wanted to let you know that it’ll be a few more days before I can sort out your stuff. I’ve had a few issues since I got here last ni—” Harper frowned, spying a bra on the floor under a bucket seat she’d placed under the window. She’d had the seat reupholstered a few months ago, whacky colours and patterns now adorning it. She really loved it, but she didn’t love what was underneath it. “You’ve been here!”
“Of course I’ve been there. Several times with you.” Callie scoffed, the sound of her heels clicking in the background.
“No, no, no. You’ve been here with her.”
Callie fell silent, her heels too.
“When?”
“Harper—”
“No, I want to know when!” Harper got to her feet, taking the bra from the floor. It definitely didn’t belong to Callie unless she’d had a drastic breast reduction that Harper didn’t know about. “Y-You’ve been here with her and I want to know when, and why!”
Breaking Routine Page 2