Sadie laughed. ‘Don’t worry, I have to go and collect Lissy now anyway.’ Her stomach fluttered as she glanced over at him. ‘Another time, maybe?’
His hazel eyes crinkled as he smiled. ‘I’d like that.’
Reaching for the door handle, he climbed out of the car, then bent to peer inside again. ‘See you in the morning, then.’
Sadie nodded. ‘See you then.’
He closed the car door and she watched him walk up the path to the darkened cottage. Then, worried her behaviour might seem borderline stalkerish, she put the car into gear and set off towards Christleton.
*
‘You’re later than I expected,’ Daniel said when he opened the door. ‘Everything okay?’
Sadie gave him a sideways glance but there was no accusation or blame on his face, just curiosity and concern.
‘No, just traffic,’ she fibbed. ‘You know how it is. How’s Lissy?’
‘She’s fine,’ Daniel said. ‘Her teacher said she had a fall in the playground at lunchtime but we patched it up with a dino-plaster and everything is right with the world again.’
He smiled and Sadie couldn’t help smiling back, marvelling a little at the fact that he’d had plasters in the house, let alone dinosaur-themed ones. ‘Okay,’ she said. ‘Well, thanks for picking her up.’
‘No problem. I’ve given her some tea – fish fingers and rice. Is that all right?’
‘Fine,’ Sadie said, even more astonished. ‘Thanks.’
He glanced across at her. ‘You don’t have to keep thanking me, Sadie. Lissy is my child too – I’m not doing anything a million other dads don’t do every day.’
Sadie chose her words with care. ‘Yes, but you haven’t ever done it before, Daniel,’ she said gently. ‘That’s why I’m a bit taken aback.’
He glanced towards the kitchen, where Sadie could just see Lissy’s back as she sat at the table. ‘Have you got a minute?’ he asked, turning back to Sadie. ‘There’s something I’ve been meaning to say for a while.’
Sadie’s heart lurched into her mouth. The last time Daniel had done this, it had been to confess to having an affair. What was it going to be this time – he wanted an easy divorce so that he could marry the woman?
‘If you’re quick,’ she said, hearing the tightness in her own voice.
He led her along the hallway and into the living room. ‘Have a seat. This won’t take long.’
Sadie did as he asked, trying to ignore the thudding of her heart. Whatever Daniel had to say, it couldn’t be more shattering, more world-destroying than last time, she reminded herself. He couldn’t hurt her like that ever again.
‘I’ve been doing a lot of thinking over the past month or so,’ he began, perching nervously on the sofa beside her. ‘Spending more time with Lissy has made me realise what I’ve been missing since the two of you moved out. I want to be part of her life, Sadie.’
‘Daniel—’ Sadie said but he held up both hands.
‘Just hear me out. I haven’t told you this because I wasn’t sure how you’d take it, but I finished things with Emma. It was never serious, anyway, more of a cry for help and it soon fizzled out.’ He took a deep breath. ‘And I know it’s crazy to even think this but there’s a part of me that hopes there might still be a chance for us, Sadie. You know, in time.’
Sadie felt as though someone had tipped a bucket of ice over her. This was the last thing she’d expected to hear.
‘Don’t say anything now,’ he urged. ‘I know I’ve totally blindsided you. But just give it some thought. And if you decide that there’s no way back then I’ll accept it. But I still want to play a bigger role in Lissy’s life – I want to be there for her, even if I can’t be there for you.’
‘Daniel,’ Sadie groaned, fighting the temptation to bury her face in her hands. ‘This isn’t fair. What the hell has got into you?’
He hung his head. ‘I’m sorry. But I can’t help how I feel. It’s like I’m waking up from some kind of weird out-of-body experience and only just seeing what an idiot I’ve been.’
She stared at him in bewilderment.
‘Just say you’ll think it over,’ he said again. ‘That’s all I ask.’
There was nothing to think about, Sadie thought. He was the one who’d been unfaithful. He’d been the one who had broken their marriage. But he’d also opened her eyes to what her life could be, who she was without him; would going back rob her of the independence she’d come to value so much? There was Lissy to consider too; she’d adjusted to their new life without much difficulty. Would more upheaval simply confuse her?
Sadie sighed, sagging under the sudden weight Daniel had saddled her with. What else could she do but agree to consider what he’d said? ‘Okay. I’ll think about it.’
His breath whooshed out in a grateful sigh. ‘Thank you.’ He got to his feet, his face shining with hope. ‘Now, let’s go and see the walking wounded.’
When Sadie got back into her car, she saw that she had a message from Adam.
Thanks again for the lift. Wouldn’t mind catching a ride in the morning, if that’s OK?
She sighed and glanced in the rear-view mirror at Lissy. It would mean dropping her off with Daniel first, then doubling back to collect Adam. But it would undoubtedly save him a lot of time and she’d be lying if the idea of spending more time with him didn’t give her a quiet thrill. She wrestled with herself for a few more seconds, then gave in and tapped out her reply:
Sure. See you at eight!
*
If Cat noticed that Sadie and Adam arrived at exactly the same time on Saturday morning, she didn’t mention it.
‘There’s tea in the pot,’ she said, as they stowed their coats away. ‘If you want coffee you’ll have to make it yourself.’
Just before eight-thirty, the shop door rattled and the new assistant, Clare, arrived. Sadie showed her around, explaining how the stock system worked and introducing her to the computer that powered the till system. ‘And lastly, don’t forget to give away the samples,’ she said, pointing to the bite-sized biscuits in cellophane packets that were piled up on the counter. ‘With a bit of luck once they taste them, they won’t be able to resist buying some.’
Just before ten o’clock, the Lord Mayor arrived to formally declare Smart Cookies open. A small crowd had gathered to watch as, with a flourish of silver scissors, she sliced through the blue and gold ribbon. Sadie grinned as the crowd cheered – she spotted Andrew and Earl applauding near the back, and Elin and Jaren right at the front with Seb. Cherie and Greg were nowhere to be seen but Sadie found she could bear their absence very easily. The Lord Mayor posed for photos with Sadie and Cat, and seemed delighted when they presented her with her very own Smart Cookies goody bag. And throughout the day, it seemed to Sadie that the till didn’t stop beeping as customer after customer fell under the spell of Sadie and Cat’s efforts.
The sky was beginning to darken and the crowds were starting to thin when Sadie saw Greg and Cherie marching purposefully across the Court towards the shop. ‘Adam,’ she called, trying to keep her tone even and calm, ‘could you do me a favour and pop across to Let’s Go Dutch and The Bus Stop, please? Ask Jaren, Andrew and Earl to come here right away.’ She lowered her voice and fixed him with an urgent look. ‘It’s an emergency.’
He didn’t need to be told twice. Once he’d vanished into the crowds, Sadie hurried downstairs to where Cat was chatting to some customers about the way Smart Cookies had come about.
‘I’m afraid we’re going to have to cut this short,’ Sadie said, interrupting with an apologetic but firm smile. ‘If you stop by the till upstairs, Clare will let you have some free samples to take home and try.’
Cat gave her a puzzled look but didn’t argue.
‘We’ve got trouble,’ Sadie said in an undertone. ‘Greg and Cherie are coming this way and they look like they’ve got something on their minds.’
Cat groaned. ‘Perfect. Just perfect.’ She squared her shoulders. ‘Okay, let�
�s get it over with. There’s no such thing as bad publicity, right?’
‘Right,’ Sadie said, with a confidence she didn’t feel.
Then Clare’s worried face appeared halfway down the stairs. ‘Er . . . there’s a man and a woman asking for you, Cat. They don’t look happy.’
‘Thanks, Clare,’ Cat called and glanced across at Sadie. ‘Showtime.’
Greg and Cherie were waiting outside, where Sadie assumed they’d decided they would have the biggest audience for whatever it was they wanted to say. Arms folded, they stared at Sadie and Cat with undisguised contempt.
‘There she is, the fraud,’ Greg called, pointing at Cat as passing shoppers slowed to a halt and exchanged puzzled looks. ‘Cat Garcia, ladies and gentlemen, the worst head chef La Perle restaurant has ever had.’
Cat grimaced. ‘Oh, please. Not this again.’
‘Don’t shop at so-called Smart Cookies,’ Cherie said, loud enough to cause more passers-by to turn their heads. ‘Who knows what you might catch?’
Sadie’s stomach tightened in outrage. ‘There’s nothing wrong with our premises,’ she countered, making eye contact with as many people as she could. ‘You’re very welcome to come inside and have a look.’
‘If you’re such a world-class chef, how come you’re working in a poky little biscuit shop in Chester instead of running another Michelin-starred restaurant?’ Greg said, his jeering tone carrying over the now-quiet court.
‘Sadie and I have dreamed about running our own business since we were kids,’ Cat answered in a level voice. ‘I’d had enough of working eighteen-hour days so the timing was right for both of us to open Smart Cookies. I handed in my notice and came back to Chester – not that I should have to explain any of this to you.’
A murmur of agreement rippled through the crowd and Sadie saw Adam pushing his way through, with Jaren, Andrew and Earl behind him. Obviously sensing he was losing sympathy, Greg upped his game. ‘There’s a reason you started your own business instead of trying to get a job at another restaurant, isn’t there?’ he sneered. ‘Something you don’t want anyone to know.’
Cat stared at him. ‘I don’t know what you’re talking—’
Greg didn’t allow her to finish. He cut across her with white-hot scorn. ‘You didn’t leave La Perle of your own free will. You were fired, weren’t you?’
Cat scowled in fury. ‘That’s not true,’ she snapped. ‘I resigned because of work-induced stress – I wasn’t fired.’
Greg gave a derisory snort. ‘You left before you were pushed, then. Either way, no one who worked there was sorry to see you go.’
Sadie felt Cat tense beside her. ‘Go home, Greg,’ she called, edging closer to Cat in support. ‘You don’t know what you’re talking about.’
‘Don’t I?’ Greg said, his lip curling in disgust. ‘I know a lot more than you think – you convinced almost everyone with this superchef act. But not me – I saw right through you. You’re a fraud who crumbled under pressure, because the truth is you slept your way to the top!’
The crowd gasped. Whispers filled the air as Cat’s cheeks turned red. ‘I don’t know who you’ve been talking to, Greg, but I can assure you they are wrong.’
‘It’s true,’ Greg crowed, turning around. ‘I know people who work there – she was having an affair with the owner and that’s why he gave her the job. Look at her, guilt is written all over her face.’
Sadie glanced across at Cat and saw from her expression that there was something in Greg’s accusation. ‘Cat?’
‘It’s not true,’ she whispered back. Her mouth twisted with regret. ‘Not all of it anyway. I’m sorry – I didn’t want you to find out like this.’
Pulling herself up to her full height, Cat shook her hair down her back and gazed at Greg with contempt. ‘Okay, you want to know what happened? Here it is. The truth is, I didn’t leave La Perle willingly but it wasn’t because I was having an affair with anyone.’ Her eyes ranged across the crowd. ‘I had to leave because I wouldn’t have an affair, and the person trying to coerce me into one refused to take no for an answer.’
Angry mumbles broke out as the crowd took in what Cat was saying. Greg looked suddenly deflated, as though someone had pricked his balloon. He leaned down to whisper furiously to a pale-faced Cherie.
‘And before you demand that I tell you who it was, let me save you the trouble – I signed a non-disclosure agreement as part of my very generous settlement package when I left,’ Cat went on. She fixed Greg with a final glower of disdain. ‘So it seems your “source” had no idea what they were talking about. And neither do you.’
Seb pushed his way to the front and pulled Cat into a tight embrace. ‘Show’s over, everyone,’ he called. ‘And if you have any sympathy at all for what Cat has been forced to very publicly reveal, I suggest you make your way over to Smart Cookies and buy every single biscuit you can find.’
He waited until the crowd started to disperse and then made his way over to where Greg and Cherie still stood. ‘As for you two, don’t ever try to set foot over the doorstep of Seb’s again. You’re barred.’
‘That goes for The Bus Stop too,’ Earl called, his expression disgusted.
‘And Let’s Go Dutch,’ Jaren added.
Elin shook her head in pity as she glared at Greg. ‘Don’t expect me to supply your after-dinner chocolates any more either. Our deal is now terminated.’
‘Come on,’ Seb said, wrapping a protective arm around Cat’s shoulders. ‘Let’s get you away from all these prying eyes. I don’t know about you, but I could really do with a drink.’
Chapter Nine
It took several days for the trauma of having to publicly reveal her secret to leave Cat, and almost a week for her to stop feeling as though everyone was staring at her.
Sadie was horrified that she’d never guessed the truth. ‘I knew there was more to it than you let on but I thought you were embarrassed about losing control. Why didn’t you tell me?’
Cat sighed. ‘I didn’t tell anyone. I signed a non-disclosure agreement, remember?’
‘But still,’ Sadie said. ‘I hate the thought of you coping with all this on your own.’
‘I wasn’t entirely alone. I had a very good, very expensive French lawyer that François de Beauvoir ended up having to pay for,’ Cat said dryly.
Sadie studied her. ‘Is that who it was? The owner’s son?’
Cat nodded. ‘As you can imagine, he denied everything at first. But luckily for me, one of my sous-chefs had seen him trying to force me to kiss him and she wasn’t afraid to speak up when he finally realised I wasn’t going to give him what he wanted.’ She paused and shook her head in disgust. ‘It turned out I wasn’t the first member of staff François had put pressure on, but hopefully I will be the last. I cost him an awful lot of money.’
‘It’s all behind you now,’ Sadie said, squeezing her hand.
‘I thought it was,’ Cat said quietly. ‘But it turns out François had one last parting shot to send my way. I wouldn’t be surprised if he and Greg are friends, actually. That would explain Greg’s venom, and all those comments about damaging his friends. I assumed he meant Cherie but perhaps he was talking about François.’
‘That would make sense,’ Sadie replied. ‘Although he didn’t have a clue what had really gone on. I don’t think we’ll have any more trouble with him, anyway – Jaren says he’s been keeping a very low profile around the Court. But don’t hold your breath waiting for an apology – from what I hear, he’s too busy trying to patch things up with Cherie. She’s furious he fed her a load of wrong information.’
Cat folded her arms. ‘Huh – she’s only furious their ridiculous plan failed. But I don’t care about an apology. As long as they both stay out of my way, I’ll be happy.’
News of Smart Cookies had spread like wildfire and both Cat and Sadie had to work long and hard to keep up with demand as December flew by and Christmas loomed on the horizon. Their edible tree decorations were f
eatured in Stylist magazine and The One Show sent a camera crew to film in the shop, taking particular interest in Sadie’s biscuit Nativity display. Sadie found herself relying on Daniel more and more for help with Lissy; he’d even started saving her a cooked meal at the end of the day and refused to let her leave without it. And Cat had been forced to put things with Seb on hold, warning him she barely had time to brush her teeth before tumbling exhausted into bed, let alone do anything else. He hadn’t seemed to mind – Christmas was a crazy time for all the Castle Court businesses.
‘It’s great that Daniel is helping out so much with Lissy,’ Cat observed to Sadie early one morning, as they worked side by side in the basement kitchen. ‘Are you sure he hasn’t been captured by aliens and replaced by a newer, kinder version?’
Sadie hesitated. She’d never told Cat about her conversation with Daniel, mostly because the events of the Smart Cookies opening day had pretty much eclipsed everything but also because she knew exactly how her best friend would react. But it was festering away inside her, keeping her awake even when she was worn out from long days in the shop, and she was starting to worry that if she didn’t tell someone, the whole thing would burst and poison her from the inside out.
‘He wants us to get back together,’ she told Cat bluntly.
But instead of looking shocked, Cat simply nodded. ‘I did wonder. He’s had such a personality make-over that it wasn’t hard to guess what was in his head.’ She gave Sadie a long, thoughtful look. ‘How do you feel about the idea?’
Sadie sighed. ‘There are times when I think it would be so much easier,’ she admitted. ‘But I haven’t really had time to think about it properly, to be honest. Things have been so manic here – it’s easier just to push it out of my head. You know how it is.’
Cat grimaced. ‘Oh yes. I know how it is. But I also remember how being with Daniel made you feel, and what he did to you. Don’t rush into anything, that’s my advice. And if you do decide it’s what you want, Daniel has a lot of making up to do. Let him work for it.’ She paused and glanced meaningfully at the stairs. ‘Or not, as the case may be. You do have other options, you know.’
Snowy Nights at Castle Court Page 8