Stupid, she thought as she looked down at the mud on her boots.
Still, at least she hadn’t spent the day sitting in the house waiting for life to happen to her.
Twenty
Even though the rain had cleared overnight and the morning was brighter, Cathy made a conscious decision not to walk the canal path today. She had a lot to carry for cookery club, for one thing, and if she was going just to try to bump into her mystery man, it was silly, and maybe a little bit desperate too. So she walked through her estate and on to town, and in a funny way she was glad she did, because some of her neighbours had started to put up their Christmas decorations and the road looked bright and cheery.
As for her own decorations, it hardly seemed worth getting them down from the loft this year, not just for her to look at and be reminded that it was Christmas but that this year she was looking at them alone. Her mum would have wanted them putting up around now, and she’d have been tapping her foot along to Christmas songs as she told Cathy where she wanted streamers and plaques and wreaths to hang.
What Cathy could get excited about, as she walked to St Cuthbert’s, was her recipe book. She’d had replies to her post on Facebook and she was looking forward to seeing what recipes people had brought in to contribute. She’d also had a message from Beth saying she was bringing her older sister to give it a go, and Cathy was looking forward to welcoming a new member to the club. She knew the vicar wouldn’t make his appearance this week – although, that might be a good thing because him being there would make Iris so star-struck that she’d be absolutely useless, and Cathy still relied a great deal on her assistance when it came to things like knowing where keys and switches and pieces of equipment were. Cathy liked him, of course; the problem was, Iris liked him just a bit too much. And goodness only knew what sort of mischief it would provoke in Dora, who loved to tease Iris almost as much as Iris loved to follow the vicar round.
As she arrived at the front doors of the church hall, Iris was waiting for her outside.
‘You could have gone in,’ Cathy said. ‘You must have been freezing out here.’
‘I’ve only just arrived myself,’ Iris said. ‘And I knew you’d be here any minute – I thought I’d wait as it would save me walking back across the hall to let you in.’
It was hardly a marathon, but Cathy just smiled. ‘Thanks. How are you this morning?’
‘Same as always,’ Iris said, as if that was enough information for anyone. As she unlocked the old wooden doors, Cathy’s attention was drawn to a car, slowing to a halt on the kerb close by. Erica got out.
‘You’re early,’ Cathy said, going to meet her. ‘Raring to go?’
‘Oh, the car’s broken down. Malc had already left the house for work so I’ve had to grab a lift with my brother before he went into work himself. It was better than fighting for a seat on the bus in rush hour.’
Cathy glanced at the car. She couldn’t see anyone in the driver’s seat, but the boot was open and she could only assume that Erica’s brother was round there getting something out. She looked closer to see if Tansy was in there, but the back seats were empty too. She couldn’t say she was all that disappointed, despite the effect Tansy’s absence would have on her numbers – she’d feel a lot more relaxed today without that sneering presence.
The sound of the boot slamming echoed down the street and Erica’s brother emerged from the back of the car with a bag. He strode towards Erica, holding it out for her but, as he looked up, whatever he’d been about to say to her died on his lips. He stared at Cathy, and then, with a sudden realisation of her own, Cathy’s mouth dropped open.
A huge grin split his face.
‘Well, talk about a small world!’ he said.
‘You’re Erica’s brother?’ Cathy looked from him to Erica, as if expecting some kind of explanation. But that was silly, because how was her new friend to know that Cathy had already met her brother on the path that ran alongside the canal? How was she to know that this was the same man Cathy had been hoping to run into again, the reason that Cathy had got soaked the day before as she’d walked that way in the rain?
And, with a jolt of excitement, Cathy was suddenly reminded of one very important detail that Erica had given her about her brother: he was single.
‘I am,’ he said. ‘So you must be Cathy?’
He glanced at Iris briefly before turning back to Cathy, perhaps doubting himself for a millisecond before deciding that his original guess was the right one. Cathy didn’t know what Erica might have told him about her, but she was pleased that her friend had at least felt her important enough to mention to him. And that he’d remembered her name at all.
‘And you must be Matthias?’
‘Call me Matt,’ he said, his grin spreading wider still. ‘I don’t know what my mum was thinking giving me a name like Matthias.’
‘I like it,’ Cathy said. ‘It’s unusual.’
Erica cleared her throat and Cathy turned to her now, realising that neither she nor Matthias had yet explained how they already knew each other ‘Would someone like to tell me what’s going on?’
‘My thoughts exactly,’ Iris put in. ‘And is anyone actually entering this building or not, because I’m standing here like chips with these keys and we’ve got a kitchen to set up.’
‘We’ve bumped into each other a couple of times already,’ Matthias said, holding Cathy in a steady gaze as he did. She liked the way he looked at her. She could have been mistaken, of course, but it felt as if he was as interested in her as she was in him. What to do about that was a different matter entirely, especially now that it was complicated by the fact that he was Erica’s brother and Cathy had already decided that it would be a bad idea to date someone so close to her friend… but for now she was ignoring that little thorn in her side and enjoying the moment. ‘While I was walking Guin on the canal path.’
Now it was Erica’s turn to show a wide grin. ‘On the canal path… really? Well, isn’t that interesting?’
At this, Matthias shot a brief look of warning at his sister. Cathy was pretty sure she hadn’t mentioned their short meetings by the canal to Erica – though she’d been tempted a few times, something had always stopped her – so she could only assume, from Erica’s reaction, that he had. And if he had, what had he said about her? It must have been good because Erica looked pleased, and also a little bit smug, like she was party to a fun secret and she was enjoying, for the moment, being the only person who knew it.
‘Only to say good morning,’ Cathy added. ‘Of course, if I’d known that you were Erica’s brother…’
‘Well, it’s not the first thing you think to ask when you meet someone out walking their dog, is it?’ he said, laughing.
‘No,’ Cathy said, laughing herself now. ‘But how strange…’
‘The world is full of the most wonderful coincidences, isn’t it?’ Erica said.
Iris let out a sigh. ‘I’ll go and get started, shall I?’
She went inside, but although they all watched her go, nobody made a move to follow. Cathy wanted to get as much as she could from this meeting, and maybe Matthias did too. Erica seemed content to watch and grin and feel smug about it. There was no way she could fail to see how interested Cathy was, and after trying to matchmake and having her attempts rejected, Cathy fully expected an I told you so later that morning.
Matthias looked again at his sister. ‘I expect you want to go in and get started.’
‘There’s no point in going in until Cathy does,’ Erica said.
Cathy wanted to say something to him but she didn’t know what. The situation had caught her completely off-guard and, as usual, all her cool lines had deserted her. Not that they would have been that cool, even if she’d been able to think of any of them.
‘I suppose I’d better go in,’ she said.
‘Oh, right… of course,’ he replied. ‘I suppose I’d better get to work anyway – don’t want to get stuck in traffic. See you around, mayb
e?’
‘I hope so,’ Cathy said. ‘Bye, Mattias.’
‘Matt,’ he said, grinning at her and opening his car door.
‘Matt,’ Cathy repeated, smiling. ‘Sorry; it didn’t take me long to forget, did it?’
‘I’ll let you off this once.’ He shot her a last grin before getting into his car.
They watched for a moment as he started the engine and began to pull away from the kerb. Then Cathy turned to see Erica wearing a huge naughty grin that made her look disconcertingly like her brother.
‘Don’t worry,’ she said. ‘He’s got a late shift tomorrow. I’ve got a feeling if you take a walk by the canal tomorrow morning, you’ll definitely find him there.’
On any other day, Cathy might have been disappointed to see that Tansy, the vicar and one or two others were missing from class, but her head was spinning from the strange but wonderful coincidence that had come to light that morning and her mood was just too good for disappointment. Erica kept giving her knowing looks, and Cathy caught her whispering to Iris and Dora more than once while angling her head in Cathy’s direction. Cathy didn’t want to assume that she was interesting enough to be the subject of their gossiping but was finding it hard to think anything else.
Because Fleur had got so excited about them, and because they hadn’t actually tackled pastry yet at cookery club, Cathy had decided that they’d have a go at mince pies together. Everyone had been happy about that, even though some had said they didn’t actually like mince pies. In fact, the number of people who’d told her that had worried her at first, and initially Cathy had been all for suggesting something else. However, almost all of those people had said that everyone they knew did like mince pies and they’d happily bake them to give away, especially as it was getting closer to Christmas.
If Cathy was honest, she had a love–hate relationship with mince pies herself. They were another one of those things her mum would bake every Christmas just because it was Christmas and you couldn’t have Christmas without mince pies. Cathy smiled as the scene unfolded in her mind.
She’d have been perhaps six or seven when she’d first helped her mum to make them. Cutting the shapes out was her favourite bit. She stood on a chair to reach the table and it wobbled on an uneven bit of floor tile every time she pressed down. The pies were always wonky, either too thin or too thick, with edges that wouldn’t fasten together once the mincemeat was in there. Still, Cathy’s mum had smiled with pride and pulled her in for a hug once they were all cut.
‘You’re a natural,’ she said. And little Cathy could have burst with pride. She hugged her mum tighter still. Miriam laughed lightly. ‘You can let go now, sweetie; lovely as they look right now, we need to put them in the oven and make them even lovelier.’
‘Can I put them in?’
‘We need to brush them first and sprinkle some sugar over them and then they’ll be ready. You think you can do that?’
Cathy nodded eagerly, and then followed a flurry of splattered milk and spilled sugar before the pies were ready to bake. And when they were done was the bit Cathy usually liked best – tasting.
‘Ready?’ her mum asked once they’d cooled enough to eat and she had two cups of tea on the table – one for her in a big mug the colour of amber, and one in a smaller mug that was more milk than tea for Cathy.
‘Yes.’
Cathy grabbed for the mince pie and bit into it. Instantly, her face went from excited expectation to serious disappointment. Her mum laughed loudly.
‘They take some getting used to, sweetie. You don’t have to eat it if you don’t like it.’
Cathy wanted to eat it to make her mum happy, and so she shoved the rest in and chewed rapidly until it went down, and the sight of it made her mum laugh more loudly than ever.
Right now, as Cathy wandered around, the air filling with flour as it puffed up from workstations in little clouds, the memory was still fresh in her mind and making her smile. Some were handling pastry better than others and her expertise had been called on a lot more than in previous weeks. Most of the time the fault was that people were just too diligent, overworking it so that it was like plasticine or rolling it too thick or too thin. Cathy tried to explain that sometimes it was all about having the confidence to leave well alone when it looked like it might be mixed; with pastry, less was often more, but many just didn’t seem to get it, and she’d been greeted with some blank looks. She hoped that less than perfect pastry wouldn’t put them off trying it again at home, because she felt certain that it wouldn’t take long for people to get the hang of it and good home-made pastry really was worth the effort.
‘Tansy would have this nailed by now,’ Erica said as Cathy went over to see how she was getting on. ‘She’s really good at stuff like this.’
‘It’s a shame she couldn’t come today,’ Cathy said.
‘I expect she’ll come over to ours later,’ Erica said. ‘I might let her have a go at these in our kitchen if Malc doesn’t object too much.’
‘They’re still not getting along?’ Cathy asked.
‘I can’t see it changing any time soon to be honest. He’s too middle-aged and Tansy is too much of a teenager; not an ideal combination for harmony.’
‘But she still likes to spend time at your house?’
‘It’s either that or her own…’ Erica shrugged. ‘Now’s not the time to go into that.’
Cathy knew when a conversation was done with, so she moved on. Erica kept on putting this information off; every time Cathy got close to hearing it her friend moved the conversation on. She knew she’d hear it sooner or later, but couldn’t help feeling sooner might be more useful because she was beginning to worry that later might lead to her putting her foot in it.
As everyone cleaned down the counters, Cathy took great care to check all the equipment before they went. As Erica had handed in the missing blender with another sheepish apology earlier, it meant everything was accounted for and Cathy allowed herself to relax. She hadn’t worried unduly about the blender incident, but she had been a little nervous that if things like that kept going wrong she’d be told she could no longer use the kitchen at St Cuthbert’s for the cookery club. She was beginning to look forward to their weekly meet-ups so much that she’d miss them terribly if they had to come to an end.
She’d just finished counting everything when two of the youngest members of the club, twenty-something Beth and her sister Alicia, came over. Beth held out a sheet of lined paper with spidery writing on it.
‘We only managed to get this last night,’ she said. ‘It’s our great-grandma’s recipe for barmbrack. We had to go and visit her in the old people’s home so she could write it down for us.’
Cathy read down the list. ‘I’ve never made this before.’
‘It’s Irish,’ Alicia said. ‘You don’t see it in shops. We had a go at it last night, actually, after we got back from the home. I thought it was disgusting but Mum started to cry when she tasted it because she said she remembered our great-grandma making it for her when she was young and it tasted just the same, so I’m guessing that means it was like it ought to be.’
‘We thought… maybe you might want it for your book?’ Beth said. ‘It’s not exactly a Christmas recipe but people used to eat it in the winter apparently.’
‘They don’t have to be Christmas recipes,’ Cathy said, ‘although that is a good idea! This looks lovely – I can’t wait to have a go. Quite simple ingredients too – they’re often the best ones.’
‘So it could go in?’ Beth asked.
‘Oh, definitely,’ Cathy said.
Beth and Alicia both beamed at her. ‘Great-Grandma will be really pleased when we tell her.’
‘I’m really glad you brought it in. Can I keep hold of this sheet?’
‘Yes,’ Alicia said. ‘We can have a copy when you put the book together, can’t we? With all the other recipes?’
‘That’s what I was planning to do,’ Cathy said. She looked at Alicia.
‘How have you found today?’
‘Oh, I loved it,’ she replied. ‘I’m definitely coming again next week if I can get the day off work. I work as a waitress and I usually get my hours about a week ahead so I’ll know better tomorrow. But if I’m not on the rota I’ll definitely come.’
‘I’m glad to hear it,’ Cathy said. She was about to say more when Iris called her over. ‘I’m sorry… it looks as though I’m needed. Thanks so much for your recipe and hopefully I’ll see you next week.’
Cathy went over to Iris, who lowered her voice as she glanced at Erica, currently wiping down the worktop where she’d been rolling her pastry. ‘Have you checked nothing is missing today?’
‘Yes,’ Cathy said patiently.
‘So… no more strange incidents?’
‘No,’ Cathy said, beginning to wish that she hadn’t told Iris where the missing blender had ended up and how she’d got it back.
Iris looked satisfied, and Cathy left it at that. Even if there had been anything missing, she wasn’t about to start demanding to search everyone’s bags before they left – that was one sure-fire way to make sure people didn’t come back again.
Twenty-One
Cathy had a few slices of the barmbrack wrapped up in her bag for Fleur to taste. She was on her way to do an extra shift at French for Flowers. She was sure Fleur would enjoy it – Fleur often said herself she’d never met a cake she didn’t like – and Cathy thought it had turned out pretty well for a first try; well enough to give out.
As she’d baked the previous evening she’d been filled with a great sense of contentment. Life was looking up – she felt certain of it. Cookery club was going well and everyone seemed to be enjoying it (even if they didn’t always make it), her little book was coming together, she had lots of new friends and then there was Matthias…
Cathy's Christmas Kitchen: A heart-warming feel-good romantic comedy Page 15