She smiled but her eyes were watery and the smile wobbled. ‘Oh, love…’ She covered her mouth as if it was too awful to tell him.
‘Nate, take your mum up to the flat and make her a cup of tea. We’ll be fine here.’ June patted his arm.
‘Thank you.’
He led his mother behind the counter then gestured for her to go in front of him, but she froze and he bumped into her.
‘My things!’
‘What things?’
‘My suitcase, clothes and photographs. It’s all in the campervan.’
‘You came in the VW?’
She nodded and a tear escaped her eye and slid down her cheek.
‘Where have you parked?’
‘Just outside.’
‘Let’s go and park her around the back of the cafe.’
They went back through the cafe and out into the brightness of the afternoon. Paula opened her handbag with trembling hands and took out a pair of sunglasses. When she put them on, they covered most of her face.
‘Very Jackie Kennedy, Mum.’
She nodded.
‘They suit you.’
‘I grabbed the sunglasses before they could take them, too.’
He stopped walking and shook his head. ‘They?’
‘It was the bailiffs, Nate. They came this morning with a large white van and they started taking everything from the house.’
‘What?’ Fury bubbled in his gut. It wasn’t often that Nate experienced anger but if anything was likely to stir it, then injustice would do it. ‘The bailiffs took your belongings?’
‘Yes, love. It’s all gone other than what I could pack into the campervan before they saw it, and the things that were of no use to them.’
Nate reached out and squeezed her shoulder, then tried not to wince at how bony she was. ‘Okay… okay. It’ll all be okay, Mum.’
She stepped forwards and as he hugged her tight she folded against his chest. People passed them as they stood in the middle of the street and a few cast concerned looks at Nate, so he gave a small wave to let them know he had the situation in hand.
‘Where was Richard while all this was going on?’
‘Desperately ringing around… trying to raise some money to stop the bailiffs… taking things. They took his drinks globe, the one that he bought direct from Italy, and his golf clubs… the ones I had his initials engraved on last Christmas. They took… they took your dad’s watch, too. I’m so sorry, Nate, I was keeping it for you for your fortieth birthday… I gave him the watch on his fortieth and I thought it would be nice for you to have it, but they said it was worth something.’
As she looked up at him, mascara ran down her cheeks, carried on her tears, and pain surged through him. His poor mother, and after all she’d been through already. Now they’d done this to her.
‘Mum… don’t worry. It was a watch. I have you and you said you have the photos, so we have what matters. And they can’t take our memories of Dad away. No one can.’
She nodded, her front teeth buried in her bottom lip as she tried not to cry.
‘Come on, let’s get you up to the flat.’
He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and walked her to the campervan, then opened the passenger door for her before climbing in and starting the engine. The fuel gauge was on red and he realized she must have coasted into Conwenna Cove on fumes.
Once he’d parked the van around the rear of the cafe, he helped his mum out and took her up the steps to the flat.
‘You put the kettle on and I’ll start bringing your things up. We can put them in the bedroom for now.’
‘Thanks, darling. I don’t know what I’d do without you.’
‘Mum, is Richard coming too?’
She shook her head. ‘He’s staying there to see what he can salvage. He told me to come to you and said he’d follow in a few days.’
‘Right.’
A few trips up and down the steps and Nate had brought in the small amount of belongings his mother had saved. She had two suitcases full of goodness knows what, a box of what appeared to be make-up and hair products, a wicker washing basket full of photo albums and two Waitrose tote bags bulging with recipe books.
The final thing he found in the van was a small wooden rocking chair that looked as if it would fit a toddler. He carried it into the flat and set it down in the lounge area.
‘What’s this?’
‘Don’t you remember?’
He shook his head.
‘That was yours, Nate. Your dad bought it for you when you were still in my belly and when you were big enough to sit in it, you’d watch TV, eat your dinner and sometimes even fall asleep in it.’
‘Really?’
‘Yes, darling. I had to save it… I went into the attic to get it. There were other things there too, but that was the closest one and I had to get away before they saw what I’d taken.’
She handed him a mug of tea then went and sat on the sofa, crossing her legs beneath her. Nate followed her and sat down. He wrapped his hands around the mug and let the heat warm his palms as he tried to make sense of the situation.
‘So are you…’
‘Homeless?’
‘Yes.’
‘We are. I’m so ashamed.’
‘Well, don’t be. None of this was your fault.’
‘I could have asked what Richard was doing with our money… I could have shown more of an interest in the business.’
Nate shook his head. ‘You trusted him and there’s no shame in that. Look… I know this is an awful situation and I wish with all my heart that you weren’t going through this but it’s what you do from here on in that matters.’
‘Yes, love.’
Her dark green eyes roamed his face, her hands clutching her own mug so tightly the blue veins showed through her papery skin. When had she got so thin?
‘You’ll be safe here.’
And I’m going to make sure you eat.
‘I can stay?’
‘Of course you can.’
‘Oh, Nate… thank you. I didn’t want to come and be a burden to you.’
‘How could you ever be a burden?’
Paula yawned, covering her mouth with her hand. ‘Darling, please excuse me. I’m so tired.’
‘Right, you need to take a nap. I’ll go and change the bed, then you can go in there and get some rest.’
‘Oh, there’s no need—’
Nate held up a hand. ‘Don’t protest, Mum. I need to change the sheets anyway, and I’ll put the nice ones on that you bought me last Christmas.’
Paula smiled, the shadows under her eyes seeming to darken by the minute. ‘All right, love.’
When Nate had ensured that his mum was going to take a nap, he went into the kitchen and washed their mugs then set them on the draining board. He was really worried about the effect that the situation was having on his mum and it broke his heart to see her struggling after everything she’d been through in her life. After all, Richard was meant to be her fresh start, her second chance at happiness, and look what had happened. It just went to show that there probably was no happy ever after – or not for everyone, at least.
Well, if there was one thing he did know for certain, it was that being in Conwenna Cove would be good for his mum. The village was so pretty and the atmosphere so positive, that he was sure it would have a positive effect upon Paula. She would be able to take a breather from her life and decide where to go from here. She loved Richard, Nate knew that, and perhaps it would be good for his stepfather to come and stay too. Then his mum and her husband could take some time to think and plan. Some time out never did anyone any harm.
* * *
‘That was another delicious meal, thank you.’
‘You’re welcome, Nigel.’
Nate smiled at the friendly Welsh man and his wife, Gaynor. They weren’t staying in Conwenna but had been back several times since he’d bumped into them on the beach.
‘So, can you exte
nd your holiday and hang around a bit longer? It’s the greyhound event on Saturday.’
‘I wish we could.’ Gaynor shook her head. ‘But we’re heading home on Friday, sadly. We’d love to stay in Cornwall for longer but we’ve had nearly three weeks and have to get back to reality.’ She rolled her eyes.
‘That’s a shame.’ Nate handed Nigel his change. ‘You think you’ll be back?’
‘Definitely.’ Nigel nodded. ‘We love this part of the world and Ash has had an amazing holiday, haven’t you, boy?’
The dog panted next to his owner, seeming to grin in agreement.
‘See you again!’ Nate waved as they left the cafe.
‘Who was that, darling?’ Paula appeared in the doorway that led to the stairs up to the flat.
‘Nigel and Gaynor Maggs. They were here on holiday with their greyhound, Ash.’
‘You make friends with everyone, don’t you?’
He smiled. ‘You think?’
‘You’ve always been the same, love. Such a friendly lad.’
‘I don’t know, Mum. I was quite shy as a teenager.’
‘Yes, you’re right. You were always lovely but you did come out of your shell once you started swimming and surfing.’
Nate groaned as a familiar face peering through the cafe window.
‘What’s wrong?’ His mum rushed to his side.
‘It’s nothing.’
‘It surely is to make you groan like that.’
He sighed. ‘There’s this woman… she’s on holiday here, must have a holiday cottage or be staying with relatives as she’s been around for a few weeks, and she seems to… like me.’
Paula peered around him. ‘That blonde girl who’s standing in the doorway?’
‘Yep.’
‘You mean she’s got a crush on you?’
‘Her name’s Calista and she caused some problems for me when I was at the wine bar with Zoe recently.’
‘Problems?’
He shrugged. ‘Oh, I don’t know. She was jealous, I guess, and she called Zoe some names and upset her. But I’m not interested.’
‘In Zoe?’
‘In Calista.’
‘Oh, love.’
‘I’d hoped she’d have gone by now.’
‘Do you want me to deal with her?’ His mum touched his arm. ‘I can have a word?’
Nate laughed. ‘It’s okay, I can deal with it. I’m not thirteen any more.’
‘No, you’re not, darling. You’re a tall, handsome man but you’re such a nice person that it’s easy to see why some of these girls do get the wrong idea. You might need to be a bit firmer with them.’
‘Perhaps. Probably. But I find it difficult to be mean.’
‘Not mean, darling, just firm.’
‘I’ll try.’
Calista sashayed over to the counter and Nate tried to keep his eyes on his notepad and the Surf for Sighthounds plans.
‘Nate?’
He ground his teeth together.
‘Nate? Hello?’
Having no choice, he looked up, and winced. Calista was wearing an outfit that looked about four sizes too small for her. How she could walk in the tight denim shorts, he had no idea. She’d paired them with a pink halter top that was barely there.
‘Hello, Calista.’
‘How are you?’ She flicked her long hair over her shoulders and stuck her chest out.
‘I’m fine, thanks.’
‘Oh… good. Uh… I wanted to, uh… ask if you—’
‘Look, lovely, my son isn’t interested.’
‘What?’ Calista’s gaze flicked from him to Paula, who was standing next to Nate with her hands on her hips.
‘I said my son isn’t interested in you. So why don’t you either order or take your… camel toe elsewhere.’
Calista’s jaw dropped. ‘How… dare you!’
‘How dare I?’ Paula placed her hands on the counter and leant forwards. ‘You might not realize it, but you’re making Nate very uncomfortable.’
‘I am?’
Calista’s mouth opened and closed and her eyes flickered between Nate and his mother repeatedly, as if she was unsure which one of them was to blame for this confrontation.
‘Okay,’ she finally squeaked, then she flounced out of the cafe.
Nate turned to his mother.
‘Mum! That was… embarrassing.’
‘Sorry, darling, but it needed to be said.’
‘But… camel toe?’
‘I’ll blame the menopause for that one. Sometimes I speak before I can filter.’ She winked at him.
‘She’s probably really upset now.’
‘Nate, you are such a softy. She’ll be fine and she needs to get some bigger shorts or she’ll end up with a nasty case of thrush. They were far too tight and must have been uncomfortable. Although I know that these days you can get a designer vagina so she could go and get one of those…’ Paula looked up and bit her lip. ‘Am I prattling on? Sorry, Nate, I had such a good sleep that I’m feeling much better and I couldn’t help jumping in then.’
‘Don’t be sorry. And thank you. I hate having to be… firm.’
‘My pleasure. Now, can I have something to eat? I don’t know if it’s the fact that I slept or the sea air, but I’m suddenly ravenous.’
‘Of course. I’ll make you a cheese and roasted tomato panini, shall I?’
‘That sounds amazing.’
‘Go and sit down and I’ll bring it over.’
‘You’re an angel.’
As Nate made his mother’s snack, he thought about what had just happened. Paula might well be right; perhaps he did need to be a bit firmer. He’d hate to be out with Zoe and have another woman make her uneasy again; that simply couldn’t happen. It was also nice to have his mum here in Conwenna. He didn’t see much of her these days as they were both busy with their lives but he knew that she loved him and vice versa. In fact, he hoped that she’d stay around for a while now, as it would be nice to spend time with her before he left. A chuckle escaped as he thought about what she’d said to Calista. He’d never say something like that but, coming from Paula, it seemed acceptable. She was his mum, after all.
It also reminded him of the mum he’d known growing up, before his dad had died. She’d had a great sense of humour and was always smiling and joking, and at times, she had been a bit wicked too. Had losing his dad changed her that much then, stolen her easy smiles and relaxed demeanour and replaced them with a wariness that seldom gave way to humour? Grief was a terrible thing and it affected people in different ways. Nate supposed that he had run away but his mother had stayed to face it, worked her way through it, then found love again with Richard. And now… Richard had screwed that up. Or at least, life had. He just hoped they’d be able to salvage something from the mess so they weren’t facing complete financial ruin.
He took her panini over with a large mug of Earl Grey tea, made exactly how she liked it, then he sat opposite her. The cafe had gone quiet, so he could take a short break and spend the time chatting with his mum, making sure that she was able to think about things other than how frightening her life had become. Hopefully offering her some ideas about where she could go from there.
Chapter 17
Zoe was clearing a table when the door of the diner opened and Nate walked in, accompanied by an older woman. She carried the plates over to the counter, then smiled as she approached them.
‘Hi, Nate. Do you want a table?’
‘Yes, please, Zoe. For two.’
‘Of course. How about the corner booth, there? Or do you want something closer to the window?’
‘The booth will be great, thanks.’
‘So you’re Zoe?’
Zoe looked at the woman and realized there was something familiar about her. In fact, she reminded Zoe of Nate. She had the same blonde hair and a similar nose, although hers was smaller, and when she smiled, it lit up her whole face exactly as Nate’s smile did.
‘Yes, I’m Z
oe.’
‘Aren’t you beautiful?’
‘Uh… thank you.’
Nate was grinning as he looked from the woman to Zoe and back again.
‘Zoe, before she says anything else, this is my mum, Paula.’
‘Nice to meet you.’
They shook hands.
‘Do you want to go over to your table and I’ll get the menus for you? Would you like to order drinks now or take a few minutes?’
‘I’d love a glass of prosecco, please.’ Paula nodded. ‘Nate?’
‘I’ll have a glass of beer, thanks, Zoe.’
‘Coming right up.’
Zoe went behind the counter and poured the drinks, then got two menus.
When she delivered the drinks and menus to the booth, Paula asked, ‘This is your diner then, Zoe?’
‘It is.’
‘Very nice.’
‘Thank you.’
‘Will you join us?’
‘Oh… uh…’
‘Mum, Zoe’s working. She hasn’t got time to have dinner with her customers.’
‘We’re not just customers, Nate. Well, you’re not, at least.’
‘Mum!’
Nate’s cheeks flushed and Zoe bit her lip to hold back her smile. It seemed that Nate’s mother had a habit of saying whatever was on her mind.
‘Thanks, Paula, but I can’t right now as we’re a bit busy. Perhaps after you’ve eaten, I’ll be able to grab a drink with you.’
‘I shall look forward to it, Zoe.’
An hour and a half later, the diner only had a few customers remaining. Zoe went to the booth table to clear Nate and Paula’s dessert plates.
‘Can I get you anything else?’
‘Yes, we’ll have three coffees and you can come and have a chat with us.’
‘She’s not going to give up, Zoe, so you’d just as well surrender now.’ Nate winked at her and she smiled in return.
‘Okay then, you’ve twisted my arm.’
Coffees made, Zoe sat with Nate and Paula. She wondered how the diner looked from their perspective with its checked floor, red seat cushions, mirrors and pictures on the walls, and the clean shiny white counter. Right then, Buddy Holly was singing about Peggy Sue and she noticed that Paula was moving in time with the beat.
Forever at Conwenna Cove Page 15