The Little Teashop of Lost and Found

by Trisha Ashley

  The teashop’s official inspection was on Monday, so I sorted one or two things out in the office, made a couple of calls, then noticed the time and dashed back up to the flat to pack a bag. I disregarded Nile’s suggestion about what to wear for the newspaper interview and instead packed a long jersey tunic with a silk front panel in autumn shades that I knew set off my hair, and a pair of narrow black trousers. That would do it … and then I thought of Zelda being at dinner and that maybe she would be London-smart and I would feel a mess in my usual jeans and a T-shirt, with one of Edie’s weird and wonderful knitted cardies over it.

  But on the other hand, I didn’t want anyone to think I was dressing up for any particular reason …

  I had a rummage on the rail that was doing service until I found an inexpensive wardrobe.

  ‘My new jeans, the Italian emerald-green linen top with lace inserts – and where are my malachite earrings?’ I muttered to myself, quickly folding the garments away in a slightly bigger bag than the first one I’d got out.

  I was later setting off than I intended, but not as late as Nile, for I was barely half a mile along the road when his dark estate zoomed up behind me and followed me the rest of the way, despite my loitering temptingly on the straight bit in the hope he’d overtake me.

  We found Sheila in the kitchen, making a start on dinner.

  ‘Hello, darlings – chicken casserole with herb dumplings and apple crumble with cream for afters,’ she said.

  ‘Straight in with the important information, as usual,’ Nile said, giving her a hug, and I followed suit.

  ‘I’m so sorry I landed Robbie on you without any notice yesterday,’ I apologized.

  ‘Oh, it’s no problem,’ she assured me. ‘He’s very nice and I got him wedging clay for me first thing, which was really useful. I’ve put him in the room almost opposite yours but he’s using the bathroom at the end of the corridor. But now Zelda’s arrived, I’m afraid she’s in the room that shares your bathroom, since we haven’t finished decorating the other letting bedroom.’

  ‘That’s all right,’ I said.

  ‘We really must sort out one of the bedrooms in the family side for you soon, darling,’ she added, to my surprise, until I realized that in tourist season they’d need my room for paying visitors.

  ‘There’s no need, because if you ever want my room for a paying guest, I can just stay at the flat instead,’ I told her.

  ‘I expect we’d squeeze you in somewhere,’ Nile said. Then he asked Sheila whether Zelda had told her why she’d turned up so suddenly.

  ‘No, perhaps she just wants to put things right between you,’ she suggested. ‘I didn’t really have time to chat because after I’d picked her up from the station I had work to finish off, so she and Robbie went out in his car.’

  She looked at the clock. ‘I expect they’ll be back soon.’

  ‘I’ll take my bag up and then give you a hand with dinner,’ I offered. ‘Is everyone coming tonight?’

  ‘Yes, the more the merrier, I thought, and safety in numbers,’ Sheila said vaguely.

  ‘To dilute the awkward elements?’ suggested Nile.

  ‘I hope there won’t be any,’ she said optimistically.

  Upstairs, my bathroom smelled of unfamiliar perfume and half the shelf space was now occupied by a large sponge bag, several lush-looking bottles and jars of cream and potions.

  I felt slightly resentful of this occupation, though I shouldn’t have; I could have found myself sharing it with a random paying guest at any point. Anyway, when one of us was in the bathroom, the door to the other bedroom could be bolted, so it wasn’t a big deal.

  I washed and tidied myself, then changed into my linen top and new jeans, before attempting to coax my hair into loose curls. A little makeup … and I was about to go down when there was a knock at my door.

  I’d managed to forget all about Robbie again, but there before me stood six foot two of handsome, well-meaning stupidity.

  ‘Alice! Sheila said you’d arrived at last,’ he said, pulling me into his arms and attempting to plant a smacker on my lips, which seemed to have become an unfortunate habit. I twisted my head away and over his shoulder spotted a small, slim dark-haired woman watching us, her hand on the bedroom door further along.

  ‘Get off me, you idiot,’ I said, fending him away.

  ‘I thought you’d be glad to see me, now you’d got that damned book out of the way,’ he said, looking hurt. ‘I was telling Zelda – this is Zelda, by the way – that I didn’t warn you exactly when I was coming up because I wanted to surprise you and anyway, I couldn’t wait to see you.’

  ‘Hi,’ I said to Zelda, and she stared at me out of a pair of enormous pansy-brown eyes.

  ‘Sheila was telling me about you. In fact, you seem to be flavour of the moment around here, even though no one’s ever even mentioned you before,’ she drawled huskily. Her eyes narrowed and looked me up and down. ‘I can’t imagine why.’

  ‘I stayed here while I was getting my flat ready to move into, and since then I’ve been back quite a lot because I’m helping Bel and Sheila to create a café in the pottery,’ I said. Then I added pointedly, ‘I’ve heard quite a bit about you, too.’

  ‘From Nile, I expect,’ she said.

  ‘Zelda’s got things to discuss with Nile that are better done in person than on the phone,’ Robbie broke in before I could answer. ‘She arrived without telling anyone she was coming, too. Odd we should both turn up on impulse at the same time, wasn’t it?’

  ‘Yes, weird,’ I said. From the way they were looking at each other, like a pair of conspirators, I guessed they’d been exchanging confidences. In fact, they’d probably spent the entire afternoon telling each other their life histories.

  ‘We need to talk, too,’ Robbie said to me meaningfully.

  ‘Do we? Then I’m afraid it will just have to wait, because I’m going down to give Sheila a hand with dinner,’ I said quickly. ‘Where did you both get to, today, somewhere nice?’

  ‘Oh, we found a pub – the Standing Stones,’ he said.

  ‘I know it, it’s over Blackdog Moor towards Upvale.’

  ‘No idea where it was – we just drove and stopped at the first sign of civilization. It was cosy, with a wood fire, and since the rain was setting in we stayed put. It had good internet connection, too.’

  ‘Your joy must have been unconfined,’ I said, and he gave me an uncertain look. He’d never really understood my sense of humour.

  ‘I’d better go and change,’ Zelda said. ‘I’ll leave you two to have a chat.’

  ‘Yes, come on, Alice,’ Robbie said. ‘I’m sure they can manage dinner without you.’

  ‘Oh, all right,’ I said, giving in and letting him into my room, though I left the door open like a Victorian miss.

  He is not the sharpest knife in the box, but after five minutes I’d managed to get it into his head that although delighted to see him, and very fond of him, I hadn’t the slightest intention of ever being more than good friends.

  ‘I don’t know why you thought we could just take up where we left off when you emigrated to Australia,’ I said. ‘I mean, a lot of water has passed under the bridge since then and we’re different people from when we first met. I can’t simply turn the clock back on my emotions.’

  ‘But I was hoping to take you back to visit my parents,’ he said, as if that made any difference to anything.

  ‘Robbie, I’m opening a teashop in less than a fortnight and I’m overwhelmed with things to do before that. I put everything on hold while I finished the novel, but now I’ve got to get on with it and there’s no way I’m going anywhere for weeks, if not months!’

  He looked baffled. I think he’d had a scenario in his head and things were not going the way he’d expected them to.

  ‘Think it through,’ I said to him. ‘I’m now permanently settled up here, while you live in Australia. That’s rather a long distance away.’

  ‘But I told you I migh
t move back – with the right incentive.’

  ‘If you mean me, then forget it!’

  ‘Have you met someone else?’ he asked with sudden suspicion.

  ‘Yes, I’m secretly betrothed to Prince William,’ I said rather wearily and he grinned. It was just as well I’d only switched on the shaded wall lights, because I could feel my face burning slightly.

  ‘No, I mean really, have you?’ he repeated.

  ‘Just wait till you see the tiara I’ve borrowed from the Queen to wear for dinner tonight,’ I said flippantly.

  We went round the conversational circle for a little while longer, but after a bit he seemed to have convinced himself that he’d just been a bit quick off the mark after Dan’s death and I simply needed a little more time to adjust to the idea of us getting back together again. Then he took himself off to get ready for dinner, while I went down.

  Zelda had looked very small and extremely pretty in a cute kind of way and, remembering that, I suddenly felt as huge as a dinosaur.

  I wondered if Sheila was right about why she’d turned up.

  ‘Dr Tompkins is coming to see you later today, Father,’ I told him.

  ‘Why is he coming?’ he snapped, frowning.

  ‘You rang and asked him to call in,’ I said. ‘Don’t you remember?’

  He stared at me a moment longer, then his eyes slid away vaguely.

  ‘Oh, yes – of course,’ he murmured, finally.

  ‘I’ll ask Ron to remind you later and Kim will bring in tea and sultana scones when he arrives.’

  Ron, who was on duty today, had been dispatched to the garden with Hugo, who was always noisily insistent when he wished to relieve himself. I could see them both through the bay window, walking across the lawn.

  ‘I don’t need reminding,’ Father said crossly. ‘Anyone would think I’d lost my marbles!’

  40

  Scenes Off

  Sheila had changed her clay-stained cords for clean denim jeans and a long, loose, blue-checked shirt, in which she looked not that much older than Bel.

  Dinner was almost ready and I laid the table while she put plates in to warm and sliced bread.

  ‘I’ve had a sneaky gin and tonic,’ she said. ‘I had a feeling I might need it, because although I hope Zelda only wants to make up with Nile, she might have come here with the idea of changing his mind about the AI instead.’

  ‘Surely not? I think he’s already told her in no uncertain terms he’s not going to do it. She’s extremely pretty, though,’ I added morosely. ‘And probably very persuasive.’

  ‘I was dying to ask her while I was driving back from the station after picking her up,’ she confessed. ‘Only I didn’t think she had any idea that I knew about it, so I thought I’d better not.’

  ‘That’s true – she’d probably be mortified if she realized we all knew about it. And by the way, I’m still feeling guilty about dumping Robbie on you without any warning.’

  ‘Well, don’t feel guilty, because actually, it was a godsend – he wedged absolutely tons of clay!’

  ‘I have no idea what wedging clay involves,’ I confessed, ‘but thank you for diverting him, anyway!’

  ‘Wedging clay is a bit like kneading dough, only on a larger and heavier scale,’ she explained. ‘While he was at it, he told me he hoped you two would get back together and he’d been surprised you weren’t more pleased to see him when he arrived.’

  ‘He chose the wrong moment – and he’s chosen the wrong girl, too, because getting back together isn’t going to happen.’

  ‘No, I was sure it wasn’t, but I was very tactful and pointed out to him that you’d need some time to get over your fiancé’s death and you were fully occupied with your writing and the teashop.’

  So that was what had put that idea into Robbie’s thick skull!

  ‘Well, of course I do still think about Dan a lot, but as I told Nile a while back, the nervous breakdown seemed to have somehow enabled me to move on.’

  ‘Oh?’ she brightened. ‘I’m not sure Nile’s entirely taken that on board, because he seems to think you still need a little space … though eventually I do hope you two will—’

  ‘We’re just friends,’ I said quickly, guessing where she was heading. ‘But not in the Zelda sense of the word,’ I added, hearing her voice in the hall, calling imperatively: ‘Nile – can we talk?’

  ‘I suppose so, though it’s almost dinner time – come into the library,’ he replied, sounding tight-lipped but resigned.

  Then there was the click of the library door shutting and we exchanged a glance.

  ‘I think we might have a few issues to resolve before there can be happy-ever-afters all round,’ Sheila said thoughtfully.

  ‘They don’t exist anyway,’ I told her. ‘Not even in my fairy tales.’

  The rest of us had already gathered round the table and made a start on Geeta’s delicious vegetable samosa starters, by the time they emerged together, though not, judging by Zelda’s expression, together in any other sense than temporarily inhabiting the same space.

  I got my first good look at her, for the passage light upstairs was quite dim. She was tiny, with black, glossy hair falling in two perfect wings to frame a face that could only be described as cutely pretty. She was also thin and elegant, in a garnet-coloured slinky jumpsuit that probably cost the earth.

  Nile was wearing his best thundercloud expression and a black shirt, probably to reflect his mood.

  ‘Zelda does some modelling for catalogues,’ Bel whispered in my ear.

  ‘What, for children’s clothes?’ I hissed back cattily, and Bel snorted.

  Zelda looked at us suspiciously, then went and sat next to Robbie, while Nile took the last chair, which was opposite me. His eyes rested on me for a moment as blank and hard as grey quartz. Then the angry expression went out of them and was replaced by a wicked glint.

  ‘You’re looking very Lizzie Siddal tonight, Alice – all lace and flowing curls,’ he said, with the obvious intention of winding me up, though I could never resist that smile.

  ‘Don’t tease, Nile,’ said Sheila, and then, to my relief, the give and take of normal family conversation started up again and Teddy began feeding Casper spoonfuls of lumpy gloop, while Bel told her mother that she’d just remembered that she’d invited Thom Carey to Sunday lunch, and asked if that was all right.

  ‘Of course, darling,’ she said predictably.

  When I turned my head I caught Zelda eyeing me closely, then she began whispering away to Robbie, which was rather rude. Whatever she said made him stare first at Nile, and then at me, though it didn’t stop him eating. Nothing ever did get between Robbie and his dinner.

  ‘What time is your interview tomorrow, darling?’ Sheila asked me. ‘Only we must leave the library free for that.’

  ‘About ten,’ I said. ‘I’m quite nervous about it and I’d like to get it over with.’

  ‘Are you going to take my advice and wear the dryad dress, for the photographs?’ Nile asked.

  ‘What interview?’ asked Robbie plaintively. ‘And why is someone taking your photograph, Alice?’

  So then we had to give him and Zelda a potted history of my being found abandoned and my hope that my natural mother would come forward if she saw an article about it in the local paper.

  ‘I had no idea about any of that,’ Robbie said blankly.

  ‘But I told you all about it years ago, Robbie,’ I said patiently.

  ‘Did you?’ His eyes opened wide. ‘I must have forgotten. I mean, I knew you were adopted, it was all the rest I didn’t remember.’

  ‘It all sounds very Wuthering Heights,’ drawled Zelda. ‘Who have you cast as Heathcliff?’ She glanced at Nile. ‘Or should I guess?’

  ‘I’ve always thought Heathcliff was more a force of nature than a real character,’ Sheila said, holding Casper who, having finished his dinner, was being passed from lap to lap around the table. I noticed Zelda hadn’t shown any interest in him, whi
ch was odd considering her desire for a baby, but perhaps she was one of those women who only liked their own children?

  But Casper was so adorable, I didn’t know how anyone could resist him! Geeta took him off to bed eventually, when we took our coffee through into the living room. I only lingered long enough to be polite before I gave in to the enormous rolling waves of sleepiness that were finally catching up with me from last night’s marathon writing session.

  ‘I’m afraid I’ll have to go to bed,’ I confessed. ‘I’m sorry, but I only had a couple of hours’ sleep last night, before Nile woke me up.’

  Zelda gave me another of those long stares, sniggered, then muttered something to Robbie, who was sitting next to her on the cushioned window seat.

  I felt myself going pink and Nile looked angry.

  ‘Yes, do go, darling,’ Sheila said quickly. ‘You want to be nice and fresh for the newspaper reporter in the morning.’

  ‘I feel tired too – I think I might do the same,’ announced Zelda, suddenly getting up.

  I might have guessed she had an ulterior motive if I’d been less thick-headed with sleep, because she grabbed my arm as we reached the landing and said, ‘I want to talk to you.’

  ‘I don’t know what about, but it will have to wait till tomorrow – I’m bushed.’

  ‘It’ll only take a minute,’ she said, following me uninvited into my room and sinking on to the only chair.

  ‘Let’s stop playing games and clear the air: when Nile and I had our talk in the library, he said he’d told you I wanted him to be my sperm donor – but he doesn’t want to do it because he’s in a relationship with you. Not that I didn’t realize that for myself at dinner,’ she added.

  That blew some of the clouds of sleep away and I stared blankly at her: ‘What? Nile told you we were in a relationship?’

  ‘I’m not a complete fool and I could see it for myself as soon as I saw the way you were looking at each other at dinner. He says this time it’s serious, but then, he’s been out with loads of girls and he always says that.’