She’d also been invited to spend Christmas with Malcolm Ferguson, a Scottish Venison farmer. They’d been introduced by a mutual acquaintance at an international rugby match. Malcolm was a giant of a man with a fashionably bald head and thick sandy beard, and had once played rugby himself, but been forced to quit because of a shoulder injury sustained when he was kicked by a pregnant doe. Camilla quite fancied Malcolm, but apart from a physical attraction to him, there wasn’t much else she was drawn to and she’d worried that accepting his invitation to snuggle in front of a smouldering yule log while sipping Scotch might send the wrong message.
Then there had been William Roscoe, the wealthy Englishman ten years her senior, who reminded her of Hugh Grant. She had a very soft spot for William. In fact, she had, up until October, wondered what it might be like to allow her friendship with him to develop into something more permanent. Though she hadn’t admitted this to anyone else, of course. He had money, a large house in Kent, and a villa in Malcesine on Lake Garda, and he’d asked her to fly to Italy with him and some friends to enjoy Christmas at the lake. But she’d hesitated when he’d invited her, not really sure why at the time, although she’d told him it was because her mother would need her at home to help with the festivities.
In reality, there was another reason why she couldn’t bring herself to accept, and Camilla knew it was a very silly reason indeed. It had something to do with a particular vet…
“Penny for them!”
Camilla turned to find her close friend, Allie Jones, smiling at her from beneath a woolly russet beret.
“Allie…” Camilla flung her arms around the other woman’s neck, delighted to have been rescued from her thoughts.
“You okay, lovely?” Allie asked as Camilla released her.
“Yes… well, kind of. It’s just great to see you. Is Chris with you?” Camilla peered over Allie’s shoulder and scanned the crowds for the George Clooney lookalike.
“No, I came into London alone today so I could shop in peace. Jordan and Chris are looking after the café.”
“Well if I’d known, I’d have caught the train with you.”
Allie smiled. “It was a bit last minute to be honest but now we’re here, why don’t we go shopping together?”
“That’s a great plan.” Camilla hooked her arm through Allie’s. “And how about if we start with a glass of bubbly in the Selfridges Champagne Bar?”
Allie’s blue eyes lit up. “You had me at bubbly!”
“Come on then.”
They made their way through the crowds admiring the window displays, and into the department store, with Camilla nursing a secret delight that she’d bumped into her friend, because Allie would take her mind off her own musings as well as helping her to make the most of the festive atmosphere.
“I don’t think I should have had two glasses of champagne, Camilla. You’re a bad influence.” Allie giggled as they wandered around brightly-lit Wonder Room in Selfridges. “What if I accidentally buy something really expensive?”
Camilla smiled. “You deserve it.”
“Not if I bankrupt myself and Chris in the process.”
Camilla shook her head. “I’m sure he’d live in a cardboard box as long as it was with you.”
Allie blushed and her eyes took on that far away look she got whenever Chris was mentioned. “I’m so happy, Camilla. I still have to pinch myself every morning when I wake up and see his handsome face on the pillow next to me, just to make sure I’m not dreaming.”
“You deserve to be happy, Allie. You weren’t for a long time.”
Allie had spent years single after the death of her husband Roger. She had focused on being a mother to her children and on building her business The Cosy Cottage Café. Her daughter, Mandy, lived in London where she worked in publishing, and her son, Jordan, helped run the café along with his boyfriend, Max. That summer, author Chris Monroe had returned to the village of Heatherlea for his mother’s funeral and realised that the feelings he once had for Allie – before her marriage to Roger – were still there. Luckily, the feeling was mutual. They were so in tune that Camilla often thought they could have been together for years not months, as if time had fallen away and they’d never been apart.
“And what about you, Camilla?” Allie squeezed her arm as they stopped in front of a glass display case full of sparkling diamond engagement rings. “Still no one special?”
Camilla suppressed a groan. She loved her friends and her sister, Dawn, but they often asked her about her own love life and it wasn’t something she’d ever liked to discuss. Mainly because she felt that if she kept it to herself, then it would remain uneventful and within her control, just the way she liked it.
“Nope. You know me, Allie. I’m independent and that’s the way I want to stay.”
“Just because you have a relationship with someone, it doesn’t mean you have to lose your independence.”
“I know. But I do worry that I would. If I ever fell in love.” She sighed. “Which is never going to happen.”
“Never say never.” Allie leaned forwards to look at some of the rings. “Ooh! I almost forgot about the vet. Still nothing going on there?”
Camilla cringed. For the past month, since Halloween in fact, she’d done her best to avoid these questions from Dawn and her friends and had become adept at changing the subject quickly to divert their attention.
“Let’s go and look at the Cartier watches. You know they make some of the finest—”
“Oh no you don’t!” Allie shook her head. “Not today, Camilla Dix. I know you’ve avoided this question since the Halloween party at the vet’s house… What’s his name again? Tom Stone isn’t it? Anyway, I want to know what happened and I’m not moving until you tell me.”
Allie crossed her arms and stood facing Camilla, her blonde eyebrows meeting above her nose and her mouth screwed into a pout. Camilla couldn’t help herself; she burst into laughter.
“What? What’s funny?”
“You, you daft woman. Scowling doesn’t suit you, Allie. You’re far too sweet for that.”
“See… distraction techniques again. Just tell me what happened.”
“Okay. Okay. I will. But it’s not a pretty story.”
Camilla took a deep breath and glanced around to check that no one was in danger of accidentally eavesdropping, then she met Allie’s curious gaze before exhaling.
“So you really want to know?”
“I do.”
“Okay then. On Halloween, I went to the party…”
2
“And?”
“Promise you won’t tell anyone?” Camilla scanned the jewellery department of Selfridges and realised that there was no escape. She’d have to tell Allie about Halloween.
Allie raised her eyebrows.
“Okay, well promise you won’t tell anyone other than Chris? I don’t expect you to keep secrets from him.”
“It depends on whether this is something you need help with… from Dawn and Honey. You know they think the world of you.”
“I think the world of them too. I mean… Dawn is my baby sister, so of course I adore her and I don’t want to keep secrets from her. It’s just that Halloween was quite… embarrassing.”
“But why?” Allie reached out and rubbed Camilla’s upper arm. “What could have happened that was so bad you haven’t told us about it?”
Camilla chewed her bottom lip.
“Well you know I was dressed as a cat?”
“Yes.” Allie smiled. “If I recall correctly, you were wearing a rather sexy cat costume.”
Heat crawled up Camilla’s throat and into her cheeks.
“Well I went to that party feeling quite smug and satisfied, in spite of the cat jokes that you all subjected me to before I left the café.”
“Sorry, lovely, we were only teasing.”
“I know that.” Camilla ran a hand through her short hair as she wondered if Allie would judge her. But of course she wouldn’t; A
llie had a heart of gold. “Anyway… when I arrived at Tom’s house, the party was in full swing. There were some people there from the village but there were also some I didn’t know, including the man who let me in then handed me a glass of wine. I downed the drink pretty quickly because I was so nervous.”
“You were nervous?”
Camilla nodded.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you nervous, except for when you’re worried about Dawn.”
“Well I was. I don’t know if it’s because I was at a stranger’s house or because I wanted to make a good impression or because I was wearing that ridiculous costume, which compared to everyone else’s seemed rather risqué.”
“Oh no!” Allie shook her head.
“Oh yes. They were dressed up but as zombies and movie characters, there was even one bloke dressed as a pumpkin and his costume was so big he was having trouble fitting through the doors. I felt a bit… exposed, to be honest. So I had another wine, thinking it would give me some courage to go and speak to Tom, but it was quite strong and my head started to spin. I didn’t want to approach him and slur, so I let myself out into the back garden for some fresh air.” She swallowed hard. “And while I was out there…”
“Yes?” Allie nodded, her eyes wide as she waited in anticipation for the rest of the story.
“While I was out there, I met Tom’s dog.”
“He has a dog?”
“A rescue dog.”
“What breed?”
“A British bulldog. He’s huge. His shoulders are like that.” Camilla held out her hands to show Allie just how big.
“I love bulldogs. They have such squishy faces.”
Camilla shuddered. “This one had a squishy face all right but it wasn’t cute when he started growling at me.”
“Yikes!”
“Exactly. Anyway, it was dark outside and I didn’t see him lying on the decking, so I tripped over him. Tom later told me that the dog likes to go out to cool down and with all the people there, it was really warm in the house.”
“He isn’t friendly then? If he was growling at you?”
Camilla shivered at the memory. “It was because I startled him and as a rescue dog, he’s a bit jumpy, but once he realised I was vulnerable… you know, because I was face down on the decking after tripping over him, he decided to make friends with me.”
Allie snorted.
“It’s not funny. He’s so heavy and when he came and stood over me, I just couldn’t get up. Then he…” She shook her head. “Remember that I was lying there dressed as a cat. A sexy bloody cat!”
Allie was visibly trying to control her mirth.
“How did you get him off?”
“I couldn’t. He had me trapped and he wrapped those muscular front legs around my thigh and went for gold.” She rubbed her eyes as if she could erase the memory. “He took advantage of me.”
Allie turned away for a moment but her shoulders were shaking.
“I know you’re laughing and this was why I didn’t tell you. It was traumatic and I kept trying to move out from under him but it just made him more excited.”
“I’m sorry, Camilla. It must have been terrifying.”
“Kind of. But I was in shock more than anything. Then, just when I thought I was done for, the back door opened and the security light came on.”
“Like a spotlight?”
“Yes. It’s positioned so it highlights the decking. Shame I didn’t see the switch next to the back door as I might not have tripped over the dog. Anyway… Tom came out.”
“And caught you?”
“Yes. He peered at us first of all then his face dropped and he shouted at the dog to stop. But it wasn’t just that… it was the dog’s name.”
“What’s he called?”
“Hairy Pawter.”
Allie guffawed and her eyes shone. “Really? Hairy Pawter took advantage of you?”
“Yes. So Tom’s there shouting ‘Stop it, Hairy Pawter!’ And I’m there whimpering and wriggling then…”
“What?” Allie’s eyes were wide as saucers.
“Everyone else came out to see what was going on.” Camilla covered her face as her cheeks burned.
“So everyone at the party saw you being humped by Hairy Pawter while you were dressed as a sexy cat?”
“Yes.”
A tear slipped from Allie’s eye and rolled down her cheek. “I’m sorry but this is the funniest thing I’ve heard in ages.”
“I know. And if I hadn’t been so humiliated, I’d have found it funny too.” Camilla started to giggle, her embarrassment fading slightly as she shared the story with her friend. “And with champagne inside me, it actually does seem quite amusing.”
“What happened then?”
“Tom managed to get the dog off then he helped me up. He asked me if I was hurt but I wasn’t, just a bit shaken. He was very nice and polite and apologetic and he actually told me that it means Hairy Pawter likes me.”
“Kind of a doggy sign of approval?”
“Exactly.”
“Did you stay for the rest of the party?”
“Did I hell! I made my excuses then scarpered.”
“Have you seen him since?”
“Twice. Once as he was going into the post office and once when I drove past as he was out running. But I pretended not to see him.”
“You know, Camilla, I bet he was embarrassed that his dog did that to you. He’s new to the village and he had that party to try to get to know people then you were assaulted by his dog.”
“Who knows, eh?”
“It’s a shame really as we… Dawn and I… thought you seemed to fancy him.”
“He’s an attractive man but I had no intention of going after him. We live in the same village and imagine if we did have a fling and it ended badly. It’s simply not part of my love them and leave them policy.”
“You don’t really do that though, do you, Camilla?” Allie’s pupils dilated and Camilla felt as though her friend could see into her heart.
“Course I do, Allie. No commitment for me.” Allie nodded but Camilla wasn’t sure if her friend believed her. “Let’s get shopping, shall we?”
“Of course. Shall we start with something for Honey?”
Camilla nodded and they set off around Selfridges to try to find the perfect gift for their very sweet friend.
3
“How did your shopping trip go?” Dawn asked Camilla as they sat down to Sunday lunch at their mother’s the next day.
“It was fairly successful.” Camilla dropped a scoop of mashed potatoes onto her plate then handed the bowl to Dawn’s husband, Rick. “I still need to get a few things before the big day…” She glanced at her sister’s children, Laura and James, and found them both staring at her, eyes wide.
“You went Christmas shopping, Auntie Camilla?” Laura asked.
“I did. In London where all the best shops are.”
“What did you buy?”
“I can’t tell you because some of it’s for you and James.”
“Awwwww!” James pouted. “Whisper it!”
“Uh uh.” Camilla shook her head.
“Kids leave your Auntie Camilla alone.” Rick dropped a scoop of mash onto Laura’s plate then one on James’s before passing the bowl to his wife.
“Anyone fancy a glass of wine with dinner?” Jackie waltzed into the dining room with a bottle of Chablis in her hand.
“That would be lovely, Mum.” Camilla got up and fetched the wine glasses from the dresser.
“Not for me.” Dawn grimaced as she pointed at her bump. “Not for about another thirteen weeks.”
“You could have a drop, Dawnie,” Camilla said as she took the bottle from her mother and filled three glasses.
“The heartburn is already so bad that I wouldn’t want to risk it.” Dawn replied as she raised her glass of water. “But cheers anyway. You three enjoy.”
They tucked into Jackie’s roast chicken dinner as The
Carpenters’ Greatest Hits flowed into the room from the speakers on top of the dresser. Camilla looked around the table at her family. Jackie looked good for sixty-five with her short black hair and bright green eyes, but there was always something in her mother’s gaze that made Camilla sad. It was, she knew, because Jackie had never got over her husband leaving her when the girls were young and she’d never been able to move on. In fact, she was rather vocal about it a lot of the time and it had affected Camilla growing up, as had the fact that her father had walked out on them, of course. She’d veered on the side of caution, never wanting to commit to a man, while Dawn had been almost desperate to create a stable family of her own where she could be the perfect wife and mother.
Over the past year, Dawn and Rick had been through some ups and downs, and Camilla had been quite worried for a while there, especially when Dawn had admitted that she was pregnant with her third child and that the baby hadn’t been planned. But during the autumn, her sister and brother-in-law had managed to work through their problems and were now happier than ever. Which pleased Camilla immensely, as she wanted nothing more than to see her sister, her niece and nephew happy and settled. And Rick too for that matter. He was a good man and he clearly loved Dawn. He’d left his high-flying job in the City recently and the flexibility of working from home suited him. He looked healthier and more contented than ever.
As for Laura and James, they physically – in Camilla’s eyes, at least – were a mixture of their parents, but their mannerisms and idiosyncrasies often reminded her of Dawn as a child. The children were happy and funny and a joy to be around. Camilla enjoyed spending time with them, especially on Sunday afternoons after lunch, when she could curl up on the sofa with them and listen to them talk about their week. Laura often entertained her with stories about their guinea pig, Wallace, and her babies, as well as tales of Lulu the rabbit and how she was adapting to being an auntie to the small guinea pigs. Camilla knew that Dawn had tried to gently persuade the children to consider giving the baby guinea pigs away, but Laura and James had been stubborn, and Rick had suggested keeping them because – as he’d said – he was home now so could help to care for them. This had led to them buying extra hutches for their garden and to Rick and his father, Paul Beaumont, erecting a larger shed in the back garden where the animals could live during the winter months. The shed resembled a Canadian log cabin and Camilla quite fancied staying in it herself.
A Year at The Cosy Cottage Café_A heart-warming feel-good read about life, love, loss, friendship and second chances Page 22