The Broken Hearts Book Club

by Lynsey James

  I took a sip of my Prosecco to mask my hoarse voice and hoped nobody noticed. As everyone settled down into a comfortable conversation, Elle nudged me.

  ‘You’re being watched by a certain gorgeous barman.’

  I turned just in time to see Jake jerk his head away and immerse himself with cleaning some pint glasses.

  ‘Now that you’re sticking around here, I insist you go and flirt your arse off with him right now. If you don’t, I will,’ said Elle.

  Out the corner of my eye, I saw George shift uncomfortably in his seat.

  ‘Every time I talk to him, I end up putting my foot in it or pissing him off in some way. Knowing my luck, I’ll end up singing this time!’

  My friend rolled her eyes and practically manhandled me out of my seat, pushing me in the direction of the bar.

  ‘You’ll thank me for this at your wedding,’ she hissed before sodding off back to the table.

  Now I was standing in the middle of the pub for apparently no reason, while Jake looked at me like I was from Mars.

  ‘Can I help you?’ he asked with a raised eyebrow. He leaned on the bar and frowned at me.

  I took some tentative steps forward and ordered some drinks I hadn’t intended to buy.

  ‘Coming right up.’ He fetched a pint glass from under the bar and pulled a beer pump down with his free hand. ‘So it’s official – you’re sticking around?’

  ‘Do you always eavesdrop on your customers’ conversations?’ I stuck my tongue out to show I wasn’t serious, but he didn’t see me.

  ‘Yep, to make up for the fact I have no life.’ He put the expertly pulled pint on the bar and began sorting the other drinks I’d ordered. ‘What made you decide to stay?’

  ‘Your sparkling wit and conversation obviously,’ I shot back. ‘Nah, I just think it’ll be a good move for me. I’ve lived in London for eight years and it’ll be nice to come back home. I’m going to be doing up my nana’s old cottage, which should be a laugh considering I know nothing about DIY.’

  Jake poured some gin into a glass, along with some tonic water and put it beside the pint glass. I noticed the ghost of a smile playing on his lips.

  ‘If you need any help, just ask. I’m no good with electrics or anything like that, but I can just about hang wallpaper without getting into too much trouble. Don’t forget your charges at the Broken Hearts Book Club as well. You’ll be running around like a blue-arsed fly before you know it!’

  I smiled as I watched him dot around the bar, looking for something he wasn’t having any luck finding. He bent over to look on one of the lower shelves and my mouth popped open. There was that pert, squeezable bum I’d seen on my first day back in Luna Bay.

  ‘You know, for someone who’s so against becoming a member, you don’t half mention the club a lot. I think you should just give it up and join; you know you want to.’

  Jake’s head popped up from underneath the bar; he’d found the missing bottle of vodka. Instead of the defeated grin I’d expected to see, he looked even more steadfast than normal.

  ‘Thanks but no thanks. That’ll be ten quid please.’

  I dug my purse out of my bag and handed over some money. ‘So, how’s this place doing? Found your miracle yet?’

  ‘Sadly not and time’s running out. At this rate, I’ll climb up on this bar and do the Full Monty if I have to.’

  The thought made my mouth water, but I tried to remain sophisticated and classy. Well, as much as anyone who’s bellowed out your sex is on fire to a pub full of people can.

  ‘I love that film,’ I said, ‘the music in it’s brilliant.’ Oh shit Lucy, don’t sing. ‘What was that song by Tom Jones they dance to at the end?’

  And just like that, I started singing Leave Your Hat On in a very deep Welsh voice. Unfortunately, it didn’t make my singing sound any better. Jake stood watching me, looking utterly bewildered, until I finished.

  ‘Well, that was quite something.’ He put a hand over his mouth trying to stifle a laugh but failed. In the end, a roaring chuckle burst out of him. It was such a wonderful noise, even if it was at my expense.

  ‘Um…’ I’d been temporarily struck dumb by my impromptu performance and the mental image of him grinding on the bar with his shirt off. ‘Anyway, I used to work in events planning so anything you need, just ask.’

  A heat crept into my cheeks, tingeing them pink, so I grabbed the drinks and carried them back to the table.

  ‘Well?’ Elle sat up, suddenly rapt. ‘How did it go?

  ‘I sang Leave Your Hat On by Tom Jones in a Welsh accent.’

  Elle smiled, shaking her head, ‘Standard.’

  Since I’d utterly humiliated myself, it felt necessary to leg it as soon as possible, so I went down to Rose Cottage to see exactly what had to be done. Once I was inside and looking at it with an open mind instead of a closed one, I could see how beautiful a house it could be. There were original floorboards that would be gorgeous again with a little TLC, an open fireplace in the lounge I loved and a rustic kitchen that would be perfect for cooking in. Once the hole in the floor had been fixed, of course.

  As I walked through the house, I felt a sense of fate about being there. Nana Lily had had plans for me I hadn’t even been aware of and now here I was. When I went into her bedroom I found a box under the bed marked TBHBC containing some dusty copies of books that I guessed must’ve formed part of the Broken Hearts Book Club’s reading list at some point. There was To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, One Day by David Nicholls, The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger… Beautiful, timeless books that would allow the members to escape from their grief and provide a sanctuary to lose themselves in, even if just for a few minutes.

  Looking through the box sparked an unshakeable resolve within me, one that was beyond any doubts about Maggie Cunningham or being back in Luna Bay after everything that happened with Vicky. I would run the club to the best of my ability, help the members out, do up Rose Cottage and maybe even save The Purple Partridge while I was at it.

  Tomorrow, everything would kick off, I decided. Tomorrow would be the start of something amazing.

  Chapter Eight

  First order of business the next morning was clearing Rose Cottage out.

  George and Elle were none too pleased at being drafted in to help at seven in the morning, but were soon lured by promises of cooked breakfasts at the end and all the coffee they could drink. Their groans of ‘it’s too early for this shit’ and ‘I think I might actually strangle you’ turned into ‘well maybe this won’t be so bad after all’. Funny what the promise of caffeine and fried food can do.

  We packed boxes, filled carrier bags, sorted through rubbish and made piles of items to give to the local charity shops. Under Mum’s watchful eye of course. It was exciting to watch all the potential within Rose Cottage being revealed, but sad as well. So many memories had been made in the house and it was a shame to clear them all away. Of course, I kept the box containing the Broken Hearts Book Club’s early reading materials and I planned to use them as inspiration for which books to select for the club to read next.

  At the end of a long and busy morning, I took a step back and looked at the now de-cluttered Rose Cottage. It was now a (mostly) blank canvas, just aching for me to put my own stamp on it. In my mind’s eye, I could picture how it would look: cosy, homely and a perfect place to relax in after a hard day. OK, it would need a little – all right, a lot – of work, but when it was done, I’d have my very own piece of heaven, just a stone’s throw from the beach.

  My old/new life in Luna Bay was shaping up to be pretty darn awesome so far.

  ***

  It also seemed necessary to call an emergency meeting of the Broken Hearts Book Club to let them know I’d like to be their chairwoman. After all, it wouldn’t be fair to ambush them with the news at the next meeting and they deserved to have their say on the matter.

  Denise, who had taken me under her wing at the last meeting, helped me organis
e it. I met her by chance in The Purple Partridge and she agreed to contact all the members for me. I hadn’t told her what the meeting was about, just that I had to speak to them all urgently.

  So there they were, corralled in the Moonlight Café, while I stood in front of them and tried to look like I knew what I was going to say. In reality, however, I was bricking it.

  ‘Um, hi everyone!’ I said when everyone had settled into a seat. I stared out at the mixture of apprehensive and mildly bored faces and wondered how they would react to the bombshell I was about to drop on them.

  Only one way to find out.

  ‘So… At the last meeting, I told you guys that my nana had left me this club in her will and wanted me to run it. I-I called this meeting today to let you all know that if you’ll have me, I’d love to be your chairwoman.’

  While there wasn’t a sudden burst of Beethoven’s Ode to Joy and thunderous applause, there were a few appreciative murmurs from some of the members. Better than nothing, I thought.

  Denise was the happiest of the bunch, judging by her bright smile. ‘That’ll be lovely; it’s about time we had some new blood in the club!’

  Once the others heard that she was behind me, they gradually began to voice their approval. I heard the phrases ‘she can’t arse it up that much surely’ and ‘what have we got to lose’ being bandied around.

  Diane stood up, intent on putting the kibosh on things. ‘Excuse me, before we all get carried away with ourselves, I think someone needs to talk some sense. We barely know this girl. OK, she lived here as a child but now she’s a relative newcomer. Are we really going to let her into our group and divulge our innermost secrets to her? She’s a child, what could she possibly know about anything?!’

  I felt myself bristle. ‘I’m not coming here to impose myself on anyone. In her will, Nana Lily said she wanted me to lead the club and that’s what I’d like to do. I’ll do the best job I can, I promise. I wouldn’t be doing this if I thought I’d screw it up.’

  There was a pause as Diane considered her next move. Her arms were folded and her face was contorted into a rather disturbing grimace.

  ‘I think we should have a vote on it. This is a democracy after all.’

  I nodded. That seemed reasonable enough; it was only fair that they got to voice their opinions and have an opportunity to say if they didn’t want me.

  ‘OK,’ I said, ‘I’ll step outside or something and you can discuss it amongst yourselves.’

  I went to sit in the main café while the Broken Hearts Book Club debated my future. I could hear furtive whispers from behind the gingham curtain, but didn’t pick up anything of value. Diane’s whispering became increasingly frenzied; I guessed she was probably fighting for my removal from the club and Luna Bay in general. I didn’t blame her. She was Maggie Cunningham’s best friend and she was looking out for her interests. All the same, I wanted a chance to prove I could help the members and maybe make a difference…

  ‘Lucy?’

  Denise’s voice broke through my thoughts and brought me back to the present. I stood up and had to stop myself from doing a salute.

  ‘We’ve come to a decision,’ she said, her broad grin giving her away. ‘We’d like you to be chairwoman of the Broken Hearts Book Club!’

  I clapped my hands to my mouth then ran over to hug her. ‘You won’t regret this, I promise! We’re going to have so much fun together!’

  Just then, Diane appeared like the spectre of doom. ‘You’re on trial, young lady. We’ll have a vote in, say, three months’ time and decide if you can continue leading the club. Don’t let us down.’

  My heart swelled with joy. This was going to be amazing.

  ***

  A couple of days after deciding to make Luna Bay my home, I held my first meeting as the chairwoman of the Broken Hearts Book Club. Since I’d decided to step up to the role, I’d had loads of ideas for how to help the members move on and wanted to try them out as soon as possible.

  I arrived at the Moonlight Café with a stack of boxes so tall I couldn’t see in front of me, almost tripping three times as I made my way to the back of the room.

  ‘What’s all that?’ Diane eyed my stuff with suspicion and crossed her arms over her broad chest. ‘We usually only bring books to meetings and as far as I know, everyone has a copy of Of Mice and Men.’

  I kicked the boxes into a free corner, trying to resist the urge to rip them open and show her my new toys. ‘I thought I’d try something a little bit different today before we get onto the book discussion.’

  ‘What do you mean, different?’ She edged closer to the boxes like she was approaching unexploded bombs. Her hand inched forward but she didn’t dare open them. ‘It’s none of that… alternative therapy nonsense is it? Only we don’t go for that round here; Frank went to see a masseuse in Leeds for his bad back and a shiatsu was the last thing she was offering!’ and with that she burst out laughing.

  I was happy to see Diane had softened a little since finding out I’d be chairing the club. She was even having a laugh with me, which was unheard of! She might not know about the fact that I had to chair the book club in order to inherit Rose Cottage, but I’d tell her when the time was right. My excitement almost got the better of me and I had to take a few steps back to stop myself ripping the cardboard open. ‘All will be revealed in a few minutes! It’s nothing dangerous or poisonous, don’t worry. Just something I thought would be fun to try.’

  I looked over and saw that she didn’t exactly look thrilled at the prospect of shaking up the meetings. In fact, she looked completely terrified.

  ‘I meant what I said the other day: I’m going to do a good job of running this club. If I didn’t think I could give it a hundred percent, then I’d have been back on the first train to London. When I accidentally gatecrashed the last meeting, I really loved meeting you all and I think I can really make a difference here.’

  Diane’s posture straightened and her features set into a suspicious scowl. ‘I seem to remember you making a difference the last time you were here and it wasn’t a good one.’

  The light-heartedness was over and she’d gone back to her usual stance of “I hate Lucy Harper and everything she stands for”.

  ‘If you’re talking about what happened with Vicky–’

  ‘Oh that’s exactly what I’m talking about! You might’ve swanned off to your new life, but others haven’t been so lucky: Maggie Cunningham, for instance. She’s my best friend; her world fell apart because of something you did and she’s been trying to pick up the pieces ever since. A lot of people think it’s very unfair that you got off scot-free.’

  My stomach dropped to my shoes and a lump rose in my throat.

  ‘Diane, I didn’t just walk away and forget what happened. How could I, Vicky was my best friend! There hasn’t been a day in the last eight years where I haven’t thought about her or what she might be doing now if she was… Well if she was here. I know nothing I do can ever make up for what Maggie’s lost, but I want to try and make things right. I’m not here to rub her nose in it or cause trouble; I want to make a life in Luna Bay again.’

  Diane’s scowl faded a little and she gave a nod in reply before busying herself behind the counter, setting out cakes on china plates and brewing coffee. I thought about making another impassioned plea, but changed my mind. I’d said my piece and that was that. Although I was prone to singing at inappropriate moments, I knew when to keep my mouth shut. If I was going to win Diane and the rest of the club over, I was going to have to do it through actions rather than words.

  Slowly but surely, the rest of the members started to filter in. They reminded me of zombies, each caught up in their own little world and barely acknowledging what was going on around them. I did a little dance of excitement as I prepared to show them what I had in store for that day’s meeting.

  ‘Hi guys, as you all know I’m the new chairwoman of the Broken Hearts Book Club, since Nana Lily left it to me in her will. I�
��m really excited to give it a go and here’s to a great first meeting!’ I decided not to mention the fact that I’d lose Rose Cottage if I didn’t step up to the mark; I didn’t want them thinking I was just doing it out of obligation after all.

  I paused for something, though I wasn’t sure what. There was no applause or questions, just blank stares.

  ‘OK, I just wanted to say how much I enjoyed meeting you all last time. I thought today, instead of going round the table like we normally do and talking about what sort of week we’ve had, we could try something a bit different. What do you say?’

  Frank was the first to speak. ‘What do you mean different exactly? I went to a masseuse in Leeds for my back once –’

  ‘It’s nothing like that Frank, don’t worry. It’s just a little something I thought might be fun and get us to let out some of our anger and frustration if we’ve had a bad week.’

  I went over to my pile of boxes and ripped off the packing tape. My earlier excitement had disappeared and I was now faced with an interminable dread. This was a very, very bad idea but I couldn’t stop myself.

  ‘I got these from a shop in Scarborough, thought they might be fun to use.’

  I reached into the box and pulled out an oversized baseball bat made of brightly coloured foam.

  ‘What the frig is that?’ Diane asked. ‘It’s not from one of them adult shops is it, because if it is I’ll tell you right now –’

  ‘It’s not from an adult shop Diane, I got it at a toyshop. It’s a baseball bat, I thought maybe we could hit this with them.’ I handed her the bat and got a large maroon-coloured piñata out of the other box. ‘We could vent our frustrations at the donkey or something.’

  Unsurprisingly, my idea went down about as well as a wet fart. Everybody gazed around themselves, looking everywhere but at me. Then the murmurs started and I even heard a couple of them talk about going home.

  ‘Don’t look safe, that,’ I heard Jean say. Cath, meanwhile, was going on about the baseball bats taking someone’s eye out and Denise was concerned about the violent connotations of whacking a donkey filled with sweets.