Page 28 of The Village Shop for Lonely Hearts

‘And anyway, you can’t stay with us at the moment,’ her mum carried on. ‘Now that Cathy’s coming over to stay for a couple of weeks, the spare bedroom will be taken. You don’t want to sleep on the sofa at your age. Gosh, I’ve still got so much to sort before she arrives. We’ve barely unpacked yet and the sheep haven’t even arrived yet.’

Despite her panic, there was excitement in her mum’s voice and Amber realised just how thrilled she was about Cathy’s visit.

It had only been a couple of days after her hospital appointment, but Cathy’s airline ticket to Singapore had been booked for later that afternoon. As it was still during the school term, Josh’s brother Pete had managed to find his mum a last-minute single-way ticket at a heavily discounted price.

‘Cathy’s left her flight open-ended in case she wants to stay out here a bit longer,’ carried on her mum.

‘As long as I arrive in time to decorate the Christmas tree,’ said Amber, thinking that Cathy’s holiday was suddenly sounding a lot longer than a month. So much for spending some quality time with her godmother. But she knew she was just being selfish because this trip would be just what Cathy needed.

‘Oh, I don’t want to think about Christmas at the moment,’ said her mum. ‘How am I going to roast a turkey in this summer heat? And your father is so busy with the farm that I barely see him.’

‘Maybe we can do a barbecue instead,’ said Amber. ‘You’ve got to go with the flow now that you’re not in England any more.’

‘Don’t remind me,’ muttered her mum.

There was a short silence. ‘Is everything OK over there?’ asked Amber.

‘Of course! Now, what was I saying? Oh yes, do you think Cathy would like the pink or the pale blue duvet cover? She’ll be shattered from the long journey anyway.’

As her mum carried on chatting about how much she had to do, Amber focused on the view. Autumn was rushing in with a vengeance as the leaves changed from cool greens and sunny yellows to rich oranges, fiery reds and earthy browns. There were worse places to be, she considered, other than a pretty village in the countryside.

Of course, New York had Central Park, which had been lovely in the various seasons. But having grown up in mostly country villages, the constant hum of the traffic and sirens had always slightly unsettled her. So Cranbridge’s peace was welcome, if still a little eerie in its emptiness.

Perhaps the peace and quiet would give her time to plan what her future held, thought Amber. She could decide what the next chapter of her life would be once she left the village.

As she turned on the spot to face Cranbridge Stores, her positivity faltered somewhat. It was, and there was no other word she could think of to describe it, quite a depressing shop. So muddled, so full, the air felt musty and sad.

But, like her mum said, it was just for another month. Hopefully.

And Cathy was so excited about her upcoming holiday that she didn’t have the heart to say anything about not wanting to stay. In fact, the last couple of days had been spent in such a whirlwind, with Cathy giddier than Amber had ever seen.

It had all been swiftly arranged that Cathy was going to stay with Josh’s brother, Pete, and then on to see Amber’s parents in New Zealand for a while.

‘It makes sense seeing as I’m already halfway across the world in Singapore,’ she said, beaming. ‘I’ve got lots of shopping in those markets to do whilst I’m out there though.’

‘Not too much!’ protested Josh, even though he was smiling. ‘We don’t have room for anything else in the shop!’

Amber thought he was far more attractive when he smiled rather than when he was in default grumpy mode.

Cathy giggled and gave Amber a wink. Amber thought that the fresh air and seeing her youngest son and then her best friend would do her godmother the world of good. Cathy had even been talking about taking a dip in the Pacific Ocean and heading up into the mountains.

But, in addition, getting the all-clear from the hospital seemed to have opened Cathy’s eyes up to a whole world of possibilities at home as well as on holiday.

‘At least it’ll give you both a chance to tidy up the shop a bit once I’m out of your way,’ she had told them the previous evening as the three of them ate their dinner in the flat.

Amber had looked surprised as she’d turned to Josh. ‘I’m sure we could think of something,’ she’d said slowly.

Josh had appeared to take a deep breath before speaking. ‘Even if we have to rearrange most of the shop?’ he’d said in a soft tone.

The silence rang out for a while as Cathy looked at her son. Finally, and to his obvious relief, she had nodded her head. ‘I don’t see why not.’

Josh’s mouth had dropped open and he’d looked at Amber for confirmation. But she was feeling as stunned as he was. Having been so adamant for so long that no changes were to be made to the shop, the last thing she had been expecting was for Cathy to have a complete change of heart.

Cathy had looked over at Amber, her face suddenly worried. ‘What do you think?’

Amber had flicked a quick look at Josh. ‘I think that it’s a good idea,’ she’d said tentatively. ‘Much like getting new clothes for your holiday. Everyone and everything needs a refresh every once in a while. Even the shop.’

‘Well then,’ Cathy had said with a firm nod, turning to look at her son, ‘I’ll give you both carte blanche whilst I’m away.’