Page 53 of The Village Shop for Lonely Hearts

Grandma Tilly looked downcast. ‘Well, if you’re sure, I guess I’d better head home and see what’s on daytime TV.’

Amber realised that Tilly needed to feel useful even though the shop really was too much of a mess at the moment for her to be safe.

‘How’s my blanket coming along?’ asked Amber.

‘Nearly done,’ said Tilly, brightening up a little. ‘I’ll have to start on your mum’s after that.’

‘Great,’ said Amber.

‘I’ll swing by later,’ shouted Josh as she left. His phone bleeped in his pocket so he checked his messages after climbing down the stepladder. ‘So, I’ve heard from the chimney sweep,’ he told Amber. ‘But it’s going to cost at least £100 for him to come and service the thing. Maybe we can just leave the wood-burning stove for show or something.’

‘Look,’ said Amber. ‘You may not feel the cold in that nice leather jacket of yours, but it’s always freezing in here and you want people to linger and shop. I thought that was the point. To make money? So you need to encourage people through the door, which hopefully I can do with some different and more enticing kinds of window display. But then they need to stay put in here for a while, which we’re both trying to sort out. Then they shop. Linger. In the warmth. Maybe even pick up more things to buy.’

‘OK. You wore me down,’ he told her, holding his hand out to stop her going on any further.

‘The white looks good though,’ she said, looking up at the ceiling. ‘Much better than that cream colour. Especially on a gloomy day like today.’

He glanced outside. It hadn’t stopped raining for a few days and the forecast said it was likely to continue. But, in a way, it was perfect that it was a dark and dismal autumnal day. The shop needed to be shown in its worst light in order for it to be dressed.

‘I’ll call the chimney sweep when I head over to the cash and carry,’ said Josh, bringing out his van keys.

‘Oh! There were a couple of things I needed,’ said Amber quickly.

‘No worries,’ said Josh. ‘We’ll close up the shop.’

Amber looked alarmed. ‘Do you think we should?’

Josh rolled his eyes before grabbing his van keys. ‘Yeah, Harrods is really concerned about the competition right about now.’

Amber enjoyed the journey out in Josh’s van. Being a little higher meant she could see over the hedgerows and enjoy the countryside, although everywhere was looking muddy and wet.

First of all, they visited the builder’s merchants and bought some more white paint. Amber insisted they didn’t get the cheapest paint as it would be too thin.

‘Less time painting many coats means the quicker it’ll dry and then we can start putting the stock back on the shelves,’ she told him.

It was a bit like coming up against a brick wall, she thought. She knew they didn’t have much money and she wasn’t deliberately being extravagant, but she also knew that it had to be done properly if they were to maximise the look of the place.

As they headed next door to the cash and carry, Josh asked, ‘How come you aren’t as confident about yourself as you are with the shop?’

‘Because it’s not personal,’ she told him, after a pause. ‘Designing shop windows is always easier.’

She followed him into the cash and carry and was amazed at the sheer volume of goods available.

‘It’s all good quality,’ he told her, picking up a few bales of loo rolls and kitchen paper. ‘That should keep us going until Christmas.’

She hesitated before nodding.

‘What?’ he asked, turning to face her. ‘Why am I sensing disapproval?’

‘No, no,’ she said, shaking her head. ‘I understand why you shop here.’

‘But…?’ he prompted.

‘I don’t know,’ she said, feeling uncomfortable. ‘It’s just not very, er, countrified?’

He looked at her. ‘What do you want? Straw on the floor and hay bales to sit on?’

‘Not that,’ she said. ‘It’s just all this stuff is cheap, and that’s great. But it doesn’t feel very individual. Original, I mean.’