Page 2 of Christmas Joy at the Cornish Bakery

‘No worries. Here you go.’ The man held the lead out towards her.

Taking the lead, Robyn blew a strand of hair from her rosy cheeks. ‘He’s not even mine. I just saw him running loose and wanted to stop him before he got knocked down or something.’

The woman looked around them. The street was still empty. ‘Oh, that’s strange. I wonder who he belongs to.’

‘Oh, he’s so cute. Can I pet him?’ A young girl walked across to them, knelt down on the path next to the dog, and began scratching him behind his ear.

‘He seems friendly enough.’ Robyn smiled as another girl came over and began fussing over the dog too, who rolled promptly over, ready for his tummy to be tickled.

‘You did well to chase him, pulling your suitcase along with you.’ The woman nodded towards the suitcase. ‘Are you staying here in the bay?’

‘I am, yes. I’m volunteering down at a little bakery here.’ Robyn turned and looked up and down the hill. Why hadn’t she just dropped her suitcase instead of lugging it behind her asshe had? Instinct and forgetting she was even pulling it behind her, probably. ‘Although after chasing this one around, I’m not actually sure I know in which direction I’m going anymore.’

‘Is that The Cornish Bay Bakery you’re volunteering at?’

‘That’s right. Please tell me I’m not miles away. I think I’m all walked out!’ Robyn laughed. If this family was anything to go by, the local residents seemed friendly and welcoming.

‘Haha, no, it’s just down the road. We’re going that way, so can show you if you like? I’m Debbie and this is Richie.’ Debbie then turned towards the girls. ‘And these two are Trixie and Ava.’

‘Lovely to meet you all. I’m Robyn.’ She held her hand up in a wave. ‘And that’d be great if you don’t mind showing me.’

‘Of course not.’ Debbie grinned. ‘And we can ask Elsie if she knows who the dog belongs to. She knows everyone in the bay, so hopefully she will.’

Elsie. That was the name of the woman who ran the bakery. She remembered now. ‘Excellent.’ Looking down at the dog, she shook her head. ‘No more running off, okay? We’ll soon get you back to your owner.’

Chapter Two

‘Here we are, The Cornish Bay Bakery.’ Walking ahead, Debbie held the door open.

‘Thank you.’ Pausing on the cobbles outside the bakery, Robyn gripped on tightly to the dog’s lead so he had zero chance of making her run again and glanced across at the bakery windows. Christmas fairy lights were strung across the glass, and someone had painted a fake snow scene on the windows to border the delicious-looking pastries and cakes on display. ‘They look amazing.’

‘You wait until you go inside, and the aroma of freshly baked bread and cookies hits you.’ Debbie grinned as Trixie and Ava ran inside ahead of Robyn.

Stepping inside, she looked around. Yet more fairy lights were strung across the ceiling and red and silver baubles hung along the walls. A large Christmas tree stood in the back corner, adorned with what looked like handmade decorations. Her idea to get away from Christmas wasn’t going to plan then, but at least she was free from having to play referee to her parents. And there it was – just as Debbie had promised, the overwhelming aroma of freshly baked bread and cookies. Covering her stomach with her hand, she hoped no one else could hear it rumble.

‘I’ll pop this here for you.’ Richie dragged her suitcase into place beside a table positioned by the window.

‘Thank you.’ Unsure what to do, Robyn walked across to the table as a group of customers walked in and stood gazing through the glass screen of the long bakery counter as they discussed what to buy. There was another counter onthe opposite wall displaying wedding cakes. Maybe they also specialised in catering for weddings or something? Tables and chairs filled the area between the counters, with a small counter at the back wall, likely for selling snacks to people sitting and enjoying the bakery’s bustling atmosphere.

‘I’ll just go and get Elsie. Hopefully she’d have some idea who he belongs to.’ Debbie nodded towards the dog before hurrying through the bakery and disappearing through a door.

Sitting down beside her, the dog looked as much in awe of the bakery as Robyn was. Leaning down, she fussed him behind the ears. He was obviously used to people and being taken to busy places as, although he was alert and interested, he wasn’t even attempting to pull towards all the food on offer. ‘You’re a good boy, aren’t you?’

‘Hello, Robyn. It’s so lovely to have you here.’ A woman with curled white hair and kind blue eyes rushed up to her before taking Robyn’s hands in hers. ‘I’m Elsie.’

‘Hi, lovely to meet you too.’

‘You’ve come just in time for the Christmas chaos.’ Elsie chuckled as she turned her attention to the dog. ‘What a lovely boy, you are.’

‘...AND SO, I WAS RATHERhoping you might know who he belongs to.’ After the introductions and explaining why Debbie and Richie had found her running headlong down the hill after this dog, Robyn was glad to get one step closer to hopefully reuniting him with his owner.

‘Oh, I must admit I don’t recognise him, but let’s see if we can find out.’ Kneeling down, Elsie fussed the dog behind the ears before carefully twisting his red collar around and reading thesmall bone-shaped tag. ‘According to this, his name is Dasher and there’s a phone number.’

‘Haha, no wonder he can run fast.’ Robyn sank into a chair by the window and looked around the bakery. Why hadn’t she thought to look at the dog’s collar for a tag? Probably because she was still worn out after her sprint.

Joining her and sitting down, Elsie chuckled as she pulled her mobile from her apron pocket before leaning down and checking Dasher’s tag again. ‘Too right, training for Christmas Eve, I should think.’

‘He’s probably faster than the reindeers.’ Robyn laughed.

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