Page 91 of The Village Cafe in the Loire

‘Something like that.’ Becky glanced at Amber, who was studying the menu intently. Under the table, her leg was pressed into her best friend’s. Now and again, one would give the other a nudge of solidarity. They would get through this together.

Amber’s mother hadn’t been thrilled at the prospect of Amber leaving so soon to go to France with Becky. But Amber had promised to register with a GP as soon as she got to Vaudrelle, to call her every day. Promised she would fly back and visit, and encouraged her mother to look up flights for a visit to France herself. In the end, she’d acquiesced. ‘Perhaps the change of scene will be good for you,’ she’d admitted. ‘But you know…’

‘I know. You’ll worry,’ Amber had said fondly. ‘But Mum, I’ll be OK. I’ll have Becky. And I’m only going to be an hour and a half’s flight away.’

‘You will visit me, won’t you?’

‘Just try to stop me!’

Cynthia’s blessing, Becky suspected, would be a little harder to obtain.

‘What it is, Mum,’ Becky said hesitantly, ‘is that I’ve decided to spend, uh, a little more time in France.’

Cynthia’s eyes narrowed. ‘A little more time? What, a week? Two?’

‘Maybe… maybe a year or two?’ Becky hated the way her statement came out as a question, as if she were still, at thirty, seeking her mum’s permission.

‘Rebecca! A year! Two!’ Her mum was shaking her head rapidly. ‘No. No. This is twaddle. You are not thinking straight, darling.’

‘I am. I am thinking straight. I’ve done… well, so much thinking recently.’ Becky tried to put her hand on her mother’s arm, but her mum whipped it away as if she were inflicting a blow.

‘Maud’s got into your head. I knew she would! I knew it!’ Two spots of colour appeared on Cynthia’s cheeks. A vein on her temple began to swell. ‘You can’t listen to her, you can’t. She’s… a lovely lady but she doesn’t know you. Doesn’t know what’s right for you!’

‘It’s not Maud. I mean, obviously she’s the reason I went to France in the first place. But… this is all me, Mum. I promise.’

‘So you’re seriously telling me you think that owning a café in a tiny town somewhere irrelevant in France is going to make you happy? Come on now, Rebecca. This isn’t you. This won’t be what you’re looking for, I can promise you.’

The waiter arrived, stood with his pad, sensed the mood and muttered, ‘I’ll give you a moment,’ disappearing quickly across the restaurant to another table.

None of them moved.

‘No,’ Becky said. ‘I don’t think that owning a café is going to make me happy. I don’t think I’m going to want to work my whole life as a barista.’

‘Well, exactly. Darling, you are so much more than that. Listen, if you’re worried about references after that… unfortunate incident at work, well! You needn’t. I have several openings at my place. You could even take over the marketing department, with your skills. And I really need?—’

‘No, Mum.’

‘I’m sorry?’

Becky shook her head. ‘No, Mum. It’s so nice of you to want to help me… like that. But my mind’s made up. I’m not going to change it.’ Her voice shook a little. ‘I’m going to France. Setting off tomorrow, actually.’

‘And what do you think of this, Amber?’ Cynthia turned to Amber, eyes sharp. ‘I hope you’ve tried to talk her out of it!’

Amber paled a little under the intensity of Cynthia’s gaze. ‘Actually,’ she said quietly, ‘I’m going with her.’

‘I’m sorry,what?’

‘I’m going to do the business stuff. The paperwork. Accounts,’ Amber said.

Cynthia took a deep breath. ‘Now, Rebecca, I see what this is. You two… you’re a couple? Because if that’s it, you really don’t have to hide it.’

Becky laughed gently. ‘No, Mum. It’s not like that. We’re friends. Best friends. Nothing romantic. We just – well, I’ve got the chance to work with my best friend. Do something together, figure things out together. Why not? It sounds brilliant to me.’

The waiter came back, looked at Cynthia’s horrified expression, and walked away again.

Cynthia laid down her menu decisively. ‘Rebecca,’ she said. ‘I want you to think long and hard about this. In two years’ time, maybe three, you were going to end up running a division. Maybe you’d even be starting your own firm. I know things have been tough, physically, for you but trust me, this is temporary. You can’t throw it all away on some… flight of fancy! What kind of future will you have out there?’

‘I have absolutely no idea!’

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