Page 16 of One Snowy Day
Hugo let out a whistle as he shook his head, a twinkle in his eye as he got up from his chair. ‘Replying to that would be a political correctness nightmare these days, so I’ll just say you all already look lovely.’
‘Smart man,’ Cathy said, kicking off a round of goodbye hugs.
Jessie was next. ‘You’ll be here for my party tonight, won’t you, Hugo? Only, there’s going to be a karaoke machine and I’ve heard you’ve got a fine pair of lungs on you.’ It was the ultimate Glasgow compliment to someone’s vocal talents.
‘Aye, I wouldn’t miss it, but trust me, no one needs to hear my singing. My dance moves, on the other hand…’ He let that one lie, as Val giggled.
‘Right then, Michael Flatley, we’ll prepare to be impressed.’
Hugo was still chuckling as he lifted their empty plates and made his way to the kitchen with them.
‘See you later, Dorinda,’ Jessie shouted over to the woman sitting behind the counter, taking no part in the conversation. The words were friendly, but anyone who knew her well would detect the undertone of disdain, so, of course, Val immediately reacted with the levitation of her right eyebrow, a solemn act that was only used in times of deep suspicion or imminent fury. ‘Don’t you raise that eyebrow at me, Val Murray,’ Jessie murmured, out of earshot of everyone else. ‘You know fine well that Dorinda Canavan has never been my favourite person.’
Val remained silent, as Jessie knew she would. There were two unassailable facts about Val, garnered from decades of being her pal. The first was that there wasn’t a single event, scandal or piece of gossip in this village that didn’t make its way to her at some point. The second was that when it came to her pals, she was the equivalent of a human vault – nothing came past those Avon Hot Pink lips.
‘Goodbye, ladies,’ Dorinda said, and Jessie immediately clocked the fake smile and the reciprocal passive-aggressive undercurrent. ‘Have a lovely time tonight, Jessie. Looking forward to it.’
Of course, Jessie had invited her. The party tonight came with an open invitation to everyone in the village, and given that it was in Alyssa’s café, and Hugo and Ginny would both be there, Jessie couldn’t exactly tell Dorinda she wouldn’t be welcome, no matter how she felt about her. She’d hoped that, given their unspoken dislike for each other, Dorinda would do the decent thing and not show up, but now she saw that wasn’t the case. That woman was bold as brass.
The three friends gathered their things and pulled on their coats, all of them having to give Cathy a wide berth, because she’d doubled in size now that she’d donned her enormous puffa coat.
‘Jesus, Cathy, if you fancy going out at Halloween as a Space Hopper, you’ve already got the outfit,’ Val quipped as they headed for the door.
Outside, Jessie’s gaze went from one end of Main Street to the other, taking in the glistening white clouds that had settled over the community centre, the church, the rows of shops both sides of the tree-lined streets. Many of her friends had moved away over the years, especially in her younger days, when they were all going off to college, or getting married to people from other areas, but Jessie had never wanted to follow that path. Not for a second had she regretted staying in Weirbridge, and it still hadn’t quite sunk in that after tomorrow morning, she’d no longer wake up in Weirbridge, in her own bed, in her own house, under her own duvet, and then wander up to the café for a cuppa. In her imagination, before the Tenerife retirement had been floated, that’s how this next chapter of her life had always looked, and she hadn’t yet found the will to change that mental image, no matter how much Stan tried to help her visualise sun, sea and their new life abroad together.
When they’d first talked about it, he’d reminded her of all thegood times they’d shared in the Tenerife house over the years. All those wonderful holidays, when they’d go to a local café for breakfast with the kids, before going off to the beach or the pool for the day. Or later, after Grant and Georgie had grown up and no longer travelled with them, they’d sit on the balcony and drink freshly squeezed orange juice, before he went off to play golf and she’d pass the time wandering around Los Cristianos, sometimes meeting up with friends who were out there at the same time. Of course, then Kayleigh had arrived, and Georgie and Flynn would travel with them, glad of the free accommodation, the sunshine and the readily available babysitter, and Jessie would encourage them because she loved every second with her granddaughter.
But tomorrow would be different. It was just her and Stan. That was it. No one else. And much as she loved him, she couldn’t seem to convince herself that was enough.
The bell above the door dinged as they entered Copper Curls, and Jessie instinctively smiled, as she did every morning when she came in here. The renovation last year had been worth every penny, and it helped her sleep at night to know that she was leaving Georgie with a business that they’d built together, and one that was thriving.
She’d only gone two steps in the door, when Grant popped his head up from under the reception desk and threw his arms out.
‘Mother!’
Jessie jumped, then immediately melted as he slammed into her for a hug. ‘You’re back! Och, son, I’ve missed you. Don’t try the hug with your Aunt Cathy though. Look at her – you’ll bounce off and do yourself an injury.’
Ah, her boy. And yes, she still thought of him as ‘her boy’, despite the fact that he was in his thirties. She adored the bones of him, and was endlessly proud that, like Georgie, he’d grown up to be a decent human with a good heart. Although, that waswhere the similarities between them ended because he and Georgie were like chalk and cheese. Georgie was such a home bird, but this one? He’d always known exactly what he wanted. He’d worked in Copper Curls on Saturdays when he was still at school, but as soon as he’d left full-time education, he’d donned a leather jacket and a pair of trendy cargos and waltzed his rainbow-coloured locks straight into the trendiest salon in Glasgow. He’d saved up for a couple of months to book a style and blow dry with the owner so that he would have forty-five minutes of undivided attention. He’d told the owner about his experience, showed him photos of the edgy styles he’d inflicted on his mates, offered to work for free for a month and assured him he wouldn’t regret giving him a chance.
He’d been right about that. Grant had worked his socks off there for years, going to college on day release until he was fully qualified, then building up his own client base until he was one of the most sought after and well-known stylists in the city. It hadn’t been a surprise when he’d taken off to London, ten years ago, and opened a salon in Kensington that had become a roaring success. Although, much as she could burst with pride, she’d missed him every day since.
‘I was worried you wouldn’t get here with the snow,’ Jessie told him.
‘Mother, I’d have skied here if I had to. I wouldn’t miss it. Gabriel sends his love and told me to let you know he’s taking you to the Ritz on your next trip to London. He’s got a full shooting schedule this week or you know he’d have been here.’
Gabriel. Grant’s partner and one of the much-loved presenters ofThe Morning Lift, a live wellness and positivity show that was on every morning at 10a.m. They’d met when Grant had done a guest spot about the potential comeback of the mullet, and it had been an instant case of opposites attracting. Gabrielwas a very professional, dashing TV personality from the Home Counties, while Grant was the cool, trendsetting hair entrepreneur, who’d never lost his Glaswegian, working-class accent or his love of a leather jacket. Despite their differences, or maybe because of them, they’d shacked up and lived happily ever after. Jessie adored him, although, the whole ‘live TV’ schedule did get in the way of their socialising.
As she let Grant go, Jessie’s cheeks were beaming so brightly they could heat the salon. ‘I’ll text him and tell him I’ll take him up on the Ritz and that we’ll miss him tonight.’
‘He’ll love that,’ Grant said, before hugging Val and then stretching his arms to reach round Cathy.
‘Where’s your sister?’ Jessie glanced around for Georgie, just as she made an appearance through the door from the staffroom.
‘Sorry, Mum, I was just in the loo. Loving the coat, Aunt Cathy.’
‘I’m glad someone around here has taste,’ Cathy said, with a pointed glare at Jessie before she giggled and cuddled her niece.
Despite the joviality, Jessie could see the tightness of Georgie’s smile, and the shadow of sadness in her eyes. Her girl looked tired. Weary. But then, Jessie knew this week was going to be an adjustment for her daughter too. They’d worked together every day for over twenty years, since Georgie came straight out of school.
