Page 84 of Eden's Comfort Kitchen
‘You silly little cow!’ she cried. ‘I thought I’d never see you again!’
Eden floundered in her embrace, sudden tears springing to her eyes. Of all the scenarios she’d anticipated, this had not featured in any of them. A moment later, she could see her dad, tears in his eyes too as he waited for his turn.
‘I’m sorry,’ Eden sobbed as he folded her into his arms. ‘I’m so sorry for everything.’
‘You have nothing to be sorry for,’ he said gently. ‘You never had.’
Eden wanted to believe it, but she couldn’t. She would have to be content with the fact they were there, willing to forgive, willing to try to be a family once more. And this time Eden would deserve their love and faith. This time she would be the daughter her dad deserved and the sister Caitlin needed and wanted.
She dried her eyes as he let go. Caitlin was doing the same thing. Then Eden’s pragmatic sister seemed to collect herself, the sensible, no-nonsense member of the family once more.
She glanced over to all the activity on the beach. ‘That’s surely not your community thing?’
‘Yes,’ Eden said, a sense of pride swelling in her. She could see why Caitlin might be surprised. She supposed it might have sounded like quite a haphazard affair, a few stragglers from the local area getting together to have a plate of chips every now and again. But more than a hundred people were gathered onthe beach, working like a well-oiled military machine to get the picnic ready. There was a seating area, equipment and furniture, and smoke coming from Ralph’s impressive-looking grill. More importantly, there was a sense of love and belonging radiating from the beach that was hard to ignore. Here were people from all walks of life, all demographics, some with money and some with less, some old, some young, some born and bred in the bay and some who’d made the choice to live there, but all with one thing in common: a desire to be part of it all.
‘Wow,’ Caitlin said, staring at the comings and goings. ‘The whole town must be here. When you said a picnic, I thought it would be a couple of your mates on a blanket.’
‘Not quite the whole town, but…’ Eden smiled. ‘Come on – there are people I’d love you to meet.’
By the time Eden had taken her dad and Caitlin around to chat to everyone who mattered and a few more besides, most of the picnic preparations had been done without her. She’d apologised to just about every one of her helpers, who’d all told her not to worry and that she had every right to take an hour off for the arrival of her family. Many had heard that she’d been estranged from them for a while, even if they didn’t know why, and they all seemed delighted that her broken relationships had been mended. Caitlin fell in love with Nancy and Levi, of course, because it was impossible for anyone not to, and seemed to instantly warm to Livia. Julia and Eden’s dad got on brilliantly, and Julia was only too happy to chat to him while Eden did other things.
‘This is my boss at the pub. Ralph…’ Eden took Caitlin and her dad over to the grill. Ralph looked up at the mention of his name. ‘Ralph…this is my dad, and this is Caitlin, my sister.’
‘Oh…’ Ralph turned over a sausage. ‘So you’re responsible for her,’ he said, angling his head at Eden.
Caitlin and Eden’s dad both looked confused for a moment. Even Eden was thrown, and she was accustomed to Ralph’s dry humour. All was right again when Ralph smiled and held out a hand.
‘Pleased to meet you both. She’s a cracker, this one. You should be very proud of the difference she’s made to this town.’
‘Ralph, I…’ Eden began, but he fixed her with an affectionate look.
‘Don’t you dare,’ he said. ‘Always doing yourself down. Take a look around today and tell me you’re not a bit proud of yourself for what you’ve done here. All these people are here because of you.’
‘Because of Bilbo, mostly,’ Eden said, though she was warmed by his words.
‘Mostly because you decided to do something for Bilbo. Don’t forget that.’
‘We are proud,’ Eden’s dad said, threatening to make her cry again.
She sniffed it back – she’d cried today more times than she could remember, and it was getting faintly ridiculous.
All four of them turned at the sound of an excited squeal along the beach, the pitch so high it might have confused the dolphins out in the bay. Nancy tore across the sand to a figure who was walking across it. The next moment, she collided with the man’s legs, wrapping her arms around them in a hug, and Eden suddenly knew who it was.
What was he doing here? She’d invited him, of course, but…
‘There’s a turn-up for the books,’ Ralph said, shaking his head. ‘That’s never your Cam, is it?’
‘YourCam?’ Caitlin aimed a pointed look at Eden. ‘Is that…the partner at the company you used to?—’
‘Yes,’ Eden said.
‘You’re not…you two aren’t…?’
‘No. It’s nothing like that. We just…’
Eden paused. She didn’t even know what they were. She didn’t even know how they’d left it, not really. Were they friends? Ex-colleagues? Business associates? Or something more? They’d certainly shared something more, but what did any of that mean now?
‘I invited him,’ she said. ‘You know, because he agreed to help with a new venue for the community café. He never replied to the email, though, so I didn’t expect…’ She turned to Caitlin. ‘I’m sorry, do you mind if I go and talk to him? I ought to.’
