Page 47 of The Cornish Cream Tea Bookshop
‘Did you order a hot chocolate, Meg?’ Ollie asked. ‘Excellent choice. I didn’t realise Sea Brew did personal deliveries.’
Max laughed, gesturing to the takeaway cup he was holding. ‘This is coffee.’
‘Well,’ Ollie said. ‘Our new coffee machine has just been installed, and is being set up as we speak. By tomorrow, we should have our own selection of highly desirable drinks.’
‘Which means you don’t have that choice right now. I thought I’d pop in, see how your event went. Hey, Dylan,’ he added.
‘Hi Max!’ Dylan scrambled up, and Max ruffled his hair.
‘Doing OK, buddy?’
He nodded. ‘Better than Ollie.’
‘Why’s that?’ Max asked, shooting her a confused glance.
‘Mum says she totally ruined the event with that chef guy. Set stuff on fire and all sorts. Mum said it was a bloody disaster!’
Ollie clamped her mouth shut to stop it falling open.
Max’s frown deepened, though she thought his clenched jaw was, perhaps, to prevent himself from laughing. ‘Is that right?’ he murmured.
‘It wasn’t my finest hour,’ she said quietly, and suddenly, she felt exhausted. All the adrenaline, the energy it had taken to remain upbeat after Marcus had stormed out, taking his cooking equipment with him, and Candy had been ushered out of the bookshop in tears, Meredith’s arm around her shoulders, left her. Her shoulders sagged, the left one twinging mercilessly.
‘Want to take a breather?’ Max asked in a low voice.
‘I don’t know if I can.’ Ollie gestured behind her.
‘Hot chocolate!’ Meg said again, and this time she was joined in her chorus by the other children.
Max gave a dramatic sigh. ‘Hot chocolates, eh?’
‘Yes!’ shouted five voices, even Dylan sounding excited now that Max was here.
‘Right. Let me check with Becky, and – are you these girls’ mum?’ he asked the woman hovering beside the romance books.
‘I am. If they’re being badly behaved—’
‘Not at all.’ Max held up a placatory hand. ‘If I come back with hot chocolate from the café down the hill, would you be happy for them to have one? If they’re lactose intolerant, or …’
‘No, that would be lovely,’ the woman said, looking surprised. ‘Thank you.’
Thea appeared behind Max, her expression softer than the last time Ollie had seen her. ‘You going to get coffees?’ she asked. ‘The men upstairs say we’ll be fully functional in half an hour, but I don’t know if I can wait that long.’
‘You don’t mind?’ Ollie asked.
Thea’s smile was hesitant. ‘Of course not. I should think you could do with the fresh air.’
Ollie felt a swell of gratitude, and for the second time in five minutes, she had the strong urge to hug someone. ‘Thanks, Thea.’
‘We’ll catch up later this afternoon, OK?’
‘Of course. What would you like from the café?’
‘Do you do tequila?’ she asked Max, grinning at him. ‘A hot chocolate would be great for me, too. Thanks.’
‘What would you like?’ Ollie asked the blonde girls’ mum, checking that she had her purse in her pocket.
‘Oh!’ The woman pressed a hand to her chest. She was very pretty, but the dark circles under her eyes were pronounced, and Ollie got the impression she’d brought her children to the bookshop to give herself a few moments of calm. ‘I couldn’t possibly—’
