Chapter 15
It was midday on the last day of August and Mimi was in the village shop stocking up on emergency supplies of Marmite and her favourite chilli sauce, just in case they didn’t have them in Puerto Pollensa.
She heard a familiar bark outside and felt her heart do a froggy leap. She’d been waiting for days for Cal and Cora to arrive back in Goosebrook, but they’d evidently decided to squeeze as much holiday out of the month as humanly possible.
‘Sounds like Otto,’ said Eamonn, who ran the shop. ‘Yes, here they are. Welcome home, you two! Did you have a great time?’
They’d been away for a month but it felt like longer. Mimi had been quite shocked to discover just how much she had missed Cal’s presence in the village; it felt emptier when he wasn’t around. But the break had clearly done them both good. Cora’s hair had grown longer, blonder and more wildly curly, and her blue eyes were bright in her heart-shaped face. Cal, wearing a pale yellow cotton shirt and faded jeans, was more deeply tanned than ever, his sun-streaked hair making his eyes appear darker brown by comparison.
He grinned at Eamonn. ‘The very best, thanks.’
‘Well we missed you.’ Eamonn moved out from behind the counter. ‘But I’m afraid we missed Otto more, so you’ll just have to chat amongst yourselves while I head out and say hello to my favourite boy . . .’
‘I’ll get some food,’ Cora announced as the door swung shut behind Eamonn. ‘Dad, can I choose my yoghurts?’
‘Go ahead.’ Cal looked at Mimi. ‘How have things been with you? All OK?’
‘Great.’ It was so lovely to see him again.
His gaze flickered in the direction of her wire basket and he did an exaggerated double-take. ‘Wow, what’s going on here?’
Mimi looked too, and laughed. ‘Don’t worry, I’m not pregnant.’
‘No? Well that’s good to hear. When Cora was on the way, Stacey was obsessed with Worcester sauce; had to drown every meal with the stuff. We were getting through three bottles a week.’
‘That’s so gross.’
‘It was horrible to watch. Anyway, what’s the situation with the ex? Seen him at all?’
‘God, no.’
‘Or her?’
Kendra. ‘Not her either.’
‘Dad, can I get doughnuts for me and Lauren?’
‘Go ahead. Although you’re both going to be chatting so much you won’t have time to eat them.’
‘I need to tell her everything about our holiday,’ Cora explained to Mimi. ‘And then I have to hear all about Lauren’s holiday in Cornwall. But it’s OK, we’ll manage; we can talk with our mouths full.’
‘How about work?’ Cal raised his eyebrows at Mimi. ‘Any joy?’
‘Actually, yes. I’m starting as a personal assistant tomorrow.’
‘Excellent! Where’s that, in Cirencester? Cheltenham?’
‘Majorca.’
Cal said, ‘Oh,’ and for a split second she saw a flicker of disappointment mixed in with the look of surprise. Which was nice, but also kind of frustrating, because what she really longed to know was if he’d miss her as much as she’d be missing him. ‘Well, good for you.’
‘Puerto Pollensa,’ said Mimi, as Eamonn came back into the shop.
He nodded. ‘Excellent.’
‘That’s why I’m stocking up on these.’ She placed the basket on the counter. ‘To take with me.’
Eamonn, who was perfectly well aware that she was off tomorrow, said with a wink, ‘And there was me thinking you were up the duff.’
Outside the shop, Mimi greeted Otto while Cal helped Cora to divide up the snacks.
‘Right,’ Cora announced once the task was complete. ‘Me and Otto are off to Lauren’s. And you have to do some work, yes?’
Cal nodded in agreement. ‘I’ll be out for a while. Be home by six, OK?’
They watched as Cora skipped off down the pavement towards Lauren’s house with Otto trotting along beside her, clearly interested in the doughnuts in her bag.
‘Not the best timing.’ Cal finally turned to look at Mimi. ‘Just as we get home, you’re leaving.’
Mimi felt a fizz of adrenalin. ‘It wasn’t deliberate.’
He smiled slightly. ‘Glad to hear it. So what are you up to now? Do you still have a ton of packing to do?’
‘All finished, because I’m so super-efficient. Well, apart from these.’ She held up her bag containing the jars of Marmite and bottles of chilli sauce. ‘And a trip to the dentist this afternoon.’ She looked rueful. ‘I had a bit of a toffee-based incident with one of my molars last week and Marcus said I really had to get it sorted before I left for foreign parts, so he’s booked me in to see his dentist in Tetbury.’
‘What time?’
‘I’m heading over to Tetbury this afternoon to meet with a client at three. I can take you if you want.’
‘Oh! Marcus said I could borrow his car . . .’
‘Don’t worry then, that’s fine.’ Having seen her face fall, Cal held up a hand. ‘It was just a thought.’
It was the knowing she wouldn’t see him again for a while that had caused Mimi’s face to fall. Hastily she said, ‘No, no, I’d love that. I just thought you might be tired after driving back from Wales . . .’
‘Oh I think I can probably manage a few miles more.’ Cal flexed a bicep, Popeye-style. ‘Shall I pick you up in an hour?’ He paused, glancing at the unenthralling contents of the plastic carrier in his hand. ‘Or we could head over there now and get lunch. If you fancied it.’
Oh I definitely fancy it.
Aloud, Mimi said, ‘Perfect.’
Once they reached Tetbury, they found a restaurant and, much like Cora and her friend Lauren, caught up with each other’s news. Mimi heard all about Cal and Cora’s adventures on the sweeping, spectacular beaches of the Gower coast with his sister and brother-in-law and their dogs and children. In turn, she relayed the latest goings-on in Goosebrook and told him about her series of unsuccessful job interviews.
‘Then CJ came along and gave me the hard sell, and I can’t tell you how impossible he’s going to be to work for. He’s actually a brilliant writer and his books are incredible, it’s just that personality-wise he’s a bit of a nightmare. But once you’ve been turned down for a washing-up job in a skanky café, you kind of realise you can’t afford to be too choosy.’ She gestured with her fork. ‘If it didn’t involve working for CJ, it’d actually be a dream job. It’s just a shame it couldn’t have been someone else.’
‘CJ Exley.’ Cal nodded. ‘I know the name. I think I heard him being interviewed on the radio the other week. He sounded normal enough.’
‘That’s because he had Willa there to keep him in check. Trust me, he’s rude, he’s an incredible show-off, he thinks he’s irresistible.’ Mimi was ticking off the list of non-attributes on her fingers, ‘Oh, and he absolutely hates having to sit down and get on with writing his books. Trying to keep him under control is like wrangling a ten-year-old with ADHD. He likes to hint that he worked for MI5, but there’s no way that ever happened.’
‘How do you know?’
‘Because every time he meets a pretty girl, he says, “Keep it to yourself, darling, but I know my stuff – I used to work for MI5 as a spy!” And he winks when he says it.’ Mimi shuddered. ‘Like this.’ She gave Cal a lecherous wink. ‘Honestly, he thinks he’s James Bond.’
‘I need to see what he looks like.’ Taking out his phone, Cal pressed some keys. ‘Maybe you’ll start off hating each other, then as the weeks go by your feelings will change and you’ll end up falling madly in love, like in a rom-com. OK, don’t look at me like that.’ He laughed as he shook his head. ‘My sister made me sit down and watch one with her last night. Apparently that’s the way it always happens in that kind of film.’
‘Well it definitely isn’t going to happen to me.’
Cal studied the photo of CJ he’d found online. ‘He doesn’t look too bad. You couldn’t call him ugly.’
‘That’s his publicity shot. Three per cent truth, ninety-seven per cent Photoshop.’
‘So you’re quite sure you’re not going to fall in love with the nightmare James Bond character?’
Cal’s tone was playful, but she couldn’t help wondering why he seemed so interested. Mimi’s breath caught in her throat and her brain started to wish she wasn’t off to Puerto Pollensa for the foreseeable future. She said, ‘I promise.’