Ding.
I’m not sure why I opted to have a bell fitted on the deli door. I suppose it was in case a customer came in while I was in the back room.
I don’t think I’d anticipated just how much custom we’d be getting, and while the constant noise could be viewed as annoying by some, to me it serves as a victory bell, a little chime of success. That I’m not sure I’ll ever get bored of hearing.
‘All of our cream cakes are one of your five a day,’ Biagio assures a couple of middle-aged lady customers. They laugh giddily, immediately won over by his outgoing, Italian charms, but it’s been two months since the deli opened, and Biagio only has eyes for Viv.
I look over at my mum, sitting at a table, sipping a cup of tea, smiling wildly as she watches her man in action. I’ve always thought of my mum as being an optimistic, happy person, but now that I think about it, maybe we all put on a happy face for our kids from time to time, and I’m not sure that’s something we mums will ever stop doing – nor do I think we ever should. But it’s only now, seeing how she is around Biagio, that I realise just how truly happy she is with him, and it’s a side of her I’ve never seen, not with any of her boyfriends (or the occasional one of mine). She looks – if possible – even younger and healthier and it makes my heart want to burst. My mum always has been, and always will be, the most important woman in my life, and her happiness means everything to me.
‘Wow, what are those?’ I ask Channy as she carries in a plate of delicious looking somethings.
‘I was mucking around with a coconut macaroon recipe,’ she explains. ‘These are chocolate orange ones – I dunno, I just liked the idea. Try one?’
‘I’ve never turned down chocolate,’ I laugh, but this is Channy’s first week with Biagio training her in the kitchen, so I’m yet to try anything she’s made yet.
‘Oh my gosh, they’re amazing,’ I admit.
‘Yeah?’ she replies, with a hopeful humbleness. ‘Really?’
‘Really,’ I tell her. ‘Ask the others, I’m sure they’ll agree. Maybe see if a few customers want to sample them. If they’re good, we could sell them.’
‘Chanaroons,’ she says excitedly, trying the name out for size. ‘Maybe this is my thing?’
‘Maybe it is,’ I reply. After all, this is exactly what happened to me. I was at a crossroads in my life, I wound up at the deli and, for some reason, it just felt right. I knew that this was my calling, and while it might not be as impressive as raising elephants, or as worthy as teaching kids English, it makes me happy and allows me to take care of my son, and I like to think that’s a worthy cause too.
Speaking of Nathan, I received a postcard from him yesterday – the first time we’ve heard from him since he took off again. This time, I didn’t hide it away in a panic, shoving it at the back of a wardrobe or stuffing it in the secret pocket of my handbag, I simply read his note, which boasted all the warmth of a newsletter, before placing it down on the sideboard by the front door. I told Frankie it was there, and that he can read it when and if he chooses. I won’t ever stop him having a relationship with his dad, but it will be on Frankie’s terms if he does.
Right on cue, Frankie comes charging through the door, throwing his arms around my leg as I clear tables.
‘Mum, can I go to Bart’s house for tea tomorrow?’
‘Tea?’ I laugh, amused to hear how quickly he’s picked up the local dialect. ‘Of course you can.’
‘That’ll give us some time alone together,’ I hear Alfie say, creeping up behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist.
‘That would be nice,’ I say, leaning back into him.
Alfie kisses my cheek affectionately.
‘Hey, how’s Pugsley doing?’ I ask. Alfie took him to the vet today because he’s been snoring a lot louder than usual lately.
‘He’s fine – just one of the joys of owning a pug,’ he laughs, before his face falls. ‘We saw Jim, instead of Charlie. I’ve been getting the feeling she’s been cold with me, since we got together…’
It hadn’t escaped my attention that Alfie’s friendship with Charlie seemed to stop just as our relationship started.
‘I think everyone but you knew that she was trying to pull you,’ Channy says. I didn’t realise she was listening in, and I shoot her a glance to try and halt her honesty.
Alfie rubs his chin.
‘She wasn’t a real friend then, was she?’ he reasons. ‘So that’s no loss.’
I smile.
‘I’m just glad you’re OK, and that Pugsley is OK.’
‘Yeah, he’s fine,’ he says, hugging me again. ‘We just might need to get some ear plugs.’
‘With an 8-year-old, a zoo of animals and a multitude of weird gadgets, a snoring dog is the least of our worries,’ I laugh. ‘It’s a madhouse, isn’t it?’
‘It’s exactly what I want,’ he replies, kissing me on the cheek. ‘How about I take Frankie home and make a start on tea?’
‘God, you’re amazing,’ I blurt.
‘I feel like a housewife,’ he laughs. ‘What would my dad say?’
‘He’d be proud of you,’ I insist. ‘How could he not be?’
Alfie kisses me again.
‘Love you,’ he says.
‘Love you too,’ I reply.
‘Come on, kiddo,’ Alfie calls. Frankie, who was chatting with Viv, charges over to him.
‘Bye, Mum.’
‘Bye,’ I call after him.
I feel so completely comfortable with Alfie looking after Frankie. They make such a cute double act and seem to really love spending time together. We feel like a proper little family – something I’d never really felt before. Living here, with my son, my amazing boyfriend, our pets, and with my loved-up mum nearby, doing a job that I love, with no secrets hanging over me…I finally feel like I have it all.
My mum was right when she told me: when you know, you know. I know that here is my home now. I might not be travelling the world, living out of a suitcase, planting trees and feeding elephants, but life here is an adventure all of its own, and I can’t wait to see what it has in store for me next.