Blue Skies Over Wildflower Lock (The Wildflower Lock)

Chapter 16

‘I can’t believe how well we did!’ Daisy was practically bouncing on her feet as she jumped from the boat and tied the stern rope to the mooring.

If she’d ever had any doubts about Yvonne’s abilities with a narrowboat, they’d faded now that she’d seen how expertly she manoeuvred the boat into its mooring.

‘Honestly, it was such a dream. And all those seals!’ Daisy stepped back on board, this time grabbing the bowline from the front of the boat to secure it to the bollards. ‘And the fact that we’re here so early means I can open up the coffee shop for a couple of hours too. Honestly, if this is how the rest of the journey goes, I wish I’d done it sooner.’

‘I thought you only had your propeller fixed a couple of weeks ago?’ Yvonne said, though Daisy ignored the comment and set about opening up the coffee shop.

‘What do you want to do while I’m working?’ Daisy asked. She’d had people on the boat when she was working before – the girls, Theo – but normally they’d help, making coffees and taking money. She wasn’t sure if that was something that Yvonne wanted to do.

‘Do you know what, love? I might just have a nap. You don’t mind, do you? I didn’t get much sleep last night, and when you’re my age, you need as much as you can get.’

Yvonne had already had well over an hour’s nap earlier in the day but Daisy wasn’t going to mention that.

‘Of course. I don’t blame you. I think it might be an early night for both of us, though maybe we could get dinner in the town after I’ve finished up here? If you fancy that.’

‘That sounds lovely. Now, I’ll let you get on with it. You don’t want me under your feet,’ Yvonne said.

A minute later, she disappeared into the cabin, leaving Daisy to get ready to open up.

It was Daisy’s firm belief that she sold more coffees and teas when she had cakes on display. Even if people didn’t fancy something to eat, the baked goods were the things that normally caught a passer-by’s eyes and drew them in and they’d usually end up purchasing a hot or cold drink. So, wanting to get something out as quickly as possible, she whipped up a banana cake, the aromas from which, wafting into the air, brought her the first customer of the day.

‘This is new,’ the woman said. She was in her seventies, her arm linked with that of the man she was walking with. ‘I haven’t seen this before, have you, Jack?’

‘I haven’t, love.’

‘I’m not a permanent fixture,’ Daisy said, feeling the need to infiltrate herself into the conversation. ‘I’m normally up at Wildflower Lock. Do you know it?’

‘Oh, yes,’ the woman said enthusiastically. ‘Lovely place. We used to go there when we were first dating, didn’t we, Jack?’

‘We did indeed, love.’

‘Well, I was just saying I needed a cup of tea. You do serve tea, don’t you?’ The lady smiled, which Daisy reciprocated warmly.

‘Absolutely.’

‘Fantastic. Two teas, please.’

Daisy had only served another two customers before the buzzer informed her that the banana cake was ready, though she let it cool for half an hour before she put it out to sell. That was when she got busier.

It wasn’t as crazy as a weekend on Wildflower Lock, but it didn’t take long for news to spread about a coffee shop on a canal boat set up near the marina. After that, there were certainly enough customers to keep Daisy busy and leave her wishing she had put two banana cakes in the oven rather than one. Everything was running so smoothly that she almost forgot that Yvonne was aboard until a little after five when she appeared out of the cabin.

‘Goodness me, I really needed that sleep,’ she said, stretching out her arms. ‘How have you been? Plenty of customers?’

‘Enough for us to get dinner,’ Daisy answered with a smile.

‘Well, that sounds like an offer I can’t refuse,’ Yvonne replied.