13
Willow
Willow sat at her gran’s breakfast table, telling her parents about her offer to stage the show on their land. A few quirked eyebrows came her way followed by concern.
‘Do you need a licence or insurance or something to put on a show?’ asked Heath.
As Willow had no idea, she told him she would check all the fine details with Lance, as he was the expert.
Rhett wasn’t sure. ‘We’re going away for a week tomorrow.’
‘Nothing’s going to happen in one week, Mum. Lance has to talk to someone at the council, then if we get the go ahead, the tent has to be erected, and we need to raise funds to hire a stage, so you’ll be back before any of that takes place, I’m sure.’
‘How bad is the dome?’ asked Fran, pouring herself some tea from a large yellow teapot.
Willow shrugged. ‘Cracked roof.’
Fran sat by her side. ‘Well, it is old.’
‘Had to happen now though, didn’t it? We start dress rehearsals in a couple of weeks.’
‘Ooh, what’s your costume like?’ asked Vivien, picking at a cinnamon swirl.
Willow grimaced. ‘I’m not sure it’s finished yet, but from what I’ve seen so far, it’s kind of fish meets superhero. I don’t know. It’s such a mad story, but it’s really grown on me.’
‘Sounds interesting,’ said Heath, not appearing too keen. ‘Is it revealing?’
Willow blew out a laugh. ‘There is some sort of bikini top going on, but you’d see more if I was on the beach, Dad.’
Heath quietly groaned as Rhett nudged him.
‘What’s your costume like, Cody?’ asked Vivien, still picking at her pastry.
‘Same sort of thing, but mine’s a different colour, because our characters come from different planets.’
‘Ooh, are you enemies?’ asked Fran.
Willow flashed him a cheeky smile. ‘Only in the play.’
Cody grinned into his bowl of muesli.
‘Let’s talk Greece,’ said Vivien, glancing at her big sister.
Rhett shook her head. ‘We’ve been told it’s a lovely country, so we thought we’d visit. Now, how about we talk about you instead.’
Vivien frowned. ‘What about me? Part from being rushed off my feet getting the Gatehouse back up and running, there’s not much to tell.’
Rhett leaned on the table, closing in on her sister. ‘There’s a lot going on at the end of this year for you.’
Willow turned to Cody. ‘It’s Brody’s court case. Once we see him sentenced, we can concentrate on Finn and Viv’s wedding.’
‘And I’m thinking more,’ said Rhett, gesturing towards Vivien’s stomach. ‘You seem to be off your food lately.’
Fran beamed. ‘Ooh, lovely, am I getting another grandchild?’
Vivien’s shoulders slumped. ‘Thanks, Rhett. We didn’t want to say anything just yet. It’s too early.’
Heath was already on his feet, hugging Vivien, and Willow joined in.
Finn entered the kitchen, took one look at everyone’s joyous faces and the hugs his fiancée was receiving, and shook his head in disbelief. ‘You told?’
Vivien’s laugh was muffled by Fran’s top squishing her face. ‘Blame Rhett. She sussed it.’
Heath picked up Finn in a huge bear hug, lifting his feet from the floor. ‘Congrats, Finn.’
Finn flapped away the fuss, then kissed Vivien’s cheek.
Willow warmed at her family. They may have lost Benton that year, but at least they still held each other close. She stole a glance at Cody, pleased he was nearby as well.
Finn’s pager buzzed, and he shot off to his RNLI call-out, and everyone else went about their day.
Willow plodded over to the garden centre to fix one of the polytunnels. She felt a lot lighter and held more positivity towards her future. Just being in the same room as her parents and aunt and uncle filled her with hope that true love would find her.
She sat on the hard ground, twiddling with repair tape, dreaming about how perfect her future would be. Marriage, kids, farm life. Her soulmate. Her thoughts turned to Kip. He was everything her psychic reading said, but something felt off, and she was starting to think perhaps she shouldn’t base her partner on what Mystic Maureen said.
I’m being stupid, aren’t I?
She looked up at the fluffy clouds, wondering if anyone would have the time to send her a sign or something, as she felt guidance was needed.
Oh, what am I doing? Why am I asking everyone else to steer my life? I know what I want, and I’m not sure Kip is it .
Once her task was complete, she headed off to the treehouse, as there was something else on her mind.
Cody’s sticky notes practically covered one wall, and his laptop was still sitting on the blanket. She did a quick tidy, folding and stacking what was there, then sat for a moment to focus on his board game idea.
Benton taught her how to play chess, and she enjoyed playing Scrabble with her gran, and Game of Life with Tyler. It didn’t exactly make her an expert in the industry, but she still felt she knew enough to see Cody had a few notes that made more sense when rearranged.
Willow wiggled her fingers at the wall, debating the interference. ‘Oh, fiddlesticks. Here goes nothing.’ She manoeuvred a few sticky notes, then laughed to herself at what Cody would think. It was no big deal. If he hated her suggestion, he could just put it back the way he liked it.
‘Why am I even here?’ she whispered to her favourite place. Shaking her head at her antics, she climbed down the ladder, choosing what job she could do next. One that was actually hers would be the best bet, but for some reason, all she wanted to do was find Cody.
Her phone buzzed in her dark overalls. Lance was calling.
‘Ooh, Lance. Any luck?’
‘Yes. We’re in. I’m off to buy some raffle tickets, then I’ll pop some up to you first, as I want to stand in your field and grab the essence.’
Willow wasn’t quite sure what that meant but agreed anyway. As soon as she was off the phone, she went to the office to see if Cody was there.
He had a slight crinkle to his brow and pursed lips as he tapped away on the keyboard.
Willow wanted to tell him the news but also didn’t want to interrupt his flow, so she paced outside the door, chewing her bottom lip.
‘You’ll wear a hole in the floorboards,’ he called, continuing to type.
‘Oh, sorry.’ She poked her head around the door. ‘I wasn’t sure how busy you were.’
‘Busy enough.’ He stopped speed-typing, then pushed his chair back so it rolled towards her. ‘What’s up?’
‘Oh, I can come back.’
He raised his eyebrows. ‘You’re here now.’
‘I just got a call from Lance. We can have the open-air theatre here.’ She threw out two thumbs as she grinned.
‘Great.’ His word didn’t match his tone.
‘You not keen, Sully?’
‘I am enjoying it, oddly enough, but I’ll be glad when it’s over and they’ve all buggered off. I really need to concentrate on my game. I’ve got the convention soon, and I need to be on top form to pitch.’ He pointed at the monitor. ‘Look, I’ve written my spiel about ten times over, and it’s still crap. I need to be able to hit them with one-liners and draw them in immediately. So far all I’ve managed is to stress myself out.’
Willow leaned over the desk. ‘Let me try. Fresh eyes and that.’ She scanned his blurbs, took a few lines from each one, mashed them together, and stood back.
Cody wheeled his office chair forward. ‘Well, that’s better than mine.’
‘Why don’t you ask Humphrey to help?’
‘He does help, but he’s busy right now. I don’t know why I bought tickets for the gaming event. I know I’ll crumble when talking face to face.’ He glanced up at her. ‘I’m more an email fan.’
‘You and me both. I hate talking on the phone, but Gran makes me. Reckons the more you do something, the less it feels so awkward.’
‘If I can get noticed there, I’m thinking they might remember me when I submit. Flipping heck, Wills, sometimes it’s too much for my brain.’
She placed her hands on his shoulder and started to massage his neck. ‘You’ll be fine. Take one step at a time. No focusing on the big picture. Okay?’
Cody’s eyes were closed as his body relaxed under her touch. His light groan made her smile, and she leaned over to kiss the top of his head.
‘Lance will be up soon. He wants to stand in the field. Once he’s given us our raffle tickets to sell, we can head off to Pepper Lane to do that and grab some lunch at the pub. We can take an hour. You in?’
Cody’s head tilted to one side as he groaned once more. ‘I’m in,’ he said softly, with the slightest of croaks to his voice, then let out another happy groan.
Willow stopped smiling, examining his face, and the strangest thought entered her mind.
Would you sound like that kissing me?
She snapped her head back, yanking her hands away at the same time. ‘I’ll see you at lunch.’ She bumped into the door frame on her retreat.
Feeling quite flustered, Willow headed for the café to grab a mid-morning snack. Normality was well and truly needed, and there wasn’t anything quite like one of her aunt’s cookies to ground her.
Home. Comfort zone. Family.
Willow smiled as the scent of freshly ground coffee hit her nostrils. The old café flashed through her mind. The timber frames and alpine hut vibes. Now it was light and modern, with extra space and cosy tones.
Vivien raised a hand from behind the counter to acknowledge her before returning her full attention to her customers.
Willow could see her aunt needed an extra set of hands, so grabbed an apron, washed her hands, and mucked in.
The large shiny coffee contraption took some getting used to, and Willow jumped the first time it whooshed out at her, but within half an hour she was a pro.
Bacon filled the air, and Vivien told Willow to go swipe some off the grill and start plating up orders.
Willow had played one of Cody’s computer games once that had her rushing around a diner, cooking and serving. She was on a timer and felt quite flustered, giving up in the end, as the game seemed endless. Helping out at the Gatehouse Café felt the same.
The kitchen wasn’t hot, but with fry-ups on the go, toast popping every few seconds, and Fran’s homemade vegetable soup simmering, the heat was trickling down Willow’s neck.
She mopped her brow with a tea towel, wondering how Vivien kept so calm amongst the rush, then flopped to a chair in the corner when the final sausage sandwich had left the serving hatch.
‘Erm, Viv. Don’t you think you should hire some staff?’
Vivien giggled. ‘I will. The trick is to talk to the customers. Show them we don’t rush things here. Food, conversation, and all the comforts of home, that’s what we serve.’ She gestured at the soft furnishing to one side of the café. ‘I want people to chill. Enjoy their meal or coffee and cake, read a book, gaze at the pond, and not feel they have to eat and run.’
‘Does that mean I didn’t have to run around back there like I did?’
Vivien handed her a slice of lemon-and-blueberry cake and a bottle of apple juice. ‘You did good, lovely. You just need to learn the routine.’
Willow laughed. ‘I have that over there.’ She pointed out the window towards the garden centre.
‘Then why are you over here?’
‘I just…’ Willow’s voice faded. She knew why she had gravitated towards her aunt. She just didn’t want to say.
Vivien sat by her side, sliding the cake closer to her. ‘Eat. Talk.’
Willow snaffled a piece and smiled at her mouth-watering bite. ‘Hmm, this is good cake.’
‘I know, now talk.’
‘I’m not sure really. I think I’ve lost the plot.’
‘Oh, well, we all have those moments.’
‘Do you believe in psychic abilities?’
Vivien shrugged. ‘Not sure. Josephine Walker never seems to be wrong, so maybe there is something in it. Why?’
Inside Willow’s mind, the whole soulmate business seemed quite normal, but saying it out loud made her feel like an idiot. Her aunt was waiting, so she spilled the beans, not knowing what reaction she would get. It was one thing to tell Cody, and she knew her knitting club wouldn’t snigger at the art of fortune telling, but Vivien was unreadable.
‘Say something, Viv.’
‘I was just thinking that life can be strange when it comes to partners. You just never know when they will show up. Think about it. You can talk to a hundred people in one day and not grow any feelings, then you meet the next person and, wham, feelings. It is odd.’
‘Not sure what that has to do with my case.’
‘I think you’re trying to force it.’
Willow shook her head. ‘I know it’s different, but people join dating websites to find a match. There are loads out there actively searching for The One . Is that classed as forcing the process?’
Vivien pinched a piece of cake. ‘Not sure there are rules, but whatever way you want to find love, you should still follow your heart. How much is your heart into this Kip fella?’
She had to be honest, and not just with her aunt. ‘Not a lot,’ she mumbled. ‘But it’s early days.’
‘You can’t make yourself love him.’
Seeing sympathy in Vivien’s dark eyes rained on her mission. It was obvious not many would understand, and she knew she shouldn’t press the matter with Kip, but she was no quitter, and the thought of missing out on the opportunity of being with her soulmate hurt way too much.
‘I just want to find my soulmate, like you did with Finn.’
Vivien smiled warmly and patted her hand. ‘Finn’s been in my life since the day I was born, yet it took me to the beginning of this year to realise my best mate was the one for me.’
‘But he always knew.’
Vivien nodded. ‘Yep. I’m the only dozy one who couldn’t see what was right in front of me. Glad I did in the end though, because Finn Silver is the best thing that’s ever happened to me, and I thank my lucky stars for him every single day.’
Willow’s heart melted at the love on display. That’s all she wanted. Someone she could share magical and powerful energy with. Was it too much to ask?
Vivien stood to serve a customer. ‘You’ll find him, beautiful. I know you will.’ She kissed Willow’s head, then went back to work.
Yeah, where?
‘Oi,’ called Cody from the opened doors. ‘Lance is here.’ He waggled a book of raffle tickets and grinned.