37. Chapter Thirty-Seven
Chapter Thirty-Seven
‘ W here’s Willow?’ Amber tied on her apron before scooping up her now-blue hair into a ponytail. ‘And why is Vincent so clingy?’
To her surprise, when she arrived, the feline launched himself at her and wound himself round her legs, orange fur clinging to her fresh black tights. After yesterday’s disapproval of her plans, she expected him to switch between a soul-searing scowl to shunning her for days. His quick forgiveness concerned her.
‘Has Black Cat been around causing chaos again?’
‘No, Vince’s sulking. Willow didn’t come home last night, and he’s not impressed despite me coming in early to feed him. She’s allowed to have fun, you know.’ Rosa wagged her finger at the sullen cat, who glared and slunk away with his fluffy tail hanging low.
‘But she never stays away,’ Amber said, biting down on the ensuing panic of the change of routine. And failing. ‘Is she okay? Have you heard from her?’
‘Of course I have. Don’t you get yourself wound up about it like that bloody cat. As I told him, she’s having some fun. I don’t think I’ve ever known her to be out with friends, have you?’
‘Exactly. No wonder Vincent is concerned. Anything could’ve happened.’ The threats in the letters pierced her mind. Maybe he’d hurt her and was using her phone to divert attention. Maybe … Amber wanted the customers to vanish so she could interrogate Rosa, rather than rely on snatched sentences between serving.
‘I spoke to her. She was happy. Between you and me, I think there’s a man involved. Maybe Nate has come up from the city? From what I heard, they were good together. She needs someone like him.’
‘No, she doesn’t. Why does everyone think he’s so perfect? You haven’t even met him,’ Amber snapped, pushing panic about the stalker aside. Willow mustn’t meet Nate again. Fate wouldn’t be that cruel.
‘What’s wrong with you?’ Rosa spun around to face her once the last customer left. Cornered, Amber sighed.
‘He’s just not what everyone thinks he is. She’s better off without him.’ And with my dad. Thank goodness her plan was in action. One more night brewing and it would be ready to use and then—
The door jingled and Willow bounced in, her skin flushed and her eyes sparkling like Amber had seen at Christmas. Shit, Rosa was right. A man was involved .
Amber polished the glass jars on the shelves. A daily mundane chore Willow insisted on, a task she usually found relaxing as she connected with each herb and blend, feeling their energy and acquainting herself with their uses. The calmness refused to come. Everything will be okay. Despite how it looks, Rosa is wrong.
Willow cooed to Vincent, and he chattered in return. Her absence was forgiven. All the weight and darkness crushing Willow for the past few months had disintegrated overnight. She shone with happiness. Amber’s stomach churned as dread descended on her.
‘Well, I never thought I’d see the day that Willow Anderson did the walk of shame,’ chuckled Rosa.
‘I’m not,’ Willow replied, straightening up and detaching herself from her purring familiar.
‘You’re in yesterday’s crumpled clothes. Your eyes are sparkling without a hint of a hangover. If that isn’t an indicator of a night of passion, I don’t know what is.’
‘You will never guess who I bumped into? Nate. I’ll tell you all about it, but first I need to get changed. Put the kettle on.’ Calling Vincent to follow her, Willow swept out of the shop floor on a high.
Amber swore under her breath, while fury sparked in her blood. This can’t be happening. Not now.
‘You’ll rub the glass away if you carry on polishing that jar any more. What is up with you? She’s happy.’
Amber reached into her apron and pulled out a forbidden mobile, and swiftly scrolled through her apps. She thrust it at Rosa and watched her pale as Amber had that morning.
‘Fuck. You need to tell her.’
‘Tell me what?’ Willow returned, changed into her uniform, holding a tray of three drinks, ready to spill her news. Amber’s eyes darted from her mentor to Rosa, who nodded. With no other option, Amber reluctantly showed Willow the phone.
Amber felt her heart break as Willow’s face slid from joy to despair the moment she comprehended what she was seeing. The cups slipped from the tray and crashed onto the floor. She shrugged off both employees rushing to her aid before pelting across the courtyard through Black Cat Alley.
Rosa grabbed Amber’s arm, stopping her following. ‘Leave her. She needs time alone. Let’s clear this up before a customer arrives.’
***
Amber’s intuition had niggled when she returned home on Christmas day. As much as she enjoyed Nate’s company, something was off. A secret unsaid. A quick online search gave her more information, his business credentials and job title. Impressive, but she needed to delve more. Flicking through Facebook profiles, she checked those who could be him. Unlike Willow, who shunned all social media platforms, Nate had an account. Annoyingly, he’d set it to private, but it still revealed his friends’ list. Rookie error. This led to the beautiful Rebecca McLeod, who had no qualms in sharing her relationship status and snippets in her corporate life of lavish dinners and business events. The quickly accepted friend request gave Amber an insight into her private life and Nate’s world. From moaning about her workload to cosy nights in with accompanying stylish photos, and drunken nights with friends, Amber could see it all, including the incriminating photo posted days before Christmas—dressed in a closely fitted red ballgown, she linked arms with a dashing Nate Reynolds smiling at the camera. He was a two-timing cheat. He would have been hexed if he hadn’t abandoned Willow days later. She had had a lucky escape and Amber decided this secret was best hidden.
Amber wasn’t sure why she’d checked Rebecca’s newsfeed that morning. Perhaps it was the certainty that her matchmaking plan would be a success and she needed to check the opposition to Willow’s heart for one last time, or the pesky algorithm flagging a meme reminding her of her existence, but when she saw Rebecca’s excited post, she felt relief. Nate was no longer a threat to her father’s future. She never guessed that hours later, she would break her friend’s heart all over again.