Chapter 47
The following day, Hannah found she couldn’t stop smiling at everyone and everything.
Finally she had been brave and told Alex how she felt. She still couldn’t believe he felt the same way, although his many kisses had begun to make her feel that perhaps he was telling the truth.
That night, when the café was closed and it was just them alone in the boathouse, they kissed once more. The stolen kisses continued over the next few weeks and she began to feel confident in her own emotions as well as his.
He wouldn’t hurt her. It was Alex and the trust she felt for him meant that she could relax and be herself with him.
Of course, Lily noticed Hannah’s change of mood and it wasn’t too long before she received excited calls from both Beth and Ella, anxious to hear all about her new romance.
Faye too had noticed the change in her daughter and would give her a knowing smile whenever she found Hannah humming to herself as she baked.
Hannah was still nervous about telling Ben, however. She knew how protective he could be and didn’t want to ruin the close friendship that he and Alex had enjoyed for so long.
‘I think he’ll be fine,’ Alex told her one night, as he held her close. ‘We should tell him tomorrow.’
‘Just a little while longer,’ said Hannah, stopping his protests with her kisses until they were lost in each other once more.
She felt so much confidence in their relationship, felt whole and completely and utterly safe. It was the happiest time she had ever known, both personally and also professionally as well.
As she was serving a table one morning, she realised that it was a familiar face.
‘Hi,’ said Molly, who Hannah recognised from her visit to the Cranbridge tea room. ‘I was just saying to my friend Lucy here how amazing this place looks.’
‘Thanks,’ replied Hannah, smiling at them both. ‘It’s so kind of you to visit. And thank you once again for your advice all those weeks ago. It really helped.’
‘I’m so glad,’ said Molly.
‘And you’re obviously doing really well,’ added her friend Lucy. ‘We struggled to get a spare table.’
Hannah nodded. ‘I’m rushed off my feet most days. Now, what would you like? It’s on the house.’
‘How kind,’ Molly told her. She and her friend left later with the promise of returning for a cocktail the following weekend.
Slowly Hannah could feel herself transitioning into the role of hostess as well as business owner. Her smile was genuine as she rushed around. In fact, she was getting too rushed and had begun to discuss with Alex the possibility of hiring a waitress to keep on top of all the customers.
The summer would be drawing to a close soon but Ben had already renewed the contract for the café to make it a more permanent addition to Maple Tree Lodge.
Hannah was aware that the busy summer days would become more quiet as the seasons changed and yet she had already begun to make plans to ensure that the business continued throughout autumn and winter as well.
‘I was thinking of maybe asking some groups if they wanted to utilise the café during the week in the colder months,’ she told Alex one evening as she tidied up the kitchen.
‘Great idea,’ he murmured, putting his arms around her as she stood next to the counter and pressed his lips against the back of her neck. ‘What about book groups?’
She couldn’t stop herself from leaning back into his strong arms. ‘Crafting classes,’ she said.
‘Art classes,’ he whispered, drawing his lips slowly up to nibble on her ear.
‘Mmm,’ she said, starting to lose her train of thought. ‘You’re distracting me from vital business decisions.’
‘It’s your fault,’ he told her, gently spinning her around so that she was looking up at him. ‘I can’t seem to keep my hands off you.’
‘And how is that my fault?’ she asked, laughing as she drew his head down to hers.
He kissed her and she lost track of how long they had been standing there until they finally drew apart.
‘Have dinner with me,’ he murmured against her lips.
‘Of course,’ she replied. ‘Your place or mine?’
It was a running joke between them. They would sit at the dinner table with the family, from the outside as if nothing had changed, all the while brushing their hands against each other’s under the table and wishing the time away until they were alone again.
‘I could always cook here one evening,’ she told him.
But Alex shook his head. ‘I mean, let’s go out one night,’ he told her, kissing her on the nose.
Her eyebrows shot up. ‘Out like a date?’ she asked.
‘Not like a date,’ he said, smiling down at her. ‘I mean, an actual date.’
‘Oh.’
‘What’s the problem?’ he asked. ‘We have dinner all the time.’
She nodded. ‘We do.’
‘With your family,’ he added. ‘This time I want it to be just you and me. And I need to talk to your brother. I want to make this official, let the whole world know. Is that OK with you?’
She loved that he respected her feelings and was so patient with her.
‘So?’ he prompted her. ‘What do you think?’
‘It feels like pressure having a date,’ she confessed, biting her lip.
He drew her close so she felt safe and warm once more. ‘It won’t feel like pressure because you’ll be with me. And I’ll be with you. It’s just us.’
She began to relax once more as he held her.
‘And if you feel nervous, just remember that because it’s a date, there’ll be an awful lot of kissing going on,’ he added, with a gleam in his eyes.
She laughed and reached up to kiss him once more.
And as they kissed again, she found herself thinking, what harm could one date do?