Chapter 24
IZZI
Izzi walked slowly down Honey Haven High Street the following morning trying not to cry.
She’d barely slept last night – it wasn’t just that she was alone in the cabin, it was all the terrible things Cameron had said, all the things he’d accused her of.
Then there had been Sophie – her cousin.
Had she been telling the truth? Cameron had been obsessed with her.
Was she genuinely afraid or had she just made up a story to deflect her guilt?
Izzi was confused. Was the man she’d fallen for really capable of such deceit? It seemed unlikely but she had no idea.
Her shift at the café was due to start in an hour and Izzi paused outside the store, peering inside.
She could see a warm light glowing from the kitchen.
Maud was probably in there baking – Izzi had given up on sleep so she could come to work early because she wanted to speak with her.
Felt that she had to reassure her boss that whatever Cameron thought, she wasn’t here to steal from her or cheat.
She had no interest in money. It had never been important to her. Even when her aunt Regina had given her house and business away, Izzi hadn’t ranted or raged. Money didn’t buy happiness – sometimes it simply brought pain.
Besides, she’d come to Honey Haven looking for family and she’d found it, only now it looked like she’d lost all the people she’d grown to love in the process. Because of Sophie? Partly, but perhaps it was more to do with trust and old wounds.
Izzi let out a long breath and shut her eyes.
She wasn’t ready to speak with Maud yet.
Her heart hurt and she couldn’t seem to stop the flow of tears – so she walked further down the high street to get herself under control before heading back.
She didn’t want to be accused of manipulating Cameron’s grandma.
She had to talk to her calmly and explain her side of the story without emotion getting in the way.
She barely registered her surroundings as she wandered down the pavement, her eyes focused on the leaf-strewn pavement as she watched first one foot and then the other tread on the ground.
More decorations had gone up on the high street over the past few days; the locals had begun to put their pumpkins on the steps of their houses and many windows were filled with pretty, handmade bunting of red and golden leaves.
But she couldn’t bear to look. They were all just reminders, reminders of what she’d miss out on when she left Honey Haven.
Because she knew she’d have to leave. Cameron wasn’t going to let her stay – he’d made that clear last night. He didn’t trust her and at this moment, Izzi wasn’t sure who she could trust either. Him or Sophie?
When she finally looked up, she realised she was level with the gemstone shop.
There was a light on inside and she paused, wondering if she should go in.
She needed someone to talk to – someone who wasn’t related to Cameron – and Flora might be able to give her some advice.
Or at least a new perspective on Cameron’s relationship with Sophie.
It wasn’t that she couldn’t speak to Maud, it was more that she expected her to side with Cameron.
He was her grandson and she’d been cheated by Sophie too.
Izzi stood considering and felt the patter of rain on her cheeks. She was wearing her tawny coat and had a quick flashback to the night Cameron had walked her home from the café, and them making love in his sitting room, and she felt a sharp slice of pain stab through her heart.
Then the door swung open and Flora stood frowning.
‘I had a feeling I’d be seeing you today,’ she said, taking Izzi’s hand and gently tugging her into the shop.
‘I’ve no idea why,’ she explained as she turned and studied Izzi’s face.
‘My tea leaves told me yesterday that I was going to get an unexpected visitor and I immediately thought of you. Come in,’ she said, sweeping her hand into the shop.
The light inside was cosily dim and Izzi spotted a couple of lamps as she glanced around.
Had it only been a couple of weeks since she’d been here with Cameron? It felt like they’d come full circle. He’d been suspicious of her then – but he’d come around, had started to trust, even care for her. Now… She swallowed. She had no idea.
‘Is it the lad?’ Flora guessed, walking ahead and opening the door to her small office.
‘How about I make us a cup of tea so you can tell me everything?’ She disappeared back into the shop before Izzi could respond.
She wasn’t sure she wanted a drink, but didn’t have the energy to say no.
Besides, it might warm her. She felt cold – right through to her bones – and wondered if it was simply her heart freezing.
She tugged off her damp coat and rubbed her hands on her arms, then slumped into the chair she’d been seated in the last time she’d come to the shop.
She had no idea what she was doing here.
She should go back to the café to speak to Maud, or head back to Cameron’s so she could talk to him instead.
A tear tracked down her cheek and she swiped at it, angry with herself for getting emotional.
‘Here you go, lass,’ Flora said gently as she returned and carefully placed a cup and saucer in front of her before covering Izzi’s shoulders with a thick, knitted blanket because she must have noticed she was cold.
Then she took the seat opposite. ‘Remember, try not to swallow any of the leaves when you drink,’ she said quietly.
‘I’ll do a new reading, and you can fill me in on what’s happened if you like. ’
Her voice was kind and Izzi wondered how the older woman would react once she heard about Sophie.
The village grapevine was going to go wild when Cameron told everyone.
Would they blame her? Would Maud hold her responsible for the café being in debt?
She’d have to leave Honey Haven long before that happened.
She tugged the blanket around her and picked up the cup, realising her hand was shaking, and took a sip.
‘Steady, lass,’ Flora advised, picking up her own drink and sipping too. They drank in silence and when Izzi finished, she placed the delicate cup back on the saucer.
‘I don’t think those tea leaves are going to put things right,’ Izzi whispered.
Flora nodded as she tugged the porcelain towards her.
‘That’s not their job, lass. I’m afraid we have to do that for ourselves, or let fate decide.
’ She picked up the cup and stared into it, her mouth mashing together, before it settled into a frown.
‘So, your past and present have collided,’ she guessed. ‘And it’s made a bit of a mess?’
Izzi jerked her chin. ‘I—’
‘Is this about family?’ The older woman cocked her head and her forehead squeezed as she continued to gaze into the bottom of the cup.
Izzi wondered if Flora was making things up. If this was a cruel joke and Cameron had already told everyone in the village that Izzi had tricked him and Maud. It seemed unlikely. There was gentleness in Flora’s expression and Izzi believed she was trying to help. ‘Yes, it’s—’
‘You don’t have to tell me, lass,’ Flora said, placing the cup back on the table.
‘I see fractured relationships, I see old hurts resurfacing and I see lies.’ She frowned and for the first time since she’d met, Izzi didn’t see humour in the woman’s eyes, but she could see sympathy and understanding and she drank it in, feeling the tears that were waiting to fall dry up.
‘Whatever happened isn’t your fault,’ she said gently.
‘But I wonder if this is somehow connected to what I saw in Cameron’s leaves the other day? ’
‘It might be.’ Izzi felt the knot in her stomach tighten.
‘I see anger too,’ Flora continued. ‘Although it may not be justified.’
Izzi swallowed. ‘I don’t know what to believe.’ She tugged the blanket tighter taking comfort from its homey texture. ‘I’ve heard a lot of things. Conflicting things—’ She sighed. ‘I met Sophie.’
The older woman’s eyebrow rose. ‘I see. I don’t need details unless you want to give them to me.’
‘I’m not going to keep it from you. I’ve got nothing to hide.’ Izzi pinched her nose. ‘Sophie’s my cousin. I just found out.’ She swallowed. ‘Cameron thinks I’m working with her.’
Flora pulled a face. ‘Aye, I can imagine he took that badly. But—’ She drummed her fingers on the table.
Izzi winced. She had to admit it would have looked bad. ‘Sophie told me Cameron owes her money, that he’s lying to me.’
Flora gave her a long look. ‘What do you think, lass?’
Izzi thought about Cameron, about the look of hurt on his face when he’d caught them in the kitchen. If he’d been lying to her, Maud had too and she couldn’t believe that.
‘I don’t think she was telling the truth. It makes sense she’d try to force my attention elsewhere,’ she admitted as her shoulders sagged in relief. She hadn’t read Cameron wrong – he wasn’t going to forgive her, but he wasn’t the bad guy here. He’d just been hurt.
‘So, what are you going to do?’ Flora asked gently.
Izzi sighed. ‘I think it’s time I left Honey Haven,’ she said reluctantly.
‘I’m not looking to cause anyone pain. I found what I came for.
’ She’d found a cousin, one she most likely didn’t want.
She’d found family too, people she cared deeply for, but she’d lost them in the process.
‘I’ve got a friend, a job in London. I was going to start after Christmas, but I can go early.
They’ve been nagging me to come sooner.’ She thought about leaving the café and her lips trembled.
Flora leaned forward and gave her a long look. ‘Are you sure that’s the right decision? Are you sure there’s no way things can be put right with the lad?’
Izzi shook her head. ‘I don’t think so.’
Cameron didn’t trust her. Perhaps he couldn’t. He’d been deceived too many times. But hadn’t she spent the last fourteen years trying to be loved, proving herself over and over? Did she really want to spend more of her life living like that?
‘You don’t have to worry about the festival,’ she said. ‘I’ll bake everything we need before I go.’
She couldn’t use Cameron’s kitchen, but she had an idea. She’d buy the ingredients – she wasn’t going to trouble Erin and ask for handouts. She didn’t want anyone thinking she was taking advantage. Especially not now.
If Cameron Buchanan didn’t want her in his life, it was time for her to do what she had to do and then leave.