Chapter 13
Boredom wasn’t something Kazz was overly familiar with. She had always been far too busy to be bored.
Until now.
This past week, since the shop opened its doors last Saturday, had been an unexpected mix of busyness during the day and crashing boredom in the evenings. And don’t get her started on the yawn-fest that last Sunday had been. Tomorrow wasn’t shaping up to be any better, and she had a feeling she might start to dread Sundays if she couldn’t find anything to fill the day.
She was so used to being surrounded by people, both in the restaurant and in the London flat, that the slower pace of life in the shop was a new experience, as was being on her own after she’d finished work for the day.
She had no idea what to do with herself in the hours between closing the shop for the evening and going to bed. She didn’t think she’d ever slept so much in her whole life, and there was a limit to the amount of cleaning and cooking she could do.
There was one upside, though – she now had time to read, and she had taken to bringing a different book home with her at the end of the day. Tonight’s choice was Wuthering Heights . Again. Not exactly riveting for a Saturday night, but as she didn’t fancy going to the pub on her own, it would have to do.
After locking up and returning to her lonely little flat, Kazz had barely taken her coat off and popped her bag on the floor by the sofa, when there was a knock at the door.
Guessing who it might be, she went to answer it and saw Stevie standing on the little landing. She was holding a cardboard cake box.
‘I’ve brought gifts,’ she announced, giving her an awkward one-armed hug.
Kazz eyed the box eagerly, and her mouth watered.
As Stevie stepped inside, she said, ‘It’s only a few pastries, but you know how much I hate seeing food go to waste.’
‘Believe me, they won’t be going to waste,’ Kazz vowed. She was sorely tempted to skip her planned main meal and go straight to dessert.
She had come to realise that since she didn’t have to cook for a living, she rather enjoyed cooking for herself in the evenings. Besides, it also filled the time.
Stevie sank into one of the squishy armchairs and yawned. ‘What a day. I’m pooped! If I see another gingerbread man, I think I might cry. I baked around a hundred this morning, and I sold all of them except for two. They’re in your goodie box. How has your day been?’
‘Busy, thank goodness. Fancy a glass of wine?’
‘I’d better not. I mightn’t stop at one and I’ve got to drive home.’
Kazz wanted to suggest that Stevie could leave her little yellow Beetle in Tanglewood’s car park and pick it up tomorrow, but she didn’t want to appear desperate for company – even though she was.
Kazz poured herself a glass and sat on the sofa. ‘Got any plans for this evening?’
‘Food and a film. What about you?’
With her gaze on her drink, Kazz said, ‘Same, I suppose.’
Stevie looked chastened. ‘Sorry, Kazz, I’m a rubbish friend, aren’t I? We’ll have a night out soon, I promise. It’s just that it’s so hectic at the moment.’
‘You’re a brilliant friend,’ Kazz said firmly. ‘The best. You’re letting me stay here for a start, and you helped me set up the bookshop.’
Stevie made a face. ‘I didn’t do much to help. Heck, I did hardly anything. The idea was Betty’s, Saul provided the removal service, and Lord Tonbridge loaned you his handyman. I didn’t do anything.’
‘Now that you put it like that, you’re the worst friend ever,’ Kazz teased.
They beamed at each other, then Stevie sobered. ‘Seriously, we’ll have to have a girly night out soon.’
‘We could go clubbing.’ Kazz’s tone was deadpan, and she burst out laughing when she saw the expression on Stevie’s face. ‘Joking,’ she said. ‘Edie has already filled me in on Tanglewood’s nightlife situation.’
Stevie was gazing at her sympathetically. ‘It’s not exactly the West End, is it? I remember when I first moved here, it took me a while to get used to it, but I got there eventually.’
‘Nick might have had something to do with that.’ Kazz smiled.
‘Why don’t you come to lunch tomorrow? You’re not planning on opening the shop, are you?’
‘No, I need a day off,’ Kazz said, although, when she came to think of it, she may as well open up; it would be better than sitting in the flat and staring at the walls.
While it was nice of Stevie to offer, Kazz didn’t want to appear needy, the sort of friend who was invited out of pity. She didn’t think she was at that point yet, but it mightn’t be too long. And Stevie and Nick worked so hard, they deserved to spend their free time together, and not with a spare wheel like her rolling up.
She made a decision. ‘I’m going to Hay-on-Wye,’ she said.
‘Checking out the competition?’ Stevie heaved herself out of the chair. ‘Well, enjoy. I’m off to put my feet up. And don’t forget, you’re here to sell books, not to buy loads more.’
Kazz chuckled. ‘I’ll bear that in mind. Thanks for the box of goodies.’
Stevie leant in for another hug, then pulled away abruptly. ‘Hang on a sec – how are you planning on getting there?’
‘Um, bus?’
‘Hmm. The Sunday bus service isn’t brilliant and you’ll probably have to change a couple of times. It’ll take ages. It’s only half an hour by car, but I bet it’ll be more like two on public transport.’
The thought of sitting on a bus for a couple of hours didn’t fill Kazz with dismay because, let’s face it, she didn’t have anything else to do. However, she didn’t fancy having to change a couple of times either; the chance of her getting lost in an unfamiliar place was too great.
Stevie said, ‘Leave it with me, I’ll sort something out.’
The ‘something’ turned out to be Saul.
Kazz was surprised at how much she was looking forward to today. She told herself that it was because she had hardly been anywhere, except for the shop and the flat, since she’d come back from London with a trailer full of stuff, and not because it meant she would be spending the day with Saul. She took her time over choosing what to wear, settling on a thick jumper, a pair of tight-fitting jeans and warm boots with only a small heel, because she guessed they might be doing some walking. Although she often wore eyeliner and mascara during the day, this morning she added a coat of lipstick and a thin covering of tinted moisturiser.
Ready well before she needed to be, she tried to read, but spent more time gazing out of the window than at the page, and in the end she gave up and put the book down. This time she told herself the reason she couldn’t concentrate was because she had read Wuthering Heights too many times and the story had grown stale.
She was standing by the window and craning her neck to peer down the street when Saul’s Land Rover chugged into view. Her breath caught in her throat as she saw him behind the wheel and her heart quickened its pace. Time seemed to slow as the car pulled into the kerb, and a rush of warmth spread through her, her cheeks flushing with a mix of excitement and nervousness.
Grabbing her bag and shrugging on her coat, she hurried into the street, coming to a breathless halt next to the car just as Saul was getting out of it.
When he saw her, his smile took her breath away. For a moment she couldn’t speak, her senses filled by him, but thankfully he broke the spell.
‘Hi, are you OK?’ he asked.
‘Yeah, thanks. You?’
‘I’m good.’
The perfectly normal conversation served to balance her, and she took a deep breath as she got in his old Land Rover. ‘Thank you for offering to take me to Hay-on-Wye. It’s very kind of you. I was going to catch the bus.’
He chuckled. ‘So Stevie said. It would have taken you a good couple of hours and about three separate bus journeys.’
‘I keep forgetting that if you live out in the sticks you’re stuck if you don’t have transport. I’m so used to trains, buses and taxis running around the clock.’ Living in Tanglewood was definitely taking some getting used to.
‘You may want to think about buying a car,’ he suggested. ‘Can you drive?’
‘I can, but I don’t. There didn’t seem any point in London.’
He shot her a look. ‘Do you miss it?’
‘I miss the convenience. I don’t miss the traffic or being squashed nose to armpit on the Tube.’
‘Coming from a big city to a small village must be a bit of a shock. It was quite sudden too, so it isn’t as though you’ve had ages to think about it,’ he said. ‘I know I would find it hard if the shoe was on the other foot. Apart from public transport, what else do you miss?’
‘I miss having fun. I used to work hard – really hard – but I played hard too. I still work hard but I don’t get to play anymore. I know it’s early days and I haven’t been here five minutes, and I need to concentrate on the bookshop, but…’
‘You want to have some fun, too,’ he finished for her.
‘Is that too much to ask? Am I being silly?’ She worried at her lip; Saul was probably regretting asking.
‘You’re not being silly. “All work and no play…”’ he quoted, letting her complete the proverb.
‘I don’t think I’m cut out for living in the country,’ she said. ‘I think I’ll be going back to London after Christmas. I’ll sell as many books as I can between now and the New Year, then I’ll start applying for jobs. I’m sure Rossiter will let me stay at his place for a couple of weeks until I sort something out. We used to work at the same restaurant. He persuaded me to go to bingo with him one night, and they were doing a buy-one-get-one-free on cocktails, so he owes me for the horrendous hangover I had the next day.’ She smiled sadly. ‘That was the same day I found out my mother was moving to Spain, that I’d lost my job, and that me and my flatmates had been given notice to quit by our landlord. I must admit, I’ve had better days.’
‘Will you go back to working in a restaurant?’ he asked. A small frown line had appeared between his brows.
Kazz shrugged. ‘I love being a chef, but I don’t like the hours, so perhaps not. I don’t know what else I can do, though.’
‘Do you like selling books more than you like being a chef?’ he asked, pulling up to a junction and indicating to turn right.
She didn’t answer immediately, and when she did, her reply was slow and considered. ‘Do you know what… I think I do.’
‘But you’d prefer not to do it in Tanglewood?’
If she was honest, she didn’t know what she wanted.
She sat up straight and peered through the windscreen, as activity up ahead caught her attention. ‘Is something going on?’
The Land Rover was crawling over the bridge spanning the River Wye, and there seemed to be an awful lot of traffic about, and loads of people too. She had checked Hay out and knew it was a small town, renowned for its second-hand bookshops and for the literary festival that took place in the spring. But she didn’t realise the town would be this busy on a chilly Sunday in November.
‘It’s the Hay Winter Festival. I assumed this was why you wanted to come here today,’ Saul replied.
Kazz stared blankly at him. ‘There’s a festival on?’
He indicated to turn into an already overflowing car park, and she wondered how long it would take to find a parking space. If they ever did.
The smile Saul gave her made her heart skip a beat. ‘Oh, yeah, there’s a festival, all right. You’re going to love it, even though we don’t have tickets to any of the events. Just being here is enough to get your booky juices flowing.’
Booky juices? Hmm.
‘Have you been here before?’ she asked as he inched the vehicle forward another couple of metres.
‘Once or twice. I prefer the summer one, though, but only because it’s bigger.’
‘I didn’t realise you were such a literary buff.’
She knew he enjoyed reading, because he’d told her, and on the journey to London they had discussed their favourite books and the stories they’d loved when they were kids, but she had assumed he was just being polite and occasionally read a book or two. And when he’d bought the copy of A Christmas Carol , she’d thought he’d felt obliged to buy something, seeing as he was there. She’d never imagined he loved books and literature enough to attend a festival. She found it rather sexy: good looks, intelligence and a love of books was a dangerous combination.
I wonder what he’s like in bed?
Kazz screwed up her face as the thought sent shock waves through her. Oh no, don’t go there , she told herself.
‘Are you OK? Do you need the loo?’ he asked.
Kazz was mortified. Not only had she been wondering whether he was any good in the sack, but she must have given out ‘I need a wee’ vibes.
‘No, I’m fine,’ she squeaked. ‘Just excited.’
‘Me, too. When Stevie said you needed a lift to Hay and I remembered that the festival was on, I couldn’t wait. It’s a pity most of the talks and workshops are sold out, but at least we can go sniff some old books and soak up the atmosphere. And you never know, we might see a famous face or two.’
Kazz stamped down on her libido and subsequent embarrassment as Saul finally found a parking space, and she lifted her coat off the back seat. She couldn’t wait to explore.
The town, situated between the Black Mountains on the one side and the River Wye on the other, dated back to medieval times and was particularly well known for its ruined castle, built over nine hundred years ago.
But what Kazz loved was the square, with its impressive clock tower, and the narrow streets filled with bookshops. Barely able to contain her excitement, she dived into the first, only surfacing when Saul pointed out that there were another twenty or so to go.
It took all her restraint not to buy an armful from every shop she went into, and if it hadn’t been for Saul constantly reminding her that her mission was to sell books, not purchase more, she might have spent the whole week’s profit in two hours.
‘Stop,’ he laughed when she tried to persuade him to enter yet another. ‘I need some lunch.’
It was only then that Kazz realised she was hungry, and her stomach uttered a loud rumble. After a bit of a search and a small wait (every eatery was bursting at the seams), they were finally seated in a quaint pub not far from the river, with the enticing aroma of food wafting up their noses.
‘My two favourite things,’ Kazz beamed. ‘Food and books. I don’t care whether I’m cooking it or eating it, reading it or selling it – I just love food and books. Thank you so much for bringing me.’
‘My pleasure. I’m having a great time.’
‘It’s all so Christmassy, too.’ She eyed his jumper. It wasn’t the nicest festive jumper she’d seen, but it wasn’t the worst, either.
Kazz owned a couple of jumpers herself, and she debated whether to invest in a few more. Her shop was looking very festive (Edie had donated some bunting made out of snippets of red, green and gold fabric that Kazz had draped around the windows) and Kazz felt that continuing the Christmas theme might be good for business – kind of reminding people that the big day was just around the corner and they had presents to buy. And what better gift than a book!
She had also seen a couple of things she wanted to purchase today, and she vowed to go back for the pretty cotton scarf with Jane Austen books printed on it, and the bauble in the shape of a stack of books to go on the tree.
‘What are you having?’ Saul asked, bringing her attention back to the menu she was holding.
‘Sorry, I was thinking about Christmas jumpers. I would have worn mine if I’d known you were going to wear one. I’m starting to feel quite festive.’
‘That’s good to hear. I love Christmas.’ He pointed through the pub’s window. ‘You could always get your face painted instead of wearing a jumper.’
Kazz craned her neck, and on the opposite side of the street she spied a lady in a red and green plaid coat, with a queue of children in front of her who were hopping about impatiently as they waited for their turn.
‘Yeah, right.’ She laughed.
‘I’m serious. Why don’t you have your face painted?’
‘It’s for kids.’
‘Who says?’
‘Well, um, everyone knows that.’
‘I don’t.’
‘You’re not everyone,’ Kazz pointed out.
‘Are you saying my opinion isn’t valid?’
‘Of course not.’ She began to bluster, as she tried to work out whether he was serious.
‘Chicken,’ he teased.
Kazz narrowed her eyes.
‘You haven’t got the guts,’ he added.
‘I have!’ Face painting, eh? She’d show him. ‘I’ll have the roasted winter squash with goat’s curd tart, and the wild mushroom ravioli.’ She stood up and put her coat back on.
‘Where are you going?’
‘To get my face painted. If our meal arrives before I get to the beginning of the queue, at least I’ve tried.’
Saul grinned at her. ‘You’ve got your fingers crossed.’
‘Haven’t.’
‘Have. I can tell.’
Kazz uncrossed her fingers and waggled them at him. ‘Haven’t. See?’
His laughter followed her out of the pub, and she smiled to herself. The last laugh would be on him. There was no way she would reach the beginning of the line before their first course arrived. No way.
Once upon a time Saul had had a bit of a fling with Stevie. And it had just been a bit of one, because Stevie had only ever had eyes for Nick. When she and Nick had got together, he had been bristly towards Saul for a while, but all that was water under the bridge now.
So when Saul had seen Stevie’s name come up on his phone’s screen yesterday evening, all he’d felt was mild curiosity, but after he had spoken to her, his curiosity had turned into unexpected excitement because he was going to be spending today with Kazz.
This morning, he had dressed with more care than usual. He wasn’t a vain man and didn’t spend hours choosing his clothes or primping in front of the mirror, so he had been surprised to find himself rifling through his wardrobe and drawers in search of something to wear. Putting his inability to make a decision down to the fact that he normally didn’t bother to dress nicely during the day (neither the sheep nor the chickens cared what he wore), he settled on a pair of cargo trousers and a Christmas jumper. He could give Kazz a laugh, if nothing else.
Also, he was fairly certain that this wasn’t a date, so he was anxious to make sure she didn’t think that he thought it was. Or was he overthinking it?
But, date or not, when Kazz had indicated that she mightn’t stay in Tanglewood, he had felt an unexpected pang.
Hoping that maybe she did want to stay but was having trouble finding her place in the village, he remembered how difficult Stevie had found it to settle in at first. It was a shame for Kazz to have put the hard work and effort into opening the bookshop, only to jack it all in because she wasn’t having fun. And he wondered what sort of fun she was used to having. Clubs? Parties? Gigs? Shows?
Tanglewood could be just as much fun in its own quiet unassuming way, and Saul was struck by the urge to show her how much fun she could have, starting with today, which was why he had goaded her into getting her face painted.
When he saw Kazz slink self-consciously back across the road, Saul clamped his lips together, holding in his mirth. She disappeared from sight for a couple of seconds as she entered the pub’s porch, and when she reappeared, heading towards their table, he caught the landlord’s eye and gave him a discreet nod. The landlord nodded back and went to the kitchen to fetch their meals.
When Saul turned his attention back to Kazz, the quip he had been about to make stuck in his throat. She looked simply adorable.
Averting her gaze, she shrugged off her coat and slunk into her seat. ‘Don’t laugh,’ she growled.
‘I wasn’t going to. You look—’
‘An idiot.’
‘Gorgeous.’
Her eyes flashed up at him, and he nodded. Her face had been painted to look like a reindeer – a Disney version of a female Rudolph. She had a pair of gold antlers on her forehead, pretty little furry ears, and between her brows was a sprig of holly and three red berries. Her eyelids, nose and the outside of her cheeks were also painted gold, and sweeping lashes had been drawn from the corners of her eyes up to her temples; the gold on her cheeks was dotted with white, meant to resemble the dappling on a fawn.
But the cutest part was the red tip on the end of her upturned nose, and when she turned her embarrassed gaze on him, she looked like a startled baby deer.
Saul had never wanted to kiss a woman so badly in all his life.
‘You look beautiful,’ he breathed, his eyes never leaving her face.
‘She does,’ the landlord agreed. He had appeared at Saul’s elbow, carrying their starters, which he placed in front of them.
Kazz gave the man a strained smile.
‘You do,’ he insisted. ‘Doesn’t she, Wendy?’
This last was shouted across the pub, and a woman collecting plates turned to look. ‘Pardon?’
‘This customer has just had her face painted. I said she looks lovely.’
‘Stunning,’ the woman said. There were nods from some of the nearby tables, and Saul struggled to contain his laughter.
Kazz didn’t so much remind him of a startled baby deer now, but a cross one.
She picked up her cutlery, shook out her serviette and attacked her tart with a degree of violence at odds with her doe-like appearance.
‘Enjoy your meal,’ the landlord said, beating a hasty retreat.
Saul couldn’t help himself. ‘Is this the kind of fun you had in mind?’
Kazz stopped savaging her first course long enough to snort, ‘No.’ But then her lips began to twitch, and before long she was holding her sides with laughter.
She spluttered, ‘You ought to have seen that woman’s expression when she realised I didn’t have a child with me, and that my face was the one to be painted.’
‘She’s done a good job,’ Saul said, when he’d recovered enough to speak. ‘I honestly didn’t think you’d go through with it.’
‘Neither did I. I kept hoping the food would arrive and I’d be let off the hook,’ Kazz replied, popping a morsel of tart into her mouth. ‘Mmm, this is yummy.’
It was, and Saul quickly polished his off.
Kazz appeared to have forgotten her embarrassment by the time they had eaten pudding, and now they were drinking their coffee, Saul realised what a good time he was having.
He hoped Kazz was too, because the happy smile on her face was swiftly becoming the thing he most wanted to see in the world.
Day one of Kazz having fun, successfully accomplished!