Chapter 10
Instead of Leon picking her up, Elodie persuaded him to meet her at the restaurant. He hadn’t been pleased exactly, but she had pleaded that she had a last-minute delivery to make before she came out. The restaurant was part of a village pub in Sawdon Green, which was not far out of town. She had heard of the restaurant before, which boded well for the food. The village was like a postcard image of the Cotswolds – houses with pretty front gardens, a church, even a small village green. The pub was in the middle of the village. It had ivy climbing up the front of it and hanging baskets with flowers. Even the pub was postcard perfect.
Thankfully, there was plenty of parking. The last thing she wanted was someone watching her while she tried to get her car into the narrow parking space.
It was still light enough that she could check her make-up in the mirror before she got out. It felt strange on her skin. It really had been a long time since she’d worn much more than moisturiser and a lick of lip gloss. She tucked her hair behind her ear, then changed her mind and let it fall forward. The mere act of blow-drying her hair properly had made it look glossy compared to her usual blonde frizz that she scraped into a ponytail every morning. She gave herself an encouraging smile. After thinking she felt nothing towards Leon for a week, now she had butterflies in her stomach. She couldn’t tell if they were from anticipation or nerves. Either way, there was only one way to go now.
‘You look nice,’ she told her reflection. Grabbing her handbag, she stepped out of the car. As she locked up, footsteps made her turn. Leon was walking across the car park towards her. He was dressed smartly in trousers, a dark jumper and a blazer. She was glad she’d made the effort and worn a dress now. Wait, was he carrying a rose?
‘Elodie,’ Leon said. ‘You look … amazing.’ The look he gave her was so full of admiration that she felt amazing too.
‘Thank you,’ she said, heat suffusing her face. ‘You too.’
He handed her the rose. ‘A flower, for a flower.’
‘Thank you.’ She took it and sniffed it. ‘Oh, it smells lovely. So often they don’t smell of anything now.’
‘I chose very carefully.’ Leon offered her his arm.
What should she do with the rose? She stuck the stem in her handbag, so that it lay along the top of the bag. That’d have to do. She looped her hand through the crook of his elbow. He put his other hand over hers and gave a gentle squeeze. ‘Shall we?’
The pub was one of those old-fashioned ones with low beams. The village wasn’t far, so Elodie had been there before, but only to the pub bit, which had stone floors and dark wood furniture. She barely had time to look around before Leon’s hand on her lower back guided her to the door marked ‘Restaurant’. The back of the pub had been expanded to make a conservatory. The soft lighting and fairy lights made it look magical.
‘Oh,’ said Elodie, surprised by the surge of delight she felt. Marty was right. She had been buried in her work for so long, she’d forgotten how much she enjoyed little things like nice decor and going out for a meal. ‘This is so pretty.’
‘Really?’ said Leon. ‘I hadn’t noticed.’ He gave her a soulful smile.
Okay, this simpering was getting a bit too much. Her mood deflated a little.
Mal took two diet colas and a glass of wine over to the table where Jake and Maureen were sitting. He handed the wine to Maureen and one of the colas to Jake.
‘You don’t have to sit with us, you know,’ Jake said to Maureen. ‘Just because we came in with you.’ Maureen had expressed a desire to ‘get out of the house and be sociable’, so Jake had suggested coming to the pub for a drink. Mal, who had just walked her dog for her, had joined them.
Mal sat back and watched Jake fuss over his elderly neighbour. Maureen had taken a bad fall last year and Jake now worried about her even more than he had done. The two of them bickered constantly about the level of care she needed. Mal felt that he wasn’t part of this bubble, but was happy to be around to assist.
‘We can always go and sit somewhere else,’ Jake continued. ‘Are you sure you’re comfortable where you are? Do you need anything?’
‘Stop being such a mother hen,’ Maureen snapped.
‘Well, excuse me for caring,’ said Jake.
Mal tuned out and let his gaze wander. He liked this pub, with its low beams and moody lighting. He loved the village of Sawdon Green too. The only reason he lived in a house share in the bigger town was because the last time he and Jake had lived together people had assumed they were a couple and it had ruined dating chances for the both of them.
Not that either of them got out much these days. Mal could barely remember the last time he’d had a partner. Three years ago maybe? Not coincidentally, he had been focusing on his business for most of that time. Being made redundant at his old office job had been a catastrophe at the time. He had moved back to his hometown dispirited and strapped for money. Jake had saved him by getting him a job as a personal trainer in one of the gyms. After all the time working in admin, it had done him good to put his Sport and Nutrition degree to use. The Mal’s Meals idea had started as a side hustle and taken over. He liked being his own boss, even though it sometimes scared him silly. Being someone else’s boss was scary too. The responsibility for other people’s wages weighed on him. The only thing that made him feel better was knowing that he was trying his hardest to be a better employer than some of his own had been.
His staff seemed happy, so that was going well so far. They probably needed more help, though. He would have to think about that. He smiled and took a sip of his drink. At least he was too busy to feel the lack of a love life right now.
A couple came into the pub. The man went to ask something at the bar. The woman stood a few feet away and looked around, her face turned away as she took in the fireplace. She had blonde hair that fell in gentle waves to her shoulders and wore a dress that hugged her soft curves. Those curves made him think of Elodie. He looked down at his drink. That was inappropriate. What was that? He sneaked a glance back at the woman. She turned her head. Oh my god, she didn’t just remind him of Elodie. She was Elodie. Oh god. How awkward.
Panicked, Mal flipped up his collar and leaned his elbow on the table and rested his cheek on his hand, so that he was turned away. Both Jake and Maureen looked surprised. Jake scanned the room. Not now, Jake. Not now.
Jake leaned forward. ‘Hey, Mal,’ he said, quietly. ‘Isn’t that your old mate Leon?’
What? He sneaked a glance at the bar. Elodie had been joined by her date, who led her into the dining room with his hand on her back. It was Leon. First Elodie went out for coffee with him and now they were out together. A feeling of … something … shot through him. Concern? Yes. It had to be concern. He couldn’t be jealous. That would be silly.
‘That looked like the cake lady,’ said Jake.
‘It was the cake lady,’ Mal whispered. He checked the door through which they’d disappeared. ‘That’s interesting. I hope it goes okay.’
‘Who is Leon?’ said Maureen. She already knew all about the cake lady.
‘Dipshit friend of Mal’s from school,’ said Jake. ‘He … has a real jealousy problem. Can’t stand me, for a start. Because I “stole his friend”, apparently.’ He made air quotes with his fingers. ‘Idiot.’ He picked up his drink, paused and added, ‘Possibly also a homophobic idiot.’
Mal frowned. ‘Not sure about that,’ he said. ‘I think it was more personal. He felt I abandoned him. The fact that he thought I’d fallen in love with you was just extra.’
Jake pulled a face at him. ‘Obviously you fell in love with me. I’m delightful.’
Mal laughed. ‘Well, obviously.’ He glanced at the entrance to the restaurant again. ‘He does have a temper though, and tends to take things far too seriously. I hope Elodie is okay with him.’
Jake shrugged. ‘Elodie is a grown woman. I’m sure she can take care of herself.’
That was true. But he still worried.
‘Unless there’s another reason you’re worrying,’ Maureen piped up from behind her wine glass.
He had almost forgotten she was there. ‘Are you stirring again, Maureen?’
She was a chronic matchmaker. She’d been bad enough before, but since her fall, she’d become worse.
‘We really need to find you a hobby,’ said Jake. ‘All this sitting around speculating about people’s love lives isn’t healthy.’
‘Oh, but it’s fun,’ said Maureen. ‘It’s either that or start solving murders and I’d rather not invite death upon our lovely village.’
‘What’s that?’ a voice said. The vicar had come up to the table. ‘Nice to see you out and about, Maureen.’ He nodded a greeting to Jake and to Mal. Even though Mal didn’t live in the village, he spent enough time with Jake that he had been adopted as an honorary local.
‘Yes,’ she said. ‘These two handsome young men have brought me to the pub. It’s not even a special occasion.’
‘You should start coming to quiz night,’ said the vicar. ‘We need an extra member for our team.’
Someone else came to join the conversation. Mal sat back and sank into the village chatter, but one small corner of his mind was still occupied with Elodie. He wanted to talk to her about Jamie and Saffron. Realistically, the bride was bound to have final say in who did the catering. After all, he hadn’t even suggested making the wedding cake. Elodie would have included that as a separate part of her bid. Most people just wanted some nice buffet food at their weddings. He knew from experience that keto people ate beforehand and stuck to the vegetable crudités at the event itself. Or they just ate and drank as they wanted to and went back on keto the week after. No one really needed a special, expensive keto-friendly menu. The most sensible thing would be for him to admit defeat and bow out.
He looked across at Jake, who was laughing at something the vicar said. Would Jake think he was quitting on him? Realistically, it made no sense to take on an expensive and risky project like Jamie’s wedding at this stage. He was still finding his feet with the café. Although he had to admit, he was doing okay. There were more people popping in than he’d expected. The café had become a sort of hub for the keto parents in the area. He hadn’t realised that there were so many. He had so many requests for frozen batches of his snacks, especially the shortbread, that he had started making small packs.
Things were going better than he’d expected. There was no reason to push his luck. He wanted to talk to Elodie about it first, though. Just to let her know that the field was all hers. It would be one less thing for her to be annoyed with him about.
Elodie studied the menu. The prices were not astronomical, that was good. Before she had started her attempt to stand on her own feet, without relying on her parents for money, she would have thought nothing of the price. These days, she checked. She was fairly sure that Leon was going to insist on paying. He was doing this ‘date’ thing very much by the book so far. But she was ready to pay for her own meal, regardless.
Making small talk was surprisingly hard. She managed well enough with clients, but that was because she was talking about cakes. That came naturally. Talking about anything and nothing wasn’t really her sort of thing. That’s why Marty ran the shop front most of the time.
Leon ordered wine without consulting her. That annoyed her a little. She didn’t drink a lot these days, but she knew wine. He wasn’t to know that, she reminded herself.
‘Did you get the work that you were pitching for?’ she asked, seizing on a topic that was at least tangentially related to work.
Leon beamed. ‘I did! I mean, we did. I’m still the new guy, but the firm has an excellent reputation, which makes everything so much easier.’
‘That’s brilliant.’ She raised her wine glass. ‘Congratulations.’
He clinked his glass against hers, then took a sip. ‘How about you? Did Saffron like your pitch for the catering?’
Another small puncture in her mood. ‘No.’ She carefully put down her glass. ‘Not yet, anyway. She’s trying to decide between me and Ma— … another supplier.’
‘It’s not Mal, is it?’ His expression was neutral.
‘It is actually.’
The mild, insipid expression was swiftly replaced by a scowl. ‘That guy,’ said Leon. ‘He ruins everything that’s good.’
Elodie leaned back slightly, surprised at the change in him. ‘I … don’t know him well enough to comment,’ she said, carefully.
‘I do,’ said Leon. He seemed to remember himself and the scowl smoothed out, even though a small frown remained. ‘He’s not above using people to get where he wants, let’s put it that way. I wouldn’t put it past him to be whispering in Jamie’s ear to undermine your efforts.’
She must have looked sceptical because he added, ‘Those gym guys have their bro code. They’ll always give work to one of their own before they give it to some girl.’
That was what had happened with the lease to the shop. The lease owner had given it to Mal without even advertising it, because they knew each other from the gym. Surely it wouldn’t happen in this case? It was Saffron’s wedding too and brides tended to do more of the organising. Hang on. Her brain caught up with the rest of what he’d said. ‘Some girl?’
‘A very pretty one,’ said Leon. He reached across and patted her hand. ‘Don’t worry. I’m sure it’ll be okay.’
That just made it worse. She didn’t know what to think now. Leon clearly thought that she would have trouble getting the contract. Which was weird because she had experience with catering for events, albeit small ones, and she didn’t think Mal did. On the other hand, given what had happened before, it wasn’t such a stretch to think that things were stacked against her. She noticed that Leon’s hand was still covering hers. She gently slid her hand out.
A waiter popped up to ask if they were ready to order.
Leon picked up the menu. ‘We’ll both have the pigeon breast starter,’ he said. He leaned towards Elodie. ‘I recommend the beef tagliata,’ he said, conspiratorially. ‘The wild garlic and raclette frittata that comes with it is just perfection.’ He gave a little chef’s kiss on his fingers.
She had liked the sound of the beef too, but his tone, which was a bit ‘big man advising little lady’ annoyed her, so she ordered the teriyaki pork belly with pak choi and honey roast vegetables instead. If this bothered him, Leon didn’t show it.
When the waiter had cleared off again, Leon rested his elbows on the table and his chin on his clasped hands. ‘So, how has your week been?’
He looked the epitome of attention, his eyes staring directly into hers. For some reason it made her uncomfortable. She fidgeted with her napkin. ‘It’s quite boring really. Tell me about your week instead.’
‘Oh, nothing much. I did … just work, mainly.’ He was still in his intensely interested pose. ‘I’m sure your week was far more interesting than mine. You had someone send you a bunch of flowers for a start.’ He gave a little laugh.
She smiled. ‘Yes. That was fun.’ She carefully put the napkin on the table. ‘Listen, I’m just going to go to the loo.’ She grabbed her bag, gave him another smile and hurried away.
The toilets were accessed through the pub. She went in and stared at herself in the mirror. Leon was really irritating her. Sure, she was out of practice dating, but she didn’t have to put up with this. She could leave. Her stomach growled. But she had just ordered her meal. She touched up her lipstick, then wondered if that made it look like she was keen and blotted it out again. It was time to go back. Who knows, maybe Leon was just nervous and things would improve.
When she stepped out of the toilet, a man was standing in the hallway, frowning at his phone.
‘Excuse me.’ She needed a bit more space to get past.
‘I’m so sorry.’ He stepped back, flattening against the wall before he looked up. She recognised him.
‘Man buns.’
He didn’t smile, but his eyes softened. ‘Cake lady.’ He looked back towards the pub. ‘How’s your date going?’
‘How did you know—’
‘I was in the pub.’ He gestured to the bar she had walked through. ‘I saw you and Leon come in. Jake lives in the village. I’m not stalking you or anything.’ He seemed genuinely worried that she might think that he was.
She nodded slowly. ‘I didn’t think you would be.’ Mal seemed nice. Why did Leon dislike him so much?
‘What happened with you and Leon?’ she asked, quickly. If there was something bad, she should know about it. She didn’t know who to trust right now, and she wanted to know Mal’s side of the story.
Mal looked uncomfortable. ‘Oh. We fell out. We were kids. It was nothing.’ His phone beeped. ‘I’d better—’
‘Right. Yes. Well, it was nice to see you.’ She started to move.
‘Um, Elodie,’ he said. ‘Would it be a good idea for us to meet and talk about the Jamie and Saffron catering contract? I take it you’ve seen their TikTok.’
She didn’t want to think about that right now, but he was probably right. ‘Tomorrow.’
‘Great. Tomorrow.’ He waved his phone at her. ‘Enjoy your date.’
When she got back, Leon watched her walk across the restaurant to the table, his eyes sparkling. It should have been flattering. It probably would have been flattering if she hadn’t suddenly got the ick about him. Once it happened, everything looked wrong.
‘I just ran into Mal,’ she said. ‘He’s here with his friend Jake, in the pub.’
The anger that passed across Leon’s face was quickly squashed. ‘He gets everywhere, that guy.’
‘What happened between you two, seriously?’ She carefully placed her napkin on her lap.
He shook his head. ‘He betrayed me, put it that way. I wouldn’t trust him as far as I could throw him.’ Leon snorted. ‘Although, he’s a lot smaller than he used to be and I’m a lot stronger, so I probably could throw him a bit farther now.’
O … kay. She noted the contrast of his view against Mal’s. Somehow her sympathy had moved across to Mal.