have the chocolate pancakes, please.’ Now that Christabel’s laser-like stare had been diverted elsewhere, I felt a little more at ease. ‘Better the devil you know and all that.’
‘Perfect, I’ll get Noah on the case!’
She lifted the menu and headed off towards the kitchen. I couldn’t help but notice the spring in her step; it had been there ever since she’d made the move to Luna Bay from Glasgow a few months previously. She’d been so uptight at first, but now she was a permanent resident of Cloud Nine. I smiled; it must be wonderful to feel so blissfully happy all the time.
A memory from my days in New York drifted into my mind. Jamie and I are on the pond in Central Park, sitting in our rowing boat and swapping stories. He’s so funny that he makes my sides split with laughter and happy tears stream down my face. The sun is shimmering on the water, bouncing off the leaves on the trees. I can’t imagine a more perfect day; Jamie’s smiling as he rows and that look on his face when he thinks of another story is priceless. It’s little moments of perfection like these that I wish would stretch on for ever. Being on Broadway in front of hundreds of people was always my dream and to actually get to do it is amazing, but Jamie is the dream I never saw coming. He sneaked up on me when I wasn’t looking and I’ve never been happier…
Emily setting my plate of pancakes down in front of me snapped me out of my dreamy reverie.
‘You looked miles away there,’ she said with a chuckle. ‘Where were you – anywhere nice?’
I shook my head. ‘Nah, nowhere important. I just let my mind wander a bit, that’s all. These look brilliant by the way. Can’t wait to tuck in!’
‘Well I’ll let you enjoy them then. Bon appétit!’ Emily walked towards the dining room door then turned back to face me. ‘By the way, it’s lovely to see you back, Alice. I missed you.’
I felt a lump form in my throat; nobody had told me they’d missed me in such a long time. Tears welled up at the backs of my eyes – happy ones this time – but I managed to keep them at bay.
‘Thanks,’ I choked out, ‘I missed you too.’
She smiled, told Christabel her eggs Benedict would be ready in a couple of minutes then went off to join Noah in the kitchen. I felt my dining companion’s gaze on me as I ate; she knew how to intimidate someone when she put her mind to it.
‘You’re Ruth Woods’s daughter aren’t you?’ she suddenly piped up. ‘Annie isn’t it?’
I swallowed a mouthful of pancakes and gulped, daring to meet her gaze for the first time. ‘It’s Alice actually.’
Christabel nodded slowly and kept her eyes firmly on me, as though she was sizing me up. ‘I thought it was you when I walked in, but you had your head down so I couldn’t see you properly. Last I heard, you were dazzling audiences on stage in New York. What brings you back to Luna Bay?’
I narrowed my eyes in suspicion as I pushed some pancakes round the plate. I’d been back in the village for three years and the reason for my return had been pretty well discussed at the time. I also knew that Christabel knew full well why I was back in Luna Bay; the reason behind my return had spread round the village like wildfire three years ago. Everybody knew exactly what had happened.
‘Personal reasons,’ was the excuse I ended up using, ‘plus I fancied a change of scenery.’
I had an inner wry smile at my little theatre pun, but kept my guard firmly in place. She rested her chin on a pair of balled-up fists and studied me for a moment. I felt like one of those stuffed animals in glass display cases at the Natural History Museum. I’d always loved the awful attempts at taxidermy.
‘You know…’ Her tone was different now; she’d cut the frostiness out completely and elongated her vowels. ‘The drama group at the Silver Bells Theatre puts on a pantomime every Christmas and we’re looking to swell our ranks this year. Don’t suppose I could persuade you to join us? We’re doing Cinderella and there are still some great parts up for grabs!’
Oh balls. How was I going to say no to her?! Refusing my mum had been easy – I’d been disappointing her for the last twenty-seven years, so I was a dab hand at it – but Christabel was a different kettle of fish. People never said no to her and I wasn’t sure how she’d react if I did.
Time to be brave, Alice! Show her what you’re made of.
Sometimes, I really hated the little voice inside my head. It threw out some terrible suggestions. This wasn’t the time to be brave; this was the time to skedaddle before Christabel started to turn the thumbscrews!
I opened my mouth, praying something sensible would come out.
‘Actually, I—’
I was saved from further waffling by Emily coming in with Christabel’s eggs Benedict. My heart rate slowed down and I breathed a silent sigh of relief, flashing Emily a grateful smile as she left. As luck would have it, more Breakfast Club members began to mill in through the front door. They all seemed to want to talk to Christabel about the pantomime, so I was left to tuck into the remainder of my pancakes in peace.
The pantomime bullet had been dodged once again. For now anyway.
If there’s one thing that causes an absolute nightmare for a die-hard Scrooge like myself, it has to be shopping for Christmas presents.
Yet that was exactly what I found myself doing the day after my encounter with Christabel. Mum dragged me to Fox’s to pick up some last-minute bits and pieces, which usually meant eight bags of stuff she’d had no intention of buying when she’d first walked in. The store was pretty dead, even for a Saturday, which made my heart sink. Gary’s revelation that the store was losing money was being proved correct.
‘You should really start doing your shopping in August like I do,’ she said as she pottered about a shelf with several crystal ornaments on it. ‘Saves so much time and trouble.’
I rolled my eyes. ‘Mum, I’m an out-of-work actress; I don’t have to worry about saving time! If anything, I’ve got too bloody much of it. Talking of which, I bumped into Christabel at the Breakfast Club yesterday.’
Mum whipped her head round to look at me, as though I’d just told her I’d fought an entire pack of hungry crocodiles. ‘Really?! What did she say?’
‘Asked me if I fancied joining the pantomime,’ I replied with a roll of my eyes. ‘I would’ve said no way, but luckily Emily came in with Christabel’s breakfast. She didn’t mention it again after that.’
I watched my mum closely as she pretended to examine a crystal duck. I couldn’t see her face properly, but I knew her well enough to know when she was gearing up to say something important.
‘You know, I could just see you up on that stage wearing a beautiful ball gown and dancing with a handsome prince. You never know, some hunk might be playing Prince Charming!’
The jovial atmosphere vanished as we locked eyes after her light-hearted remark. I knew she was only making a typical motherly comment and I didn’t take offence, but I could tell she felt like she’d said something wrong.
‘Oh, love, I’m sorry. When I said a hunk, I didn’t—’
I put a hand up to stop her and shook my head. ‘Really, Mum, it’s fine. Don’t worry about it.’
Two pops of colour bloomed on her cheeks and she took an even keener interest in the crystal duck than she had before.
‘What do you think about this for Aunt Carole?’ she said, holding it aloft so I could get a good look at it. ‘She’s got a hedgehog and a penguin already; I reckon she’d like this. I-I’ll see what else they’ve got.’