‘Do you like the seasonal look, ladies?’ called the woman standing behind the counter. She beamed at them when they chorused their approval.
‘You’ve really got a flair for design, Kate,’ said Winnie. ‘I feel as if I’ve accidentally dressed to blend in.’ She gestured to her own flowing robe and head wrap which were decorated with burnt orange and chocolate-brown ferns.
‘You’ll never do that,’ said Kate, laughing. ‘Look at you all. None of you are wallflowers. Beryl’s colours are always stunning and you’re so elegant, Anthea. The linen look is very Judi Dench, and you’ve gone for more subtle shades of green and mushroom this morning. It was as if you all knew you were going to be asked to do me a huge favour. Can I get Milo to take some photos of the three of you for my next publicity leaflet? Would you mind?’
The Saga Louts looked immensely gratified as Kate called her partner and he came in holding a very fancy digital camera. Milo was tall and broad shouldered. His short, dark hair was peppered with grey which in Beryl’s opinion added a lot to his charm and his kind eyes twinkled when he saw them.
‘Good heavens, I didn’t realise this was a proper photoshoot,’ he said. ‘Kate asked me earlier if I’d take some shots of the café’s new autumn look, but I didn’t know we had glamorous models on tap. No, don’t move, I’ll take the pictures just where you are.’
He clicked away merrily while Kate made coffee. ‘It’s on the house this time,’ she said. ‘These photos are going to look great in my leaflet and on the posters. I’m guessing you wouldn’t say no to a slice of Milo’s lemon drizzle cake, if it’s not too near lunchtime?’
Soon, the excitement was over, and the three ladies settled down with their coffee and cake. ‘Well now, Anthea,’ said Winnie. ‘Last night was a bit of an eye-opener, wasn’t it? Did you have any idea that was going to happen, you dark horse?’
‘Not a clue, darling, and if I had known in advance I’d have probably decided to say no. Maurice has seemed a bit lacklustre lately, as I told you, but when I looked into those twinkling eyes and saw the longing look on his face, I couldn’t turn the poor chap down. One more marriage can’t hurt, I thought. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. And when I took him home with me later, I found out there was nothing lacklustre orpoor chapabout him in that department, after all.’
She fanned her face with a menu and chuckled at the expressions on her friends’ faces, which were a mixture of surprise and envy.
‘Too much information,’ they chorused, but Kate, overhearing, began to applaud.
‘You’re not telling me you and Maurice have finally got it together?’ she said.
Anthea said they had indeed, and Kate called Milo back in to tell him the news. Soon Beryl’s mission to talk to her cronies about future plans had been derailed as a couple more regular customers came in and were told Anthea’s news and then Maurice himself turned up, to be greeted by a rousing round of applause.
‘I wasn’t expecting a reception committee,’ he said, coming over to kiss his intended on both cheeks. ‘But this is very gratifying. Can I join you? How about I treat us all to lunch as a celebration of this wonderful lady agreeing to make me the happiest man alive?’
This idea went down very well, and it wasn’t long before Maurice had pulled up a chair. Four soups of the day were chosen because Kate’s chicken and leek broth was everyone’s favourite and also the scent of freshly baked bread rolls was too tantalising to resist.
‘Now then,’ said Beryl at last. ‘There’s something I want to talk to you all about. Let me outline my latest holiday scheme before we all get distracted by food.’
The others leaned forward slightly. Beryl was well known for her imaginative suggestions, and they were all in the mood for something new. It was as if Anthea and Maurice’s news had energised them all. Even Anthea’s usual cool demeanour had been exchanged for one of barely suppressed glee.
‘Go on then,’ she said. ‘Don’t keep us in suspense.’
‘It’s a bit more ambitious than our usual trips and it’s going to include more people than just us three,’ said Beryl.
‘Oh, hurrah,’ said Maurice. ‘Does that mean I can come too? I’ve always wanted to join a Saga Louts jolly.’
‘Certainly, you can come,’ said Beryl. ‘That’s all part of my plan. Also, we’ll ask Sid and Frank. The younger element, if they agree to it, will be my new neighbour, Venetia, and of course, the lovely Rick. That will make a total of eight, a perfect number for a road trip, in my opinion.’
Silence followed this astonishing announcement. Beryl could see by the looks on their faces that she’d shocked them into speechlessness, something that rarely happened.
‘I think you’d better carry on,’ said Winnie. ‘We’re going to need a lot more details. A heck of a lot.’
18
Beryl’s summons came as a complete surprise to Vee, when Rick showed her the text message he’d just received.
‘She wants us to go round to her house tonight for “drinks and nibbles”,’ he said, the puzzled look on his face mirroring Vee’s own. ‘What’s all that about, do you think? I know Beryl loves a good gathering, but this is out of the blue, and I had the impression she wasn’t that keen on you, to be quite honest.’
‘Well, thanks for the vote of confidence,’ said Vee. ‘The feeling’s mutual. The thought of spending an evening with her isn’t filling me with joy. You go. I’ll have another night in.’
Rick fixed her with a steely look. Vee could see that he was imagining herrootlingthrough his possessions again and a pang of guilt hit her, even though she felt in her heart that she hadn’t done anything wrong. At least they were speaking to each other though, which was an improvement after the icy stand-off between them since their earlier argument.
‘I don’t think you’ve properly got the measure of Beryl yet,’ Rick said. ‘In Willowbrook, when you get an invitation from her, you tend not to say you’re busy. We should both go. It’ll be… interesting.’
Vee pulled a face. ‘Interesting? Like a trip to a zoo and a walk through its collection of tarantulas?’
‘Oh, come on, Vee. Beryl’s not that bad, and she did bring us some great snacks. Maybe tonight you can start again with her. You’re going to be neighbours. You should try to understand what makes her tick. She’s a generous woman with a heart of gold.’
