‘Too right.’ He had lost count of the number of people from school who had to return to education to make something of themselves.
‘Where did you go to school?’ asked Declan.
‘A private school not far from here; that was when I was a young child,’ she explained. ‘My father was a British diplomat.’
‘Wow. Did you move around a lot?’
‘A few times,’ she told Declan. ‘Although, my father often went off alone preferring not to uproot the family, which would have been almost impossible anyway during the war years.’
Just then their food arrived. Alice’s thick, steaming bowl of soup looked amazing and Declan marvelled at the sight of his pizza loaded with vegetables and topped with huge basil leaves.
They were quiet as they ate their food, and Declan was surprised at just how easy he felt in the company of this older lady.
‘That was tasty,’ said Declan later, wiping his mouth with a napkin. ‘I thought I might have missed a bit of spicy chicken or pepperoni, but it was spot on.’
‘Glad you liked it,’ said the blonde-haired woman in the black apron who had just arrived to take their plates away.
‘I did. To be honest, I didn’t realise the deli was even here. It was a sandwich takeaway last time I looked,’ said Declan.
‘We’ve only been open a week,’ the woman explained. ‘It’s been absolutely mad busy, more than we dared to hope for and the online reviews have been fantastic.’ She piled their blue bowls and plates that matched the colour of the walls onto a tray.
‘I suppose more people are going vegan. You might even have converted me,’ he said, although he could not imagine giving up his bacon sandwiches at the weekend or meat pies at the football match. ‘Good luck anyway, and I’ll definitely be leaving a review online.’
‘Thanks for that.’ She smiled warmly. ‘And if this is the shape of things to come, I think I’m going to have to employ an accountant. I’ve done my own books in the past, but that was only for a kiosk serving drinks and snacks at a bus station.’
‘An accountant?’ Declan’s ears pricked up.
‘Yeah, but I’m not sure where I will find one, although saying that I haven’t actually had the time to look, I have been so busy.’ She blew a strand of her blonde hair that had escaped her bun away from her face.
‘It might be your lucky day,’ said Declan. ‘I’m an accountant, and I live locally.’
‘Really? Can you write your number down?’ The café owner pulled a piece of paper from a pad and handed it to him as she juggled the tray of plates.
‘Give me a call. Maybe I can help you out,’ he said, handing her the paper with his number.
‘That’s brilliant. Can I call you tomorrow?’
‘Sure. Lunchtime might be best, or after five.’
‘No problem. Thanks for this.’ She waved the piece of paper in the air, before putting it into her pocket.
Declan insisted on settling the bill. Alice had been really kind to him with the offer of the office premises if he needed it, so it was the least he could do.
He felt an excitement in the pit of his stomach. He thought of names for his company. Johnson Accounting Services maybe. No, that sounded dull. He would think of something dynamic and modern.
A group of four people walked into the deli then asking for a table, and a waitress hurriedly cleared one that had just become vacant, before inviting them to sit down. Declan saw the blonde woman retrieve the paper from her pocket and glance at the number before she waved him and Alice off. His first potential client.
SIX
JESS
Jess hared down the stairs from the upstairs flat with Maisie just as Alice was taking delivery of a parcel. Thankfully there had been no tears this morning, with Maisie reluctantly accepting the new school rules about not bringing things from home into school. As she reached the main doors of the building, Alice called after her.
‘Morning, Jess. Is everything okay?’ she asked. ‘You seem in rather a hurry.’
Jess stopped in her tracks.
‘Of all the mornings, my alarm never went off,’ she explained. ‘I’ll probably be late for work. Plus, I need to speak to a parent on the school playground. Sorry, but I must dash. Speak later.’
