For a second, Cam’s eyes veered to the floor as he grappled with what to do. Telling Molly could cause her even more anxiety and that’s what he was trying to save her from, but clearly he was failing miserably in that endeavour.
Molly shook her head, her feelings crystal clear. ‘I’m going to ring Sam and ask for advice because no matter what’s gone on, it’s still too cold for any child to be walking the streets in this weather.’
‘Here, you can use my phone now I have it back,’ Cam offered.
‘URGHH! I’ve got my own phone.’ Needing space, Molly walked out of the bakery and up the hallway without as much as a fleeting glance behind her.
Chapter Seven
Looking out of the bedroom window of The Old Bakehouse, Molly tried to calm her beating heart. She’d left Sam a voicemail and was praying she got back to her soon.
Opposite, the green was deserted and still covered in a blanket of largely untouched snow, which surprised Molly, but no doubt it was just because the schoolkids had gathered at Primrose Park or were navigating their sledges down the snowy hills behind Foxglove Farm instead.
Still watching from the window, she heard voices and looked down to see George stomping across the lane to the green. He was pointing down to his wellington boots and squealing as the cold snow toppled inside them.
‘Daddy, I’m stuck,’ he shouted. ‘I can’t move my feet.’ George couldn’t control his giggles.
The snow was deep and Cam lifted him up clean out of his wellies and spun him around.
This was the side of Cam she fallen in love with – fun-loving, compassionate Cam. His bond with George was one of complete, unconditional love. It didn’t matter how tired Cam was, spending time with George was always a must. Molly watched as Cam hugged George tight and held on to him for longer than usual. For a second, Molly thought his face had crumpled as he looked up towards the sky but she couldn’t be sure. George was fighting to be released and Cam positioned his dangling legs right back inside his wellington boots. Then they chased each other, throwing snowballs, and it wasn’t long before Cam patted a large snowball in his hand and the two of them began to roll it in the snow to make a bigger ball. Cam must have sensed he was being watched as he glanced towards the top window and caught Molly’s eye, but she was still maddened by the fact that he hadn’t let Bree explain about the phone and she moved away from the window to sit down on the edge of the bed.
What exactly was going on here? She was feeling a little bewildered by his unusual attitude. She turned the question over in her mind. Was Cam happy with his lot, or was she reading too much into everything? Her gut feeling was deepening, telling her something wasn’t quite what it seemed. Yet he’d said everything was fine.
Molly tried to pinpoint exactly when the niggling between them had started, but she couldn’t pin the timing down to anything specific. Standing up, she stared at the wardrobe. A fleeting thought crossed her mind. No, she couldn’t … could she? Conscious that she had never felt the need to check up on him in any way before, Molly opened the wardrobe door. Without giving it another thought, she frantically began to search through his trouser and jacket pockets.
Her thoughts were chaotic. She had no clue what she was even looking for. After checking a handful of clothing, she turned and glimpsed through the window to check Cam was still outside and caught sight of herself in the mirror. What the hell was she doing? How’d it come to this? This was exactly what Cam had done – rifling through Bree’s bag because he didn’t trust her. Did that mean she didn’t trust Cam? Stopping and closing the wardrobe doors, Molly took a breath and gave herself a long hard stare in the mirror. Disappointed in herself, she sat back down on the edge of the bed just as her phone rang.
Sam’s name was flashing on the front of the screen and immediately Molly took the call.
‘Sam, thank you for getting back to me.’
Molly’s pulse began to race as she knew that she would have to come clean about Bree staying the night at The Old Bakehouse and she wasn’t sure how Sam was going to react to that snippet of information. If Sam wasn’t happy with her, Molly knew she’d take that on the chin. All she needed to know was that Bree would have a warm, safe place to sleep tonight.
She explained the situation to Sam, who fell silent for a moment. Molly listened to the silence on the other end of the phone and bit her lip.
‘Even though I don’t recommend you get personally involved, as emotions can run very high in certain situations, I can see your intentions were good. Bree knows of all the places she can go for shelter and that includes the daytime too.’
‘I know, I just—’
‘You just wanted to help. Bree is young and it’s human nature to be kind and I would never have turned her away from the shelter, you know that. You should have carried on knocking at the door or ringing my phone. Sometimes you have to gauge the level of involvement. Vulnerable people can get attached to you then depend on you more and more. Molly, you need to consider this because if Bree does begin to depend on you, what level of commitment can you really give to that? You have your own family, a baby on the way, businesses to put first. Sometimes being cruel to be kind is the best thing to do.’
Sam was saying exactly the same thing as Cam. ‘But she’s so young.’
‘I know and because of Bree’s age it’s difficult to put it all in perspective.’
Molly closed her eyes. Sam was still talking but Molly was lost in her thoughts. She just couldn’t get Bree out of her mind.
‘Molly, are you still there?’
‘Yes, sorry, I’m still here.’
‘In Bree’s case, for what it’s worth, though I can’t say I’m one hundred per cent certain … I don’t think she would steal a phone and I wouldn’t have any qualms about Bree babysitting. She is a very caring girl who has been dealt a tragic hand but she’s strong and determined and she will go places. Giving her a little responsibility will certainly boost her confidence.’
Molly blew out a breath. Feeling relieved, she thanked Sam. However, she knew Bree’s confidence would be at an all-time low after today. ‘I’m worried she won’t have a roof over her head tonight, especially with the temporary shelter a couple of villages away. Will you let me know if she arrives?’
Sam reassured her that Bree knew her number and there were designated phones around Glensheil that she could use to get in touch with her.
After hanging up, Molly felt a little better but she was still feeling perplexed by Cam’s actions. Since Dixie was a little under the weather, Molly decided to grab some breathing space and check in on her. Slipping on her boots and grabbing her coat from the hallway, she walked into the bakery. She switched off the ovens as there was nothing else that needed baking today and as she turned to leave, she noticed there was a single loaf cooling on the rack. She took in the aroma. The loaf wasn’t Cam’s usual creation, but it looked and smelled divine. Feeling ravenous, Molly grabbed the bread knife and sliced off a huge doorstep. There were only so many weeks left when she could get away with eating what she wanted and blaming it on baby blubber.
