‘Poor Mum and Dad. They’re fated to never have a cake to celebrate getting hitched,’ Raegan had said sadly when she’d phoned the previous evening to let me know both she and Polly had tested positive.
I’d spent less than five seconds considering the logistics before telling her they’d still have the cake we’d worked on so hard together.
‘I’ll drive it up to them.’
‘Lily, do you know how far away Northumberland is? Berwick-upon-Tweed is practically in Scotland.’
‘I don’t have to know, as long as Google Maps does,’ I replied.
She threw more objections my way, but I kicked each one to the kerb. ‘Look, it’s the weekend, and I’d been toying with the idea of going away for a couple of days, anyway,’ I said, crossing my fingers at the white lie. ‘I’ve no plans that I need to rearrange, and the diary for next week is clear for a change. Besides, I’ve never been to that part of the country before. Fletcher and I can have a little mini break, walking along the beaches up there. They do have beaches, right?’
Raegan had laughed, which then turned into an ugly coughing fit. ‘Bloody Covid,’ she cursed, not for the first time, beforeadding, ‘Yes. They have beaches, but you’ll need to pack your thermal undies. It’ll be freezing up there at this time of year.’
Now, the thump of small feet thundering down the maisonette stairs was quickly followed by a delighted shriek of ‘Auntie Lily’, as Raegan’s flaxen-haired daughter shot through the front door towards me.
Raegan’s reactions were quicker than a bodyguard’s as she swept an arm around her daughter’s waist, scooping her off her feet before she could hurtle into my arms.
‘Sorry, pixie girl, you can’t give Auntie Lily a hug. We don’t want to make her sick too, do we?’
Polly’s face fell, and if it hadn’t been for my cake delivery mission, I’d probably have thought ‘sod it’ and hugged her anyway.
‘I forgot I had bloody Covid,’ she said sadly, looking stunned when Raegan and I burst out laughing.
‘I warned you to clean up your language,’ I said to Raegan, wiping tears of amusement from my eyes. Nothing and no one made me smile as much as my friend’s young daughter. For a moment I felt the old, familiar ache of longing. If things had been different, perhaps I too could have been a mum by now.
I shook my head and repositioned that thought back to where it belonged, with all the other middle-of-the-night impossible dreams that broke my heart.
A volley of barking from the car alerted me that my travelling companion was growing impatient.
‘Fletcher,’ Polly said mournfully, as Raegan tightened her hold on her squirming offspring. I gave the little girl a sympathetic smile, because as much as she loved me ... she loved my dog even more.
‘I’ll bring him round to see you when you’re both better,’ I promised.
Suitably mollified, Polly stood on the doorstep as Raegan retrieved a large flat box bearing the Cupcakes and Rainbows logofrom her hallway. She carried it carefully down the path and set it on the ground halfway between the two of us before backing away sadly.
‘I’m so sorry you’re going to miss your family party,’ I said as I stooped to collect the box.
Raegan gave a shrug, but the disappointment was painted all over her face.
‘You know where you’ve got to go?’ she questioned one last time.
I nodded.
‘They’ll ask you to stay for the party. But take my advice, politely decline. My lot get a bit rowdy when they’ve had a few bevvies.’
I smiled. ‘Maybe that’s just the tonic I need.’
Raegan gave a small snort. ‘Well, don’t say I didn’t warn you. If nothing else, stay away from Uncle Billy on the dance floor. He thinks he’s John Travolta inSaturday Night Feverand is downright dangerous.’ She mimed the film’s iconic dance move, and I stifled a giggle.
‘Drive safely, and once again, thank you so much. Have I said that before?’
‘Nah, I don’t think you have,’ I teased, securing the anniversary cake safely in the boot of the car. I straightened up and shivered slightly in the cool morning air.
‘This is nothing compared to what it’s like up north. Don’t forget to pack a warm coat,’ Raegan warned.
The advice was still ringing in my ears as I pulled into the morning traffic with Polly and her mum waving me off from their doorstep, as though I’d be away for months rather than just a few nights.
My weekend bag was where I’d left it in the hallway, beside a much larger one containing Fletcher’s supplies.
