“Sounds good.”
“And I know something else that sounds good, too. Cake. I have a real hankering for some good old-fashioned home-baked cake.”
Gaby wilted a little at this news. While she could put together a decent and tasty meal, she’d never baked a thing in her life. Jill let out a burst of laughter when she caught the look on her face.
“Don’t worry, I’m not about to ask you to bake for me. That really would be taking liberties. What I actually had in mind is that you buy some good homemade cake while you’re out at the shops.”
Gaby let out a breath of relief. “Thanks goodness. You had me worried there.”
“We’re spoiled in Hamblehurst when it comes to bakeries. There’s the corner bakery on the high street, which is superb and where you might like to stop off for a good loaf of bread. But there’s also a new place that opened only very recently. It’s calledSweet Treats and if you didn’t mind the longer walk to reach it, you’ll find the most amazing goodies there.”
“Then that’s where I’ll go.”
“Good. I’ve only visited once since it opened, what with the trouble this knee was giving me before I went in for surgery, but it is the most beautiful little place. In fact, the girl who owns it, Mel, lives right here on Foxglove Street. It’s not easy getting a new business up off the ground and I’m keen to send a bit of custom her way. You won’t believe the cakes she bakes, Gaby. They are literally divine.”
“I’ll make sure we get stocked up in that case.”
“Oh, and it’s not only a bakery but also a lovely little café, too. You should stop off and buy yourself a coffee while you’re there. In fact, I insist. And it will be my treat, too.”
“I can buy my own coffee, Aunt Jill. And I’ll buy our cakes and whatnot, too.”
“Nonsense. I won’t hear of it. I’ll fetch my bank card and you can use it for whatever we need. I insist.”
Her aunt was determined and Gaby wasn’t about to argue the point because she could see the hint of fatigue already etched on her face following her disturbed sleep and her efforts in the kitchen to prepare breakfast.
“Fine, I’ll take your bank card with me,” Gaby said to placate her, fully intending to pay for the groceries herself. She wasn’t about to freeload on her aunt just because she was staying here and helping her around the house.
“Good, that’s settled,” Jill said. “I shall go and make myself look decent for the day.”
Gaby finished tidying the kitchen after breakfast, then lingered in the living room while her aunt washed up in the small downstairs shower room, just in case she needed any assistance. Once Jill reappeared, dressed and tidied up and wearing her signature swipe of lipstick, Gaby settled her in her favouritearmchair with a cup of tea and then went upstairs to get washed and dressed herself.
By the time she was ready to leave the house, Jill had prepared a short shopping list. Her aunt’s eyes were already closing when Gaby said goodbye and set off on her expedition and she hoped Jill would sink into a good long nap while she was gone.
Outside on Foxglove Street, the rain had stopped but the sky was grey and brooding. Birds chattered and bickered at the feeders hanging from the cherry tree and Gaby made a mental note to refill the containers when she returned. The greedy birds clearly made the most out of the free buffet her aunt put on for them.
She set off along Foxglove Street, enjoying the cold damp air and the chill of autumn. The new warmer clothes she’d ordered online in response to the season had arrived yesterday and she was glad of the cosy fleece sweater she wore beneath her coat. As she walked along the street, passersby said hello and good morning, children raced by on scooters, and a friendly cat accompanied her for part of the journey, meowing and purring when she stopped to pet it before dashing into a nearby garden and curling up on the mat outside the front door.
It was a lovely street to walk along, Gaby decided. There was just something sort of… sweetly whimsical about it.
The high street was busy, filled with people shopping and running errands and cars trundling up and down the road. When she’d walked up the high street from the train station when she first arrived in Hamblehurst, she’d been too focused on hauling her heavy luggage, as well as anxious to reach her aunt, to spend much time looking around at her surroundings. But now with the benefit of time to spare, she looked around properly and was amazed to see that the high street was justas she remembered it from when she’d stayed here fifteen years ago.
The gorgeous shopfronts and handsome buildings that lined the street were brimming with character and kerb appeal. There were no ugly modern monstrosities on this high street, no horrible shops filled with cheap rubbish, no dilapidated units, no grubby windows or tired signage. Every shop looked well cared for and each business added to the ambience. There were many national chain stores operating there too, but they didn’t dominate and the independent traders were in the majority.
Gaby admired it all as she walked along—the smart window displays, the pretty signs above the shop doors, the autumn-themed flower baskets that hung from the old-fashioned lampposts, and the graceful view that descended towards the grey-stoned church with its elegant steeple that peeked out at the bottom. Shoppers hurried here and chatted there. Drivers tooted horns and waved to people they knew as they motored by on the road. A gathering of old men was perched on a wooden bench beside the war memorial, remarking on this and that as they watched the world go by around them.
Running errands on this high street would be a pleasure, and Gaby now remembered the errands she’d run for her aunt when she’d lived here all those years ago. Running errands hadn’t quite had the same allure to a seventeen-year-old who’d had other things on her mind, of course.
Things such as the boy she’d been infatuated with.
Peter.
There he was in her mind again. Funny how coming back here had stirred up memories that had been lost in the mists of time.
Gaby pulled out the shopping list her aunt had given her and got to work. At the corner bakery she chose a farmhouse loaf fresh from the oven and a batch of seeded rolls. In the minimarket she bought the grocery essentials they were running low on, before going to the greengrocer’s next door for fresh fruit and vegetables. The display in the delicatessen window was too seductive to walk past, and she found herself in there too, buying cold meats and slices of homemade quiche that would make for a delicious lunch.
With her shopping bags already bulging, she was glad to have bought most of what they needed because otherwise she’d have to make a second trip. All that remained was to visit the Sweet Treats bakery her aunt had spoken so highly of and choose some cakes and goodies.
By the time she found the little café and bakery tucked in off the high street on a pretty cobbled lane, Gaby was more than ready to take a break and pause for coffee. After admiring the elegant sage and cream signage outside the café and the expanse of glass windows and the old-fashioned recessed door with decorative tiles to welcome the customers, she stepped inside and was greeted with the most gorgeous bakery aromas she’d ever smelled.
