The Cosy Seaside Chocolate Shop Read online

  She and Luke had never had their special day. Her wedding dress still hung in the wardrobe in her mother’s spare room – she couldn’t bear to give it away. She still felt so very sad even after all these years, but not bitter. She wished Maddi and Mark the best for their big day ahead and for their future because she wanted to cling on to the fact that love could work out, and that most of the time the world was a good place. If she wasn’t meant to get her happy-ever-after, then at least other people could have theirs.

  That’s why she’d worked extra hard to make tonight special for Maddi and her friends. A night for them to remember. A night of chocolates and prosecco, but so much more than that too: of fun, friendship and love.

  Right then, Emma, let’s do this thing.

  She wiped away a tear that had crowded her eye and headed through to the shop to be with her assistants, who had both been keen to help out tonight. ‘Ready?’

  ‘Yep.’

  ‘Looks great in here. Thank you, ladies.’

  ‘You’re welcome.’

  Emma then opened the shop door, just as a white minibus pulled up outside.

  There was fun, there was laughter, there was popping of corks, and tasting of chocolates. The courtyard worked wonderfully for the first couple of hours, and as the dusk began to fall and the pinky-peach glow of the sky gradually darkened, the walled garden began to change into something truly special, with white lights twinkling magically.

  Glasses chinked, and Emma raised toasts to the bride-to-be, Maddi, and then her hens. There was such a lovely atmosphere within the group.

  They moved inside for the Raspberry Gin truffle-making session, which proved messy, somewhat chaotic, but heaps of fun. There was much hilarity, especially when one of the girls, Rachel, no doubt aided by a glass or two too many proseccos, managed to get her long brunette hair dipped into the melted white chocolate. (Maybe she ought to provide optional hair caps, or at least hair ties at the next function, Emma mused.)

  ‘Hmm, chocolate-dipped hair.’ Maddi started laughing and joked that it looked like a new style of balayage and that it might just catch on.

  ‘At least you could eat it when you got bored with it,’ one of the others added.

  ‘OMG, I am in such a mess,’ Rachel admitted.

  The girls all ended up in a fit of the giggles.

  Once the hands-on session had ended, the girls ordered a couple more bottles of the prosecco and sat and chatted excitedly about all the wedding arrangements and their plans for the weeks ahead. There were make-up sessions, hair trials, dress fittings and much more to come.

  Maddi had already chosen her dress, and couldn’t resist showing Emma, Holly and Bev a picture of it. It was just beautiful, floor-length ivory lace with a prettily embroidered bodice.

  Em could picture her looking stunning in it. ‘Wow. That will be just perfect on you,’ she said.

  Holly was swooning at this point and Bev said, ‘It’s wonderful.’

  ‘Thank you. Ooh, there was something else, yes. The favours.’ Maddi became animated. ‘Emma, would you be able to make me up some cute mini boxes of your truffles for my wedding favours? I’ve seen the ones in the hotel in the village and they are so pretty. I’d just love that, and I’m sure they’ll be popular.’

  ‘Definitely.’ ‘Absolutely!’ the girls called out around her.

  ‘Of course. It would be my pleasure, and we can style all the colours of the box and ribbon ties with your wedding theme.’

  ‘Perfect. I think we have over a hundred guests coming now, so there will be lots to make.’

  ‘That’s no problem at all.’

  Typical that her new business idea was starting to flourish, just when she might not have a place for it to be any more. But Emma knew she had to stay positive. No one had come to view as yet so she’d carry on as normal for as long as she could.

  It was soon nearing the midnight hour.

  ‘We’ve had such fun. It’s just been the best night.’ Maddi was giving Emma a big hug.

  The others were all putting coats on and gathering their goodie bags. Clutching them like they were the best-ever kid’s party bag, full of truffles and dipped strawberries. Emma had thought to place a couple of business cards in each too – not one to miss a promotional opportunity. She’d also included a mini bag of fudge each as a thank you for their custom.

  ‘Thank you for making it all so wonderful tonight,’ Maddi said. ‘And thanks for starting all of this off with the most beautifully crafted Easter egg. I’m going to keep it for my wedding day you know, and give it pride of place next to the cake. It was the start of this magical journey. It’s been such a special year so far already.’

  ‘Aw, and I’m sure your wedding day will be just as magical too. Laura and Adam and everyone at the hotel will see to that.’

  ‘I can’t wait. It’s not just about the party you know … though all this is such fun. I so want to be Mrs Johnson, and what that means for us as a couple, for me and Mark. That’s what it’s really all about, isn’t it? Loving, sharing, caring. Being there for each other.’

  ‘It certainly is.’ Emma found she had a lump in her throat.

  The white minibus drew up outside once again, ready for the hens’ journey back home.

  ‘All the best, Maddi. All the best, girls,’ Emma said.

  ‘Thank you. Cheers. To you too.’ ‘To Chocolate and Prosecco Parties.’ ‘Woo-hoo!’ ‘Long live The Chocolate Shop by the Sea!’

  And they gave a resounding ‘Hip, hip, hooray!’ as they made their way out of the door.

  The Chocolate Shop team of three cleared up and Em shared out a half-empty bottle of leftover prosecco into three flutes.

  ‘Come on over here, Bev, Holly.’ She passed them a glass each. ‘Cheers, ladies. Thank you so much for your help tonight – and always. I couldn’t do all this without you two beside me.’

  ‘Aw, it went off really well, didn’t it,’ said Bev.

  ‘Brilliant,’ added Holly. ‘Chocolate and prosecco is the way to go! And I just love working here.’

  And then all was quiet. Holly and Bev left to walk home together, and Emma stood for a few moments on the back step looking out at her twinkly courtyard, and then up at the stars in the sky. It looked perfect out there.

  This was her happy place – her Chocolate Shop by the Sea. The place where her heart was, her home. Would she really have to leave it soon? She crossed both sets of fingers and sent a little wish to the stars.

  All she needed was a miracle.

  34

  Despite the success of the hen party the night before, Emma was still wondering why her daytime trade had dipped so much since the opening of The Rock Shop, or if there was any link at all. Was there any truth in the rumours?

  She now had a plan. She was going to send James and his family down to the harbourside undercover today. Anne, the kiosk owner, wouldn’t know they were related to Emma or that they had connections with The Chocolate Shop. Mission Rock Shop Rumour was underway.

  It was a nice day, the tourists out in force – Wimbledon Ladies’ final or not – and Emma’s shop and café were still only half full. She spotted James, Chloe, Olivia and Lucy walking past mid-afternoon on their mission. The girls gave her huge smiley waves, and Lucy added a thumbs-up. The plan was that they were going to hang around the harbour, listen in on any conversations going on at The Rock Shop Kiosk and then move in themselves to buy some sweets and monitor if any adverse comments were made. Em felt slightly anxious.

  Twenty minutes later, down on the harbourside, James and Chloe hadn’t yet managed to hear anything untoward from the kiosk, though it wasn’t always easy to listen in without risking looking a bit odd or suspicious. Chloe moved right in to browse the shelves at one point, whilst a middle-aged couple were being served, but hadn’t heard any mention of The Chocolate Shop. She went back to her family, as though to consult the girls on what sweet options were there.

  ‘Right then, I think we need to make our mo
ve,’ said James.

  ‘Yes, can we have some sticks of rock?’ Lucy said, grinning.

  ‘Or one of those big lollipops?’ Olivia said, eyes wide, taking in the huge lurid whirls of pink, blue and yellow – pure sugar and food colourings on sticks.

  ‘Blimey, I’ll have to risk their teeth for the sake of the bigger cause,’ Chloe sighed.

  ‘Nothing a good toothbrushing session won’t sort out later.’ James winked. ‘Come on then, guys.’

  They strolled across, in apparent holidaymaker mode.

  ‘Now then, girls, what would you like?’ James asked.

  ‘Hello.’ Anne greeted them with a smile, but was it one of those Big Bad Wolf smiles?

  ‘Can I have a rock stick, please?’ said Lucy.

  ‘And I’d like a big lollipop … please.’

  ‘Okay, which colour rock, darling?’ the lady asked.

  ‘The stripy pink one.’ Lucy pointed.

  James needed to open the conversation a little. ‘Lovely place here, cute little harbour.’ He smiled. ‘Have you been here long?’

  ‘Just a few weeks and yes, it is lovely.’

  ‘Is there anywhere you’d recommend for, say, some coffee and cake?’ James angled.

  ‘Oh, I love chocolate cake,’ added Chloe exaggeratedly.

  ‘Hmm, didn’t we spot that chocolate shop up the road?’ James looked thoughtful.

  ‘Oh no, I wouldn’t go there,’ Anne started up animatedly. ‘It’s up for sale, you know. Heard it’s gone downhill lately, standards have fallen, so they are having to sell up.’

  James paled, but stayed calm, just nodding. There was an angry twitch in his cheek though.

  Lucy bristled, crossed her six-year-old arms, and then she couldn’t help herself, despite the warnings not to mention they knew anyone at The Chocolate Shop. ‘Well, that’s my Aun—’

  ‘Right then, I’ll bear that in mind. Thank you,’ James butted in quickly over Lucy, so as not to give the game away. ‘That’s been … most helpful.’

  Chloe quickly paid for the sweets, handing a bag each to the girls, trying to keep up the play-acting. Unusually for two little girls who had just been given sweets, they weren’t smiling at all.

  ‘Anyway, her fudge is way better than yours,’ added Lucy dramatically, having been cut short before.

  ‘And we love it there!’ piped up Olivia as a grand finale.

  The four of them turned and walked away. James and Chloe couldn’t help but smile at the girls’ protective comments about their aunt. But this wasn’t good news for Emma’s Chocolate Shop.

  Back at The Chocolate Shop, James nervously began to tell Em the whole story. It was when he got to the part about ‘standards having fallen’ and the shop being ‘about to close’ that Emma blew.

  Right, that was it. Enough was enough! Emma felt red rage burn right through her. So, there was truth in this talk. NOBODY bad-mouthed her Chocolate Shop without good reason.

  ‘James, can you mind the shop for ten minutes?’ Emma’s voice was clipped.

  ‘Of course.’

  ‘We’ll help too, Auntie Emma.’ The girls grinned sweetly. ‘Yes, go and tell that naughty lady off,’ added Olivia.

  Emma set off at a marching pace.

  Trouble had brewed and revenge, or at least justice, was about to be poured …

  She found Anne busy with a customer and bided her time until the gentleman had been served before moving in. She hadn’t planned what she wanted to say, but approached with her head held high.

  ‘Hello, Anne, we met a few weeks ago.’

  ‘Yes …’

  Emma’s gaze became stern. ‘Well, since then I heard talk that you’d been saying things about my Chocolate Shop, disparaging things, but I dismissed it as gossip at first. Now I find out that my brother has just been down and you tried to put him off visiting my shop by spreading talk that it’s about to close due to falling standards and lack of customers.’

  ‘Well …’ Anne looked distinctly uncomfortable. ‘I saw the “For Sale” sign up.’

  ‘And? Where did you get the falling standards idea from? Make it up, did you?’

  ‘Ah … I umm …’

  ‘If you must know, the sale is to do with my prick of a landlord, not anything to do with the quality of my chocolate or the way I look after my customers.’

  ‘I’m sorry. I just assumed …’

  ‘Well, don’t. My old nanna used to say “To Assume makes an ASS OUT OF YOU AND ME” and I’ll not have it.’ Em darted a warning finger at the kiosk owner. ‘I have a business to run, the same as you. All I ask is a bit of support and fair play. And so do my friends here in Warkton, so I’d tread very carefully from now on if I were you.’

  A small group of tourists had gathered to listen in. Emma turned around, having said her bit, and spotted them. Also, though Emma couldn’t see from here, Sheila was hanging out of her shop door halfway up the street, trying to make out what was going on.

  ‘Okay folks, show’s over,’ Emma called across to the harbourside gathering. ‘Anyone fancying coffee and cake, or some lovely chocolate truffles, feel free to pop up to The Chocolate Shop up the road.’

  She left Anne in shock, standing behind her kiosk counter and rather red-faced, but thoroughly deserving to be.

  ‘Hey, you okay? How did that go?’ Chloe asked kindly as Emma got back.

  ‘Oh, fine. I don’t think we’ll get any more talk. Blimey, I feel shattered though.’ Em didn’t enjoy confrontation – but needs must at times. The emotional impact was exhausting, though. James came over to give her a brotherly hug and Lucy rushed up to say, ‘I hope you gave the nasty lady a good telling off.’

  ‘I did.’

  Four of the people from the harbour had followed her back and came into the shop.

  ‘We couldn’t help but overhear. We haven’t been in before, but we thought we’d give you a try.’

  ‘Thank you. I appreciate that.’ Emma found herself feeling a little teary.

  Chloe spotted it. ‘Look, I’ll serve these people and you take five minutes out the back if you like.’

  ‘Thank you, Chloe.’

  ‘No worries. Come on girls, you can help me,’ added Chloe with a smile.

  ‘Yay. Yippee!’ Olivia even took Emma’s little notepad with her across to the window table where the group had settled in, ready to write the order down. The girls often played ‘chocolate shops’ back at home. This time they were getting to do it for real.

  Emma gathered herself in the back kitchen and popped the kettle on, ready for the likely drinks order as well as her own cup of tea.

  ‘All right, sis?’ James came through.

  ‘Yes, thanks for your help with this. Well, I think that’s nipped it well and truly in the bud! Blimey, Sheila was right all along. She grabbed me on the way back up the hill, by the way, wanted to know all that had happened. And I’d thought it was just her gossiping again.’

  ‘Don’t blame yourself for thinking the best of people, Em. That’s no bad trait.’

  ‘No, I suppose not. But it was really starting to damage my business. There’s so much on at the moment with it being for sale and everything, it’s just so hard. I feel like I’m paddling like mad but going around in circles.’

  ‘You’ll find a way through I’m sure, Em. And we’re here to help.’

  ‘Thanks, I know that. And your support, as always, is brilliant.’

  With that two little helpers appeared. ‘So, Auntie Em, we need two chocolate muffins, a fudge cake and some chocolate-dipped strawberries,’ announced Lucy. The writing on the chitty recording the drinks said, ‘Tee for 2’, ‘Kofy’, and ‘joos’, which made Emma smile, they were still so young. She’d let Chloe work on their spelling with them later! ‘That’s excellent work girls, thank you.’

  She didn’t know where she’d be without her family. When the chips were down, they lifted her back up.

  The next day a very apologetic Anne walked into Emma’s shop with a h
uge bouquet of flowers.

  ‘I am so sorry, Emma. I feel dreadful about all the upset I’ve caused.’

  ‘Oh!’ was all a surprised Em could manage at first.

  ‘Please accept these as an apology. I shouldn’t have assumed the worst about your shop, and I shouldn’t have got carried away telling everyone. It was none of my business.’ The woman looked genuinely dismayed.

  ‘Well, yes …’

  ‘I’ve not started off on the right foot at all in this village, have I.’

  ‘Maybe not. But as long as nothing else untoward is said …’

  ‘Of course it won’t be. I can’t believe how stupid and thoughtless I’ve been.’

  ‘Well then, we may as well move on and make the best of it.’ Emma took the flowers from her. ‘Thank you for these.’

  ‘Oh, I’ll be recommending you for tea and cakes from now on. Have been already.’ She gave a small smile. ‘And thank you for being so understanding. You don’t know how much this means to me.’

  ‘Well, we can all make mistakes.’ And boy, didn’t she know that.

  35

  The following week, the dust had settled after the explosive Rock Shop showdown and Emma was concentrating on crafting a special request for a birthday gift – a chocolate shoe for a Jimmy Choo fanatic filled with artisan truffles and ganaches. It was a delicate job getting the stiletto-style shoe just perfect.

  Bev was looking after the counter and café for now, whilst Em was busy. The morning seemed to fly by.

  At around 11.30, Emma popped through to the shop. ‘Everything okay?’

  ‘Yeah, all good thanks. It’s been fairly steady this morning, so I’ve managed just fine. I could do with a hand on a couple of orders that have just come in now, though.’

  ‘Okay, that’s no problem. The chocolate shoe is now moulded and is setting and I’ve just finished all the truffles to fill it, so I’m back in action for the shop again.’

  Bev handed her two chits with orders on.