‘You did not. I need it after the showdown I’ve just had with a contractor.’
Curiously, Leanne asked, ‘Are we talking about the new builds up on Westleigh Heights?’
‘The very same. I’m supposed to be dressing the show home this week, but they’re so behind that the decorators can’t even start to wallpaper and half the furniture is about to be delivered.’
‘Mm, awkward. Anything I can do?’
‘If you know how to make curtains I’d worship at your feet for ever. The woman I normally use has just let me down, and everyone else on my list is up to their eyes.’
Leanne grimaced. ‘Not a part of my skills-set, I’m afraid, but I’ll definitely give it some thought and let you know if I come up with anyone. Aha, here’s Fliss, the goddess of grapes.’
They greeted the café’s owner affectionately, and for several minutes the three of them discussed how their various businesses were doing. The Seafront was always busy no matter the time of year given its status as the town’s go-to breakfast and lunch venue, while Leanne’s vintage emporium further along the Promenade had done exceptionally well over the summer. Andee, as always, was involved in so many projects besides her design business that there was too much to go into, so she mostly let the others talk.
‘So, who’s joining you?’ Fliss asked, nodding at the table’s third setting.
‘Dan Collier,’ Andee replied. ‘Don’t be surprised if he gets on both your cases to become practitioners in our restorative justice programme.’
‘Oh, yes, how’s that going?’ Fliss asked, waving goodbye to someone who was leaving. ‘I hear you’ve already got an executive board in place. Are you just waiting for funding to come through?’
‘Not anymore,’ Andee responded warmly. ‘Thanks to a very generous donation from a local businessman we’re already taking in referrals.’
Intrigued, Leanne said, ‘You mean actual cases? No more rehearsals?’
‘We have two genuine cases running at the moment,’ Andee told her. ‘One is a burglary and the other’s a hate crime, but there are others under consideration, so we need to start recruiting. I thought your mother would be a good candidate,’ she suggested to Leanne, ‘and I wondered about Klaudia,’ she added, referring to Leanne’s partner in the vintage shop she owned. ‘Speaking Polish will make her a tremendous asset.’
Leanne blinked. ‘Mum will definitely want to be involved,’ she assured her. ‘I’ll talk to Klaudia and let you know, but I’m sure she’ll say yes.’
‘If you need more men,’ Fliss said, glancing over her shoulder at the sound of a crash in the kitchen followed by angry voices, ‘I’ll put my thinking cap on. Now I’d better go and find out what’s up in the paradise of my workplace.’
Left to their wine and menus, Andee said, ‘OK. I’m opting for the spicy lentil soup. It seems right for this miserable weather.’
With a sigh Leanne replied, ‘Will it ever stop raining? But at least we had a lovely August and the forecast isn’t bad for the coming weekend, thank God. We’ve promised Abby a barbecue for her seventeenth birthday party, although at the moment she’s only invited her latest best friend, Jasmine. So not too much work there, but watch this space. Actually, there’s a thought, I’m sure Jasmine mentioned something about her mother being into soft furnishings. Maybe she’s someone you could talk to about curtains?’
Ready to grasp at any straw, Andee said, ‘Do you have a name or number for her?’
‘I know her name’s Claudia, but I’ll have to ask Abby or Jasmine for her details. I’ll text Abby now, if you like. She might get back to us by the end of lunch.’
After the message was sent, she put aside her phone and leaned in to Andee conspiratorially. ‘OK, to the real reason for this lunch – but you must promise not to breathe a word for now.’
Andee drew a cross over her heart.
‘Tom’s asked me to marry him and I’ve accepted.’
Andee’s eyes widened. ‘You accepted?’ she cried in mock horror. ‘I felt sure you’d turn him down when he finally got around to it.’
Leanne shot her a meaningful look and as they both laughed, Andee started to get up to hug her.
‘No, don’t make a fuss,’ Leanne cautioned, waving her back down. ‘I don’t want anyone to know yet, although the chances of my mother being able to hold it in are about as good as mine of fitting into the size ten wedding dress we have in the shop.’
Andee laughed. ‘So, when are you planning to do it?’
‘We’re still discussing that, but it’ll definitely be just close friends and family, so obviously that includes you, Graeme and your mother.’
‘On behalf of us all, I accept. Will it be at the Tramonto?’ She was referring to the exquisite Italianate villa on Kesterly Heights that Tom had inherited a couple of years back from an aunt and Graeme and Andee, with their joint skills as developer and designer, had helped turn into an exclusive twelve-suite hotel.
‘Probably,’ Leanne replied. ‘It’ll depend on bookings, but …’ She broke off as a furious-looking waif of a woman stomped out of the kitchen, banged against tables as she crossed the café and slammed noisily out of the door.
Andee said, ‘Wasn’t that Maria Colbrook?’ She watched the diminutive woman’s awkward gait as she marched off through the rain, trying to remember the last time she’d seen her, and decided it must have been years rather than months ago.
‘No idea,’ Leanne replied, ‘I’ve never seen her before, but it’s looking like she’s just lost her job.’ She checked her phone as a text arrived. ‘Great, it’s from Abby with Jasmine’s mother’s number. I’ll forward it to you.’ After doing so, she said, ‘They’re a sweet family, grandmother, mother and daughter, much like we were at Ash Morley before Tom changed our dynamic. To fill you in a bit, they haven’t been in the area for long, only a few months, and according to Jasmine her mother hasn’t made many friends yet.’
Picking up on that, Andee said, ‘So we need to come to the rescue?’
‘Maybe, if she wants it. Although she almost never comes in when she drops Jasmine at ours, so it could be she’d rather keep herself to herself.’
‘What about the grandmother?’
‘A different story. My mother’s got to know her a little through the community centre, and apparently she’s just become a trustee of the theatre. And wait for this, she’s offered to sponsor a concert next spring.’
Andee was impressed. ‘That’s very generous of her.’
‘Isn’t it, but I suspect she’s doing it mainly so Jasmine can show off what a brilliant violinist she is. She’s incredibly talented, can play just about anything you throw at her, and not just classical. Abby, who has no such skills, is planning to be her manager or producer, maybe agent, I forget which.’ With a maternal sigh, she added, ‘Actually, it’s wonderful to see the two of them together. Abby was quite lost after her best friend Tanya moved away, but she and Jasmine have been inseparable over the school holidays.’