The Sunflower Cottage Breakfast Club (28 page)

‘Wow.' Noah's voice was barely a whisper. ‘This looks really good. We might actually have a chance at saving the place with this.'

I blushed with pleasure. ‘It was nothing really; video editing's quite easy when you know how to do it.'

He put the laptop down and looked at me. ‘It's not nothing, Emily. What you've done for Sunflower Cottage, for Rose and me… That could never be called nothing. We were way too hard on you before; we should've known you didn't know anything about what the company was planning. We were just angry, that's all. I'm sorry.'

I nodded. ‘If I were you, I wouldn't have believed me! It did kind of stretch credibility a bit, didn't it? High-flying executive doesn't know the company she works for is planning to knock down the B&B she's been sent to buy! Doesn't sound too good.'

‘I should've listened to you, though. I should've known you hadn't come here with some sort of hidden agenda. So… you'll definitely be leaving tomorrow then?'

I nodded. ‘Yup; I can't wait to see Paul's reaction when he finds out I've gone over his head with this! Promotion or no promotion, I hope the slimy little snake gets what's coming to him.'

‘Look at you, turning into a little warrior! We could use people like you in Luna Bay, you know…'

He trailed off as he realised he'd brought up the contentious issue of my sticking around.

‘You know I've got a life back in Glasgow, Noah. I was always going back there when I was finished here and that hasn't changed. I
do
love Luna Bay and Sunflower Cottage, but I can't stay. I'm sorry.'

He nodded and drew away from me. ‘Yeah, I know that. I… I don't blame you for saying no, to be honest. I've done nothing but blow hot and cold with you since you got here. One minute we're getting on fine, the next we're at each other's throats. I love you, Emily. And that won't change whether you're here or in Glasgow. You've made me take a long, hard look at myself and I'll admit I didn't like what I saw. I was moody and insular and didn't let anybody in; you made me change that. Mostly because you wouldn't bloody leave me alone! You made me see that I don't want to keep shutting people out. You've made a real difference to my life, even if you drove me nuts while you were doing it!'

‘Glad to know I haven't been a total pain in the arse then!' I laughed a little too loudly and went back to the task at hand. ‘I… I'd better get this done so I can send it on to the big bosses at Walter Marshall.'

With nothing else left to be said, he turned on his heel and went out of the room. As I watched him leave, four little words popped out of my mouth.

‘I love you too.'

Chapter 28

My
real
final day in Luna Bay was spent doing two things: saying goodbye to the friends I'd made and convincing myself I was doing the right thing returning to Glasgow. A voice at the back of my mind told me I was making a huge mistake, but I ignored it. I was going back to what I was safe in and comfortable with. Throwing away all of that to move to Luna Bay would be rash and selfish, not to mention completely unreasonable. Noah and I would probably flounder within a month, I told myself. Yet as I saw him around Sunflower Cottage playing with Dixie or chatting to Rose, I wondered how I was going to find the strength to leave him behind.

Lucy was extremely sad to hear I was leaving when I visited her at the Purple Partridge.

‘You'd better come and visit, you hear? Or I'll be on the first bloody train to Glasgow to annoy you.' She pulled me in for a tight hug. ‘And don't forget you're going to have a wedding to come to!'

I gave her an affectionate squeeze before releasing her. ‘Just you try and stop me from visiting! And I'll be there front and centre at your wedding, big hat and all!'

Jake came out from behind the bar and gave me a farewell hug. ‘You do know you're breaking my cousin's heart, right? He really wants you to stay, Emily. In fact, we all do.'

I gave a vague nod as I recalled his speech from the previous night. It had been so impassioned, but I'd still said no. What kind of person did that make me?

‘I know,' I said hoarsely. ‘But I have to go back; it's the right thing to do.'

Next on my goodbye list was Diane, who also made me promise to visit regularly.

‘I was thinking – and you can say no to this if you like – but what about we visit Derek's grave next time you're here? You can have a chat with him or something. What do you think?'

My heart soared. ‘I'd love that, Diane! It'd be really lovely to spend some time with him, even if it's not in person. I'll be back really soon, I promise.'

Tears welled up in her eyes as she pulled me in for a final hug. Sadness swelled inside me as the voice in the back of my mind grew louder.
You're making a huge mistake
, it chanted.
You're happy here. Stay in Luna Bay.

*

Once I was packed, I prepared to send the video montage to Paul's bosses, along with statistics, facts and figures that showed why keeping the existing Sunflower Cottage was a better idea. I even planned to offer to find a different site for the resort so the project could still go ahead. I had it all ready and was hovering over the Send button when an idea popped into my head.

‘Let's see,' I said to Dixie. ‘I think we've got one more trick up our sleeve before we send this. What do you reckon?'

She looked at me, wagging her tail and her tongue hanging out. I took it as a gesture of support. I got off the bed and bent down to stroke her, before picking up my phone to call Paul.

‘What now, Emily? Why the hell aren't you back yet anyway?'

‘I just wanted to let you know that I've submitted a pretty strong case to your bosses for why Sunflower Cottage shouldn't be demolished.'

A low, guttural roar came bursting through the phone. ‘What? Why the hell did you do that? Did you not hear me the last time? The deal is worth two million pounds! You've never cared about a place like this before. What's different about that grotty little hovel?'

I gritted my teeth and balled my hands into fists. I was so angry I was sure steam was coming out of my ears like some cartoon character.

‘Sunflower Cottage
isn't
some grotty little hovel, actually. It's a lovely place and the community really loves it here. I do too, and I think when your bosses see that you're planning to rip down a valued community hub they'll pull the plug on the whole thing. So why don't you save them a lot of hassle and cancel it yourself?'

There was a silence and I could practically hear the cogs in Paul's head turning.

‘Think of all that bad PR,' I crooned. ‘The big bosses really wouldn't be happy with you, especially if they knew you didn't listen to good advice about it.'

I imagined Paul sitting in his office, sweat dripping down his face and wondering which way to turn. He wasn't good at making decisions at the best of times, let alone when someone was piling the pressure on. I could sense he was about to snap, though. One more push ought to do it, I thought.

‘Imagine if the national newspapers pick up the story. We'll look like the big, bad wolf huffing and puffing and bulldozing the B&B down. Is that
really
something you want to deal with? Fielding all those calls from angry residents and journalists will seriously eat into the time you spend sneaking around with Tara Murray…'

‘OK, OK! Send me over that video montage and I'll see what I can do. You're probably right; we'd have a hurricane of shit to mop up if we went ahead with this and I don't fancy saying “no comment” over and over again to a bunch of journalists. I suppose we could use another one of our sites for the resort.'

I felt a weight lift out of my chest. I half wanted to throw the phone down and sing ‘Oh Happy Day' but I remained dignified instead.

‘You're not going to regret this, Paul, I promise. See you tomorrow.'

I said a quick goodbye then hung up.

‘Yes, yes, yes!' I picked Dixie up and hugged her. ‘We did it, Dixie! We saved Sunflower Cottage!'

Just then, Noah appeared at the top of the stairs.

‘What are we celebrating?' he asked, looking slightly concerned for my well-being.

‘I just talked to my boss again and he said he'll see about using one of the other sites for the resort! Sunflower Cottage is staying right where it is!'

His jaw dropped and he pulled me in for a hug. ‘Oh my God, are you serious?!'

‘Yup! I reminded him of all the bad PR the company would get and told him I'd already sent the video montage to his bosses. He didn't fancy dealing with the consequences so he said he'd see what he could do.'

My whole body swelled with pride. I couldn't believe I'd managed to save Sunflower Cottage. By the look on his face, Noah couldn't either.

‘Emily, I can't thank you enough! You've no idea what you've done for us. Wait till we tell Rose; she'll be over the moon!'

I felt a broad grin spread across my face. ‘It was the least I could do; it was my mistake that caused this whole mess in the first place. He'll probably phone me in a minute telling me he's found somewhere.'

We looked at each other, both wanting to say things we knew could never leave our mouths.

I was glad when Noah broke the uncomfortable silence. ‘Are you all packed for tomorrow?'

I nodded, gesturing to my waiting suitcases. ‘Yup, just need to stick them in the boot and I'm good to go.'

I badly wanted to tell him how much I'd miss him and how I'd never forget him, but I knew I couldn't. There was no good muddying the waters when I was so close to leaving.

‘Well… Thanks. Thanks for everything you've done. I mean it; you've been a real asset to this place, Emily.'

He opened his arms for what ended up being a very awkward hug. Feeling his arms round me for the final time made every inch of my body ache with longing.

‘I'll really miss…' I stopped myself before the word ‘you' escaped. ‘The breakfast club. It was amazing running it with you. Will you keep it going when I'm gone?'

He dug his hands into his pockets and gazed around uneasily. ‘Yeah, probably. It's been really fun and the members really seem to enjoy it. Dolly and Marjorie would be devastated if we stopped it!'

I pictured the two old ladies and smiled. It was impossible not to when I thought of my time in Luna Bay.

‘Yeah, they wouldn't know what to do with themselves of a Monday morning, would they? I'm sure you'll get along just fine without me anyway; the days of exploding eggs are over!'

‘Yeah, thank goodness!'

We exchanged faint smiles before going our separate ways. I turned to look back at him, but he kept on walking. As I closed my door, I was sure I saw him steal a glance at me before disappearing downstairs.

*

Frankie was delighted to hear I'd be back in Glasgow soon.

‘Good! I've got so much to tell you when you're back. I've made so many bad life choices, you wouldn't believe it. Honestly, I thought you'd end up running off with that bloke you told me you couldn't stand.'

My heart wrenched at the mention of Noah. I could hear the imaginary counter ticking down the seconds until I said goodbye to him for good and I hated every tick it made.

‘Nope, you know me: Mrs Safe and Predictable. As if I'd run off with a guy I barely know!' I scoffed loudly and let out a fake laugh.

‘You're doing your fake laugh again; the one you do when Paul tells one of his crappy jokes,' said Frankie. ‘Are you sure you're coming back? I don't want to come into work tomorrow to find you not here.'

I hesitated before muttering ‘Yes' and making my excuses to hang up. The thought of my imminent journey north filled me with dread. I felt like I was going back to the life I thought I deserved, rather than the one I really wanted to live.

But what could I do? I'd said my goodbyes and made my choice. I'd chosen safe and comfortable over new and dangerous. Just like my mum had.

*

The final person I had to say goodbye to was Rose. I'd deliberately left her for last because I knew saying goodbye to her would be the hardest. With Noah, I could gloss over my true emotions but Rose could see right through me.

‘Here's the woman who saved Sunflower Cottage!' she hollered as I made my way into the kitchen.

I found her siting there with a few of her friends, who all had broad grins on their faces. It was a little unsettling to look at.

Rose came over and enveloped me in a warm hug so tight I could hardly breathe.

‘I didn't do much really,' I croaked. ‘Just reminded them what a bad idea it was!'

‘Nonsense – you've made sure Sunflower Cottage will be staying even if I won't be running it. That means more to me than you'll ever know. Girls, could I have a few minutes alone with Emily, please?'

The two older ladies picked up their cups of tea and scuttled through to the living room, leaving Rose and I in the kitchen.

‘Made a lot of memories in this kitchen.' I chuckled and gestured around me to the room I'd come to love so much. ‘Could barely boil an egg when I first came here. Now look at me!'

She nodded and looked over her teacup at me with a curious expression.

‘What?'

She shook her head. ‘Are you sure there's no way I could persuade you to stay? You've seemed so happy here and things were happening with you and Noah.'

‘No,' I replied. ‘If things were different, I'd be biting your hand off to stay, but they aren't. I've got a life back in Glasgow to get back to, one I've worked really hard to make. I can't just let all that go to come here for something completely different that might not work out.'

Rose put her chubby hand on top of mine. ‘Darling, I was trapped in a marriage that didn't make me happy for far too long. I kept thinking nothing would change, that I was stuck with my lot in life. But then one day I saw that I could have a different life, one that made me excited to get out of bed every morning. You can have that too if you're brave enough! If Luna Bay's where you want to be, then you have to take a leap of faith and make it happen.'