The Year of Taking Chances
Page 33
They went through the house – oddly deserted – and out to the front, where her dad and brothers were all waiting for her. ‘Oh!’ she exclaimed, feeling flushed and tipsy and caught unawares. ‘I wasn’t expecting you yet!’
Then she noticed that they were each holding lengths of cable attached to the blue tent, and as Spencer counted down, ‘Three, two, one, NOW!’ they all pulled at the same time. The blue plastic sheeting slithered to the ground, revealing . . .
Gemma’s mouth dropped open and she gave a little scream. ‘Is that what I think it is?’
‘Your very own studio. Yes.’ Spencer looked at her anxiously. ‘Do you like it?’
Did she like it? Did he really need to ask? At the side of the house, where the ugly 1950s garage had once stood, was a beautiful new addition: a single-storey building of mellow old brick with a solid oak frame. From the front, it looked like a child’s drawing of a house, with a pale-blue door in the middle flanked by a large window on either side. ‘I love it,’ she whispered, not trusting herself to speak for a moment. ‘Oh, Spencer. And you’ve done all this for me?’
He smiled. ‘Go inside.’
The front door was ajar and she pushed it open, to be greeted by Darcey and Will screaming ‘Surprise!’ at her, with big grins on their faces, and a large strawberry-topped birthday cake on a table in the middle of the room.
‘Oh!’ she cried again, her breath catching in her throat. ‘Oh my goodness,’ she said, gazing around. ‘Isn’t your dad amazing? Isn’t he the best?’
Her eyes swam with tears as she took in the balloons, the birthday bunting and her amazing surprise in its entirety. The whole of the studio’s back wall was made up of glass bi-fold doors overlooking the garden, making the space light and airy. There was a tiny little changing area built into one corner, white painted shelves to store her fabric and accessories, and room for at least four workstations. It was, in short, going to be the perfect place to sew.
‘It still needs a bit of touching up,’ Spencer said, coming inside and putting an arm around her. ‘I haven’t quite finished painting the skirting board, and we’ll need to transfer all your kit over, but . . . ’
She silenced him by throwing her arms around his neck and hugging him. ‘This is the nicest thing anyone’s ever done for me,’ she cried. ‘The very nicest thing.’
‘You’re the nicest thing that ever happened to me,’ he said huskily into her hair. ‘And I’m not about to forget that in a hurry again.’
And then the others were crowding in and exclaiming over Spencer’s cleverness, and somebody lit the candles on the cake and they all sang ‘Happy Birthday’, even Will, who was usually far too cool and teenagerish to do that sort of thing. Gemma couldn’t stop beaming as she gazed around at her new space, planning colourful curtains for the front windows and lamps for the sewing tables, imagining the walls vibrating with chatter and laughter and the whirring of sewing machines as one beautiful new garment after another was created.
‘Happy birthday, dear Gemmaaaaa . . . Happy birthday to you!’
‘Make a wish!’ called Saffron, as Gemma leaned in and blew out all the candles.
Make a wish? In this moment of joy, surrounded by her family and friends, she had absolutely nothing to wish for. Saffron’s baby would soon be here; Caitlin had found love and a new family; and her dad and Judy were planning a winter wedding and couldn’t be happier together. Closer to home, Will had just passed all his summer exams with flying colours; Darcey had three new best friends; and Spencer . . . well, he was standing right beside her, holding her hand, her truest ally, the love of her life.
She shut her eyes and wished that love and happiness would stay with them all for a very long time. That would do nicely for now.
How to make your own fortune-cookies
Genius idea! Now you can write yourself some really lovely fortunes – such as All your dreams will come true; This will be your best year ever – and cheer yourself up when you need a little boost. Alternatively, if you’re an idiot like me, you can ask your children to write some random ones, and will end up with a fortune that says Beware men with beards or even You will be kidnapped by an evil pig.
Here’s the recipe I used – it makes fifteen fortune-cookies. (My children found the cookies quite eggy-tasting, so you may want to dust them with icing sugar or even dip them in melted chocolate, for a nicer flavour.)
Ingredients
100g (4 oz) plain flour
1½ tbsp cornflour
50g (2 oz) caster sugar
½ tsp salt
3 tbsp vegetable oil
3 egg whites
1 tsp water
1½ tsp vanilla extract
1½ tsp almond extract (optional)
Method
1 Preheat the oven to 170°C/325°F/Gas Mark 3. Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper, or use a silicone mat if you have such a thing. (We ended up using three trays in all.)
2 Sift the flour and cornflour together in a bowl, then combine with the sugar and salt. Pour in the oil, egg whites, water, vanilla and almond extracts, then stir everything together until well mixed. (If anyone asks ‘Is it meant to look like vomit?’ at this point, just ignore them. The answer is yes, by the way.)
3 Carefully plop tablespoonfuls of cookie mixture onto the tray or mat (it will be quite runny), then use the back of a metal spoon to shape them into 10cm (4 in) circles. Make sure you space them out, as the cookies will spread during baking.
4 Bake for 10 minutes or so.
5 While the cookies are in the oven, you can get on with the fortune-writing. We used pieces of paper about 6 x 1cm (2½ x ½ in). (There are lots of sites online where you can download and print these, if you don’t feel creative, or don’t fancy being kidnapped by an evil pig.)
6 Check on the cookies. When the edges are golden brown, they are ready to come out.
7 Now for the assembly! While the cookies are still warm, they are soft and bendy, so you need to act fairly quickly. Put a fortune in the middle of each cookie, then fold the cookie in half and pinch the semicircular edges together as best you can. Now carefully fold in half again, creating a crescent shape. If you’re worried about your folded cookies popping open and losing their shape, you can leave them to cool in the wells of a muffin tray.
8 Once they’re cool, you’re free to tuck in. And cross your fingers that you pick the cookie with the best fortune!
Best hangover cures ever
(Just in case you’ve overdone things at your own New Year’s Eve party . . . )
We’ve all been there. The thumping head. The nausea. The disgusting taste in your mouth. And the dreadful flashbacks of the night before: did you seriously get up and gyrate on the table? Oh dear. You did, didn’t you? Never fear, though. I’m here to help. These remedies might just make you feel human again:
• Fresh air
• More sleep
• A fry-up and a cup of tea (I’d go for a fried-egg sandwich and lots of ketchup, but you’ll have your own preference)
• Lots of water – preferably ½ litre (1 pint) every hour
• Lucozade or a ‘sports drink’
• Some people swear by a really spicy chilli (to sweat out the toxins, apparently); or there are a few disgusting-sounding raw-egg and tabasco drink recipes online that you could try (if you are desperate; I’m afraid I failed on the research front this time)
• Lying on the sofa with a blanket, watching a funny film
• Vowing never again to be so stupid and drink so much. Ever. Seriously; you mean it this time. Talking of which . . .
New Year’s resolutions and how to stick to them
If you’re anything like me (and Gemma!), you’ll have started the New Year with an ambitiously long list of ways to improve your life. This will be the year that you run a marathon, get a great new job, stop smoking, drop a dress size, never lose your temper, stop splurging on your credit cards and generally transform yourself into the most perfectly b
rilliant version of you ever.
It’s great to be an optimist, but with a wish list as long as your arm, you are almost certainly setting yourself up to fail. However, these simple strategies might just save the day. Good luck!
• Think positive. Frame your goals in ways that don’t sound as if you’re denying yourself. Thus ‘Don’t gorge on sweets in front of the telly’ becomes ‘Eat healthy food’; ‘Stop being grumpy with the kids’ becomes ‘Do fun stuff with the kids’; ‘Stop drinking so much’ could be ‘I’ll only have a drink on Saturday night’.
• Take baby-steps. Make sure your goals are small and achievable. Break your ambitions down into weekly targets – aim to lose a pound or two at a time, if you’re on a health kick, rather than the more daunting ‘Become a size 6’.
• Step away from temptation. When your willpower weakens, think back to why you chose this resolution in the first place, and look at the bigger picture. Are you saving for a holiday? Getting fit because of a health scare? Stopping smoking because you want to start a family? Remind yourself that your efforts are worth persevering with. If this isn’t enough, remove yourself bodily from temptation. Go for a walk or out to see a friend – anywhere, as long as it’s away from that biscuit tin, that bargain pair of shoes or the bottle of Sauvignon blanc loitering enticingly in the fridge.
• Be kind to yourself. Rome wasn’t built in a day – and the new, improved you won’t be, either. And if it all gets too much, don’t forget, there’s always next year . . .
Sweet Temptation
A story of love, friendship, calories and cake . . .
Maddie’s getting it from all sides. Her bitchy new boss at the radio station humiliates her live on air about her figure; her glamour-puss mum keeps dropping not-so-subtle hints that Maddie should lose weight; and her kids are embarrassed to be seen with her after the disastrous mums’ race at their school sports day. Something’s got to change . . .
Maddie joins the local weight-watching group, expecting more humiliation, but instead finds two unlikely allies – bitter divorcee Lauren who, despite running a dating agency, has signed off romance forever, and shy Jess, the beautician, who’s desperate to fit into a size-ten wedding dress for her Big Day.
Praise for Sweet Temptation
‘A healthy helping of friendship and love’
Press Association
‘Dealing with a lack of calories, fat days and man trouble is a lot easier when you have good friends by your side. Fab!’
Closer
The Beach Café
A recipe for disaster? Or a recipe for love?
Evie Flynn has always been the black sheep of her family – a dreamer and a drifter, unlike her over-achieving elder sisters. She’s tried making a name for herself as an actress, a photographer and a singer, but nothing has ever worked out. Now she’s stuck in temp hell, with a sensible, pension-planning boyfriend. Somehow life seems to be passing her by.
Then her beloved aunt Jo dies suddenly in a car crash, leaving Evie an unusual legacy – her precious beach cafe in Cornwall. Determined to make a success of something for the first time in her life, Evie heads off to Cornwall to get the cafe and her life back on track – and gets more than she bargained for, both in work and in love . . .
Praise for The Beach Café
‘Romantic, dreamy and fun, this is perfect poolside reading’
Closer
‘From witty to full of wisdom, sassy to sentimental . . . not to be missed’
Woman
Summer with My Sister
New beginnings and an old flame. Summer just got hotter . . .
Polly has always been the high-flier of the family, with the glamorous city lifestyle to match.
Clare is a single mum with two children, struggling to make ends meet in a ramshackle cottage. The two sisters are poles apart and barely on speaking terms.
But then Polly’s fortunes change unexpectedly and her world comes crashing down. Left penniless and with nowhere else to go, she is forced back to the village where she and Clare grew up, and the sisters find themselves living together for the first time in years. With an old flame reappearing for Polly, a blossoming new career for Clare and a long-buried family secret in the mix, sparks are sure to fly. Unless the two women have more in common than they first thought?
Praise for Summer with My Sister
‘This is a warm and witty read for sisters of all ages’
Candis
‘Seamless, engaging, believable, fun and heartfelt . . . A skilfully executed and charming tale that you’ll want to pass on to all your friends’
Heat
Me and Mr Jones
Three charming brothers – which would you choose?
Meet the women in love with three very different brothers . . .
Izzy’s determined to escape her troubled past with a new start by the sea – but flirtatious Charlie Jones is causing complications.
Alicia’s been happily married to loyal Hugh for years, but secretly craves excitement. Maybe it’s time to spice things up?
Emma’s relationship with David was once fun and romantic, but trying for a baby has taken its toll. Then temptation comes along . . .
As the future of the family’s B&B becomes uncertain, Izzy, Alicia and Emma are thrown together unexpectedly. It seems that keeping up with the Joneses is harder than anyone thought . . .
From the queen of summer reading, this is a sparkling tale of heartbreak, hope, friendship and love.
Praise for Me and Mr Jones
‘Funny, sunny and wise. An absolute treat’
Katie Fforde
‘The new queen of the gripping, light-hearted page-turner’
Easy Living
One Night in Italy
How do you say ‘I Love You’ in Italian?
Is Italian really the language of love?
A new class of students hopes to find out.
Anna’s recently been told the father she’s never met is Italian. Now she’s baking focaccia, whipping up tiramisu and swotting up on her vocabulary, determined to make it to Italy, so that she can find him in person.
Catherine’s husband has walked out on her, and she’s trying to pick up the pieces of her life. But she’ll need courage as well as friends when she discovers that his deception runs even deeper than infidelity.
Sophie’s the teacher of the class, who’d much rather be back in sunny Sorrento. She can’t wait to escape the tensions at home and go travelling again. But sometimes life – and love – can surprise you when you least expect it.
As the evening class gets under way, friendships form and secrets from Italy begin to emerge. With love affairs blossoming in the most unlikely places, and hard decisions to face, it’s going to be a year that Anna, Catherine and Sophie will never forget.
Praise for One Night in Italy
‘Charming, funny and as satisfying as a giant tiramisu. I loved it’
Milly Johnson
About the Author
Lucy Diamond lives in Bath with her husband and their three children. The Year of Taking Chances is her ninth novel. When she isn’t slaving away on a new book (ahem), you can find her on Twitter @LDiamondAuthor or Facebook at facebook.com/LucyDiamondAuthor.
Also by Lucy Diamond
NOVELS
Any Way You Want Me
Over You
Hens Reunited
Sweet Temptation
The Beach Café
Summer with My Sister
Me and Mr Jones
One Night in Italy
E-BOOK NOVELLAS
Christmas at the Beach Café
Christmas Gifts at the Beach Café
Acknowledgements
Thanks, as always, to the dream team at Pan Macmillan – Caroline Hogg, Natasha Harding, Jodie Mullish, Becky Plunkett, Anna Bond, Jeremy Trevathan, Wayne Brookes and Eloise Wood. Please tell me your collective New Year’s resolution is to keep being awesome.
A million thank-you
s to Lizzy Kremer at David Higham for all your hard work, phone calls and genius ideas. As well as being a completely brilliant agent, you are a seriously lovely person too. #TeamKremer all the way!
Thank you to Rebekah, dressmaker extraordinaire at Love Design Room in Bath, who answered all my stupid questions with great patience. Any mistakes are my own.
Thanks to all my lovely readers, especially those who chat to me on my Facebook page and, of course, Lucy’s Diamonds – now there’s a cool group of women, if ever I saw one!
Finally, an extra-special sparkly thanks to my wonderful family – Martin, Hannah, Tom and Holly – who are the best cheerleaders an author could wish for, even when I’m sunk in the depths of I-can’t-write despair. (My New Year’s resolution is to stop being such a drama queen about it all!) Thank you for so much laughter and loveliness. I don’t need a fortune-cookie to tell me that you four are definitely my ‘Happy ever after’.
First published 2015 by Pan Books
This electronic edition published 2015 by Pan Books
an imprint of Pan Macmillan, a division of Macmillan Publishers Limited
Pan Macmillan, 20 New Wharf Road, London N1 9RR
Basingstoke and Oxford
Associated companies throughout the world
www.panmacmillan.com
ISBN 978-1-4472-5779-0
Copyright © Lucy Diamond 2015
Cover illustration by Kate Forrester
The right of Lucy Diamond to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, organizations and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, places, organizations or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.