“Watch you don’t get stuck in the cat flap if you get home late.” Rick joined in.
“Right, that’s it, I’m off. I’m not staying here for you to poke fun at me.”
“Ring me in the morning.” Dawn met her sister’s green eyes. “Let me know how it goes.”
“Okay, Dawnie.” Camilla kissed her cheeks then Allie’s before sauntering along the path and out onto the street.
“I hope she knows what she’s doing,” Allie said.
“She probably does. My sister never does anything without thinking it through. Although he must be pretty special if she’s breaking her no dating anyone from the village rule.”
“Let’s hope so. Anyway, I’d better go and give Chris a hand.” Allie got up and took Dawn’s empty cup. “You want a refill?”
“Not just yet, thanks.”
“Why’s Camilla so dressed up?” Rick sat next to Dawn.
“Fancies the vet.”
“Does she now? But Camilla never dates anyone local.”
“Perhaps this time is different.”
“I take it he’s hot then?” Laughter danced in his eyes.
“I have no idea.”
“You can tell me.”
“I haven’t seen him yet.”
“Shall we fabricate an animal emergency so we can check him out?”
“Rick…” Dawn nudged him. “We can’t do that.”
“Sure we can. Actually we’ve had an animal emergency, haven’t we? We could ask him to come round to check on the baby guinea pigs.”
“Oh, I don’t know.”
“Don’t you want to make sure he’s good enough for Camilla?”
“I’m sure she can take care of herself. She’s been doing it for long enough.”
Camilla had protected her heart for all of her adult life, but Dawn always worried that her sister would get hurt at some point. If she hadn’t already been hurt that was. After all, it wouldn’t be like Camilla to let on if she had been.
Squeals of excitement broke into her thoughts and she looked over to where Jordan was guiding tiny ghosts, pumpkins, fairies, witches and skeletons around the garden. It seemed that some of the children were looking for clues in some sort of monster treasure hunt. Max, meanwhile, was supervising the games of Frankenstein bowling, which involved knocking down tins painted with monster faces, and every time someone hit them over, there was a loud cheer.
“We’re so lucky to live in Heatherlea,” Dawn said, as Rick wrapped an arm around her shoulders.
“Wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.”
“Are you sure?” Dawn asked her husband as she gazed into his eyes.
“Never been more certain about anything. I love you Dawn Dix-Beaumont and I always will do.”
He cupped her chin then kissed her gently.
“Oh!” she gasped.
“What is it?”
“Feel.” She guided his hand to her belly and he smiled.
“Little one is busy tonight.”
“She certainly is.”
“Just like her mum always is.”
“Not as much now that you’re home.”
“And I bet she’ll be beautiful… just like her mum.”
“Thank you.”
“No, Dawnie, thank you.”
“What for?”
“For making me happier than I could have wished for.”
Dawn sighed with contentment as she snuggled into him.
“I’m happier than I ever could have imagined too.”
And they stayed that way for some time, on a perfectly cool and crisp autumn evening, watching their two children as they played on the lawn of The Cosy Cottage Café.
Life wasn’t always perfect; there were bumps and grooves in the road, and there would no doubt be more ups and downs along the way. But Dawn and Rick had each other and their wonderful family, so they knew that they would be okay.
The End
Dear Reader,
Thank you so much for purchasing Autumn at The Cosy Cottage Café. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Did the story that made you smile, laugh or even cry? Did you care about the characters? Which ones and why? Who do you want to know more about in a future book?
If you can spare five minutes of your time, I would be so grateful if you could leave a short review. Genuine word of mouth helps other readers decide whether to take a trip to The Cosy Cottage Café too.
There will be another two books in this series to follow Summer at The Cosy Cottage Café and Autumn at The Cosy Cottage Café. The next one is Winter at The Cosy Cottage Café to hopefully get you into the festive mood.
Wishing you all the best and hoping you’ll come back to Heatherlea soon!
You can find me on Twitter @authorRG if you’d like to connect with me.
With love,
Rachel X
Coming Soon
Winter at The Cosy Cottage Café
By Rachel Griffiths
Book 3 in The Cosy Cottage Café Series
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Firstly, thanks to my gorgeous family. I love you so much! XXX
Special thanks to Emma LJ Byrne at The Felted Badger for the beautiful cover.
To my author and blogger friends, for your support, advice and encouragement and to everyone who has interacted with me on social media – and supported me – huge heartfelt thanks. This is a crazy, exciting journey and I’m having a great time with you all!
To everyone who buys and reviews this book, thank you. Without you, there would be no Cosy Cottage Café.
Autumn at The Cosy Cottage Cafe: A heart-warming feel-good read about life, love, marriage and friendship Page 11
