‘I’m at work.’ Calvin completely abandoned the dough and wiped his hands on a tea towel.
‘Like I said, as soon as you can.’
The woman said goodbye and ended the call.
‘Is everything okay, love?’ Enid popped her head into the kitchen. Judy didn’t usually receive phone calls during the day and now she looked worried. ‘Is it about your oven?’
Calvin shook his head. ‘It was Scott’s school. He’s been in a fight and I have to go and speak to his head of year.’ Calvin didn’t even know who Scott’s head of year was. Judy always dealt with school stuff. She occasionally wafted a school letter under his nose but he never actually read them.
‘Do you want to finish early? There’s only Norman and Mrs Freeman in now.’ Enid lowered her voice. ‘I don’t think they’re leaving today.’
‘No, it’s okay. I’ll be finishing in just over an hour and I’ll have to wait and pick Charlie up and take her with me anyway.’
‘Okay, love. Just let me know if you change your mind.’
Calvin returned to the matter of mince pie baking. The fourth batch – and hopefully last of the day – was finally in the oven when Calvin heard a crash from the tea room. When he popped his head out of the kitchen, he saw what had been the cause – Enid had dropped one of the teacups on the floor.
‘Stay where you are, Mrs Freeman.’ Enid held up a hand as her customer stood up to help. ‘Some of these pieces might be sharp. Ouch!’ Enid had been gathering the bigger pieces but now she dropped them onto the floor once again, holding up a bloody finger.
‘Let’s get that under the tap.’ Calvin guided Enid into the kitchen, placing her finger under the stream of cold water.
‘I should be okay now, love. If you grab the first aid kit and leave it on the side, I’ll sort myself out. It’ll only need a plaster. Can you sweep up the mess out there before Mrs Freeman has a go?’
Grabbing a dustpan, brush and mop, Calvin returned to the tea room to clear up the mess. He was bending down to brush the smaller pieces into the dustpan when he felt a pinch on his bum. He probably should have ignored it or moved away, but Calvin had had enough. He was sick of the lewd comments and lecherous looks and his stress levels were already dangerously high. The switch with his wife was taking its toll and he was worried about the Benvenuti presentation that should be happening right about now, not to mention the upcoming meeting with Scott’s teacher.
So he lost it.
‘Get your filthy, geriatric hands off me.’ Norman snatched his hand away and jumped back into his seat as Calvin growled at him. ‘Don’t you ever touch my arse again, you dirty old bugger. In fact, don’t you ever touch anybody’s arse unless they’ve specifically invited you to do so. Otherwise I will break your fingers. Got it, old man?’ Calvin flinched when he felt a hand on his arm but it was only Enid.
‘Judy, love. Why don’t you let me take over here?’ Enid’s finger was now patched up with a blue plaster. She prised the dustpan and brush from Calvin’s hands. ‘Why don’t you pop over to the school now? Get that meeting over and done with before Charlie finishes for the day?’
Calvin allowed himself to be led towards the door. Enid handed him his coat and handbag, promising to sort everything. A feeling of dread weighed Calvin down as he plodded towards the bus stop. Judy was not going to be pleased if he’d lost her this job. And if the Benvenuti presentation didn’t go well, they could both end up unemployed before the day was out.
Chapter Eighteen:
The Presentation
Francesco Benvenuti had claimed that the campaign as it stood made his product look just the same as every other project management app out there and, after a bit of research, Judy was inclined to agree. Because Project: Planet was like all the other project management apps out there. Like the others, Project: Planet had a calendar with reminders set in with the ability to create to-do lists and schedule meetings with the tap of the screen. The only real difference from most of the others was its ability to download bus and train timetables and plan car journeys, but was that enough to make it stand out?
‘Maybe we’re looking at it from the wrong angle,’ Judy mused as she and Sarah sat in the meeting room, the entire campaign spread out before them. The photo shoot Sarah was supposed to be attending had been cancelled as there was little point having a photo shoot when they had no idea what they were supposed to be shooting now. The shoot would have to be rescheduled – again – which had turned Perry’s face an alarming shade of purple. Francesco was due in the building within the next twenty minutes and Judy and Sarah had yet to come up with anything substantial.
‘The product claims you can plan your world from the palm of your hand, but it’s all aimed at businesses. Life doesn’t start and end at the office.’
‘What do you mean?’ Sarah asked.
Judy grabbed a pen and started to make notes, filling Sarah in as she went along. ‘Do you know how hectic family life can be? Sometimes more hectic than life at the office. The job of being a mother never ends. Look here.’ Judy circled the point about creating lists. ‘A mother could utilise this for so much more than creating a daily to-do list. She could plan her entire Christmas and take the strain off herself. Christmas shopping lists, movies to watch with the children, make a list of the children’s activities – nativity plays, ballet recitals and Christmas fairs. And it doesn’t have to be just Christmas.’
‘Mmm. I think you might be on to something here.’ Sarah grabbed a pen and made a few notes herself. ‘Do you think we have time to run this by Perry?’
‘I doubt it.’ The door opened, revealing Perry with a suited man with slicked-back hair towering above him. Judy guessed this was the infamous Francesco Benvenuti. ‘I think we’re going to have to wing it.’ Sarah flashed Judy a look of alarm, but what else could they do? ‘We can do this.’
‘We?’ Sarah laughed. ‘Perry won’t let me anywhere near this. He thinks all I’m good for is answering the phone and making the tea.’
‘Francesco.’ Perry strode into the meeting room. ‘You’ve met Calvin Neil before.’
Francesco nodded before turning to Sarah, his lips spreading into a smile as wide as the Cheshire Cat’s. ‘And who is this little beauty?’
‘That’s Sarah.’ Perry dropped his plump behind into a chair. ‘Bring us some coffees and the good biscuits.’ Perry smiled patronisingly at Sarah. He might as well have patted her on the head and added ‘there’s a good girl’. Ugh.
‘Sarah is going to be presenting the campaign with me today,’ Judy said as she gathered the notes from the table. Calvin had faith in his colleague’s abilities and so did Judy. ‘Why don’t I grab the coffees while Sarah fills you in on the research she’s carried out?’
Without waiting for an answer, Judy left the meeting room, grabbing four coffees from the vending machine and filling a plate with the biscuits they weren’t usually permitted to even look at. By the time she returned, Sarah was just finishing up on comparing Project: Planet’s strengths and weaknesses to those of its competitors.
‘I’m afraid we don’t have any visuals prepared as these changes were all very last minute,’ Judy said after distributing the coffees. ‘But we believe Project: Planet can go far further than the most popular project management apps on the market already. Project: Planet says you can plan your life from the palm of your hand, but life isn’t nine to five. It doesn’t start and end at the office. And neither should Project: Planet.’
‘Imagine a harassed mother of three,’ Sarah said. ‘It’s coming up to Christmas and she has so much to do. How is she going to fit it all in?’
‘Project: Planet can help,’ Judy said. ‘Christmas card and shopping lists can be created in minutes, their items crossed off in seconds. She can record multitudes of festive activities – concerts, nativity plays, Christmas fairs – then set up monthly, weekly or even daily reminders so she can keep track of them all.’
‘And it doesn’t stop at Christmas,’ Sa
rah added. ‘She can create shopping lists and packing essentials for their family holiday. She can note down places to visit, films to see, places to eat.’
‘And it isn’t just busy Mum who can use the app.’ Judy was in her stride now. She believed in this product so much she was going to download it as soon as it was available. ‘Students, teachers, gardeners, knitting clubs. Project: Planet shouldn’t be aimed solely at the corporate world. It should be aimed at all.’
‘Project: Planet is going to revolutionise everybody’s world from the palms of their hands, whether that world is of the professional or personal variety.’
Francesco leaned back in his chair as Judy and Sarah’s spur-of-the-moment statement came to its conclusion. ‘And how do you propose to market my product?’
This was by far the easiest part of the presentation as they could lift the information from the previous plan, tweaking here and there where necessary.
Francesco clasped his hands in front of him once they’d finished and gave a languorous nod, his lips pursed. ‘Thank you, Calvin. Sarah.’ The Cheshire Cat smile made a brief comeback. ‘I’d like a word with Perry now.’
‘Of course.’ Judy and Sarah fled the meeting room, sighing with relief that it was over as soon as their toes crossed the threshold.
‘How do you think it went?’ Sarah asked as they returned to the office.
Judy shrugged her shoulders. ‘I have no idea. Hopefully he bought it.’
‘He didn’t look all that impressed.’
‘Only when he looked at you,’ Judy said with a grin.
‘Don’t be daft.’ Sarah played coyly with her hair.
‘It’s true. But who can blame him? You’re a very attractive woman.’
Sarah sighed. ‘My ex doesn’t seem to think so. He hasn’t even been in touch to see if I’m okay. The pig.’
They had to wait an agonising forty-five minutes before Perry called them into his office. There was no sign of Francesco and, when Judy enquired about him, Perry said he’d left the building, but he didn’t say whether it was full of disgust or triumph.
‘What did he make of our new thoughts?’ Judy asked when it became clear Perry wasn’t about to put them out of their misery.
‘Honestly?’ Perry leaned back in his chair in much the same manner as Francesco had earlier. ‘He loved the idea.’
Judy blew out a puff of noisy air. ‘Really?’
Perry nodded, though he didn’t look pleased about the news he was delivering. ‘He thinks it needs some work but …’ Perry shrugged his shoulders. ‘You nailed it.’
‘Yes!’ Judy leapt out of her seat, punching her fist in the air like Judd Nelson at the end of The Breakfast Club. Realising where she was, she sat back down again quickly. ‘Sorry.’
‘Don’t be sorry. I’m impressed. With both of you.’ Perry smiled briefly. It was a strange, unsettling flash of teeth, there and gone again in the blink of an eye. ‘Now get back to work.’
Judy and Sarah scuttled out of the room. Closing the door, Judy threw her arms around Sarah, much like she had the previous day, except this time she was crying tears of happiness.
‘We did it!’
‘You did most of it,’ Sarah said but Judy shook her head.
‘You were brilliant. Look at all the research you did. I couldn’t have done any of this without you. You’re amazing, Sarah.’
‘Oh, Calvin. I think you’re amazing too.’
Judy’s eyes widened as Sarah leaned in towards her, planting her lips on Judy’s. Judy was too stunned to move until she felt Sarah’s soft tongue slipping between her lips. Placing her palms on Sarah’s shoulders, she gently pushed the woman away. This was not a Katy Perry song.
‘Sarah, no. I think you’re a great girl, honestly I do. But I’m married.’
‘Oh, God.’ Sarah cringed before covering her face with her hands. She peeked out of her fingers before emitting a high-pitched squeak of mortification and sprinting from the building.
Chapter Nineteen:
Father and Son
Steve Peebles’ office was chaotic, with toppling towers of books and mountainous piles of papers obscuring his desk. Every available space was filled, including a large plant pot sitting in the corner of the room. It looked like the entire contents of a stationery shop had been tipped on top of the soil while the actual stationery pot on his desk was filled with balled-up post-it notes, like a tiny litter bin. The actual bin was overflowing, spilling its contents onto the carpet. The office resembled the before shot in a TV programme to help hoarders combat their problems. Not that Mr Peebles seemed to notice. He welcomed Calvin into his office with pride, presenting his domain as though it were a glittering palace.
‘Come in, Mrs Neil. Take a seat.’ Mr Peebles leapt at the chair, grabbing the pile of books so Calvin could sit down. ‘Scott will be joining us shortly.’ Peebles sat on the opposite side of the desk, making space in the pile of crap so he had a clear view of Calvin. ‘I must say, this is awfully out of character for Scott. As you know, we’ve had a few problems this year with Scott’s lack of educational motivation.’
Calvin frowned at the man sitting across from him. Lack of educational motivation? What the Dickens was the man going on about? What kid was motivated by education?
‘But we’ve never had a problem with violence before,’ Peebles continued.
‘What exactly happened?’ The woman on the phone hadn’t been too hot with the details earlier and she’d seemed rather keen to end the call. Calvin was sure she’d already hit the celebratory end-of-term vino.
‘Scott was involved in a fracas with another student out in the playground. When the boys were questioned, it was determined Scott started the incident, though he has been reluctant to reveal why. Like I said, it is most unlike Scott and Jack is one of his closest friends at the school.’
‘Jack?’ Calvin couldn’t have heard right, surely. Scott and Jack had been friends since primary school. They were founding members of their band and played for the Woodgate Juniors football team together. ‘Scott and Jack were in a fight?’
‘I’m afraid so.’ Peebles plucked an old apple core that was hiding between two piles of books and tossed it towards the bin. It bounced from the bin and onto the floor, taking several sheets of paper with it. ‘There were no serious injuries sustained by either of the boys but we take this sort of matter very seriously. We have a zero tolerance policy on bullying.’
‘Bullying? But they’re best friends.’
Peebles chortled. ‘That may not be the case any more, Mrs Neil.’
‘But one spat can hardly be labelled as bullying.’
‘These things can escalate quickly, Mrs Neil.’ Peebles leapt out of his seat when there was a knock at the door. ‘Ah, come in Scott. Your mother is here.’ He led the boy into the room, making room on another chair that Calvin hadn’t even noticed sitting under a pile of crap under the window. He dragged the chair next to Calvin’s and indicated that Scott should sit.
‘What happened?’ Calvin examined his son for any sign of damage but there was nothing but the faintest bruise on his cheek.
‘Dunno.’ Scott shrugged.
‘I’m afraid that won’t do.’ Peebles sat in his chair, picking up a pen only to put it down again when he couldn’t locate the sheet of paper he was looking for. ‘We need to know what happened this afternoon and, more importantly, that it won’t happen again.’
‘It won’t.’
‘Hmm.’ Peebles observed the boy until he began to squirm. ‘What I’d like to know is what caused such an outburst in the first place.’
Scott shrugged again, picking at a loose thread on his tie. ‘He was taking the piss.’
Peebles cleared his throat and gave Scott a pointed look. ‘You mean he was teasing you? May I ask what the nature of this teasing was?’
Another shrug. ‘Football.’
‘Football?’ Calvin was sure the teacher rolled his eyes. ‘This was a fight about football?’
Peebles frowned at Scott. Calvin could take a guess at what the man was thinking: this was hardly world-shattering stuff. But to Scott it clearly was.
‘This is going to go on your record. Do you realise that?’
Scott shrugged. ‘I guess.’
Peebles observed him before emitting a loud sigh. ‘What I suggest is Scott goes home with you now, Mrs Neil, and returns after the Christmas break with a fresh attitude to learning. I don’t see the point in formally suspending him when there is less than an hour left of the school term. But …’ He eyed Scott. ‘No more fighting – about football or anything else. Yes?’
Scott had the good sense not to shrug this time. ‘Yes.’
‘Good. Have a nice Christmas.’
Calvin led Scott out of the cave of crap. He suspected there was more to Scott and Jack’s falling out than football. The question was, how did he get his son to talk to him about it?
Calvin decided to take a quick detour to the supermarket before returning to the village to pick Charlie up from school. If they were quick, they’d have just enough time to pick up a few groceries before hauling ass to the school in time for kicking-out time.
‘Why are we doing this?’ Scott asked as they dashed around the fruit and veg aisles, shoving fresh carrots, a bag of onions, potatoes and garlic into a basket.
‘I’m going to make a nice meal for your dad.’ One that didn’t end with ‘and chips’ or contain processed food. Something hearty to ward away the winter blues. ‘He deserves it.’
‘He deserves it?’ Scott paused in the aisle and observed what he thought was his mother as though she were from another planet.
‘Yes. He works hard to keep this family going.’ Calvin picked up a bag of fresh basil, scrutinised it from all angles before putting it back. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves here. He really didn’t have a clue when it came to herbs. ‘It’s taken me a while to realise it, but I want to show Ju …’ Calvin’s eyes widened as he realised his mistake but he quickly corrected himself. ‘Just how much he means to me.’
The Mince Pie Mix-Up Page 13
