‘Boy, he is one ba-ad kisser.’
‘No. It wasn’t the kiss. Don’t you see?’ Tamsyn looked forlorn and she shook her head.
‘Not at all. Sorry.’
Tamsyn leaned forward. ‘He’s a policeman. Policemen are generally quite blokey. I know some of the others at the station and they already tease Jason for being … a bit …’
‘Nerdy?’ offered Daisy.
‘If you like. He’s not like them. He doesn’t go out drinking and falling into bed with someone else’s wife or—’
‘Does that happen a lot?’ Daisy was interested in the gossip at the local nick.
‘All the time,’ said Tamsyn. ‘And when they do have girlfriends they’re well … more like you than me.’
‘What do you mean?’ asked Daisy, unsure if she should prepare herself to be offended.
‘Pretty and confident.’
‘But, Tams, you’re pretty and confident too.’
‘Not really,’ she said, her face the picture of sadness as she looked down at her colourful clothes. ‘I’m a bit different.’
‘No, you’re not—’ protested Daisy but Tamsyn cut her off.
‘Don’t Daisy. I know people think I’m a bit odd. I can’t help it and I don’t want to change and be someone I’m not, so I deal with it. But it would be wrong to make Jason deal with it too.’
‘That’s a rubbish reason. You are different but in a good way. Like a limited edition.’ Tamsyn looked surprised. ‘Jason’s an adult, you can’t go making those sorts of decisions for him. Plus the fact you’re probably missing out on a lovely relationship and lots of great sex.’
‘Daisy!’ Tamsyn blushed. ‘I know I’m right, it’s doomed.’
‘You don’t know that. Didn’t the cards say something about you and your soul mate? What if it’s Jason?’
Daisy must have struck a chord because Tamsyn looked like someone had zapped her with a freeze ray gun. Eventually she moved and spoke. ‘I wouldn’t want to go against the cards.’
As they continued to chat Daisy was aware Aunt Coral was opening the front door and within moments a worried- looking Min was engulfing Tamsyn and checking her over as if she’d been in a major motorway smash. Tamsyn’s mum was an older version of Tamsyn, although her style of clothes was more vintage, her hair and features were strikingly similar.
‘Mum, I’m fine.’
‘Let’s get you home,’ said Min, helping Tamsyn to her feet. She seemed to spot Daisy for the first time. ‘Oh, hello Daisy. Are you all right?’ she said, and there was a flash of concern in Min’s eyes. She reached out a hand towards Daisy and then let it drop to her side.
‘Yes, thanks. I’m good,’ said Daisy, standing up and seeing them to the door.
Min stopped abruptly, turned and leaned in close to Daisy.
‘You know, I gave all my evidence about Sandy to the police,’ said Min, her dark eyes conveying concern.
Daisy was taken aback. ‘What evidence? When?’ Daisy looked from Min to Tamsyn and back again. Min’s mouth lifted at one side. Daisy could feel the sympathy emanating from her. The familiar sensation of the pity of others.
Min stroked Daisy’s arm gently. ‘The vision I had of your mum the night she died.’
‘What vision?’
Min’s gaze drifted off. ‘It was dark and the sea was rough. I saw her face emerge from the water. She looked serene.’
Daisy swallowed hard. ‘Go on.’
‘That was it. Someone was saving her.’
‘But she wasn’t saved.’ Daisy wanted to shake the woman. There was a long pause.
‘No. Not exactly,’ said Min, at last.
‘Not at all,’ said Daisy, her expression frosty although she felt as if she was overheating. What was Min going on about?
‘But there was someone with her when she died. I hope that’s a small comfort,’ said Min. She turned to leave. ‘We’ll see ourselves out,’ she added, guiding Tamsyn through the hall and Aunt Coral stepped aside.
Daisy watched them go, she had no idea what to think.
Once the front door was closed and they had disappeared from view, Aunt Coral shook her head. ‘Don’t take any of her mumbo jumbo on board, Daisy. She’s a raisin away from being a total fruitcake.’ But Daisy couldn’t dismiss what she’d said quite so easily.
Chapter Four
It was December and outside it felt like winter had a firm grip on the bay. Thanks to the bats the building works had been greatly delayed but items on the To Do list were being ticked off at a rate of knots now. Apart from some painting, signage, printing of drinks lists and flyers and a thorough clean the bar was on track to open in time for the lantern parade. Daisy had also managed to drum up some interest from the local paper, which was probably because everyone was fed up of seeing burned-out sheds on the front page.
Tamsyn had popped round for no apparent reason and was warming herself by the fire. ‘Watchya doing?’
‘Tweaking my job advert for the newspaper.’ Daisy handed it to Tamsyn and sucked the end of her pencil.
‘You’re holding interviews for the bar?’ said Tamsyn when she’d finished reading.
Daisy nodded.
‘Really?’ asked Aunt Coral, putting down her newspaper. ‘I thought it was just you and Max to start with?’
‘I’m hoping we’ll get busy quickly in which case I’ll need a bit more than just the two of us.’
Aunt Coral looked dubious. ‘But it’s winter. Half the businesses are closed.’ Daisy was frowning. ‘I love your optimism but I think perhaps you need to see how things go before you take someone else on.’
Daisy was thoughtful. ‘Maybe I just need some agency staff for opening night and around Christmas.’ Daisy was thinking out loud.
‘Ooh, ooh, ooh!’ shouted Tamsyn.
‘The funky gibbon,’ said Aunt Coral, followed by peals of laughter. Daisy and Tamsyn both stared at her.
‘What?’ asked Daisy, her left cheek twitching.
‘Oh, never mind. You’re both too young,’ muttered Aunt Coral and she went back to her newspaper.
Tamsyn grabbed Daisy’s arm. ‘I’ll be your agency staff for opening night. And I’ll be your extra staff whenever you need someone. I’m bored witless most evenings. Pleeeeeease.’
This had the potential to be a total disaster. Daisy loved Tamsyn but that didn’t make her the ideal employee and she wasn’t sure working together would do much for their friendship. Daisy was hoping for someone with lots of cocktail bar experience but how likely was that this time of year? Tamsyn was looking at her the same way Bug did when she ate a bacon sandwich.
‘Have you ever worked behind a bar?’ asked Daisy tentatively.
‘No, but more than anything I want to work with you.’
‘I need someone experienced and—’
‘I’m used to taking orders and dealing with customers from the beach café,’ said Tamsyn in a rush. ‘And I’m keen to learn. I’ve watched Tom Cruise in Cocktail twenty-eight times.’ She grinned at Daisy and she knew she wasn’t lying.
‘Okay, but I can’t promise regular hours.’
‘I love you. You’re the best boss ever.’ Tamsyn pulled her into a hug and squeezed hard.
‘Okay, okay. Come to the railway building at ten Wednesday morning and Max and I will go through the basics.’ Daisy truly hoped she hadn’t made the worst decision ever.
Ten o’clock Wednesday morning, Daisy opened the doors and looked outside. Old Man Burgess was leaning against the building and Tamsyn was chatting to him.
‘Hello, Mr Burgess, I’m afraid we don’t open for a couple of days.’
‘Hello, Daisy. I know. I’ve come for an interview. Tamsyn said you were recruiting.’ Tamsyn was nodding as she helped him to stand fully upright.
‘Er …’ Daisy was lost for words. ‘You’d better come in.’
Max settled Old Man Burgess down on the long bench while Daisy used this as an opportunity to show Tamsyn how to use the coffee machin
e. ‘It’s okay,’ said Tamsyn waving her away. ‘I know how to use this. You interview Mr Burgess.’
Daisy gritted her teeth. She’d speak to Tamsyn about this later. She went and sat next to the old man who was unravelling the longest scarf she’d ever seen. ‘I’m so sorry Mr Burgess but I think there’s been some confusion,’ started Daisy, but it appeared that either Mr Burgess didn’t hear or chose to ignore her.
‘I get awfully lonely, Daisy. Since my wife died I just sit at home all day and it’s not good for me. Even Nesbit has left me.’
‘Has he flown off again?’ asked Daisy, feeling something tug at her heartstrings.
‘No, he’s being acclimatised before his release.’
‘That’s good though,’ said Daisy, giving his gnarled hand a pat.
‘But I have no purpose any more. So when Tamsyn said you were recruiting I thought how marvellous it would be if I got myself a little job. Just a few hours a week.’ He was smiling broadly and Daisy swallowed hard. This was going to be like drowning a kitten.
‘I’m after someone with experience,’ she said.
‘Here’s my CV,’ said Mr Burgess, handing over a printed sheet of A4. ‘I used to run the restaurant at the Smuggler’s Rest years ago and—’
‘I loved that pub,’ said Max butting in. ‘They did the best scampi,’ he added turning to Daisy who was skim reading the CV.
‘And before the pub you ran a tea shop in Salcombe?’ she asked.
‘Yes.’ Mr Burgess nodded with enthusiasm unbefitting of his age. ‘I know I’m not your perfect candidate but I’m reliable and honest.’
Daisy was warming to him. ‘Thanks Mr Burgess. I appreciate you coming in but until we get off the ground I don’t know if there’ll be enough work for any of us.’
‘It’s all right, Daisy. I understand.’ He looked awfully sad making Daisy feel like a monster.
‘Here you go, Mr B,’ said Tamsyn plonking down a perfect cappuccino in front of him. ‘Why don’t you have Mr B as emergency cover? He lives really close so you can call him in when you need him.’
‘I don’t think—’ started Daisy but she was cut off.
‘That would be lovely,’ said Mr Burgess. ‘Thank you. Both of you. This means the world to me.’ He wiped away a tear.
‘You’re welcome, Mr B,’ said Tamsyn with a beaming smile, leaving Daisy bewildered as to exactly how she now had a third employee.
Once Mr Burgess had finished his drink and left, Daisy turned to Tamsyn who was trying to memorise the cocktail ingredients. ‘Why did you tell Old Man Burgess I was recruiting?’
‘You said you wanted experienced people. I don’t know anyone with more experience.’
Daisy could see where she’d gone wrong and let out a sigh. ‘He’s lovely but …’
‘He’d make Mrs Overall look like Usain Bolt,’ said Max, appearing at her shoulder.
‘Exactly.’ She felt awful at the thought that she’d probably never call him.
‘You know you could employ him just for an hour a day. It would get him out of the house and he’s got tons of experience,’ said Max, with a shrug. He had a point and a few good part-time workers were better than nobody at all. But it all depended on whether or not they had any customers.
‘I think we’d make a great team,’ said Max, giving her the briefest of glances.
Daisy stopped what she was doing and chewed her lip. ‘I guess Old Man Burgess brings experience, Tamsyn has enthusiasm, I’ve got the business acumen and you’re the muscle,’ she said with a wink. ‘I suppose we’ll be okay.’
‘I meant you and me,’ said Max under his breath as Daisy walked away.
After months of preparation, hard work and the distribution of a rainforest’s worth of flyers the opening day had finally arrived. Daisy was pleased she’d managed to keep the bar’s name a surprise and was thrilled the sign writer had covered the new logo in a white film so the name boards were all in place but nobody could read them yet. It had been a struggle coming up with something appropriate what with it being part gin bar, part hot chocolate cabin housed in an old railway – it was definitely an unusual mix. She had a new outfit for the grand opening too: a simple black dress, which fitted her well, and if Max spilled something down it, it wouldn’t stain.
She had organised her stock, updated her book keeping, checked her payments system was working, got in extra change for the till, put posh hand wash and hand lotion in the toilets as well as giving the whole place another thorough clean. Daisy looked around her. The bar looked perfect. Specially made staggered shelving displayed her selection of gins next to a neat row of optics for those that featured frequently in cocktails. The wooden bench had come up lovely with a comfy seat cushion in what Jason called GWR green. Under the back window were four high tables with bar stools and another six stools around the bar. The rest of the area had small square tables and simple wooden chairs. The end wall was all bare brickwork and made an interesting feature with the scattered framed photographs showing off the building’s heritage. And overhead the model trains whizzed by excitedly. Looking at it now she was massively grateful to Aunt Coral for all she’d invested. Daisy had to make a success of this for both of them. She felt a tiny bubble of excitement about the evening ahead. There was no more she could do but twiddle her thumbs for the next eight hours until it was time to open.
Daisy wandered along the coastal path, found a bench and sat down. She looked out across the sea and breathed in the cool fresh December air. It did smell different. She remembered her mother saying you could taste the salt in the air. Daisy had spent many an afternoon with her tongue lolling out, not unlike Bug, but she had never managed to actually taste the salt.
She could see a couple of dog walkers on the beach and a fisherman tending to his boat. She watched them for a while. She wondered what her mother would think about today. Here was Daisy about to open her own business. Daisy couldn’t stop her hand going to her neck. She missed her locket and she missed her mother. Being here she thought about her all the time. Everywhere there were memories – the beach itself was where they found her cold, lifeless body – and whilst Daisy hadn’t witnessed it she had a clear picture in her mind. It sent a shiver down her spine. She wanted to find out more about what had happened but right now she needed to focus on the bar.
Daisy’s earlier calm had evaporated by the time evening descended. ‘What if nobody comes?’ said Daisy, wiping down the counter for the umpteenth time.
‘Chill out, they’ll be here. It was splashed across the local paper and it’s been the talk of the bay for weeks. People will want to come for a nosey at the very least. Relax,’ said Max, briefly putting an arm around her shoulder. Daisy paused for a moment. It was nice to have Max’s arm around her, she liked it and she liked him. She looked at him with his hair under control for once and in his new smart trousers, crisp white shirt and waistcoat – he looked gorgeous. A smile crept across her face.
‘What?’ he asked, noticing her looking at him.
She was recalling the body he was hiding under his shirt. She gave herself a mental shake. Max was still waiting for a reply. ‘A waistcoat suits you.’
Max went to speak but Tamsyn appeared like a whirling dervish. For once her more flamboyant side was slightly reined in. Daisy had chosen a long flowing Tamsyn-style skirt for her to wear but in dark grey with a lace-edged white shirt. She looked smart, but she still looked like Tamsyn. She threw off her coat, washed her hands and almost jumped to attention at Daisy’s side. ‘Right, Boss. What shall I do?’
‘Max has got the cocktails covered so you can join me in panicking about no one showing up and then you can chop another lime or grapefruit if you like,’ she said, offering her a knife.
‘Seriously?’ said Max, pointing to the two large platters of sliced fruit.
Tamsyn tilted her head. ‘What do you mean no one? There’s loads outside already,’ she said.
Daisy and Max rushed to the window to look. Jason was standin
g at the bottom of the platform slope chatting to people at the front of the queue and there were lots more milling about the car park area.
Daisy swallowed hard and checked the old railway clock on the wall. ‘Shall we start pouring out the freebies and let them in?’
‘Yes, Boss,’ said Tamsyn with a salute.
‘You’re not going to call me that all night, are you?’ asked Daisy, with a twitch of her cheek.
‘Is it annoying?’ asked Tamsyn.
‘A bit,’ said Daisy.
‘Very,’ added Max, and Tamsyn gave him a thump.
‘Are you and Jason going to be okay?’ asked Daisy. Not much had been said since Tamsyn’s panic attack and she knew the two of them were avoiding each other.
‘We’ll be fine. It’s for the best,’ said Tamsyn, but the look in her eyes upset Daisy. She knew she had to do more to help her friend but tonight wasn’t the right time.
They soon had trays of small sampler gin and tonics on the counter and bowls of olives on the tables.
‘Ready?’ Daisy asked and received two firm nods in response. She took a deep breath and opened the door to a spontaneous round of applause and a couple of whistles. Jason shushed the crowd and Max confidently climbed a ladder up to the main sign on the old building.
‘Wow,’ said Daisy, pushing back her hair. ‘I am thrilled so many of you came tonight. Thank you. I just want to say that today wouldn’t be possible if it wasn’t for my Great Uncle Reg and we’ll be raising a toast to him inside.’
‘Hear, hear!’ shouted someone from the back. She wasn’t sure if it was in reference to Reg or the drinks.
‘Without further ado. I am very proud to welcome you all to opening night at …’ she left a little pause and she indicated to Max that now was the moment to pull off the sign’s plastic covering, which he did in a smooth motion at the same time as Daisy announced the name, ‘… Locos,’ she said proudly. Max grinned at her from atop the ladder and she beamed back as everyone clapped.
The rest of the evening was a blur of people and chatter. Daisy surprised herself with how knowledgeable she was about the different gins; she’d been swotting up for weeks now and interspersed with her tales of gin from her travels it had customers enthralled. There were lots of locals, in fact most of the town appeared at some point during the evening, and many stayed for the freebie and an additional drink, apart from Monty who only popped in for a few minutes. Daisy was pleased to see him and although he sniffed at her balloon glasses and shiny bar tops, he was rather taken with the train set and wished her every success, which was good of him and more than she had expected.
Ottercombe Bay – Part Three Page 4
