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‘Well, Evan has to leave this afternoon. He’s heading back home to London for a couple of days before he goes to America again.’

‘So would tonight be okay?’ Maud suggested. ‘Or do you already have other plans?’

‘Tonight would be perfect.’ Holly smiled. ‘You can meet Hope.’

‘Hope?’

Holly shook her head. It was ridiculous to think that Maud hadn’t even learned about Hope, but then, when would she have done? They hadn’t kept in great contact.

‘Hope is my daughter,’ Holly said, unable to contain her smile. The look of glee transferred to Maud, whose eyes welled up with tears.

‘Oh, congratulations!’ She grabbed Holly’s hands and squeezed them tightly. ‘I’m so proud.’

She moved to Evan to take his hands in the same way, only he quickly moved them out of her reach.

‘Actually, Hope isn’t mine.’

Maud looked back at Holly, her eyebrows arched.

‘Like I said, there’s been a lot to talk about.’

Maud’s face relaxed into a smile. The type of smile Holly had almost forgotten she was capable of.

‘Well, dinner tonight sounds perfect, but if this fella is off in a bit, I should let you spend all the time you can together.’

21

Maud’s visit left Holly with a feeling of elation that only increased when Drey walked through the shop door an hour later. As was often the case, Drey was sporting a brand new look, that included a platinum-blonde bob and silvery eye makeup. Holly couldn’t remember the last time Drey had worked in the shop, and for a solid minute, the pair squeezed each other tightly and bounced up and down on the spot like they were both a pair of teenagers, despite the fact that Drey was now officially an adult.

‘Thank you. Thank you so much for helping,’ Holly said.

‘Are you serious? After all you’ve done for me? I’m fine to put in a few extra shifts.’

Holly released her friend and employee, and turned to Evan. ‘Evan, this is Drey. Drey, Evan.’

‘The incredibly attractive, overly generous, rich, American boyfriend with the villa in the south of France?’ Drey questioned, before turning to Holly. ‘You know I chat to Caroline, right?’

‘I will happily claim all of those titles, Drey.’ Evan grinned. ‘But just to check, you’re the bossy teenager who was practically running this place before Holly, right?’

‘Well, I’m no longer a teenager,’ Drey said. ‘But I did get myself arrested once and needed to call Holly for help.’

‘Sounds like an employee of the year, there.’

Drey turned to Holly, satisfied by the amount of banter she had put Evan through. ‘I like him,’ she said.

‘So do I,’ Holly replied. ‘Okay, Caroline is in the village if you need help. I’m just going to drive Evan to the train station. But if there’re any disasters?—’

‘I’ll pretend there weren’t, cover it all up and won’t let you know,’ Drey replied.

‘Perfect.’

With that, Holly and Evan left hand-in-hand.

‘So that’s it: Drey, Caroline, my dad, and Maud. You’ve met every single person involved in the sweet shop.’

‘And it’s so special. I can see why you’d never want to give it up. Never want to live anywhere else.’

There was something held in the silence at the end of his words. This was only the second time they had met, but she had fallen headfirst. Though what neither of them had thought about addressing was how long could a long-distance relationship last? It was impossible to know without trying, but even now, she was taking him to the station after only one evening together. It was enough to turn her stomach.