Page 37 of Christmas at the Little Cornish Bakery

Lola was glad of a busy day as it gave her something to think about other than upsetting Alf.

Freya had covered the morning to mid-afternoon rush before bounding off to Bayview where she claimed she had a special project waiting.

The over-the-top wink left Lola in no doubt that it was something to do with her forthcoming birthday celebrations and for once, she was glad of one less thing to plan.

Clinging to Tristan’s reassurance that Alf would be OK, Lola’s heart sank the following morning when Alf didn’t show up at breakfast. Tristan gave her hand a squeeze but when the third morning rolled round without any sign of Alf, Lola asked Tristan what she should do.

‘I think you need to leave him be, let him come round himself. I’ll check on him on my way back,’ he said, kissing her forehead before he left.

At the end of another busy day, Lola wiped down the café and made a list of what to bake in the morning, then bundled herself up and headed home, determined to lose herself in her knitting.

Once home she turned on the fairy lights, followed by the radio, where gentle carols played.

Lola prepared herself for a night in finishing Scruff’s jumper.

She was just settling into her stiches when a knock came at the door.

Three purposeful raps that didn’t sound familiar.

Putting the jumper away, Lola made her way to the front door and unlocked it.

Alf stood there, bundled up against the cold, an anxious look on his face as if he wasn’t sure he should be there.

‘Alf? Are you OK?’ Lola almost sagged against the door frame in surprise. ‘Where’s Scruff?’

‘At home, snug in front of the fire. Are you going to let me in, it’s perishing out here?’

‘Of course.’ Lola stepped back to let him in and watched as he took in the interior of the house.

‘I like what you’ve done,’ he said, ‘you’ve made it very homely. These places were very basic back in the day, loads of us crammed in, not much privacy.’

‘Go through to the living room. Would you like a drink or anything?’

Alf shook his head as he settled himself into the chair. ‘No, I don’t need anything. I can’t be too long, you know, what with Scruff being home alone. He might get ideas.’

Lola laughed despite herself. This definitely seemed like an improvement from the other morning. She settled back on the sofa and waited for Alf to begin.

‘The thing is, Lola, I’ve been sitting at home these past couple of days thinking about what you asked me.

Yes, the past is an upsetting place to visit and mostly it should be left well alone.

But I’m almost ninety and I don’t know how much longer I have left and I’ve lived a lot longer than my brother Charlie did, God rest his soul.

Your questions got me thinking that maybe it’s not right to keep his story locked up in the past, that maybe you do have a right to know what happened, especially as it involves your grandmother. ’

Lola swallowed and nodded encouragingly, sensing she shouldn’t say anything lest she put Alf off his stride.

‘It was after the war, I see now that I was really only a boy, but I felt grown up. It was summer, these three young ladies turned up to stay in the village for their holidays. They seemed so glamorous and sophisticated, and I think all the village boys were half in love with them, much to the disgust of the village girls.’ Alf chuckled.

‘Charlie was older than me and I worshipped him. He was everything a boy could want in a brother. Kind, caring, had all the time in the world for me. Here, I’ve found a picture.

’ Alf held it out to Lola who reached across and took it.

Staring back at her was a black and white studio portrait of a handsome young man. Lola could see why her grandmother would have fallen for him. His face had natural charm, a strong jaw and despite the monochrome photo, she could tell his hair was thick and fair, his eyes light as the Cornish sea.

‘He was quite the handsome devil, wasn’t he?

’ Alf said as he took the photo back. ‘All the girls were in love with him. But it was Ruby who stole his heart. It’s a long time ago now, Lola, but I remember her being a lot of fun, very vibrant, very much like you in a way.

I hate to admit it, but I was jealous, not only of Charlie getting the girl, but of Ruby taking him away from me.

I was only a lad, remember, and Charlie was my role model.

I thought it was just a passing fad but after Ruby left, Charlie told me he was planning on saving as much money as he could so that they could set up home somewhere. ’

‘I’m not proud of how I reacted, Lola, I’m really not, but I was devastated.

How dare this woman turn up and turn Charlie’s head, convince him that there’s more to life than Cornwall?

Although I was all sullen, Charlie made sure he taught me all he knew in his last months so that when he left, he could pass the business over to me.

’ Alf grew silent as he reflected. ‘I got the business but not under any happy circumstances. You were at the memorial and you’ve read the letters so you know about the shipwreck. ’

Lola nodded.

‘There’s only the memorial, they never recovered the bodies.

Do you know what that’s like?’ He paused.

‘My poor mother never recovered. Charlie was the apple of her eye. Especially as we’d only lost my dad two years before.

My sister couldn’t face staying here so she moved and we lost contact.

Charlie dying meant any plans I may have had were put on the back-burner as I had to step up and run the business and help support the family.

Oh, Lola, you know I’ve had a long, happy life here, but I never got the chance to discover if there was anything else out there for me because Charlie put paid to that with his dreams of a life with Ruby.

He would never have gone out that night if it hadn’t been for the fact he was desperate to scrape together the last bit of money he needed to leave and one of the other lads had mentioned he’d heard a huge shoal was coming in.

’ Alf shook his head sadly. ‘Charlie was a bit of a daredevil, you know, I think it’s what the girls liked.

Anyway, they never came back. My mother cursed Ruby’s name because she’d managed to take her favourite son away and ruin the family. ’

‘Oh Alf!’ Lola gasped. ‘I had no idea. Ruby never said anything other than alluding to the fact she had a wonderful summer by the sea, and then always looked a bit sad about it afterwards. I had no idea she left all this destruction in her wake.’

‘She did write back, you know, after I told her about Charlie being lost at sea, despite me telling her not to. She asked to visit, to come to the funeral, but my mother didn’t want her here, so she never came.

Such a waste.’ Alf shook his head. ‘I do sometimes wonder what things would’ve been like had Charlie lived, but we’ll never know. Tell me, did Ruby have a good life?’

‘She had a wonderful life, she married my grandfather the following year, they had children, went on holidays and she taught me all I know about baking and reading palms,’ Lola said, acutely aware of the sadness attached to a life that went on, the full life Ruby lived whilst Charlie remained a memory to all those who loved him.

‘I’m so sorry about Charlie, he sounds like a good man, he must’ve been if my grandmother was willing to make a life with him.

I have her diary – she really enjoyed her time here, I can tell that, and I think her feelings were true.

I’m sorry if my curiosity brought you any pain, it wasn’t intentional. ’

‘I know it wasn’t, love, it has been good to reminisce. That was a glorious summer, it truly was, post war, everyone full of the joys of life. It’s small consolation but I know Charlie died happy. He carried her photo with him everywhere, you know.’

Tears pricked Lola’s eyes. ‘Don’t get me started, that’s the most adorable thing I’ve ever heard.’

Alf rolled his eyes and then reached into his shirt pocket, pulling out a pile of faded pink envelopes. ‘I want you to have these. I think you know who they’re from. The whole village did with that colour paper!’

The letters still smelled faintly of the perfume Ruby had sprayed on them and it struck Lola that she was holding a piece of her grandmother’s life that no one had ever known about.

Pastel pink evidence of Ruby as a lovesick girl writing to her charming fisherman boyfriend.

A young woman worlds away from the grandmother she’d known.

The writing on the envelopes was small, looped and girlish as Ruby had etched her dreams onto paper and sent them off into the world.

‘I think you were always meant to come here, Lola, serendipity or fate or whatever you want to call it, but it seems you were meant to come full circle.’ Alf pulled himself up.

‘I’m going to leave them with you to read at your leisure.

I have never read them so I don’t know what they say, but there is one thing I need to say to you.

I saw Ruby and Charlie lit from the inside with love, with promise, that’s why she came here.

But why are you here? Truly here? If you believe in all this mystic stuff, all this fate, destiny and tarot cards, then why are you here, and I don’t think it’s just to keep me in tea and scones in my old age, is it?

’ Alf said with a wink and when Lola went to get up, he stayed her with a hand on her shoulder.

‘I’ll let myself out. I’m here if you want to talk about anything.

In another life things would have been different, I might have been your uncle, fancy that! ’

Lola squeezed his hand back. ‘I rather think of you like a surrogate grandfather,’ she admitted in a choked voice. ‘Thank you for looking after me so well, Alf.’

‘Think nothing of it, I’m just hoping you’ll make me an extra-special cake for my birthday next spring. Three tiers, I think. Ninety, you know, got to celebrate with a bang. Now you just sit and read those letters and remember, if there’s one thing people seem to find in Polcarrow it’s love.’

‘But—’

‘Don’t fight it, Lola, and don’t keep Tristan waiting. Or any of us for that matter. I’ll see you in the morning.’

Lola listened as Alf let himself out, his words of advice and his tale of Ruby and Charlie settling around her.

She reached for her phone. There was only one person she wanted to share this with, but as her finger hovered over his number, Lola decided not to make to call.

She needed to read these letters alone. She picked up the top letter and pulled out the sheets, flowery with declarations of love and brimming with youthful hope.

One by one she read them, immersed herself in her grandmother’s love story, searching the words for guidance on her own.