Page 25 of Cupcakes and Kisses in Micklewick Bay

FIFTEEN

FRIDAY

The rest of the week passed in a blur, with Jasmine spending any spare moment she had trawling the internet and checking shop windows and noticeboards in town for adverts in her search for a new home before they were due to leave Rosemary Terrace.

The only place that had seemed suitable, and not too far from where they were currently living, had apparently been snapped up a couple of hours before she’d rung to book a viewing.

It had been a struggle to hide her disappointment.

If the lack of suitable or affordable property was anything to go by, her house hunting was bound to take more than the couple of weeks she was hoping for.

Eager to help out, her parents had told her she and the kids could move in with them if necessary, but, as kind as the offer was, Jasmine would rather find somewhere of their own and get Zak and Chloe settled without having to go through the upheaval of packing up and moving home an extra time.

Plus, if they ended up at her parents, it would mean the children would have to share a room, which she doubted would go down well.

The potential for niggles and arguments wasn’t at all appealing, but at least her parents’ offer had taken the pressure off if she was unable to find somewhere to move to in time.

At Rosemary Terrace, Jasmine had taken the tiny box room, giving Chloe the bigger front bedroom while Zak had the room in the converted loft space, which he loved and referred to as his “man cave” which tickled Jasmine.

Since she only used her bedroom for sleeping and housing her small collection of clothes – which she kept on a tiny rail as there was insufficient room for a wardrobe – Jasmine reasoned she didn’t need much space.

But Zak and Chloe sometimes played in their rooms as well as having sleepovers with their friends, so it felt only right that they should have the more spacious bedrooms.

The Scragg situation at school seemed to have calmed down, for which she was inordinately relieved, especially since Chloe seemed so much happier and more like her cheerful self.

Zak had reverted to his boisterous ways, enthusing about his new friend Connor and his football-themed birthday party that coming Saturday.

It was one less thing to worry about. If only everything could be fixed so easily , she thought.

Stella had called round at Rosemary Terrace on Tuesday evening armed with a bunch of flowers for Jasmine and a tub of raspberry ripple ice cream for Zak and Chloe.

‘Oh, wow! They look amazing,’ she said, spotting the batch of gooey chocolate caramel cupcakes Jasmine had just finished in readiness for collection by the local knitting group. She’d decorated them with huge swirls of caramel buttercream and sprinkled them with miniature chocolate buttons.

‘There’s one going spare, if you fancy it?’

‘Are you kidding? Hand it over!’

In between chomping on her cupcake, Stella had offered more words of reassurance regarding the letter from the Forsters’ solicitors which had further calmed Jasmine’s concerns.

They’d both agreed that a response in the form of a letter from a legal firm would have greater impact than one sent directly from her.

It would show the Forsters she was taking their allegations seriously.

The conversation had naturally turned to Max, but since she’d seen nothing more of him since Monday evening, there was nothing new to share.

‘I reckon he’d have mentioned it if he wasn’t staying for long, or at least called at your parents’ house,’ Stella had said.

‘Yeah, that’s what I was thinking.’ In fact, Jasmine had found herself hoping that her old friend hadn’t left town and that she’d have the opportunity for a decent catch-up with him.

The following day, Jasmine made herself an appointment at Cuthbert, Asquith the crystals will be helping, too.’

‘Yeah, why d’you think our Lark here is always so Zen and chilled?’ Florrie chuckled.

‘It’s cos she douses herself in the stuff,’ Stella added dryly.

Jasmine couldn’t argue with that, though she held back from airing her doubts about the efficacy of the crystals, reluctant to hurt Lark’s feelings or offend her.

‘I’m looking forward to hearing all the deets of your trip to Danskelfe Castle and the meeting with Lady Caro,’ said Maggie. ‘Catch your breath first, though, Jazz, the night is young.’

‘Yep, grab yourself a mouthful of this.’ Stella passed her a glass of freshly poured Pinot Grigio.

‘Thanks, Stells.’ Jasmine took a sip then pressed the cold glass to her cheeks. ‘Ooh, bliss.’ She sighed.