Page 50 of Cupcakes and Kisses in Micklewick Bay

THIRTY-TWO

FRIDAY

If Jasmine thought she’d been sleeping badly over recent weeks, then last night’s insomnia had reached a whole new level.

Max’s hurt expression had been the first thing she’d thought about as soon as she’d opened her eyes, sending regret prickling over her skin.

What the heck had made her lash out so cruelly?

And to Max, of all people. It was so unlike her, and worse, she hadn’t meant a word of it.

He’d occupied her thoughts all day, the pain in his eyes haunting her through her cleaning shift, and into the afternoon while she was working on the christening cake.

It hadn’t given her a moment’s peace, not that she thought she deserved it.

She’d called his mobile as soon as she’d dropped Zak and Chloe off at school, but each time it had rung out and gone to voicemail.

She’d eventually left a message, apologising and asking him to call back, but so far there’d been an agonising radio silence.

She told herself he was probably in meetings, or too busy to take calls, but deep down, Jasmine knew that he was avoiding her. And she couldn’t blame him.

By the time it came for her to get ready for her night out at the Jolly with her friends, she felt uncharacteristically glum.

She’d much rather hide under the duvet than slap a smile on her face and go out and enjoy herself.

She felt she didn’t deserve to have a nice time after what she’d said to Max.

The only good thing to come out of the day so far was that she’d been able to book an appointment to have a look around the Wilkinthorpe Road property that had caught her eye.

She’d been relieved to learn it was still available and hadn’t been snapped up straight away.

When seven o’clock arrived, it wasn’t Eloise, the sixteen-year-old babysitter, who was making her late for once, it was Connie Jamieson, the woman from Lingthorpe, who was supposed to have collected the christening cake an hour ago.

Jasmine supposed she could have left Eloise to do the handover, but she preferred to do it in person.

She liked to make sure her clients were happy with their order, and provide them with any instructions where necessary.

With an exasperated huff, Jasmine picked up her phone in readiness to call Connie, when a text pinged through from the woman in question, telling her she’d been held up and would collect the cake first thing in the morning.

‘Could’ve told me sooner,’ Jasmine muttered to herself as she fired off a reply in a more cheerful tone than she was feeling, saying that would be fine.

Since she’d already had a text from Florrie advising her she was running late, and would meet her down at the Jolly, Jasmine popped her head around the door of the living room where Zak and Chloe were laughing at something on the television, along with Eloise.

‘Right, I’m heading out now. Be good, monsters, and go to bed when Eloise tells you to, okay? ’

‘Yes, Mummy. Have a lovely time.’ Chloe ran over for a kiss; Jasmine knew better than to trouble her son for one, especially in front of Eloise. Though, seeing him looking so relaxed and happy made it good to know the kids hadn’t picked up on her internal anguish.

Jasmine headed across the bar of the Jolly, a sense of doom in her chest. As she expected, the pub was busy and she had to squeeze her way to the usual table, but even the lively chatter and the folk band’s toe-tapping tune failed to raise her spirits as it usually did as soon as she arrived.

And nor did the aroma of Mandy’s fish and chips have their usual effect, kick-starting her appetite.

She’d barely eaten all day, her insides were too churned up to face food.

She’d had to force down a couple of slices of toast before she left the house, not wanting her glass of wine to land on an empty stomach, but that had been as palatable as a sheet of sandpaper and had stuck in her throat.

‘Now then, Jazz.’ Maggie’s warm smile dropped as soon as she took in Jasmine’s lacklustre demeanour. ‘What’s up, flower?’

‘Oh, Jazz, what’s happened? Your aura’s not right.’ Lark smoothed a hand down Jasmine’s arm. ‘Is the essential oil blend not helping? I can give you something else if you like?’

‘I think my problems are a bit too big for your roller balls and pillow sprays, unfortunately, Lark,’ Jasmine said flatly.

‘I thought your appointment with old Cuthbert went well.’ Stella frowned as she poured a glass of Pinot Grigio and slid it across the table to Jasmine.

‘It’s not that – and you’re right, Stells, it did go well. As for the essential oil blend, Lark, I’ve pretty much used up all of the pillow mist and I carry the roller ball thingy everywhere.’

‘What have I missed?’ Florrie appeared, her face flushed with rushing as she slipped into the settle alongside Stella.

‘Nothing, our Jazz was just about to tell us why she’s got a face like a wet weekend,’ said Maggie.

‘Why, what’s happened?’ asked Florrie, looking closely at Jasmine.

‘Ugh!’ Jasmine put her head in her hands. ‘Where do I start?’

They all listened as Jasmine brought them up to date with everything that had gone on that week, including Max’s offer on her home and Edith’s bequest, but she’d struggled to look any of them in the eye as she told them of her outburst on Max.

Lark had gasped which had made Jasmine squirm and added to her guilt.

‘Oh, Jazz, that’s so not like you,’ Maggie said. She was wearing an expression of disbelief that tore at Jasmine’s insides.

‘Neither can I.’ She covered her face with her hands. ‘Believe me when I say I feel absolutely dreadful about it. If I could take those bloody awful words back, I would in a heartbeat. The look of hurt in his eyes has plagued me ever since I said those horrible things.’

‘Listen, flower, I think you’ve beaten yourself up enough.

You need to try to get hold of him again tomorrow, and if he still refuses to answer his phone or return your calls, then, if I were you, I’d go to his house, see him face to face and tell him how sorry you are, clear the air.

Once he sees you, he’ll be in no doubt that you mean it.

’ Stella always favoured a direct, no-nonsense approach.

‘You’ve been under a lot of stress recently, Jazz, running on adrenalin. Something was bound to give,’ Lark said soothingly.

‘Yeah, s’just a shame poor old Max was in the firing line and not someone like Scraggo,’ said Jasmine.

‘Now that would’ve been worth seeing.’ Florrie gave a wicked chuckle, setting them all off. Even Jasmine found herself laughing.

Jasmine was standing at the bar, waiting to order a bottle of wine, and doing her best to avoid being spotted by Ando Taylor. She’d noted he was having a noisy conversation with Lobster Harry and handful of other local fishermen and she was trying to keep out of his eye line.

She felt a tap on her shoulder and turned.

It took her a couple of seconds to realise that the pinched face looking back at her belonged to Sabrina.

She was looking effortlessly stylish again, wearing a linen halter-neck dress, and her hair fixed in a messy up-do, a pair of silver dangly earrings completing the look.

‘Sabrina, hi.’ Jasmine gave a hesitant smile, noting the look of hostility in the other woman’s eyes.

‘Have you got a minute?’ Sabrina made no attempt to return Jasmine’s smile.

‘Er, yeah.’ The last thing she needed to deal with was a jealous wannabe-girlfriend.

She followed Sabrina outside and over to the sea wall where it was quiet, just the sound of the waves rushing to the shore and a solitary seagull overhead, cawing as it headed towards the cliffs.

Stay focused! ‘Look, if you’ve brought me out here to warn me off Max, you’re wasting your time. I can tell you quite categorically that he’s not interested in me and I’m not interested in him. So he’s yours.’ Jasmine gave a defeated shrug just as the vintage streetlights flickered into life.

‘What?’ Sabrina looked at her as if she’d lost the plot.

‘Sorry if I’m speaking out of turn, or if you?—’

‘You think I’m interested in Max in that way?’ The breeze blew tendrils of hair across her face and she swept them away with her fingers.

‘Aren’t you?’ There’d been no doubting the side-eye Sabrina had treated Jasmine to on her visit to Max’s house.

‘ No !’ Sabrina shook her head so hard, her earrings jangled loudly. ‘I can’t believe you think I’d come to warn you off. Max is my boss, and though our relationship is relaxed, it’s purely professional. And not just that, but I’m engaged to someone else. We’re getting married next year.’

‘Oh.’ How could I have got it so wrong? ‘So what are you wanting to talk to me about, then?’

‘I wanted to tell you to treat Max with care. He hasn’t gone into a great deal of detail, but I do know he was really looking forward to catching up with you and your family after all this time.

And I could tell by the way he was when you called up at the house that he likes you.

A lot.’ Sabrina stopped talking as a couple walked by, waiting until they were out of earshot.

‘I’m not sure what’s happened between you, but he’s been distracted all day.

I haven’t seen him subdued like this before and I can’t help feeling it’s got something to do with you. ’

Guilt tore at Jasmine’s insides as Sabrina continued.

‘Max has a big heart and he’s just crying out for someone to love.

He’s a good guy, and one of the kindest, most generous people I’ve ever met and he deserves to find someone who’s his equal in that respect.

What I’m trying to say, is don’t hurt him, because if you do, I fear he’ll never trust again. ’

Not waiting for an answer, Sabrina flounced off back inside the Jolly, leaving Jasmine contemplating her words.

‘Where’ve you been, Jazz?’ asked Florrie, when Jasmine finally arrived back at the table, bottle of wine in hand.

‘I was beginning to think you’d taken Ando up on his offer of a walk back to his place for a couple of pickled eggs and a pint of gut rot,’ Stella said dryly.

The look Jasmine shot her made them all hoot with laughter.

‘I’ve been having a wild old time, with Max’s PA, who’s just treated me to a lecture about how I should treat Max.’

‘What? What gives her the right to speak like that to you?’ Maggie snatched up her glass of fizzy orange juice, looking put-out on Jasmine’s behalf. ‘And, more importantly, why is it any of her business?’

‘It wasn’t said nastily, more that she wanted to get her point across,’ Jasmine explained.

‘Sounds like she was overstepping the mark to me,’ said Stella.

‘Maybe she was a bit.’ But she’d given Jasmine pause for thought, which had galvanised her plans to speak to Max as soon as possible tomorrow.