Page 41 of Welcome to Ero-TEA-Ca: We’re Open!

Harriet

P acing was good. Pacing helped stave off the nerves and resentment.

Pacing was going to wear a hole through Harriet’s shoes if she didn’t stop sometime soon.

She did stop now and then to stare at Cass, who leaned casually against Harriet’s parents’ front garden wall, waiting patiently.

Cass, who exuded confidence in the face of meeting Harriet’s family.

Diane owed her big time for this. She didn’t care if it was her sister’s birthday.

Forcing her to interact with Patsy and Ronald after she’d set clear boundaries was out of order, but Harriet couldn’t deny Diane this.

Not when her sister had supported her without question over the years.

Harriet would just have to suck it up and hope the Kirkwells were polite enough to her and Cass until they could make an escape.

“Okay, I’m ready!”

“Okay.” Cass didn’t move from her spot. Probably because Harriet was still pacing. Maybe one more minute.

“Will you get in here?” Kevin called from her parents’ door. “You look deranged.”

Shooting him her best Cass-inspired scowl, Harriet stepped up to her girlfriend and buried her head in Cass’s long hair. “Let’s go,” she moaned.

Cass squeezed her bum playfully before standing and taking Harriet’s hand. “It will be fine.”

“Why aren’t you nervous?” After Cass reacted so strongly about meeting Harriet’s friends, she was sure meeting the parents would send her running for the hills. Instead, Cass stood by her side as a pillar of strength, bolstering Harriet’s confidence in getting through the dinner.

“Because I know how to handle these kinds of people,” Cass replied easily.

It made sense, Harriet decided. She’d once joked Cass and the older Kirkwells would get on really well because they all shared a rather negative and ornery outlook on life.

But that was before Harriet got to know Cass.

Yes, she might be prickly regarding certain things, but she wasn’t a snob.

Deep down, Cass only cared what others thought of her on a surface level.

And even then, it was a trigger response.

With every passing day, she came a little further out of her shell.

The more relaxed her rules became, the less she gave a shit about society’s views on her.

It was kind of lovely to witness. Patsy and Ronald Kirkwell, on the other hand, were cemented in their snobbishness and disapproval of all things different .

They never bent, or even swayed, from their rigid outlook on life, even if that meant falling out with their kids.

Bolstered by Cass, Harriet walked them up the garden path.

“Before we go in, I just wanted you to know you look really hot.” She should’ve commented sooner.

Cass looked delicious in fitted black jeans and a ruby red T-shirt hidden away underneath a sport coat.

The high heels were a surprise, though, and one Harriet intended to explore later.

She liked casual Cass. No doubt she’d have dressed to the nines if Harriet hadn’t firmly told her the dinner was a relaxed affair.

Well, as relaxed as a dinner could be with her parents sitting at the table.

Smiling with a small blush, Cass leaned in and kissed Harriet just below her ear. It was a particularly sensitive spot, and one Cass knew would get her revved up.

“That’s mean.” Harriet mewled her response. Cass was also coming out of her shell where these little touches and caresses were concerned, especially in public.

“Just wanted to give you something to focus on,” Cass whispered in her ear before gently biting the lobe.

Kevin’s hand grabbing Harriet’s collar and yanking her through the door broke the spell.

“The quicker you get in here, the quicker we can go home,” he hissed.

Since her dramatic exit the last time Harriet had dinner with the family, Kevin had become especially salty, his carefree attitude waning with every acerbic comment their parents threw his way.

He’d clearly not realised how much shit Harriet had had thrown at her until she was out of the picture and all of Patsy and Ronald’s ire got directed his way.

Stripping off her jacket and taking Cass’s, Harriet hung them closest to the door. If they had to make a dash for it, she wanted their belongings in easy reach. Resolute to her fate, Harriet followed Kevin.

Diane stood up and greeted them with hugs. Mitchel, her husband, gave them a wave and looked equally pissed off to be there, too. The only bright side was getting hugs from her niblings.

As soon as the pleasant members of the family had been kissed and hugged, Harriet turned to her parents, who were sitting in their usual chairs with the TV on mute.

“Mum, Dad, I’d like you to meet Cassandra Beaufort, my girlfriend.”

Cass stepped forward and extended her hand. “Nice to meet you both.”

Ronald stood and shook her hand. Patsy took a little longer, her eyes assessing. If her intention was to intimidate, it failed, because Cass didn’t waver one bit and Harriet loved her for it.

“Cassandra, you own The Oxford Beanery, correct?” Ronald asked.

“Co-owner. I run it with my ex-wife.”

“You’re a divorcée?” Patsy shot.

“I am.”

“How old are you?”

“Mum!” Harriet wanted to scream. It’d taken her mother less than five minutes to start causing trouble. Harriet knew all too well how shitty her mother could be when she felt like it.

“I’m forty-one.”

“And you think it’s appropriate to be with someone a decade younger than you?” Patsy was a dog with a bone.

“If that person wants to be with me, then yes. I believe there’s a seven-year difference between yourself and Ronald.”

Harriet did a double take. How had Cass found that out? Not that she was upset about it—far from it—it was just a surprise, a happy one, because her mum looked like she was sucking a lemon. “Seven years isn’t so small either. But I’m sure you’ll agree, it’s about the couple rather than the number.”

“Drinks,” Diane announced, effectively ending the conversation. “Is wine okay, Cassandra?”

“Perfect. And please, call me Cass.”

“What’s it like running a café?” Robbie asked.

“It’s hard work but fulfilling.”

“Do you travel to find new coffee?” Robbie was seemingly enamoured. Harriet could understand. It seemed her favourite niece took after her aunt in more ways than one.

“I’ve travelled. My last venture was to South America.” Harriet saw a flash of discomfort. She knew Cass was still a tad miffed she’d missed out on purchasing the shop Harriet now owned because of that trip.

“Wow. I’d love to travel like that.”

“No reason you can’t.”

The rest of the family chatted away happily. Harriet gave Diane a gift certificate for Ero-Tea-Ca because it’s the only thing she could think of. Diane had everything and the money to buy whatever else she wanted.

It was only her parents who remained silent, even when they sat down to eat. Thank Christ, Diane had ordered food instead of making them all suffer through a bleak roast dinner.

They were half an hour into the meal when Harriet got a creeping sensation up her spine. Patsy was eying Cass closely, a hint of something glistening in her eye. Before Harriet figured it out, her mother gently cleared her throat.

“Cassandra, aren’t you the same person who sent in a complaint against Harriet’s…shop?” God, the woman could barely say the word. Harriet wanted to roll her eyes. So, this was her parents’ plan: to humiliate her.

“I did,” Cass replied with no trace of awkwardness.

“We can’t blame you,” Ronald interjected. “It’s unbecoming having a place like that on the high street. Did you ever get a response? Are they taking action?”

Harriet’s mouth dropped open. She was sitting right there, and her parents were…

Jesus, she couldn’t even articulate it. They were unbelievable.

Kevin and Diane must have agreed because they sat wide-eyed and slack-jawed.

Diane, the eldest who usually jumped in and smoothed things over, was gobsmacked, as were the rest of the table’s inhabitants.

“They are not, thank God.” Cass continued to eat.

“Oh, you’re not pursuing it?” Patsy enquired.

Chuckling, Cass placed her knife and fork down before wiping the corner of her mouth with a napkin.

“I most certainly am not. What sort of person would I be to actively hurt someone I care about? As her parents, you must understand that. I’d be a terrible woman for wanting to cause that kind of pain, and I’d be unsuitable to be Harriet’s partner.

I was misguided when we first met. I can also admit I was upset my plan to buy the shop hadn’t panned out as I wanted.

Unfortunately, Harriet took the brunt of it, and I’ll regret my behaviour for a long time to come.

Thankfully, Harriet is entirely wonderful and accepted my apology.

As for Ero-Tea-Ca being unbecoming of the high street, I’m happy to inform you, you’re wrong.

Ero-Tea-Ca has injected new life into the street.

We are getting more footfall. Other businesses are seeing an increase in sales because of the new clientele Harriet is attracting. ”

Harriet stared at Cass, dumbfounded.

“But that isn’t all. Harriet has created a safe space for a myriad of people. The community is benefitting in more than one way because of her and the teashop. You must be very proud. I know I am.”

Giving Patsy and Ronald a smile, Cass picked up her utensils and began eating again. The room was silent for several moments. Harriet couldn’t find the words for what Cass had just done.

It seemed Cass wasn’t finished, though. “Oh, I also forgot to mention she’s a finalist for the Best Shop Owners Award.”

Harriet’s eyes snapped to Cass. “I’m what?”

“Yes. It’s between you and The Bookworm. The winner will be announced…” Cass spied her watch. “Oh, in an hour. That’s exciting.”

“Harriet, that’s amazing!” Robbie screeched, jumping up from her seat and hugging her tightly.