The Seafront Tea Rooms (34 page)

‘It’s fate,’ Kat said. ‘The buyers pulling out of Euan’s development – you inheriting that money from your great aunt. It was all meant to be.’

‘I still can’t believe I’m doing it. Starting up my own restaurant.’

‘It’s brilliant. I’m a bit envious, actually.’

‘You are? Well I have a sneaky suspicion we might find a way to get you on board, one way or another.’

Kat smiled.

‘Let’s stay in touch on that. I’m not going anywhere, that’s for sure. I’m pretty settled round here these days.’

‘You seem it,’ Charlie said, warmly, glancing pointedly in Adam’s direction.

‘He’s part of that, yes,’ Kat said. ‘But there’s Leo and my dad and… well, I’ve got more family here than I know what to do with.’

Charlie laughed.

‘But it’s perfect that I can stay here and still write for
Indulge
. I’m really enjoying it. The feature I did about the patisserie course in France was a treat to write. They’ve asked me to do a similar piece on a sorbet-making course for the next edition.’

‘Does that mean it’s goodbye to the call centre?’ Charlie asked.

‘Yes. Thank God,’ Kat said, laughing in relief. ‘I won’t miss that place. I’m doing a couple of shifts at the tea rooms to give us a steady income, then the writing as and when that happens. Jake’s also doing a lot more to help these days.’

‘How are things with him?’

‘Getting there,’ she said. ‘He’s had some counselling, which has helped I think, and the business is going well. There’ll always be a distance between us, but he’s regained my trust. He’s seeing Leo on his own now.’

‘That’s good.’

‘Yes. With one thing and another this year, Leo’s is getting pretty spoiled,’ Kat said, with a smile. ‘My flat looks like a toy shop.’

The band started up, and Carla took Séraphine’s hand, leading her to the dance floor for their first dance: Van Morrison’s ‘Moondance’.

They’d been practising the dance in Carla’s living room the past week, pulling back the rug and stepping barefoot on the flagstones, holding one another, sometimes serious, perfecting the movements, but usually laughing.

Here, surrounded by family and friends, it felt different. Magical. Something that only six months before, Séraphine could never have imagined. She drank in the cheers, the celebration of her new marriage, and then the sound seemed to fade. The only thing she was conscious of now was Carla. Her smile, the warm brown skin of her bare shoulders, the smell of her perfume. They held each other and danced, their bodies moving in harmony, effortlessly, to each note of the music. Together – the two of them. The way Séraphine hoped they would always be.

After the first dance had finished, and Séraphine and Carla had taken a playful bow to the crowd, the wedding band struck up a Supremes tune. Other guests joined the newlyweds on the dance floor, and it began to fill.

‘Join me?’ Euan asked Charlie, holding his hand out to her.

She smiled. ‘I think there’s a spot on my card.’

From the dinner table where they’d been seated, he led her on to the dance floor and brought her in close to him, running a hand over her hair.

‘It’s not too late to change your mind, you know,’ he said quietly.

Charlie pulled back and smiled.

‘Euan – I’ve accepted an offer on my flat, given in my notice at work, and I’ve taken on a new restaurant – that you’re building. So I think it probably is too late.’

‘Well, yes, when you put it that way,’ Euan said. ‘Please don’t back out.’

She laughed. ‘I won’t. I can’t wait to get started. I’ve been dreaming up menus for days now.’

‘But, in all seriousness, what I meant was, it’s not too late to change your mind about moving in with me.’ He looked her in the eye. ‘You said when I asked you the first time that you weren’t ready. I want to be sure that this time you are.’

‘I don’t know if I’ll ever be completely ready,’ she said. Thoughts had drifted into her mind as she’d shown potential buyers around her London flat. She didn’t want to lose her independence. She wasn’t sure if she could ever trust a man, even Euan, one hundred per cent. She’d settled into her own way of doing things. And yet, those doubts and worries had drifted out of her head as quickly as they’d come. ‘But I do know it’s what I want. In fact there’s nothing I want more.’

‘That’s good enough for me,’ he said.

He leaned in and there, on the dance floor, with a dozen other couples around them, they kissed – and the uncertainties that had been there for both of them since the day they’d met didn’t seem to matter any more.

Epilogue

Saturday 2 August

In the garden of the riverside chateau, surrounded by spring flowers, we tasted the raspberry and chocolate tarts that we’d made. After a week of studying at Madame Yvonne’s patisserie school, we were now reaping the rewards.
 

Adam smiled as he read the magazine on Kat’s sofa. ‘The course sounds amazing. How come you didn’t bring me anything back? I’m getting hungry reading about it.’

‘Those tarts would never have lasted the journey. Or any longer than five minutes with me and Letty, in fact. But don’t worry, it’s all in here —’ She pointed to her head. ‘I’ll make some for you and Zoe next weekend.’ She sat down next to him, curling her body in towards his. He put his arm around her and kissed her hair gently.

‘I suppose I can wait,’ he joked.

‘And as for where Séraphine lives, you’ll see that for yourself soon enough.’

They’d arranged to visit Séraphine and Carla in the early autumn, in their new house in Bordeaux. Zoe hadn’t stopped talking about the trip, and Leo hadn’t stopped talking about the aeroplane.

Séraphine had found a job at a language school in the city, and Carla was setting up a bakery nearby. Séraphine had told Kat at the wedding that she and Carla still went back to see her parents for Sunday lunch each week, but moving out of the village had given her some breathing space. Contrary to everyone’s expectations, Guillaume had been the one who had stayed on in the village, working at a bike repair shop and rehearsing with a new band.

Charlie and Euan had been invited to Bordeaux as well, but for the time being they were much too busy. Charlie had her hands full getting ready for the opening of The Dome, her new restaurant, and praying that the food critics would be kind. She’d been making changes to Euan’s flat, too, including – after finding her brand-new high heels in shreds – an outdoor kennel for Bagel.

Despite their schedules, Charlie and Kat made time to meet every Saturday afternoon at the Seafront – a sacred appointment that Euan and Adam knew to stay well away from. There, over scones, they’d talk, and that time was precious to both of them.

Kat got up and went to the kitchen to put the kettle on. As it boiled, she got milk from the fridge. Pinned to the fridge door, among recipes torn from magazines and Leo’s paintings, was a card with a photograph of a lavender field on the front. She took off the magnet holding it, and flipped it over.

Inside, in pretty, curled handwriting, was a message:

Kat,

Whether here in France, or at home in the tea rooms, you bring sunshine into my life. What you might not realise is that, one way or another, you always have.
 

Thank you for finding a way to forgive me.
 

Letty x

Kat brushed away a happy tear, and put the postcard back.

Hello,

I hope you enjoyed meeting Kat, Charlie, Letty and Séraphine in
The Seafront Tea Rooms
. All the women are passionate about baking, and it’s one of the things that brings them together. Here are some recipes for the cakes and treats that help shape their relationships, so that you can share them with your own friends and family.

Happy baking (and brewing!)

Love, Vanessa x

Letty’s Classic English Scones

Makes 12 scones

2.5 ml/½ tsp salt

40–50 g/1½–2 oz butter

150 ml/¼ pint of milk

225 g/8 oz self-raising flour, plus extra for dusting

5 ml/1 tsp cream of tartar

2.5 ml/½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

Oven: 425 ºF/220 ºC/Mark 7 for 12–15 minutes

You’ll also need: a pastry cutter with a diameter of about 5 cm; plenty of jam and clotted cream – plus friends to share these with!

Lightly butter a baking sheet.

Sift the flour, cream of tartar, bicarbonate of soda or baking soda and salt into a bowl together. Rub or cut in the butter, rubbing the mixture until it forms large crumbs with a flaky texture.

Mix in the milk and stir to form a soft dough.

Roll out to a thickness of around 1 cm and cut into rounds with your pastry cutter.

Arrange the scones on the baking sheet fairly close together, and dust them with flour.

Bake until they rise and turn golden.

Serve! These really are best when eaten warm from the oven with a good dollop of cream and jam.

Séraphine’s Magnificent Madeleines

Makes 24 madelines

100 g/4 oz unsalted butter, melted

Finely grated rind and juice of half a lemon

110 g/4 oz self-raising flour

2 eggs, separated

100 g/4 oz caster sugar

Oven: 375 ºF/190 ºC/Mark 5. Bake in the centre of the oven for 20 minutes.

You’ll also need two madeleine trays (or muffin tins/jam tart trays will work too)

Lightly butter the madeleine tins.

Beat the egg yolks and sugar until they are thoroughly mixed but still bright yellow.

Beat in the melted butter, lemon juice and rind.

Sift the flour over the surface and fold in.

Stir the egg whites with a fork, and then beat them well into the mixture.

Spoon a small amount of mixture into each mould and bake in the centre of the oven.

Cool slightly in the moulds before gently easing out on to wire racks to cool.

Enjoy them with a hot drink while they are still warm.

Charlie’s Deliciously Indulgent Florentines

Makes 12 Florentines

90 g/2½ oz butter

100 g/4 oz caster sugar

100 g/4 oz flaked almonds, chopped

50 g/2 oz sultanas

6 glace cherries, chopped

25 g/1 oz cut mixed peel

15 ml/1 tbsp single cream

175 g/6 oz plain chocolate

Oven: 350 ºF/180 ºC/Mark 4 for 10 minutes

You’ll also need: three baking sheets, parchment paper, palette knife/spatula.

Line your baking sheets with parchment paper.

Melt the butter in a large pan and stir in the sugar. Boil them together for one minute, then remove the pan from the heat.

Stir in the rest of the ingredients, except for the chocolate.

Drop small rounded heaps of the mixture on to the baking sheet, keeping them far apart, one in each corner, as they will spread quite a lot.

Bake until they are golden.

Using your palette knife or spatula, nudge the Florentines into their classic circular shape, then leave them to harden for five minutes.

Transfer them to a wire rack, taking care not to break them.

Leave them to cool.

Melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of boiling water.

Coat the flat side of each Florentine with chocolate, then trace a fork over it to make the distinctive wavy pattern.

Leave them to set.

Dive in!

Kat’s Perfect Afternoon Tea

Your brew

Choose your equipment carefully – a glazed china or earthenware teapot is best – and your tea even more so. A classic black tea from India or Ceylon, a Darjeeling or Assam, is a nice place to start, unblended so you can appreciate the flavour. If you are already a tea
aficionado
and fancy trying something different, then jasmine is a refreshing alternative, and some people enjoy the smoky flavours of Lapsang Souchong.

Setting the scene

A tiered cake stand makes the perfect centrepiece. Otherwise, use your best crockery and make it a little more special with lace doilies, folded napkins or personalised name plates – edible names piped on to gingerbread are a nice touch. Charity shops and car boot sales are great places to find reasonably priced chinaware – mismatched floral tea cups and saucers are ideal. Silver cake slices for serving lend a real sense of ceremony.

Soundtrack – music is a must for a memorable afternoon tea. For a 1920s, Gatsby-esque atmosphere, opt for jazz; or for a wartime feel, choose Frank Sinatra and Ella Fitzgerald tracks.

Most important of all, invite the best of friends – afternoon tea should be served with fine company and plenty of laughter.

Enjoy!

Acknowledgements

Thanks to Manpreet Grewal, my brilliant editor, for her ideas, inspiration and attention to detail at every stage. Also to my agents, Caroline Hardman and Joanna Swainson, for their invaluable advice and support.

I’m grateful to the team at Sphere for working with such determination and creativity to get this book out to readers. In particular, Thalia Proctor, Sian Wilson, Sarah Shea, Stephie Melrose and all the folk in Sales.

I couldn’t have written this without my mum, Sheelagh, who gave me space to write by looking after my son, and gave me useful feedback on the first draft. Thanks also to Susan, his other grandmother, for her friendship, and her kindness in sharing my novels in Chestnut Avenue and beyond.

To Caroline and Emma, fellow friends of books – and to Katharine, Lisa and all the girls. Thanks also to Miki, Elaine, Paula and Bee – for the laughter, no-holds-barred conversation and plentiful cake while we all got used to being mums.

Thanks to James for always being by my side. And finally to Finn, who, as I finished writing this book, learned how to turn a page. I’m sorry this one doesn’t have flaps or squeakers.