Page 64 of One Cornish Summer With You
Hattie would still be able to go to her birthday party onPorthmellow beach the following evening, and Tammy intended to do a surprise birthday message in the sand for when her friend arrived.
She shared the good news in a message to Ruan, having explained her absence first. He replied with aI’m glad Hattie is OK. Just going into a meeting with Hector. Speak later. x.
Tammy was about to send a kiss emoji when she was interrupted.
‘I hate to intrude but I was hoping to find out the price of these earrings?’
At the sound of the woman’s voice, Tammy’s head snapped up and she dropped her phone on the counter. ‘Yes. Sorry. Of course – has the ticket fallen off? I’ll find out for you.’
Despite her lapse in customer service, the woman bought the earrings, which Tammy gift wrapped while chatting about the jeweller’s inspiration for her designs.
She turned her phone on to silent and tried to avoid glancing at it too often, even though one of the messages from Lola said she’d seen Tammy’s sunrise featured on BBCSpotlight. The other was another from Ruan, confirming he was coming to Hattie’s birthday party.
Davey had been out all morning and she hadn’t seen him. He’d pushed a note – an actual note – under her door while she’d been asleep, saying he had a dentist’s appointment and errands in Penzance and would catch up with her later.
With no one else to hold the fort at the studio, Tammy had no choice but to close it briefly at lunchtime while sheheaded to the deli to grab a sandwich. She decided to eat it on the quieter side of the harbour and headed along the quayside to a tucked-away spot known only to locals.
That few minutes of peace, of watching the fishing boats return with their catch, the seagulls crying around them, was precious after the excitement and noise of the past few days. The gulls also reminded her of meeting Ruan and she chuckled to herself. If that seagull hadn’t swooped, would they have got together and be where they were now?
Mulling over the way fate could, occasionally, play a happy part in her life, she strolled back to the gallery, humming a tune from the festival.
Her smile faded as she spotted Sean standing by the front door, scrolling through his mobile. Her buoyant mood sank. The last thing she needed right now was a confrontation, but she had to reopen the shop.
He’d also seen her, so she strode confidently up to him.
‘Hey, Tammy,’ he said, shoving his phone in his jeans pocket.
‘Sean. Hi. What are you doing here?’
‘I used to come round here a lot if you remember,’ he said. ‘Do you have time for a chat?’
A ‘chat’? Sean didn’t do chats. He’d never been one for small talk.
‘Not really. I need to open up the gallery.’
‘A few minutes won’t matter, surely? You’re hardly fighting off customers.’
‘That’s because the place has a closed sign on the door,’ Tammy shot back.
‘OK, but … what I have to say won’t take long. It’s important.’
‘I don’t have time for this right now.’ Her weary tone echoed the way she felt.
Sean stared at her, his face set in a frown. ‘You look tired. Maybe you’ve been overdoing it?’
Her hackles rose at his tone, which had been edged with sarcasm. ‘I’m fine. I’m also busy.’ She turned away.
‘If you’re not going to ask me in, then I’ll have to say it here though I don’t want to deliver news like this out in the street.’
Tammy was stopped in her tracks and the hairs on her neck stood on end. ‘News like what? This had better not be a wind-up.’
He sighed heavily. ‘I wish it was a wind-up but it’s true. It’s about your new boyfriend.’
‘Oh no. I’m not doing this, Sean. Not now. Not ever.’ Tammy shook her head, furious with him for hijacking her at work. ‘If this is your way of trying to break us up, then don’t even think about it. I’m sorry about what happened between us, but it was for the best.’
‘I happen to think differently,’ Sean said. ‘But it’s not about us. It’s about him. Ryan.’
‘Ruan.’
