His mum had sighed. ‘That’s what you said when we all moved here from London.’
‘And that worked out for the best, didn’t it?’ his dad had replied, with a wink to his sons.
Back in the present, Josh’s sigh was remarkably similar to the one his mum had all those years ago.
In one way, it had worked out, moving the family out of London and into the village when Josh had been in his early teens. For a start, the pressure of modern life was well away from them, as well as the temptations that the bright lights of the city had also brought. His dad had remained clean of alcohol for the remainder of his life once they had moved to Cranbridge. He had embraced living in the country, taking the boys fishing and visiting the local pub for a Diet Coke. Best of all, he had taken up playing his guitar again. On a Sunday, when the shop was shut, he would sit on the veranda in the front and play. If Josh closed his eyes, he could still hear that sweet music.
The rest of the time, there was always music playing somewhere. On a radio or the record player. But the shop and the flat were quiet now. Too quiet.
With his dad gone and Pete having moved abroad to work, it felt as if the spark had gone out of their lives. And Josh couldn’t see how it was ever going to return.
He turned the key in the ignition and waited for the tractor to splutter to life. Once it had got going for only the briefest and loudest of moments, the engine cut out almost immediately.
He flung down the old rag he was holding in despair. The tractor needed a major overhaul, but he just couldn’t afford the expensive parts. It would cost hundreds, maybe even thousands, to get it going once more. Maybe that was the point. Maybe it should be left and sold for scrap. After all, it had been his dad’s dream, not his, to repair the tractor.
But getting rid of it would mean another piece of their lives going and he just couldn’t face any more heartache at the moment. All he could face was his pint of beer in the pub. So he shrugged on his leather jacket and wandered through the dark shop, bumping into various boxes as he went. If he got rid of the tractor then there would be more space for stock at the back of the shop. But what was the point without any customers?
Drawn to the light in the front of the shop, he realised that the fairy lights were still switched on in Amber’s window display. Intrigued, he went out through the front door and, after locking up, headed out into the lane before turning around to face the shop.
He was startled to see how different it appeared to normal. Rather than dark and somewhat uninviting, he had to admit that the windows were attractive, pretty even. They drew the eye in with their autumnal display. It was cosy without looking too twee.
She certainly had a gift. Of course, Amber was used to drawing in the crowds in fancy department stores in the city. Josh glanced around. As usual, there were no crowds in Cranbridge. Her window display would certainly appeal to anyone who was passing. The trouble was that nobody ever did.
Although the thought of losing the shop to bankruptcy upset him, he wasn’t perhaps as sad as he should be. It just felt like a terrible burden that he wanted to be rid of. He wanted his old life back. He wanted freedom to make his own decisions. But the thought of abandoning his mum and Grandma Tilly to face the music reaped by his dad was too much to bear. It would break their hearts to know that Todd had possibly bankrupted the shop and home that the family had kept for so many years.
He wanted his whole family to move on from the pain of the past. He just didn’t know whether saving the shop was a big enough deal to ensure their future happiness as well.
10
Amber woke up the following morning with a spring in her step.
Her jet lag had faded after another good night’s sleep and, wonder of wonders, the airline had sent her an email to say that her luggage had been found and would finally be arriving that day.
So she was feeling more cheerful than she had done since arriving in the village. Also, she had found that working on the windows of the shop the previous day had given her an incredible sense of satisfaction. Design had always been her favourite pastime and to make a career out of it had been a dream come true.
To her surprise, a greater joy had come from the couple of customers who actually came in the shop later that morning and commented on the window displays.
Yes, it was only Cranbridge, but still, she had never had feedback from actual real-life customers before. Hidden away in the depths of huge department stores, the only reviews she had ever received had been from her managers. And she had always felt they were barbed.
So she felt a small burst of confidence from the praise that she received.
Frank was particularly complimentary. ‘I spotted the new window when I headed past last night. It looks really super.’
‘Thank you,’ said Amber, blushing as she helped to pack his pint of milk into a bag. Cathy had gone to check on Grandma Tilly, so Amber had offered to help out in the shop as she had no other plans.
‘That should draw in a few more people anyway,’ he added to Josh, who was standing nearby.
‘Let’s hope so, eh?’ said Josh, fixing a smile on his face.
‘Speaking of new customers, have you heard the latest?’ carried on Frank. ‘As you know, I own the Cranbridge News. Well, the building they’re currently leasing for their offices has just been sold off to be converted into flats.’ He rolled his eyes. ‘As if we need any more of those. Anyway, I’ve leased the empty shop next door. It should work, I think.’
‘What was it before?’ asked Amber, trying to remember what Tilly had told her.
‘A haberdashery. Not that my editor Tom needs to know that,’ said Frank, laughing. ‘Anyway, it’ll be company for you all. There’s half a dozen staff coming, so at least we’ll start to get a bit of young life in the village, eh?’
But after he left, Amber thought Josh looked more depressed than before. ‘Not sure six people are going to make that much of a difference,’ he muttered, almost to himself.
It was as she had suspected. The shop was definitely in trouble. ‘Does your mum know how bad it is?’ she asked.
He shook his head. ‘Not really. If she’s guessed, then she really doesn’t want to know the truth. She’s had enough bad news these past two years.’
‘Was the business failing before you lost your dad?’ she asked.
Josh nodded. ‘You know what he was like. He wasn’t much of a businessman. He just liked buying stuff and chatting to the customers. When we had some, that is.’ Josh sighed. ‘I think I’ve just made everything worse these past two years.’
Amber frowned. ‘How?’
‘Because she’s unhappy,’ he told her.
Amber shook her head. ‘She’s unhappy because she lost her husband. You can’t do anything to change that.’
He looked at her with bleak eyes. ‘But I’m failing him too. I can’t save the shop.’
Amber felt so sad for him and looked around at the place, trying to think of something positive to say. ‘It’s still the prettiest shop I’ve ever seen,’ she told him. ‘Somewhere under all this stuff, I mean.’
‘That’s not enough,’ said Josh, his voice hoarse with emotion.
‘But it’s a start,’ she told him. ‘We’ll try and think of something, OK?’