“You okay?”
The concern in Matthew’s voice brought me back down to earth.
“Yes, I’m fine,” I told him. “I just zoned out for a minute.”
“You definitely need to get out for a bit,” he said. “Go on. Get. The craft fayre’s in the town hall. I think you’ll love it. Gregory always used to spend loads of money there supporting local artisans. I swear he didn’t even want half the things he bought, but he said it was his duty to support the town.”
“I’ll make sure to take my purse,” I promised.
***
My uncle’s garage was heaven for any car afficionado. I wasn’t massively into cars, but even I recognized a Jaguar, BMW, Porsche, Tesla... But when I found my dream car tucked away at the back, I knew exactly what I wanted to drive, and now I was heading into town behind the wheel of a bright yellow classic Volkswagen Beetle. It ran as smoothly as a brand-new vehicle and I couldn’t stop grinning.
The town hall was signposted from the bridge, and it wasn’t long before I was pulling into a crowded car park, taking one of the final few spaces. It certainly looked like the craft fayre was as popular as Matthew told me.
As I walked in, I was greeted by a woman sitting behind a table taking entry fees.
“Oh my!” she exclaimed. “You must be Libby Fortune. You’re the spitting image of your dear uncle. Has anyone ever told you that?”
I started to shake my head, but she didn’t give me a chance to answer, coming out from her seat to give me a big hug.
“It’s so good to see you here. We were all ever so worried you weren’t going to come to the town. Time was starting to run out. The mountains were complaining.”
“Oookay...” I took out my purse to pay the fee, but the woman waved me off.
“Don’t be silly. Your money’s no good here. You go on in and have fun. Oh, and my name’s Beth. I run the haberdashery in town and do a little dressmaking on the side. You come see me next time you want a new outfit. I’ll whip you up something on the house.”
“I will,” I lied. Like I was going to be seen dead wearing a handmade collection of rags. I planned on heading into the city for regular shopping sprees as an antidote to the boredom of Lashire Bluff.
As I went into the main hall, one of the first people I saw was Rose sitting behind a stall with a number of empty cake stands. When I caught her eye, she smiled and waved at me.
“Looks like your cakes are as popular as Matthew told me,” I said. “I don’t know how you find the time, what with your work at the restaurant and up at the mansion.”
“It’s nothing.” Rose waved my words away. “When you love what you do, it’s easy to get it all done. I was hoping you’d come down to the fayre, so I’ve been saving my best cake for you. Here.”
She reached under the table and brought out a huge cake box. She flipped up the lid to reveal a frosted carrot cake.
“It was your uncle’s favourite,” she explained. “He always said he could never get enough of it. But if you can’t eat it all in one go, it’s very easy to freeze it down.” She winked at me.
She closed the box and handed it to me.
“How much?” I asked.
“Pfft!” Rose shook her head. “Nobody’s going to charge you today. We’re all just so happy to have the town’s Fortune back.”
“Yeah, Beth offered to make me an outfit for free,” I said.
“Really? You’re lucky! Beth’s won awards for her work. She used to be a successful fashion designer before she retired to the town. She was meant to be taking it easy, but Beth’s not the kind of person to sit around and do nothing all day, so she opened her shop and makes the occasional outfit for people she likes. Anything she makes for you will fit like a glove and flatter you in all the right places. I know Matthew would love seeing you in one of Beth’s creations.”
I blushed at the sound of his name.
“I knew it!” Rose squealed excitedly. “I knew you had a thing for him! Well if it helps, I know he feels the same way. He’s always talking about you, saying how much he enjoys spending time with you. It’s like the pair of you were destined to be together.”
“Mmmm.” I smiled noncommittally, feeling uncomfortable at the direction the conversation was going.
“Anyway, you should go and have a look at the rest of the stalls,” Rose told me. “I think you’ll be very impressed at the level of talent we have here.”
As I wandered round, I had to agree with Rose. There were a lot of beautiful things for sale and I saw plenty of things I wanted to buy. But, just like Rose and Beth, nobody would take any money from me, so I ended up loaded down with bags filled with hand crafted jewellery, printed silk scarves, and pretty ornaments. Any time I mentioned I liked something, the stall owner would insist on giving it to me, and when I stopped commenting, people picked out something to give to me. At last, I had to give in and accept that today I was like the Queen, enjoying my second birthday of the year.
When I’d worked my way round the main hall, I went out into a side room, which was just as crammed with artists and craftsmen. While this might not be my usual type of shopping spree, I discovered I was actually having fun.
The town hall was bigger than it looked on the outside, and I lost track of time browsing the stalls. But then I went through a door which took me away from the hustle and bustle of the
