Page 21 of New Beginnings on Railway Lane

They sat on the sofa with a quiz show on the television in the background as they sipped their tea and ate the biscuits from the packet that he had brought in from the kitchen.

Dinner had helped, but things still felt a little awkward, so Katy decided perhaps it was time to clear the air with Bob.

‘I’m sorry if I upset you yesterday,’ she finally said when the adverts came on.

Bob looked at her and attempted a smile. ‘It’s fine,’ he said, blowing out a long sigh. ‘I know that it’s me, not you. Well, that’s what Ryan says. I guess, everything has changed so much in so little time that I can’t face anything else being different.’

There was a short silence whilst Katy thought of something to say. She looked around the room and noted all the photographs and clutter. It was a family home of many years, she thought. There were even height chart marks long since faded next to the doorway for Ryan and Ethan when they had been growing up.

‘How long have you lived here?’ she asked.

Bob smiled to himself. ‘All of my life,’ he told her.

She was amazed. ‘Really?’

‘Oh yes,’ he said, nodding. ‘My dad lived here and worked at the station, as did his dad before him. We’ve survived everything here, even two world wars, and they’re not rid of us yet.’

It was a story of a family who had stuck together, a family who had built a longevity that mattered to them. A family with a long past and hopefully a future too. What did she know about that? Not much.

Bob looked at her. ‘You didn’t have one family home growing up?’ he asked, guessing the correct answer.

Katy shook her head. ‘Dad liked to move around a lot,’ she told him, her throat suddenly thick with emotion.

‘Shame,’ said Bob. ‘Although that suits some people, I guess. Everyone’s different, after all. But I grew up with the trains, you see. They’re in my blood. I associate my dad and grandad with them and that’s precious memories.’

‘What did you enjoy about the trains?’ she asked, suddenly curious.

He thought for a moment. ‘You’re taking care of people,’ he said after a short pause. ‘You’re helping them get to somewhere important. Family, work, celebrations. There was something magical about all those people filling up the waiting room, hearing their chatter as the train pulled in.’

‘And hopefully that will happen again if you get the steam train working?’ she asked.

He nodded enthusiastically. ‘Definitely!’ He looked at her. ‘You haven’t seen it yet, have you? It’s an absolute beauty. I’ll show you it tomorrow.’ Bob looked sad once more. ‘Fifteen years ago this winter the station closed. Broke my heart, to be honest. Place grew ever so quiet after that, especially once the boys had grown up.’

‘I’m sure.’

She felt charmed by the history of the station, she realised. A family who had lived there for so long, generation after generation. In that moment, she began to understand how unsettling yet more change could be for him. His wife had left and now the station needed to be slowly taken apart.

‘Listen,’ she told Bob. ‘We’ll take it easy with all the stuff downstairs, okay? I promise.’

He gave her a warm smile. ‘Thanks, love. I didn’t mean to overreact yesterday. Ryan keeps telling me I’ve got to let go of some things.’

‘But not everything,’ she replied.

‘Hopefully not.’

Katy had a thought. ‘It seems a shame that the village has grown so quiet,’ she said. ‘If the lavender fields were busy this summer and the spa still is, it sounds as if there’s a big enough customer base around here.’

Bob looked at her a little confused. ‘Customer base?’ he asked.

‘I just think that any new business in the village has a good chance to prosper as well as the lavender fields did,’ she told him.

Bob nodded thoughtfully. ‘Folks don’t have anywhere to gather, that’s the problem. It’s not like the summer, when everyone could lounge outside in the lavender fields. It’s too cold outside.’

Katy smiled slowly at him as her mind raced. ‘You know, I did see a fireplace in the waiting room this afternoon.’

‘Oh yes,’ said Bob. Suddenly, his eyebrows shot up and he laughed. ‘Now I understand!’

‘What about some kind of café or coffee shop?’ said Katy, thinking of the delicious croissants she had enjoyed earlier that day. ‘You can gain a licence from the council quite easily from what I understand. Especially if it’s a pop-up place that’s not permanent.’