Page 32 of Daydreaming at the Boathouse Cafe

Hannah shrugged and glanced at Lily. ‘You’re the interior designer.’

‘And you’re the client,’ Lily told her, taking her by the shoulders. ‘We know you’re scared but we’ve got your back, remember?’

‘And your sides and front too,’ added Beth.

It was a familiar mantra between the four of them and helped ground some of Hannah’s nerves that she at least had her friends’ support.

‘You must have daydreamed a little about having your own café one day,’ said Lily. ‘So, close your eyes and how do you imagine it looking?’

‘Do I have to?’ asked Hannah.

‘We’re not going to push you in the lake, if that’s what you mean,’ said Ella, her eyes gleaming. ‘At least not yet.’

‘Very funny,’ said Lily, giving Ella a steely glare. ‘She needs to relax. Hannah, trust us. Close your eyes and tell us how it looks when you imagine it.’

Still a little uncomfortable, Hannah did as she was told. With her eyes closed, Hannah found at first it was hard to drown out all the negative noise in her head. But gradually she relaxed and suddenly there it was.

‘It’s not how it looks, it’s how it feels and sounds,’ she murmured.

‘Tell us,’ said Lily in a soft tone.

‘It’s warm,’ began Hannah. ‘The sun is flooding through the open doors. It’s bright and airy with the lake sparkling beyond the veranda. There’s little vases of wildflowers on each table that rustle in a gentle breeze. The silver teaspoons clink against bone china cups. There’s a ripple of “oohs” and “aahs” as the customers have a tray of decorated cakes delivered to each table.’

‘How does it smell?’ asked Lily softly.

‘Roasted coffee beans, tealeaves steeped in teapots and scones still warm from the oven,’ said Hannah.

‘And how does it look?’ murmured Lily.

‘Oak tables to match the beams. Turquoise chairs that really pop out with a bright colour. The rest is all cool blues and white. Bright and clean. Patterned plates and cups, plus cute teapots. A long bar on top of which are glass domes full of my cakes.’ Hannah stopped speaking and opened her eyes. ‘My cakes,’ she repeated, with a gulp.

‘In your very own café,’ said Lily with a smile. ‘I love the sound of the turquoise chairs. It sounds amazing.’

‘It does,’ said Ella, nodding her approval.

‘I’ll be first in the queue on opening day,’ said Beth.

‘No discounts,’ said Lily with a grin. ‘Listen, I’ll source the chairs. I know just the kind of thing that you mean. But I’ll show you before I order them so you can tell me how close I’ve got to the real thing.’

Hannah stood in silence, still coming to terms that the café she had just described might just come true.

‘It’s so exciting,’ said Beth, clapping her hands.

Lily nodded. ‘If it looks like you’ve just described it to us then it’ll be a huge success. And let’s hope so because we’re still not out of the woods profit-wise.’ She looked out across the lake. ‘Ben’s still trying to get some new paddleboards off Dodgy Del. We were hoping to use the lake this summer to try and bring some more guests in.’

‘That’s a great idea,’ said Ella. ‘Paddleboarding is huge right now.’

‘Anything on the water really,’ said Lily.

‘It’s lovely being out on the water,’ said Beth. ‘Don’t you remember when I spent three weeks in the Antarctic a couple of summers ago? Whales and penguins everywhere. So amazing.’

‘Not sure we’ll be able to rustle up any penguins around here,’ Hannah told her.

But Beth still had a dreamy look on her face. ‘The skies were amazing. So clear,’ she carried on. ‘And it was lovely to share it with someone.’ Her look suddenly darkened. ‘You know. Before he cheated on me.’

Ella shook her head. ‘If I’d have gotten hold of him, I’d have fed him to the polar bears.’

‘Me too,’ added Lily.