Chapter One
Lilly Tweed stood outside her shop, The Tea Emporium, in the small market town of Plumpton Mallet, with her hands on her hips and her head tilted as she surveyed with a critical eye the colourful display she had been tinkering with all morning. As usual, it comprised her bicycle with its sturdy wicker basket, but rather than the plethora of brightly coloured flowing plants she usually displayed throughout the spring and summer months, the imminent onset of autumn meant an entirely different aesthetic.
Now, the brightly coloured bicycle was surrounded with pumpkins and squash in various shades, ranging from pale cream to bright orange. The larger ones were positioned on the ground next to the front and rear wheels, while the smaller ones she'd stuffed inside the basket along with decorative leaves, dried flowers, and burlap.
"Yes, I think that will do nicely," she said with a nod, glancing at the window behind the display where Earl Grey, the former beat up old stray now official shop cat, was watching her movements with interest.
"What do you think, Earl?" she asked him through the glass. The cat, sensing the entertainment was over, gave her a grandiose look typical of felines everywhere, swished his tail and climbed back into his own basket. Moments later, with a paw over his nose, he was asleep. Lilly smiled. "I'll just assume you approve," she said, making her way back inside, only pausing to collect the post from the agony aunt box.
"Any letters today?" Stacey, her bubbly American assistant, asked.
"Just the one," she replied, opening it. It was from an elderly, housebound local woman who was looking for something that would relieve her gout. Her daughter-in-law had suggested tea might help, so she was writing to Lilly in the hope she could assist. She could. There were three teas she stocked, which could help lower uric acid levels. The first a Hibiscus blend, the second a green tea with a high antioxidant concentration, which would help reduce the joint inflammation and swelling. The third a cherry and nettle blend. She'd pack up some free samples of each and send them to her to try. Making her way behind the counter where Stacey was restocking the drawers of the apothecary cabinet with tea samples, she weighed them out.
The Tea Emporium was one of the oldest buildings in Plumpton Mallet and had been built originally as a chemist. Wanting to keep the decor as authentic as possible, Lilly now used the large, old oak cabinet to house her teas. With its myriad drawers with half moon brass handles, it was her favourite piece in the entire shop.
"Just the one letter?" Stacey said. "You haven't had very many this week compared to usual."
"Well, I suppose technically it's still summer. I think the letters will pick up again once the holiday season is over."
"So, you admit it's way too early to whip out the pumpkins?" Stacey asked, with an enormous grin splitting her face from ear to ear. She'd been teasing Lilly all morning about being the first business in the town to start with the autumn decor. Most of the other shops still had their summer displays up, and Stacey couldn't believe Lilly was already thinking about the latter part of the year. She'd explained to her boss that people in America didn't put up fall displays until summer was well and truly over, and even then it wasn't until October that the decorations were in full swing.
Lilly shrugged. "Well, here in Britain we celebrate the Harvest Festival toward the end of September. I'm just two or three weeks early, that's all."
Stacey frowned. "What's that?"
"It's giving thanks for successful harvests on the Sunday nearest to the harvest moon, the full moon closest to the autumn equinox. It's been going since pagan times, although obviously it didn't start in the churches that came in the late 1800s. Nowadays, the churches are decorated with baskets of fruit and food, and hymns sung and prayers said. It was a big thing when I was in school, that's why I remember the dates so clearly."
"Wow, sounds great. I didn't know about it."
"Also, I think planning this wedding has made me want a change of decor. The bride has chosen quite a few autumn colours."
Lilly had been asked to cater for a local wedding, and it delighted her to be helping. The catering would mean more customers for her and a chance for the business to branch out into larger events. She'd been going over her tea inventory and ordering speciality teas to go with the wedding theme for the last few weeks. So far, she'd chosen Orange Blossom White, Hibiscus Superflower and Raspberry Rose Hibiscus, as well as a more traditional red tea with cinnamon. She'd also designed special signature cocktails to be served in the teacups and saucers, the bride having chosen a vintage high tea theme for her nuptials. These included Rosemary Greyhound, Blackberry and Honeysuckle Spritz, Pink Gin Fizz, and Tipsy Hibiscus with Green Tea. Naturally, she and Stacey had had a lot of fun tasting and testing.
As things had progressed, the bride had asked Lilly to take on more and more of the planning and she'd accepted the role gladly. She'd become involved with both the table decorations and the flowers.
As Lilly and Stacey poured over various tea sets, Lilly intended to purchase as a wedding gift for the happy couple, Bethany Roman entered the shop, a large three-ring binder under her arm and a serious look on her face.
"Oh, boy," Stacey muttered, catching Lilly's eye and smirking. "Here we go …"
***
Lilly gave her a wink in reply, then plastered on a smile to greet their visitor.
"Good day, ladies," Bethany called out, strutting across the shop floor to greet them.
"Hello, Bethany. I see you have the wedding book with you." Lilly replied.
"And lunch. It's afternoon now, Lilly. I thought I'd save you the trouble of coming over." Bethany said, putting two take away bags on the counter.
"Oh, that's great. Thanks." Stacey said, grabbing a bag and peering inside.
"That's very kind of you," Lilly said.
Bethany was the owner of the local cafe where Stacey and Lilly regularly bought their lunch. It was only a few doors down from The Tea Emporium, and besides the food being top-notch and delicious, it was also reasonably priced. When Lilly was approached to do the catering for the wedding, she'd immediately thought of bringing Bethany on board, having received one of her fliers through The Tea Emporium door a couple of weeks prior advertising the catering side for various celebrations, and seen a beautiful wedding cake displayed in the window of her cafe. It was a job the woman was more than willing to do.
However, Lilly hadn't realised just how exacting Bethany would be with her planning. She was absolutely meticulous and had timed everything down to the last minute. The sections in her binder detailed every little thing. From the aperitifs to the appetisers. The exact time the wedding cake would be brought out and when it would be cut. It even included the step-by-step recipes for the cocktails Lilly had designed. Not only that, she had included drawings of where the food would be placed and who would serve what. The position of the flower vases and what blooms they would contain. She'd even noted the length the flower stems had to be trimmed to. Lilly thought the whole thing was over the top, and because of the very nature of people unlikely to proceed in such a regimented fashion, but she admired Bethany's attention to the fine detail.
"You have your lunch, Stacey," Lilly said. "I hadn't realised how late it was."
Stacey thanked them both, and with Earl in tow hoping for a scrap of whatever the delicious smelling bag contained, disappeared upstairs to her flat.
"Have a told you how much I like that American girl?" Bethany said, putting the large binder on the counter.
"I think you've mentioned it once or twice," Lilly replied, laughing. "And I agree wholeheartedly. It was a good day when she walked into my shop and asked for a job. Mind you, her autumn term will start soon, so you won't be seeing much of her after the wedding is over."
"Perhaps you should consider a second employee?"
"You're probably right. Let me know if you hear of anyone looking for a job, would you? Now, what have you got for me?"
Bethany opened to a page and tapped it with a pale pink varnished fingernail. "Yasemin has sent me an email. I've now got the final food menu from her," she said. "She's decided to scrap the whole idea of blending Turkish and English foods."
"Really? I thought she loved that idea?"
Lilly had wondered how Bethany had taken the news. She knew the woman had stayed up several nights planning the perfect combination of two distinct types of food, and had even brought samples over to Lilly, which she'd loved. She looked at the page Bethany was showing and found stunning examples of old, classic place settings and elaborate fancies. Whatever Yasemin wanted, she had full confidence in Bethany's ability to achieve it.
"She's decided to go with the full English vintage theme. Few of her family RSVP'd sadly. I think originally she wanted to both pay homage to her heritage and appease her family, but since hardly any of them are bothering to make the trip from Turkey, she's decided to stick with what she wanted in the first place."
"Well, good for her. A bride should have the wedding she wants and if she wants English vintage, then that's what we will do."
"From what I understand, it was her mother who was pressuring her for the Turkish element, but now she's not attending," Bethany said.
"Her own mother isn't coming?" Lilly asked in surprise.
"She said she came to the first one and that should have been it. She's not prepared to be present at this one," Bethany said, shaking her head. "Yasemin told me there's a strong feeling in her family about her remarrying."
"Ah, I forgot she was divorced. Isn't her ex-husband attending?"
"He is. He's good friends with the groom, apparently. I'm not sure how all the unique personalities and relationships work, but I understand the split was amicable."
"I'm divorced myself," Lilly said. "But amicable split or not, I can't imagine I'd ever want to invite my ex-husband to my second wedding."
"Well no, me neither, truth be told. But it's not really any of our business. What is our business is what these guests are going to be eating and drinking at this fabulous vintage wedding. I can't thank you and Stacey enough for bringing me on board, Lilly. Things have been a little slow at the cafe lately."
"Oh? I must say I'm surprised to hear that. Your food is superb. I'm astonished you don't have a queue of customers snaking around the market square every day," Lilly said. "Well, let's see what we can get done today. We've still got a lot of details to work out before the big day."
Bethany nodded and with a special vintage blend of tea Lilly made just for them, the two women rolled up their sleeves to continue with their plans.
Originally, Lilly had been hired for her teas, cocktails and finding a sub-contractor for the catering, but later the bride had asked if she could also take on the decorating. She'd agreed throwing herself into the research immediately and was enjoying the challenge immensely. The two women worked tirelessly for an hour while fortifying themselves with the food Bethany had brought.
"Right," Bethany said, shutting her folder. "I think that's all we can do for today. I have a cafe to get back to. Even though we're not too busy at the moment, there's always something that needs doing. We work well together, Lilly. This wedding should go off without a hitch. Well, apart from the main one," she laughed, waving goodbye and exiting the shop.
Stacey reappeared a moment later, Earl at her side. He looked at Lilly and gave a loud and demanding meow.
"Is that your way of telling me it's time to feed you, too, Mr Grey?"
"I'll do it. I think he's annoyed that he didn't get any of my sandwich." Stacey said, retreating to the back room kitchen and calling the cat, who bolted in her direction as soon as he heard the fridge door open.
They spent the rest of the afternoon assisting regular customers and tourists to choose the perfect tea for their various ailments or gifts for loved ones, and before Lilly knew, it was time to close. She moved the autumnal display from the bicycle to the window, and with Stacey already upstairs in her flat, put Earl, happily snuggled in his carrier, into the basket, locked the door and cycled home. Her mind a whirl of new ideas for the wedding.
Chapter Two
It was another day closer to the wedding, and Lilly was out and about in town with the bride-to-be, Yasemin Yildiz, doing some decor shopping.
"You're superb at this, Lilly," Yasemin said as the two women entered a nearby antique shop. Their arms already laden with bags from their day so far. Now they were trying to find the perfect table for the Bride and Groom's lover's seat at the reception.
"I'm glad you think so," Lilly said. "I enjoy it."
"I know this job wasn't what I originally hired you for, but Esen, my maid-of-honour, isn't flying in from Turkey until two days before the wedding, so I've been having to do most of the planning myself. It's been exhausting. Of course, Edmund's cousins have tried to help, but they are so busy."
"Do you know, I think I may have met your husband before," Lilly said. "He's a local man, isn't he?"
"From London actually, but he comes here often as he has a cousin in the area, Bruce. It is him who is letting us use his property for the ceremony and the reception. It's a beautiful old estate, and I fell in love with it the first time I visited with Edmund on holiday. I knew immediately it was where I wanted us to get married. You've probably met Edmund, though. He was the one who told me about your shop and I insisted we go immediately. You were away at the time, I think?"
"Yes, I was visiting friends on the coast."
Edmund, Yasemin's fiancé, was a property investor and from the little Lilly understood, travelled a lot with his business.
"How did the two of you meet? Was it through Edmund's job?" she asked, curious, as the two of them browsed through the antique furniture.
Yasemin covered her face.
"Oh, I so hate to tell this story, I get so many strange looks."
"Honestly, you don't have to tell me if you're not comfortable. But I certainly won't judge. I was just interested. In my former job as an agony aunt, I brought quite a few couples together. I like happy endings."
"My ex-husband introduced us. It sounds quite bizarre, I know, but there was nothing going on between Edmund and me when Mirac and I were married. You see, they were at university together and have remained good friends ever since. Edmund was interested in investing in a property that Mirac knew a lot about, so turned to him for advice. They arranged to meet and with nothing better for me to do that day, I came along with Mirac. You must understand, Mirac and I were practically divorced when he introduced us. He said we would make a charming couple. Very awkward at the time," she finished, blushing furiously.
"Mirac did? While the two of you were still married?" Lilly asked, astonished despite herself.
Yasemin nodded. "More or less. Mirac and I … well, we never actually wanted to get married in the first place. It wasn't an arranged marriage, but there was a lot of family pressure on both sides, as our parents were friends. Before we knew it, we were husband and wife, more to keep the peace than anything else, but we both came to regret it. We'd been talking about divorcing for some time before I met Edmund."
"So, you and Edmund hit it off and Mirac, what, just bowed out?" Lilly asked, then bit her lip, embarrassed. "I'm so sorry. That was far too nosy, wasn't it? You don't have to tell me anything else."
Yasemin smiled. "It's fine, honestly. No, that's not how it happened. I only met Edmund that one time. Then Mirac and I finally got divorced. About a year later, my mother and I planned a trip to London and Mirac kindly reached out to Edmund on our behalf. Edmund gave us a personal tour of the city and we stayed in touch after that. He visited Turkey a few times also to see Mirac. As Mirac and I socialise in the same circles, it was inevitable that we would meet, and we did so quite frequently. Eventually, I obtained a job in London and, as Edmund was the only person I knew there to begin with, we met up a few times. We got to know one another quite well after that and things progressed. Much to my mother's dismay, unfortunately. She was happy for him to be our guide during the holiday, but certainly nothing more. However, you can't choose who you fall in love with, can you? She'll come round eventually when she sees how happy we are. Especially if there are grandchildren involved."
"I'm happy things have worked out so well for you both," Lilly said. "And Mirac is attending the wedding?"
"Yes, he is Edmund's best man. It may sound strange to you, but we have a very good relationship. We are old family friends and have known each other since we were children. And of course he's close to Edmund."
Lilly noticed Yasemin brightened up every time she mentioned her fiancé. It was obvious she was very much in love with him. Lilly found she also had the utmost respect for Mirac. It wasn't every day you found an ex-husband who was strong or mature enough to let his wife go in order for her to find true love.
"I don't find it strange at all. I admire Mirac for being able to let you move forward with your life. You and Edmund became friends before being engaged, too. I think that's a good basis for a long and happy marriage, actually."
"Thank you, Lilly. I do too. Although Mirac and I were also friends, we were more like brother and sister. My love for Edmund is completely different."
"Oh, look at this table, Yasemin," Lilly said, winding her way through the floor of the shop to the far corner. It was a charming oblong shape in sturdy oak, with an intricate design of doves entwined with hearts and roses down the legs. It was the perfect size for the couple and Lilly loved it immediately. The price was well within their budget due to slight damage on the bottom of one of the legs, but Lilly knew she could easily repair it if Yasemin thought it was suitable.
"Oh, it's absolutely perfect," Yasemin breathed in delight. "And it will look beautiful in our home after the wedding is over. Let me just call Edmund's cousin. She insisted on making our personal place settings as a wedding gift. I just want to make sure the table size is right for what she has planned."
While Yasemin stepped aside to make her call, Lilly examined the table more closely. It really was a beautifully proportioned piece, and the carvings would coordinate with any place settings chosen.
While Lilly couldn't hear what was being said on the other end of the phone, she could suddenly make out an angry shrieking. There was also a very disappointed look on Yasemin's face.
"I know, Rachel … it's fine. Don't worry about it. I'm sure I can work something out myself," she said, ending the call.
"Oh, dear. What's happened?" Lilly asked.
"It's Rachel," Yasemin said, tearfully. "I'm under the distinct impression she doesn't like me very much. Apparently she's decided not to make the place settings any more. She's too busy."
Lilly really felt for the poor girl. It appeared as though one by one people were letting her down and she was having to plan her wedding on her own.
"She's one of Edmund's cousins?"
"One of many. She's come up from London early to help with the wedding. Although I don't think she's actually done anything except keep Edmund unnecessarily busy. A part of me wonders if she's just come to Plumpton Mallet to make things difficult." Yasemin sighed. "I'm sorry, that sounds very petty, doesn't it? I'm sure she means well …"
Lilly could tell the girl was getting more and more distressed. With the disappointments so far, she needed someone in her corner and Lilly was more than happy to lend a hand.
"I have plenty of place settings at my shop, Yasemin. I'm sure I'll have something that will be perfect for the two of you and will compliment the settings for the rest of the guests."
Yasemin smiled brightly and breathed a huge sigh of relief.
"Really? Thank you so much, Lilly. You're a life saver."
Lilly nodded, wondering why Edmund's cousin had suddenly changed her mind. It was one thing to be busy with family or work, but according to Yasemin, Rachel had travelled up from London specifically to assist with the planning. What had happened to make her back out so late in the day?
"Since you're using my place settings, you can get this table. I know it will all look very elegant together. I'll ask them to deliver it to the shop and I'll mend it in time for your special day."
"Oh, thank you so much, Lilly," Yasemin said.
Lilly knew the shop owner, and he said he'd ask his assistant to deliver it to Lilly later the same day. On the return journey to The Tea Emporium, the two women browsed a few more shops and found some other trinkets to use for decoration and Yasemin was thrilled. The phone call with Rachel seemingly forgotten.
***
Back at the shop, Lilly showed her a selection of the place settings available. She had a personal favourite, but rather than making suggestions, she let Yasemin browse and pick the one that appealed to her the most.
"They're all wonderful, but I think this one is the best for the vintage theme and to go with the rest of the table settings."
She'd chosen a plain white with an ornate gold filigree design around the rim. It was the ideal accompaniment to the plain white with single gold lined rim that was being used for the rest of the guests.
"That's the one I would have chosen myself," Lilly said. "And I have everything you need in stock, so there's no need to order anything. In terms of silverware, what do you think of these?" She showed Yasemin a Victorian-era reproduction knife and fork with a stylised heart engraved on the handle.
"Oh, yes. These are exactly what I was looking for. Well done, Lilly."
With the settings chosen. Yasemin thanked Lilly for all her help and left with a noticeable spring in her step.
"Lilly," Stacey said, poking her head round the door of the storeroom. "There's a guy here with a table for you."
"Oh, excellent. It's for the wedding. Can you mind the shop while I deal with it?"
Ten minutes later, the table was in situ in Lilly's work space and Stacey was leaning against the storeroom door frame, where she could keep an eye on the shop and chat to Lilly at the same time.
"That's gorgeous. Needs a bit of work though."
"It does, but nothing a bit of wood filler and some acrylics can't fix. I was also thinking of applying some gold leaf to pick out a couple of the carved hearts. What do you think?"
"Great idea!" Stacey said, full of enthusiasm. "Can I help? I learned a bit from my mom, and what I don't know you can teach me."
"Of course. I'd be grateful for the help considering we've not got much time before the wedding day."
When the shop had closed for the day, Lilly and Stacey rolled up their sleeves and got to work. Once the wood filler was set hard, Stacey gently sanded it down while Lilly started on the gold leaf. Carefully painting size on the area to be covered, she waited until it was tacky then applied the thin sheets of faux gold leaf, rubbing it with a soft cloth so it stuck, then gently brushing the excess away with a large artist brush into a waiting bowl.
With the filler now ready for painting, Lilly mixed several tubes of acrylic paint, making sure she had matching colours for both the base and the grain, then set about duplicating the patterns. By the time she had finished, you couldn't tell where the missing piece had been.
"That looks amazing," Stacey said. "You can't even see where it was broken, and the gold is perfect. It will look great with the tableware."
"All we need to do now is give it a polish with beeswax and it will be ready to move to the venue."
She sent Yasemin a quick text to tell her the table could be picked up in the morning, and received a reply almost immediately, telling her one of Edmund's cousins would be there. Lilly hoped this cousin would be more reliable than the previous one.
With the shop cleaned up ready for the next day, Lilly said goodbye to Stacey and Earl, who was going to spend the night upstairs in the flat with Stacey, locked up and walked down to Bethany's cafe. The door was locked, but she could see a light inside, so knocked and waited for her to open the door.
"Lilly, I didn't expect to see you again today. Is everything all right?"
"Everything's fine. Just a couple of updates for you. I thought I'd pop in and tell you on my way home. I'm also hoping you've got some of that vegetable quiche and Mediterranean pasta left? I'm too tired to cook."
"I have indeed. I'll pack it up for you while you tell me what's been happening."
Lilly brought Bethany up to date regarding the lover's table and new place settings. When she explained about Yasemin being let down at the last minute by one of Edmund's cousins, Bethany tutted and shook her head.
"Poor girl. Getting married is stressful enough without having to contend with inconsiderate relatives. The cousin sounds like a dreadful person. But I'm sure you and I can make sure everything goes to plan for them both."
Lilly agreed. It was the least they could do.