The Second Chance Shoe Shop by Marcie Steele Page B

lucky enough to find a semi-detached house that boasted an extra-long rear garden, backing onto fields. Occasionally, the fields were used by the local school for sports days, but other than that it was peaceful. It had always been Ross’s dream to have a large garden, and he’d spent hours in it before he died.
    ‘The lawn needs a good trimming now,’ said Cooper. ‘Shall I pop over at the weekend and see to it?’
    ‘Thanks, that would be great. Will Sunday lunch do you as payment?’
    ‘I’m not sure yet. I might be going to watch the match. Can I get back to you on it? If not, I could come round early Sunday morning.’
    ‘Great, see you then. And you might want to make the most of it as Suzanne says Chandler’s needs to open on Sundays now, to keep up with the times.’
    ‘But I thought most of the shops on the High Street were still closed on Sundays.’
    ‘They are. In the main, it’s just the shopping centre that opens daily.’ Sadie sighed. ‘We’ll just have to eat later in the day, if I do a roast.’
    ‘I suppose. Is there anything you need?’
    ‘No, I think we’re good.’
    After they had said their goodbyes, Sadie switched on the television to catch up with the news. She smiled to herself, thinking back over the conversation. It was as if they were a couple in a long distance relationship and Cooper was phoning after a day at work. She was telling him about her day; he was telling her about his. She found it more comforting than he would ever know, and was dreading the day when another woman would take him away from both her and Esther.
    She checked to see if she had any new messages from Tanya but, again, there was nothing. She hoped she was out enjoying herself. That way, at least maybe one of them was doing something exciting.
    Footsteps padded down the stairs and a head popped around the door frame.
    ‘What are you doing out of bed again?’
    Sadie chose her most stern voice. This was the third night in a row that Esther had crept downstairs after she had been put to bed.
    ‘I need a drink, Mummy,’ she said, her voice full of sleep.
    ‘It’s too late, poppet.’ Sadie got to her feet.
    ‘Can I have a cuddle then, please?’
    ‘Just for a moment and then it’s back to bed.’
    Sadie tried not to show her smile. There was nothing she liked better than cuddling up to Esther, running a hand over her fine, brown hair and pulling her tiny frame close, even when she was supposed to be fast asleep in bed.
    And even if Esther was the only person whom Sadie could cuddle up to right now, she was the ideal solution for comfort anyway.

    R iley had gone straight to the gym after she had finished work, and was now at home. Even though she had run five miles on the treadmill, which usually allowed her mind to switch off from anything stressful, she still couldn’t relax. She rarely brought work home with her, but tonight was an exception. She grabbed a cushion and hugged it to her chest, hoisting her legs onto the settee.
    So far, despite their best intentions, the sale and the feature in the Hedworth News hadn’t brought in many more customers. There must be something they could do to stall the inevitable?
    Ash’s words from the night before came back to her. They’d been coming home on the bus together when Ash nudged Riley away from looking at her phone. ‘Why don’t you start up a campaign online?’ she’d suggested.
    Riley had frowned.
    ‘Well, we’re always on our phones. Twitter this, Facebook that. Why don’t you do something that will bring people into the shop?’
    ‘Like what?’ Riley looked on in exasperation. ‘The only thing I can think of is to walk around naked in the highest of heels.’
    ‘That would bring the wrong audience altogether!’ Ash giggled. ‘Can you imagine―’
    ‘It was a joke !’
    Riley picked up her iPad and scrolled through her Twitter feed. Maybe she should open a Twitter account for the shop − a Facebook page too. She’d asked if she