The Cosy Christmas Teashop: Cakes, castles and wedding bells – the perfect feel good romance
‘Cakes, castles and oodles of charm: this book is huge fun and pure escapism’ Cathy BramleyFrom sleigh bells to wedding bells . . .After a rocky start, Ellie Hall baked her way into everyone’s hearts at Claverham Castle – even the miserly Lord Henry was won over – and the run-down teashop regained its old sparkle.Now Ellie has upgraded cupcakes for fairytale masterpieces as the proud caterer for an ever-growing list of weddings at the castle. The teashop team love baking to the tune of happy ever afters, but can they pull together when a certain bridezilla pushes them all to boiling point?Christmas is just around the corner, and a last minute booking threatens to snow the team under. Ellie and her hunky hubby Joe have their own Christmas dreams to chase, but they’re determined to pull through and give this special couple the winter wonderland wedding they deserve.Will Christmas at the Cosy Teashop be a showstopper to remember?
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HarperImpulse an imprint of
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First published in Great Britain by HarperImpulse 2016
Copyright © Caroline Roberts 2016
Cover design by Alexandra Allden © HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd 2016
Cover images © iStock.com (stairs and street light); Shutterstock.com (all other images)
Caroline Roberts asserts the moral right
to be identified as the author of this work.
A catalogue record for this book is
available from the British Library
This novel is entirely a work of fiction.
The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are
the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to
actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is
entirely coincidental.
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Source ISBN: 9780008212681
Ebook Edition © October 2016 ISBN: 9780008212674
Version 2017-10-28
For my home county of Northumberland – stunning scenery, wonderful people
Table of Contents
Five years ago, Ellie Hall arrived at the beautiful, yet slightly crumbling, Claverham Castle, with her ambitions of running her own teashop. Armed with only her hopes and dreams, her love of baking, and her late Nanna’s Be-Ro recipe book, she took on the teashop lease, leaving behind her close-knit family and dull insurance job. Starting her rollercoaster adventure, she learnt on her feet, making a whole host of new friends, as well as falling in love with the rather gorgeous estate manager, Joe.
A wedding, a fire, and the revelation of a family secret later, we return. Welcome to Ellie’s world. Welcome to the Cosy Teashop in the Castle …
‘There’s a coachload of fifty people due in twenty minutes.’
Ellie turned to see Joe smiling at her; he must have slipped quietly into the teashop kitchen.
‘You’re kidding.’ He was often teasing her, it might just be a wind-up. She’d hardly stopped today as it was. It had been a very busy August Bank Holiday Monday – the end of the school summer holidays. Good for the till, but tough on her feet. She felt like she’d been juggling all day; keeping up with the lunch orders, whizzing up a couple of extra lemon drizzle cakes in between, when it looked like they might run out, despite having baked lots of extra cakes and cookies all week in the build up to the weekend.
Joe was shaking his head, looking serious. ‘Nope … Deana’s just had a call from the driver. All good for business though.’
‘Right then, well I’d better get my skates on and see how we’re doing for cakes out in the teashop.’ Ellie wasn’t quite sure what she could rustle up in twenty minutes, but there might be something stored in the freezer. Cupcakes came to mind, she often kept a spare batch of vanilla ones just in case; she could ice them pretty fast if she needed.
‘You better had. But first …’ He came close, put his arms around her from behind and kissed the nape of her neck, just where the bare skin showed beneath her ponytail.
It sent a little quiver down her spine. ‘I haven’t got time, Joe. You can’t tell me that, and then expect a kissing session.’ She turned to face him, trying to look cross.
‘Why not?’ He smiled cheekily.
The smile that still got her. ‘Ah, okay then. Just one kiss. A short one.’
She pressed a pert kiss on his lips, and went to pull away. He pulled her closer, his arms around her. Kissed her again, warm and tender, and teasingly good.
She stepped back, reminding herself this was not the time or the place. ‘Doris’ll be marching in any moment. It’s not right. And, I’ve got far too much to do. Go.’ But she was grinning.
‘Okay, okay, I know where I’m not wanted. I should have let them all turn up on you without warning.’
He headed for the swing door.
‘Thanks,’ she finished.
He gave her a wink as he exited.
They’d been married for over three years now, meeting at her first ever interview for the lease on the Claverham Castle teashop. He was the estate manager, tall, with dark, slightly floppy-fringed hair – he had it cut a little shorter nowadays – and she was a rather naïve twenty-six-year-old, coming straight from her uninspiring insurance job in the city of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, armed only with her love of baking, her Nanna’s cookbook, and her teashop dream. Nanna’s slightly charred Be-Ro Recipe book still held pride of place on a shelf in the teashop’s kitchen – that was another story.
