The Little Teashop of Broken Hearts: Meet The Regulars

Last week, I introduced the team behind Sweet Treat Teashop, so now it's time for a little intro to the regular customers:

Zoe & Imogen

Zoe and Imogen occupy the first shop on the little Kingsbury Road terrace. They run a gorgeous and sparkly craft supplies shop called Paper Roses, where they often run classes at the weekend and provide their clients with half-time Sweet Street treats.

The girls often pop into the teashop for a Friday treat. And a Monday treat, because Mondays suck and they need something to lift the start of a new week. Zoe's favourite treat is a banana smoothie while Imogen's favourite are chocolate mud cupcakes.

 The Florists

Marjorie, the florist from number 2 Kingsbury Road, is constantly on a diet. But rules are made to be broken and she often sneaks into Sweet Street for a snack. She will, however, try to incorporate her treat into her five-a-day; a cherry bakewell, carrot cake or blueberry muffin, for example. Her favourite treats - when she isn't being 'good' - are chocolate fudge cupcakes.

Robbie and Annette are Marjorie's assistants at the florists – as well as being her offspring – but Maddie suspects Robbie spends more time at Sweet Street than he does at the florists. His favourite treat is a banana milkshake, which he has almost daily, while his sister's favourite treats are raspberry cream cheese brownies.

 Nicky

Nicky goes by several names, depending on whose company she's in. She was named Nicole Seraphina Vickery at birth, but she is rarely given the full-name treatment (and then only be her parents and grandmother). To her family she is Nicole, to her clients she is Nico (of Nico's Hair & Beauty, which sounds better than Nicole's Hair & Beauty, apparently) and Nicky to her friends.

Nicky's hair and beauty salon is a couple of doors down from Sweet Street, making it a convenient (and all too tempting) place to pop in for a daily treat. Her favourite is black forest trifle.

When she isn't in the teashop or busy running the salon, Nicky can be found catching up with friends over a few drinks, dancing while under the influence of a few drinks or attending family gatherings (unfortunately there aren't enough drinks involved in this). Nicky is single and actively (and often desperately) seeking The One.

 The Builders

You might not expect to see a bunch of builders in a cute little teashop - but life is full of surprises. 'The Builders' consists of a core group of three - Owen, Connor and Little Jordan - plus any of their workmates they manage to talk into visiting for an afternoon pick-me-up.

Owen is the oldest of the three – and also the most boisterous. He likes to flirt with the ladies, especially Mags. Owen's favourite treats are cherry cola muffins. Little Jordan is - as you can probably guess by the name - the youngest of the builders. He's quite shy and reserved and often on the end of a ribbing from Owen and Connor. His favourite treat is American-style cheesecake.

The Builders have been working on a new nearby housing development and have been popping into the teashop most days for the past six weeks. They've almost become part of the furniture so it'll be a shame when their work is completed and they move onto pastures new.

 Birdie and Franklin

Birdie visits the teashop once a week for a treat after getting her hair done at Nico's Hair & Beauty. She semi-retired from teaching a couple of years ago and now takes on supply work to 'keep her mind ticking over'. She can't bear the thought of sitting at home with a blanket over her lap and only daytime telly to keep her occupied.

Birdie makes the walk into town with her French bulldog, Franklin. But, being a furry, four-legged friend, he has to wait outside the teashop. But he doesn't mind too much as Maddie always makes sure he gets a couple of (homemade) doggy biscuits.

 Birdie's favourite treat from the teashop is apple crumble with lashings of warm custard.

From fairy cakes to first dates!

Maddie Lamington’s dreams are crumbling around her. If she doesn’t come up with a plan to save her little teashop on Sweet Street soon, it might be too late…

So when she sees how the perfect apple crumble brings together her lonely father and faithful customer Birdie, inspiration strikes: she’ll set up a dating night involving all her sweetest bakes.

Luckily, seriously gorgeous Caleb is on hand to help sprinkle a little magic – and a lot of sugar! Could one night of scrumptious first dates fix Maddie’s heartbreak and save her beloved teashop, too?

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