Page 53 of Bea's Book Wagon
‘I can’t believe how much clearer the skies are out here than in the village. I don’t think I’ve ever seen them shine so bright.’
‘Me neither,’ Lochlan agreed.
‘Whoooaa,’ yelped Bea as she slid in another patch of mud.
‘Gotcha!’ said Lochlan, pulling her in close.
‘Thanks,’ she said, breathlessly, turning to face him.
‘You’re welcome,’ he murmured.
‘Good job you were here to catch me,’ Bea whispered.
‘I’ll always catch you,’ said Lochlan, kissing her softly on the mouth.
‘Good to know,’ Bea replied, sliding her arms around his neck and kissing him back.
In that moment, under a blanket of stars, Bea couldn’t think of anywhere she’d rather be than right here, with Lochlan by her side.
* * *
‘I can’t believe tomorrow’s the big day,’ said Jess, sipping a glass of red wine.
‘I know,’ said Bea, taking another handful of popcorn from a big bowl on the coffee table.
‘How are you feeling?’
‘About as anxious as you’d expect for someone who used all their savings to buy a second-hand horsebox.’
‘It might have been a bit impulsive, but you should be proud of yourself, Bea, you do know that, right?’
‘I guess so, but there’s so much that could go wrong. What if—’
‘Hey, just try to relax, you’ve done everything you can to launch the business. It’ll be great, I promise.’
‘I hope so.’
‘It will. The wagon looks amazing. Seriously, it’s better than those ones we saw on Pinterest!’
‘You think?’
‘Absolutely. It’s the little touches that make it feel really special. The lamp and all those framed prints on the walls are so cute,’ said Jess, smiling. ‘I love that one about magic… what does it say again?’
‘Books are a uniquely portable magic.’
‘Yes! Who said that?’
‘Stephen King.’
‘What? The horror guy?’ said Jess, surprised.
‘Uh-huh.’
‘Who’d have thought?’ Jess shrugged. ‘And the tote bags, pin badges and bookmarks are brilliant. I love the “I’d rather be at book club” one, it’s genius! They’re going to sell really well.’
‘Thank you, that means a lot, it really does,’ said Bea, swallowing hard.
‘You’re welcome,’ said Jess, squeezing her friend’s hand.
