Page 76 of Bea's Book Wagon
‘My lips are sealed,’ Bea assured her.
* * *
As Bea rushed across the green towards the café, she couldn’t help thinking about the tough decision that lay ahead for Anya. She was lucky her parents were both still in good health, but she knew that would change one day. She couldn’t imagine her parents not being around for ever; the prospect was too awful to contemplate. Bea was so wrapped up in her thoughts that she didn’t notice the woman walking towards her, carrying a coffee in a takeaway cup until it was almost too late.
‘Oh god, sorry,’ said Bea, side-stepping at the last minute to try to avoid bumping into her.
‘Oh, shit,’ said the woman, looking up from her phone a second too late and crashing straight into Bea, her cup lurching up in the air, covering them both in hot liquid. ‘Oh no!’ screamed the woman. ‘Wow, that’s hot, are you okay?’ she asked, nudging her sunglasses down her nose to look at Bea. ‘That was totally my fault, I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going at all,’ she apologized.
‘It’s fine,’ said Bea, taking a tissue out of her bag and attempting to mop herself down.
‘It’s Bea, isn’t it? From the bookshop?’ the woman asked.
‘And you’re… Katerina, right? We met at the fête?’ Bea asked, recognizing her immediately.
‘Yeah, hello again,’ Katerina sighed, shaking out the dregs from the cup. ‘Pistachio latte, totally scrumptious, what a waste.’
‘Let me get you another. It’s from the Cosy Cat, right?’ Bea asked.
‘Oh, no. It was my fault, I should be getting you a coffee,’ Katerina insisted.
‘It’s no trouble, I work there part time. I was just about to start a shift actually. Seriously, it’s on the house, okay?’
‘Okay, well, thank you,’ said Katerina, pulling her sunglasses back down. ‘I was just going to go and watch the ducks for a bit.’
‘Well, you go and sit on the bench and I’ll bring you another coffee in a minute.’
‘If you’re sure? That would be great. Thank you.’
Bea hurried towards the Cosy Cat. She couldn’t quite believe her luck. Katerina, aka K. L. Fletcher, was back in Blossom Heath, and she was just about to get her a coffee. Should she confess to knowing who she was, or let her sit and have her coffee in peace? It must be exhausting being a celebrity, so Bea wasn’t surprised that Katerina preferred to be incognito, covering her face with those huge sunglasses and using only her initials as her official author name.
No, she wouldn’t say a thing, Katerina had told her she was here to write, to get some peace and quiet, and Bea wasn’t going to spoil that for her.
She’d just get the replacement coffee and take it out to her. That was it.
* * *
Katerina was sat quietly by the duck pond, watching the world go by, when Bea returned with a fresh pistachio latte.
‘Here you go,’ said Bea, handing her the takeaway cup.
‘Thanks,’ Katerina replied, smiling up at her. ‘Do you want to sit?’ she asked, patting the vacant space next to her.
‘Oh, okay, if you don’t mind?’ said Bea, sitting down.
‘It’s peaceful here, isn’t it?’ said Katerina, looking out over the pond as the ducks squabbled over stale breadcrumbs.
‘Yeah, it is,’ Bea agreed, pausing before adding bravely, ‘how’s the writing going?’
‘Ah, yes, I’d forgotten I told you that,’ Katerina admitted. ‘Let’s just say it’s not right now. I’m under a lot of pressure, which is just stifling my creative flow to be honest.’
‘I’m sorry to hear that,’ said Bea. ‘Your last book was so—’
Katerina froze, the cup paused halfway to her mouth. She turned to look at Bea and whispered, ‘You know who I am, don’t you?’
‘I think I do, yes. You’re K. L. Fletcher, aren’t you?’ Bea asked, cursing inwardly as she broke her promise to herself not to let on as to the author’s real identity.
‘Uh-huh,’ Katerina replied in a flat, monotone voice.
