Page 8 of Bea's Book Wagon
‘Can I have time to get over my hangover first?’
‘Of course, I’m not a monster. I’ve got a good feeling about this, though, Bea, I really have.’
‘I wish I could say the same,’ replied Bea and, as she hung up the phone, she was pretty sure that the queasy sensation in her belly wasn’t entirely due to how much tequila she’d drunk last night…
* * *
When they pulled into the yard at Millcroft Stables later that day, Bea saw a woman she assumed must be Charlotte, in the courtyard, brushing down a handsome chestnut stallion.
‘I hope you’re right about this,’ Bea whispered to Jess as they got out of the car.
‘Hi, Jess!’ called Charlotte, looking up. ‘And you must be Bea,’ she said, striding across the yard towards them.
‘I am,’ said Bea, smiling nervously. ‘Thanks for finding time to see us today, I hope my message made sense.’
‘I’m guessing the horsebox was an impulse buy?’ said Charlotte.
‘Drunk buy, more like,’ said Jess.
‘Jess!’ said Bea, nudging her friend in the ribs.
‘It’s fine,’ said Charlotte, ‘it’s a lot of money, I totally understand that you’d want to see it in person. If it’s not right for you, I’ll cancel the sale, no problem.’
‘That’s really generous of you, thanks, Charlotte,’ said Bea, beaming at her.
‘Here’s Nathan,’ said Jess, gesturing towards the old Land Rover that was pulling into the yard.
‘Morning, all,’ said Nathan, brushing his floppy brown hair out of his eyes. ‘So, you’ve bought a horsebox, eh?’ he said, beaming broadly at Bea.
‘Why don’t I take you to see it? It’s in the back field,’ said Charlotte.
‘That would be great,’ said Bea. ‘Thank you.’
They followed a path through paddocks filled with horses swishing their tails and flicking their ears in the morning sun.
‘Aw, they’re gorgeous,’ said Bea, as she reached out to pat a pretty, grey mare who had poked her nose through the wooden fencing. ‘Are they all yours?’
‘Duchess is,’ said Charlotte, nodding towards the grey horse, ‘but most of the others are here on livery, only six… no, five, are my own,’ she continued, correcting herself.
‘I was sorry to hear about what happened to Apollo,’ said Jess, softly. ‘He was a gorgeous boy.’
Charlotte had lost her champion stallion last year in an accident on the road, and it had hit her hard.
‘Thanks, Jess,’ said Charlotte, forcing a half-smile. ‘I still miss him every day, but it’s getting easier. Here we are,’ she said, pointing to the next field, ‘that’s the horsebox.’
‘Great, thanks,’ said Bea, her heart sinking as they got closer.
This was what she’d spent her savings on? It was a wreck. The paintwork was cracked and peeling, there was moss growing out of its roof and rust around the wheel arches. It had most definitely seen better days.
‘It needs a bit of work,’ confirmed Charlotte, reading the look on Bea’s face. ‘It hasn’t been used for a while, so it’s just sat here gathering dust and moss by the looks of things, I’m afraid.’
‘Well, you did list it as vintage,’ said Bea, forcing a smile.
‘Let me open it up so you can have a look inside,’ said Charlotte, swinging open the doors and lowering the ramp.
‘It’s very roomy,’ said Jess, encouragingly.
‘It’s got a divider to take two horses, but you can remove that easily, depending on what you’re planning to use it for,’ said Charlotte.
