Little Teashop of Horrors by Jane Lovering

Author:Jane Lovering
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: fiction, contemporary, romance
Publisher: Choc Lit
Published: 2018-03-29T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-Four

Josh

Amy sort of bundled me through to the cafe, like she was afraid I’d sit down and die if she didn’t keep me moving. Not far from the truth. Wanted to lie down, wanted it all to stop. Yeah, Amy was great, lovely, kind with the sort of smile that stops you, makes you look and then smile back like your mouth can’t help itself, but … Nothing more. Nothing more, not ever, not however much I wanted it, like this little switch in me that didn’t quite work, didn’t quite shut it all down, but might as well have.

Suppose the cafe was warm but I couldn’t tell. Julia was in there, chatting to some bloke, posh looking git who dressed a bit like Edmund, jacket with a jumper underneath and those twatty shoes all pointy and shiny. When she saw me she sort of slithered.

‘Really don’t feel well, Ames,’ she said and she couldn’t look at me. ‘Think I’ll be better taking the day off.’ I saw her grin and pass a bit of paper to the shoe bloke. ‘And after last night, you owe me.’

Still not looking at me, like she couldn’t. Like her eyes sort of slid off me.

‘Yes, I suppose I do.’ Amy shuffled me into a seat near the counter. ‘You go home, Jules and I’ll see you tomorrow.’ But her voice was kind of cold too.

Julia whispered something to the bloke and he gave her one of those smiles that blokes do when they think they’re on a promise. It made me start to shiver, and I realised that I’d been so cold my body had stopped moving completely. Then she went and he went and I think Amy put the ‘Closed’ sign up but I didn’t see her do it, she just went where I couldn’t see her for a bit, then came back with a pot of tea and a really big mug.

‘Sorry,’ she said, when I looked at it. ‘It’s one of those novelty ones we sell in the shop, but I didn’t think little bits of bone china were going to cut it today. You look as though you need to sit in a bucket of the stuff, actually.’ She poured and I felt the steam against my face, like ghosts of all those thoughts I’d had. ‘You’re looking a bit better already. Hang on.’ Then she went again and this time she came back with one of those white coats she wears to cook in. She sort of hung it around me. ‘There. That’ll help you warm up.’

I held onto that mug like it was nailing me to the room. Took a couple of sips of the tea, it was hot but I was cold, so I couldn’t feel how hot it was until it hit my throat. I knew Amy was sitting there opposite me, drinking out of a small cup, but she didn’t speak and I didn’t look at her, I had my eyes on the table top, looking at all the threads in the cloth, all interwoven and smooth.

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