She Hates Me Not: A Richer in Love Romance by Greene F. E

Author:Greene, F. E. [Greene, F. E.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: F. E. Greene
Published: 2016-08-30T07:00:00+00:00

Chapter Fourteen

By 5:45 p.m., the café was remarkably tidy. Kip helped Moggie with the front of the house. Lou cleaned the back while Beryl prepped ingredients for the next day.

It was a never-ending cycle, Kip knew, that wove itself into the substance of life. Tasks became routines. Routines became rituals. And somehow in the midst of it, people remained connected to what made the work truly matter.

Lou had literally danced herself through the day. Now, as she scrubbed skillets and pots, she sang with the music which played twice as loud. She seemed more at ease than Kip had ever seen her. She glowed with joy and peace.

“Are you sure about this?”

Moggie’s serene voice tugged Kip from his daze. “About what?”

“Pursuing our Lou.”

“I am,” Kip confessed softly. “And growing more so by the minute.”

“Bit of advice?”

Welcoming it with a nod, he handed Moggie the dustpan and broom.

“Be patient with her. As patient as you can.”

Easier said than done, Kip thought – especially now that he knew Lou wasn’t hiding because she was a wallflower. The prospect of a public festival made her light up like a sunrise, and Kip couldn’t imagine a finer treat than to experience one alongside her. Lou was a bird who deserved to be free of her cage. Kip hoped he could help make it so.

Even though the skies were threatening rain, they chose a rambling route to Lou’s narrowboat. Exiting the court on Wood Street, they crossed its busy lanes before turning right. At the town’s central roundabout, Lou stopped in a pocket of unoccupied space outside a men’s clothing store.

“Are you still walking me home?” She raised her voice to be heard over the roar of a passing coach.

“As often as you’ll let me,” he replied.

When Lou offered her hand, Kip took it with euphoric relief. Precisely where he ought to be. The sureness of it made him lightheaded.

They strolled down the High Street which was lined with parked cars and swarming with pedestrians, many of whom were in a rush to reach the supermarket or pub. Interspersed between the modern shop fronts were half-timber buildings that harkened to Shakespeare’s era. Most tourists were gone for the day, back to London or the Cotswolds or Oxford.

When they reached the distinctive Garrick Inn, Lou pulled Kip to the left down Sheep Street. They were headed for the river now – a realization that made Kip shorten his strides and slow his steps. No need to rush what might not happen again for a while. This time tomorrow, he’d be in a car on the outskirts of London. The day after that seemed as dull and uncertain as the sky.

After darting across Waterside, they continued toward the Avon on a broad footpath paved with grey stone. Pigeons scavenged for bread crusts and chips beneath benches. A few hearty folks napped on patches of grass while others queued at the ice cream van. Summer happened in England no matter the weather.

As they approached the water, Kip glanced over his right shoulder at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre.

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