Page 21 of Secrets of the Eternal Flame

I was surprised by the relief that came with walking into my picturesque village. When I’d returned to Witchlight Cove I’d been filled with trepidation, but this time it was different. I knew I was welcome – to some of the residents at least. In the short time that I’d been back, I’d found my place in a way I’d never done in London.

Two weeks earlier I’d phoned and given notice on my flat in London. Now I needed to return to the city, fill Rosie Rustbucket to the brim with my possessions and drive her here, then Witchlight Cove would be my permanent address. It felt like a big step, a step that would bring me closer to Fraser, too, though I’d deny that if I was pressed to admit it.

‘What do you say we pop in and see how Sonny is doing and get ourselves a coffee?’ I said to Eva. Kaz had framed Sonny for Lorenz’s murder, but news of his innocence had circulated pretty quickly and I hoped his business hadn’t been too adversely affected by the whole sordid ordeal. He had enough misery to contend with.

As I walked to the coffee shop, I enjoyed the clear skies that were allowing the sun’s full force to blaze down on me. It felt like an ice-cream day rather than a coffee one, but I needed a caffeine hit. And I really did want to check on Sonny.

I turned the corner onto the high street and saw a massive queue snaking down the street. My fears had been unfounded: Sonny’s café – Insomnia Coffee, to give it its proper name – was absolutely rammed. Several people smiled at me as I joined the queue and I beamed back.

Helga and Volga, the witches who lived next door to me, gave me matching waves. The blue rinses had goneand instead they were both tinged Disney-evil green. I had only realised after I came back to the village that the ‘spinster’ women were in fact lesbians who were madly in love. Watching the way they looked at each other, I marvelled at how self-involved my teen self must have been not to recognise what they felt for each other.

Eva whined. ‘Don’t worry, we’ll go to the beach after this,’ I assured her. ‘You can have a swim and cool down. I might even join you.’

Her tail beat wildly in approval. Thoughts of swimming instantly took me back to Fraser, naked, coming out of the sea. Would he ever skinny dip with me? He had a private jetty in front of his house and it would be a real waste not to do a bit of skinny dipping together… That lovely daydream kept my brain happy as I queued.

After what felt like an age, I was finally close to the counter. The wait was worth it, and not simply because I was about to get my coffee, because Sonny’s eyes lit up the moment he saw me.

‘Beatrix Stonehaven!’ he said, before his face fell in an incredibly dramatic fashion. ‘Don’t tell me you queued! You did, didn’t you? You – my saviour – queued?’

Before I could reply, he raced around the counter and suffocated me in a strong hug not unlike one of Yanni’sbonebreakers. He seemed to have forgotten how strong he was. ‘Air,’ I wheezed.

‘Sorry!’ He released me and looked at me intently. ‘You never have to queue here, you hear me? You want something, you push in. I don’t care who’s waiting for their drinks – it could be the damned Prime Minister for all I care – you push past them.’

I didn’t tell him that I didn’t want to risk the wrath of the other customers; instead I examined him. ‘You look … good,’ I said, choosing my final word carefully. He’d lost a little weight and there were bags under his eyes, but he was clean shaven and his clothes had been ironed. Given that he’s lost the love of his life only weeks earlier, he could have looked a lot worse.

Sonny shrugged and offered me a faint smile that looked odd on his usually sour face. ‘It’s fair to say I’ve moped for a few weeks.’

‘Grieving isn’t moping,’ I corrected sharply.

‘No, perhaps not. But either way, last week Shady staged an intervention. He said that if losing Lorenz had taught me anything, it’s that life is precious and I shouldn’t waste a second. He’s right – Lorenz would have been furious if he’d seen the way I was acting. So I’m trying this instead, this…’ he grimaced ‘…happy approach.’

I grinned. ‘For what it’s worth, it suits you.’

He beamed back. It was odd not to see his fangs on display. With most vampires they emerge when they are angry or hungry and, due to his grumpy disposition, Sonny’s had almost always been on display. Seeing him now with normal pearly whites was actually pretty unsettling.

‘So, what can I get you?’ he asked. ‘Anything you want, it’s on the house for the next year at least.’

‘You don’t have to do that,’ I said. ‘Shady sent me some money to say thanks for helping you.’ That was an understatement: Shady had sent me a very generous payment which meant that I’d been able to pay bills on my London flatandhere in Witchlight Cove. It had also helped fund the Scottish trip, though Fraser had quietly insisted on paying for virtually everything despite my protests.

‘I know, but I want to. It’s my way of saying thank you. So what do you want?’

It was kind of nice to see something hadn’t changed. A normal barista would ask ‘What can I get you?’ with a perky smile, but with Sonny it was always ‘What do you want?’ a shade aggressively as if he were about to start a fight.

I didn’t have to be asked twice. ‘I’d love a cappuccino, please.’

‘Just a cappuccino? Nothing else? I’ve got some lemon drizzle cake, almond croissants, baked cheesecake?’

‘A slice of cheesecake?’ I have a weakness when it comes to a good baked cheesecake.

Five minutes later, Sonny handed me a tray full of drinks and a massive bag that I was pretty sure contained an entire cheesecake rather than just a slice. ‘I did you a few spares, too. Take them down to those friends of yours at the station. They got the right answer in the end,’ he said grudgingly. ‘They work hard.’

‘Thank you,’ I said. ‘That’s very generous. But next time I come in, you have to let me pay.’

Sonny shook his head firmly. ‘A year, Stonehaven. And then we’ll see.’

No wonder there was a queue: poor Sonny was rushed off his feet without Kaz there to help him. I put the tray and my bag down and then did a quick whip around to collect the dirty crockery. After a brief hesitation I went into the kitchen, loaded them into the dishwasher and started it.

As I came out, Sonny looked at me gratefully. ‘You’re an angel. If I were straight, I’d knock boots with you.’

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