Page 98 of All Wrapped Up
‘What has it explained?’ I asked and Ash pulled his gaze back to mine.
‘We’ll get into that another day,’ he said, scooping Pixie up again with his free hand. ‘Right now, we need to think about how we can quickly spread the word about AutumnEverything.’
‘Oh, that will be a breeze,’ I smiled. ‘I’ll just give Joanne the go-ahead to gossip.’
‘Fair enough.’ Ash nodded. ‘And that will leave you free to talk to Lizzie and Jemma about Callum, won’t it?’
‘Yes,’ I agreed. ‘Though that doesn’t feel like it’s going to be anywhere near as easy.’
Early Wednesday evening, Ash and I drove into town separately as he was on call, so I could talk to Lizzie and Jemma in the café once they’d both closed up for the day. Joanne had a conveniently scheduled call with Aiden, so it would be just the three of us. I wondered if she had yet broached the subject of not wanting to move to Germany with him, but that was something I could ask her another day.
I had the conversation with Lizzie and Jemma all planned out and, as well as sharing some of my past, I was going to let them know that they could give Joanne permission to talk about me being the person behind AutumnEverything, and that they could also share my identity, too.
‘Are you sure you don’t want me to hang around?’ Ash asked, once we’d parked up. ‘I don’t mind.’
‘No,’ I told him. ‘I’d rather do this on my own, but I appreciate you offering. I’ll walk over to the pub and meet you there when we’ve finished talking.’
‘All right,’ he said, taking my hand and giving it a squeeze. ‘I’ll see you there. And remember, Clemmie, this is your rodeo.’ I smiled at that. ‘You can say as much or as little as you want to.’
‘As long as I say something, now that I’ve made up my mind to.’
‘Exactly.’
Lizzie and Jemma were waiting for me as previously arranged and Jemma had set out almost a complete afternoon tea for us to feast on while we talked. It was a pity I had no appetite.
‘Are you sure you wouldn’t like one of these little apple and cinnamon pastries?’ she offered, while Lizzie poured us all tea.
‘They’re so moreish,’ Lizzie confessed. ‘I can eat at least a dozen in a single sitting.’
‘She can,’ Jemma agreed, popping one in her own mouth and picking up another.
She’d clearly forgiven Lizzie for not saying anything about Rowan Cottage being the backdrop for AutumnEverything and that I was the face behind it, which was a relief.
‘They do look wonderful,’ I said as my tummy turned over. ‘Perhaps I’ll have one in a minute.’
‘If there’s any left,’ Lizzie laughed, picking up three. ‘Now come on, have you, by any chance, come to tell us that we can share the news that you’re the person behind Autumn Everything ahead of Friday?’
I picked up a paper napkin and laid it on my lap.
‘I have actually,’ I told her. ‘And so can Joanne. I know you’ve got some customers who follow the account because it came up in the workshop I helped you with, didn’t it?’
‘Yes.’ Lizzie nodded. ‘It did and I was already thinking they’d be the perfect people to find out first. We’ve still got a couple of days before the paper is published, so we can easily get the word out by then.’
‘And this way,’ Jemma grinned, ‘we can have our say on your behalf and justify why you haven’t used the account to promote the festival and what’s printed in the paper after that won’t come as a surprise to anyone.’
‘Oh,’ I said, with a rueful smile. ‘Some of it might.’
‘What do you mean?’ Lizzie asked, between mouthfuls.
I screwed the napkin up and held it tight in my hands. ‘Well,’ I began, ‘I know there’s a chance that this won’t be mentioned in the paper because it isn’t relevant, at least I’m hoping that’s the case, but I’ve decided that I’d like you both, as my friends, to know anyway.’
‘Go on,’ Lizzie said softly.
The change in her tone suggested that she’d picked up that I was poised to share something deep and meaningful, rather than something frivolous.
‘I was once married,’ I quickly carried on, getting straight down to it as I tried to ignore the painful lump which had already formed in my throat, ‘and my husband, Callum, was killed in a freak accident in the town we grew up in and still lived in.’
In perfect tandem the two friends gasped and their hands flew to cover their mouths. They didn’t say anything, but the sudden injection of deep shock into the room felt almost tangible.
