Page 13 of The Beekeeper's Cottage
Judging by the expression on Bill’s face he had jumped to the entirely wrong conclusion. Grace cringed with embarrassment. Whatever must he think of her, or Amos for that matter…? Despite how he must have been feeling, Amos stood back politely so that Grace could pass, touching her arm to steady her as her legs wobbled slightly beneath her.
‘Great, well, I’ll get going then, Bill. Er…’ She stopped to look around her. ‘Not much to report, nothing out of the ordinary anyway. Although you might want to keep an eye on the cornflakes, not sure why but I’ve sold several boxes today. I’ll see you next week as usual.’
‘And you’re sure everything is all right?’
‘Yes, honestly. Just a bit of an upset, but I’ll be fine.’ She mustered a bright smile and moved out from behind the counter, straightening her hair.
‘Erm…’ It was Amos this time.
She turned back.
‘I gave you a print earlier,’ he said. ‘Is it still here?’
‘Oh, I put it back on display. I haven’t sold it so it should still be there.’
Amos smiled at Bill. ‘Then I’d like to buy it, please,’ he said, fishing in his pocket and pulling out a twenty-pound note. ‘That’s right, isn’t it?’
Grace nodded. ‘It’s a Daisy Doolittle,’ she said to Bill. ‘Do you want me to write it in the book?’
Bill rubbed a crease on his forehead. ‘No, no, I’ll sort it. You get off now, don’t worry…’
Amos gestured for Grace to lead the way. ‘I’ll pick it up on my way out,’ he said. ‘No need to wrap it.’
‘Right you are then. Well, bye, both of you…’
A minute later, to Grace’s huge relief, they were back outside in the fresh air, walking quickly down the path from the shop and into the lane. Grace waited until she reached the slight bend in the road before stopping, knowing that they were now out of sight. She turned to look at Amos, a step behind her, the print tucked loosely under his arm. What did she say? She’d been trying out several opening statements in her head as they marched away from the shop, but all of them seemed somehow forced and rather pompous. And then she noticed the slight twitch at the corner of Amos’s mouth and watched it grow until a sudden snort of laughter burst out from his lips.
The tension melted away and, before Grace could draw breath, she was gripped by an irresistible urge to join in.
‘Oh my God, stop!’ she managed, bent over, clutching at her sides in mirth. But she couldn’t stop, and neither could Amos. It was a few moments before either of them could straighten and look at one another without being claimed by a fresh wave of laughter.
She wiped the tears away from under her eyes, the irony of the action not lost on her.
‘Why are we even laughing?’ she said. ‘It’s not funny!’
‘It bloody is,’ replied Amos.
She was about to contradict him, and then she grinned instead. ‘You’re right, it is.’ She lifted her hair away from the back of her neck and let it fall back down around her shoulders. ‘Poor Bill; he obviously thought there was something going on between us, and poor you…’ she said. ‘I probably should apologise, again… I seem to be incredibly good at putting you in awkward positions.’
Amos gave her a sideways glance. ‘Would you believe I’m used to it?’
She thought for a moment. ‘I would actually.’ She began to walk again. ‘But I am sorry, both for giving Bill quite possibly the wrong idea about you, and also for crying like that. I’m not entirely sure what came over me.’
‘You shouldn’t apologise for your tears, Grace,’ replied Amos. ‘Whether they are shed in sorrow or in happiness, they should be welcomed.’
‘Really?’ She stared at him. ‘Only I have been led to believe that tears are only allowed out in the privacy of our own homes, and just as long as we touch up our makeup afterwards.’
Amos peered at her. ‘But you’re not wearing any makeup,’ he said. ‘Are you?’
Grace smiled and shook her head. ‘And I can only imagine what I look like…’ She sighed. ‘Sorry, I wasn’t fishing for compliments, but you’ve been very kind.’
‘I simply sat with you while you expressed the depth of emotion you were feeling. And that tells me much more about the kind of person you are than the kind you are not…’ He indicated the lane up ahead of them. ‘You don’t need to tell me anything more, Grace, not if you don’t want to, and you certainly don’t owe me an explanation. Whatever this is has affected you deeply and I just happened to be there at that particular moment. Some might say that’s an opportunity, rather than a misfortune.’
Grace touched a hand to the little crescent-moon earrings she wore. Did Amos know that was how she felt too, or was it just a lucky guess? Either way, it would seem as if Amoswasinvolved, however that had come about, and he certainly made her feel better, not worse.
‘Do you watch much television, Amos?’ she asked, hoping it wasn’t a rude question under the circumstances.
‘No, I can’t say that I do.’
