Pippa had asked the very question that was on Elle’s mind.
‘I managed a quick call with him today and he said he looked forward to the visit, and that he’s fond of this part of the world and Heartcross.’
‘Oh I bet he is,’ Pippa mouthed to Elle.
Elle didn’t trust herself to speak. She wanted to ask Aiden whether he had mentioned her at all in the conversation – but surely Aiden would have said something if he had, which led her to suspect that Noah had forgotten meeting her and their kiss.
Mim tapped the side of her mug with a spoon to bring the chatter under control. ‘It’s all happening in our little community of Heartcross – because that’s not the end of my news. But first we have a celebration.’
‘I’m not sure I can take any more surprises,’ Elle murmured, still trying to process that sooner rather than later her path would cross with Noah’s.
‘Do we have a date for the book signing?’ asked Isla. ‘I need to put it in my diary.’
‘We do, March the seventeenth.’
‘That gives us enough time to spruce up your appearance and groom those eyebrows of yours,’ teased Pippa.
‘What’s wrong with my eyebrows?’ Elle asked, alarmed.
‘Everything, but don’t worry, I’m going to be in charge of your destiny.’
‘Oh God,’ were the only words Elle could muster up.
‘Shhh, listen. Mim has more news.’
‘Before I share with you all some other exciting news I’d like to wish one of our longstanding members of the book club a very happy birthday for last Friday. Not only is she our chief librarian and always wearing a smile, but she is also a kind, heart-warming member of our community who goes out of her way to help others.’
Irene had sneaked to the back of the teashop and appeared holding a birthday cake. Eleni lit the candles and when Mim started singing ‘Happy Birthday’ to Elle, everyone joined in.
‘Thank you,’ exclaimed Elle, with her hands on her heart. ‘I wasn’t expecting this. What a fantastic cake.’ With a big puff Elle blew out all the candles at once.
‘Andnowwe have some news about Sam Stone, the man himself,’ Mim continued.
‘Exciting,’ said Isla from the other side of the room.
Mim held up a leaflet and wafted it in the air. ‘To all you aspiring authors out there, this is for you.’ She quickly circulated copies to everyone in the room.
‘It’s a writing competition,’ observed Irene, quickly scanning the leaflet.
The leaflet encouraged any aspiring writers to compose a short story about their life for a national magazine. Sam Stone was judging the competition and would present the winner with an award and a copy of the published story at a ceremony at Starcross Manor.
‘TheSam Stone is coming to Heartcross?’ Elle couldn’t quite believe what she was reading.
‘Gosh, it’s all happening tonight! Noah JonesandSam Stone in the village.’ Pippa looked over the leaflet then placed it on the table. ‘You couldn’t make it up,’ she said. ‘It’s times like this I wish I could write.’
‘This, again, will be brilliant publicity for the library,’ added Aiden. He stood up and with the leaflet in hand began to chat to Mim.
‘I’m just nipping to the bathroom,’ Pippa said before weaving her way through the tables and chairs.
As soon as Pippa was out of earshot, Irene tapped the leaflet and glanced at Elle. ‘What do you think about this?’
‘It’s an amazing opportunity for all those wannabe writers out there. I can’t believe the presentation is going to be at Starcross Manor. I can guarantee now that we all will be hanging around the entrance, hoping for a glimpse of him.’
‘I think you should give it a go,’ encouraged Irene.
Elle wasn’t sure whether she had just heard her correctly. ‘Me? Why would you even think of me? What have I got to write about?’ she asked, taking a sip of tea.
‘Your story is a fantastic one.’
