The Unexpected Coincidence Read Free Page B

being in this shop made her feel better. Starting here
always made it easier to go from being alone to being surrounded by
people.
    “Amelia!” a
recognisable low voice called from near the door. She glanced in
the direction of the heckle and saw two of her friends standing in
the long line: James and David. They weren't too far back, but she
knew it would take her quite a few minutes to get to them. With a
grin, she tried to wave them over and start with them, but they
wouldn't move from their position. It wouldn't be fair of her to
give them preferential treatment, but she rarely let that stop her
if she thought it was the right thing to do.
    Instead, she had
to work her way through to them, signing, making small talk and
posing for photos until they were in front of her. James launched
himself at her and gave her a bear-hug so tight it squeezed what
little air her corseted waist-coat allowed into her lungs right
back out again. She chuckled as he put her back down onto her feet,
and his friend then repeated the same action.
    “We know you get
nervous about the first few days of signings, so we thought we'd
come be moral support. We're totally your biggest fans,” James
said, gushing the last sentence in an exaggerated manner.
    “We even have
books for you to sign.” David thrust a bag under her nose and
opened it so she could see two newly purchased copies of her most
recent release.
    “You know you guys
didn't have to buy them. I'd have given you signed copies if you'd
said you wanted them.”
    “But we're your
biggest fans, remember?” James winked. “We have to pay for
them.”
    She laughed and
hugged them both again.
    “How are you both
doing?” she asked as she took the books from them to sign.
    “You know us,
we're working hard.” David smiled “We've almost finished renovating
the house. We'll have a proper welcome party when you're back.”
    “You had better. I
want to see what you've both been up to for the last few
months.”
    A cough from off
to one side drew Amelia's attention from her friends. A guy in his
thirties, wearing a large coat and thick-rimmed glasses, was
looking expectantly at her. In his arms was what appeared to be
most of her twelve published books, with several of the more recent
ones in hardback. They looked heavy.
    Pretending that
nothing had caught her off stride, she grabbed her pen and scrawled
her name across the inside title page of the books in front of her
and passed them back to her friends.
    “I'll let you both
know when I'm back, and we'll go for drinks.”
    They nodded and
waved goodbye as they left the shop. Hoping she'd not annoyed the
geek who appeared to be her next fan, she gave him her warmest
smile.
    “Sorry about
keeping you waiting,” she said as she held out her hands for him to
pass her all the books. He hesitated and passed them to her so
awkwardly that their arms and hands tangled and the top book went
thudding to the floor, narrowly missing her toes.
    “Oh gosh, I'm so
sorry,” he said, turning red.
    “Don't worry, they
must have been heavy for you to hold for so long.”
    “And I'm sorry, I
didn't mean to hurry you with your friends. I... I have to get back
to my mother. She has multiple sclerosis. My brother's with her,
but I said I wouldn't be long.”
    Amelia nodded and
picked up the book that was on the floor for him. In his awkward
state he'd left it there, his hands wringing together in front of
him. She placed the whole pile on the table she'd been provided
with.
    “Well, why don't I
get these signed as swiftly as possible and then you can get back
to her? Are they yours or hers?” She pointed to the books when he
looked at her blankly.
    “Oh, they're
mine,” he said and grabbed one to open it to the right page for
her. “I like to read when she has her afternoon nap. Your books are
so exciting. I often imagine I'm Dalton.”
    Amelia almost
dropped the pen. The letter had mentioned the same character, and
this fan definitely looked