Trophy Life (27 page)
Authors: Elli Lewis
'Thanks mum,' Amy smiled, trying to stop herself from tearing up. After all, she still had her makeup to consider. She didn’t want mascara running down her face. Giselle would never approve of that.
The rain poured erratically, drumming loudly on the glass roof of the loft-style studio where Amy was perched on a stool, chatting to Pippa Gordon, journalist for
The Telegraph Magazine
. At certain points she had had to speak up when Pippa had been worried her recorder wouldn’t pick up her voice. She had heard all the questions before:
'What was your inspiration for the column?'
'What did it feel like when you were offered a book deal?'
'What is your advice for budding authors?'
She should be used to it by now. It had been almost five months since the book had been published.
'Thanks so much Amy, that was great,' the petite redhead said from across the coffee table, bouncing up. She reminded Amy of her nephew, Flynn - a bundle of energy so powerful she could probably spring from wall to wall. Around them, people with cameras and unidentifiable equipment of all shapes and sizes started packing up, chattering about how they were going to avoid getting soaked.
'Is that it?'
'Yes, all done. See? I promised you it would be painless. And our readers will love it.' Picking up her recorder and smiling at her, Pippa waited for Amy to stand before giving her a tight hug and a kiss on the cheek. Not an air kiss, but one that landed firmly on the skin. It was a bit intimate for her liking, but Amy was starting to get used to the slightly touchy feely world of features writers and photographers. This was her fifth interview and tiny Pippa was the sixth person – three had been journalists, three photographers - to take such a hands-on approach to saying goodbye. The instant familiarity was confusing, but just part of what she now did.
Amy still couldn’t believe that she was now a published author. She still stopped outside bookshops and looked at her name on the covers of books in the window. She and her family had started taking ridiculous selfies of themselves next to her book wherever they found a copy and sent them to the family’s What’s App group. Julia had just posted one recently on the tube, where she had convinced two strangers to hold up their copies with a thumbs up, mouths open in excited smiles.
It had all started when a journalist for the
Daily Mail
had raved about her blog,
Secret Life of an Accidental Aristo
. She had only been writing it for a year, but by then the daily audience numbers weren’t half bad and somehow it had crossed the desk of Jasper Finlay, features writer.
'Like The Devil Wears Prada meets Downton Abbey'
, his review had read.
Overnight, her respectably-sized audience had morphed into one of super-sized proportions. Having previously hidden her identity, it had been quite unsettling to be revealed as the author, but almost as soon as she had, the offers had started pouring in. Publishers and agents had loved Amy’s back story.
'The whirlwind romance, the aristo connections, the hunky Sir-Split-a-Lot,' one particularly enthusiastic agent had gushed, almost spilling her drink in the process. 'There’s so much to work with!'
Amy had thought that Harry would be angry upon discovering that she had penned something which was essentially based on her life with him. She had never named him specifically, but once everyone knew who she was, it didn’t take long for the link to be made. In fact, he and Binky seemed to have embraced the publicity, doing several interviews in which he told 'my side of the story', accompanied by photos of him looking thoughtful and determined while Binky gazed at him adoringly, hand protectively laid on his. They had done quite well out of the whole thing and it was widely rumoured that they were due to be the first couple to ever simultaneously appear on
Strictly Come Dancing
.
Giselle, still firmly a presence in Amy’s life, had confided that while Andrea had originally been delighted at the match, she was now fuming. It seemed that Harry’s new lady was far more controlling than she had ever been and had a firm grasp over his decisions. Gone were Lady Andrea’s daily hour-long calls with her son, no longer did she make the big choices in his life. That was now the remit of the soon-to-be second Mrs. Harry Green. Apparently the final straw had been Binky and her mother taking control of the wedding preparations, something Andrea considered to be her right. Giselle even thought she had heard Andrea mumbling something about missing 'the first one'.
As she got ready to leave, Amy saw Matilda, her agent, striding towards her.
'Well done, that was great. The photos are phenomenal,' Matilda said, hugging her. Tilly’s hug was a very welcome one. They had worked so closely and for so long on refining the rough work that her been her blog into a book that they had become good friends. 'They said it might even make the cover,' she whispered excitedly. Tilly was always excitable. She wasn’t the most experienced of the literary agents who had approached Amy in those early days, but she was the one who seemed the best to work with.
As Amy left the Covent Garden offices, she breathed in the spring air. She felt great, her hair and makeup perfect from the photo shoot, her confidence soaring from the high of the interview. Walking towards the tube station, she couldn’t resist a quick look at the market stalls.
The pedestrianised cobblestone area was abuzz with a combination of excited tourists pawing over guide books and maps, stylish staff from the surrounding media and retail offices and shops and the odd mum with a stroller. She felt like she belonged. She decided to enter the famous covered Apple Market with its glass roof and surrounding boutiques. There, trinkets and souvenirs mingled with arts and crafts items. Maybe she would get something for Giselle. She was just admiring a set of pretty bangles, considering whether her sister-in-law would ever wear them, when she stepped backwards and felt the undeniable squish of somebody’s foot under hers.
'Oh I’m so sorry,' she said as she turned. As she did so, she was mortified to find that the foot in question belonged to a little boy. He looked at her in slight surprise, but didn’t seem annoyed or hurt. She was about to apologise again when the words caught in her throat. Could it be? She had only met him once. And it had been a couple of years since she had seen him. He had grown so much. She could well be imagining it.
'Rupert?' She asked uncertainly, hopefully, all the while thinking that if this wasn’t him then this was the kind of thing that could get her arrested. Crazy lady harassing young child – fantastic.
It was then that an unmistakable voice spoke up. Just behind the little boy, breaking the soft din around them.
'Every time I see you, you’re up to no good.'
###
Thanks for reading my book. I really hope you enjoyed it and would love to hear your thoughts, so please leave a review.
From law she went on to found a successful copywriting agency, with clients including national newspapers and media brands, including the BBC. To date, Elli has written three novels, the first of which was published in early 2016.
Today, Elli lives in North London with her tired husband, two boisterous boys and a colossal Siberian cat. Her favourite pastimes are drinking coffee and sleeping, ideally at the same time.
Other Books by Elli Lewis
THE LOTTERY CLUB - Coming soon
THE ANTI-NATALS - Coming soon
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Trophy Life
. To find out more about my work, keep up to date with the latest releases and more, here are the ways you can keep in touch:
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