Beach Walker: Chapter 19
Fame at Last
‘Picked this up on the way here,’ I said, slapping the newspaper on Leonard’s kitchen table. He shot me a mute enquiry.
‘Page five. Recognise anyone?’
As the coffee pot began to steam and snort, he opened the paper, scanned the short article and photo.
‘Who the hell’s Dr Leonard Boss?’
‘Not sure,’ I replied, ‘but he’s a good-looking fella.’
‘Not in the same league as this Gracie Davids sheila,’ he said, tapping the photo. ‘Glad to see the local journos are on the ball. Can’t beat ’em for accurate reporting.’
‘They meant well, bless their little cotton socks.’
‘Hmm.’ He made a face. Poured steaming hot coffee into chipped mugs.
‘Come on! A nice write-up, I thought. Though the way they put it isn’t quite right: “a surprisingly entertaining talk about kelp by Dr Leonard Boss and Gracie Davids.” It was your talk, not mine.’
‘Bullshit and you know it. We were a double act — as it turned out. And a good one.’
‘Well … thanks.’
‘Knew I was in trouble — soon as I saw the audience. Knew the level was all wrong … but I was stuck on the rails and couldn’t get off, until …’
