Stamp- part Nine

Happy Wednesday everyone! After the excitement of The Next Big Thing I'm back on schedule with Stamp- sorry I made you wait two whole weeks for this!

 

So, Ben has finally put two and two together and come with Tim's lottery numbers. Is his hunch right? He doesn't have long before he finds out! Read on to find out what happens next...

Stamp

All day Wednesday, Ben was on edge. Tonight’s result meant more to him than Tim becoming a millionaire, as awesome as that would be. He hardly dared think it consciously, but a small flame of hope was burning inside him, threatening to engulf given the slightest encouragement. Hope that seeing Cassie again was a possibility or, given the stamps’ remarkable track-record so far, a certainty.

For the first time ever in his new job, he clock-watched. He was in the main office today, going over some paperwork with Jack for the international deal. His boss was going on holiday in a couple of weeks and he wanted everything to be ready before he left. Ben couldn’t stop his leg from bouncing up and down under the table, or stop his eyes flicking towards his watch every few minutes. Jack noticed his distracted mood and asked him, pointedly, if he was looking forward to going to China.

“What? Oh- yeah, yeah. Can’t wait.” Ben’s smile was tight with anticipation of that night but he tried to make it look genuine for Jack. He didn’t want Jack to think he wasn’t committed to finishing the deal. They’d both worked hard on it and it was going to make them both a lot of money.

Not as much as Tim’s going to win tonight… Ben’s leg started bouncing again and Jack glanced at him curiously. He silenced the errant thought and managed to get through the rest of the meeting giving his full attention to what Jack was saying.

When they’d finished the meeting, Jack handed Ben an envelope.

“Here are your tickets, and the flight and hotel details. A car will collect you at nine and there’ll be another waiting when you land in Beijing. Don’t lose these between now and next month.” Ben opened the envelope and peeked inside at his tickets to China. His eyes caught the date and a hot tingle ran over his body.

Departure date: 23/05/2013

This was it. It was happening. He was flying to Beijing on the date stamped onto his hand. This couldn’t be a coincidence. He thanked Jack and wished him a relaxing holiday before turning and almost running for the lift. When the doors shut and no one could see him, he punched the air in glee and let out a hiss of excitement. This would be the day he’d find Cassie, he just knew it!

 

Pop in next week to find out if Tim experiences a significant and life-changing event! See you then.