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Back A Place to Call Home Save as PDF
Chapters (62)
  1. Cover
  2. Dedication
  3. 1
  4. 2
  5. 3
  6. 4
  7. 5
  8. 6
  9. 7
  10. 8
  11. 9
  12. 10
  13. 11
  14. 12
  15. 13
  16. 14
  17. 15
  18. 16
  19. 17
  20. 18
  21. 19
  22. 20
  23. 21
  24. 22
  25. 23
  26. 24
  27. 25
  28. 26
  29. 27
  30. 28
  31. 29
  32. 30
  33. 31
  34. 32
  35. 33
  36. 34
  37. 35
  38. 36
  39. 37
  40. 38
  41. 39
  42. 40
  43. 41
  44. 42
  45. 43
  46. 44
  47. 45
  48. 46
  49. 47
  50. 48
  51. 49
  52. 50
  53. 51
  54. 52
  55. 53
  56. 54
  57. Epilogue
  58. Author’s Note
  59. Acknowledgments
  60. More from Fay Keenan
  61. About the Author
  62. About Boldwood Books

‘Okey-dokey,’ Helen said, not glancing up from her computer. ‘Have you got your phone on you in case I need to get hold of you urgently?’

‘Yup,’ Charlie replied.

Helen might be a lot younger than him, but she still sounded like his mother at times. It was only fair that she reminded him, though. He’d already left his phone in Jack Winter’s coffee shop on the High Street once, and been roundly bollocked by Tom Fielding for it. Although it was fingerprint-locked, he used it to check his emails, and so there was a fair bit of sensitive material on there. Things must have been simpler back in the old days, he thought, when all you had to worry about was the paper contents of your briefcase or ministerial red box and documents actually crinkled when you folded them, instead of flying off into the ether electronically.

Walking along Willowbury High Street, though, almost timeless in its abundance of weird and wonderful shop fronts, Charlie felt as though he had, at least, come to the right place to live. There was definitely something in the air, and not just the medicinal herbs.

14

‘You know when you say something in the heat of the moment and then spend the next fifteen hours regretting it?’ Holly said as she passed Rachel a glass of wine from the bottle she’d brought over to her sister’s house that evening.

‘Not really,’ Rachel teased. ‘Since Callum and I got divorced my only real conversation is with Harry most of the time, and he’s pretty immune to me putting my foot in it!’

‘Fair enough,’ Holly replied. ‘But, your lack of actual adult conversation aside, I’m sure you must sort of know what I’m saying.’

‘What have you done?’ Rachel raised an eyebrow. ‘I thought you’d managed to curb your foot-in-mouth tendencies since you became a respectable business owner?’

‘Most of the time, yes, but these were, er, slightly unusual circumstances.’

‘Are you talking about Charlie Thorpe and his lack of trousers by any chance?’

Holly laughed, in spite of herself. ‘How did you guess?’

‘So, what have you said to him?’

Holly shook her head. ‘Something really stupid.’

‘Spill.’

‘I might have, er, invited him to Sunday lunch at Mum and Dad’s place this weekend.’

Rachel nearly spat her wine out in amusement. ‘You did what? How bloody square are you?’ She put her wine glass down on the coffee table in front of her, since it was dangerously close to spilling. ‘I mean, ask him out for a drink or a coffee, or even a walk up Willowbury Hill, but to Mum and Dad’s for lunch?’