Chapters (52)
- COVER PAGE
- DEDICATION
- PART ONE
- ONE
- TWO
- THREE
- FOUR
- FIVE
- SIX
- SEVEN
- EIGHT
- NINE
- TEN
- ELEVEN
- TWELVE
- THIRTEEN
- FOURTEEN
- FIFTEEN
- SIXTEEN
- SEVENTEEN
- EIGHTEEN
- PART TWO
- NINETEEN
- TWENTY
- TWENTY-ONE
- TWENTY-TWO
- TWENTY-THREE
- TWENTY-FOUR
- TWENTY-FIVE
- TWENTY-SIX
- TWENTY-SEVEN
- TWENTY-EIGHT
- TWENTY-NINE
- THIRTY
- THIRTY-ONE
- THIRTY-TWO
- THIRTY-THREE
- THIRTY-FOUR
- THIRTY-FIVE
- THIRTY-SIX
- THIRTY-SEVEN
- THIRTY-EIGHT
- THIRTY-NINE
- FORTY
- FORTY-ONE
- FORTY-TWO
- FORTY-THREE
- FORTY-FOUR
- FORTY-FIVE
- FORTY-SIX
- ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
- ABOUT THE AUTHORS
‘Coming right up!’ Ben laughed, shooting up off the couch and into the kitchen, seemingly relieved to have a temporary solution to Evie’s emotional turmoil.
When Ben was gone, Josie turned to Evie and said seriously, ‘You know I’m right, don’t you?’
Evie couldn’t think—the angel versus devil on her shoulder act was only confusing her more. She needed some space to get her head straight.
‘I don’t know anything anymore,’ Evie said, taking a few mindful deep breaths in and out.
‘Evie! I’ve told you before. Can you please stop with all the panting!’ Josie snapped, leaning over to move a snake plant away from Evie’s toxic exhales.
TWENTY-NINE
Twenty-nine
In the days following her meeting with Chloe, Evie threw herself into the world around her. She set her alarm early, bounding out of bed and beginning each day with a run around Holland Park. She relished her time at university, brainstormed pages and pages of ideas for the podcast, and focused on her screenplay work whenever she could. When Hugo FaceTimed her, she forced herself to be positive and loving, deciding to wait until he was home to bring up the Chloe conversation.
In her weaker moments, mostly late at night, Evie considered caving in to her curiosity and calling Chloe. But Ben was right, she needed to give Hugo a chance to explain the situation. She thought of her life with Hugo, of the all-consuming, transcendent love she had travelled back in time to find, and decided that going behind each other’s back wasn’t how grownup relationships worked. She wanted to nurture the kind of relationship in which you trusted one another, relied on each other and spoke openly. If there was one lesson her many years in the dating field had taught her, it was that nobody ever won the mind games that people played out recklessly in relationships.
Today, Hugo would be home for the weekend. They needed this weekend. The uninterrupted time together, the chance for intimacy through the simple, regular pleasures like coffee in bed and brushing their teeth together at the sink. She promised herself she would find a time to discuss the Chloe situation with him, though she couldn’t help but feel anxious about what he might say. More than anything, she hated the thought of this toxicity infecting their precious time.
But before she could have Hugo all to herself, they had a double date with Ben and Sami. She had wanted to cancel, especially as Hugo would have to meet her there straight off the plane, but Ben had been so excited when he’d asked her that she couldn’t bear to let him down. She also couldn’t deny that she was curious to finally meet the woman who had captured Ben’s heart. She threw on a cable knit jumper, slid on a pair of knee-high boots, and braced herself for the night ahead.