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Back Fancy Meeting You Here Save as PDF
Chapters (52)
  1. COVER PAGE
  2. DEDICATION
  3. PART ONE
  4. ONE
  5. TWO
  6. THREE
  7. FOUR
  8. FIVE
  9. SIX
  10. SEVEN
  11. EIGHT
  12. NINE
  13. TEN
  14. ELEVEN
  15. TWELVE
  16. THIRTEEN
  17. FOURTEEN
  18. FIFTEEN
  19. SIXTEEN
  20. SEVENTEEN
  21. EIGHTEEN
  22. PART TWO
  23. NINETEEN
  24. TWENTY
  25. TWENTY-ONE
  26. TWENTY-TWO
  27. TWENTY-THREE
  28. TWENTY-FOUR
  29. TWENTY-FIVE
  30. TWENTY-SIX
  31. TWENTY-SEVEN
  32. TWENTY-EIGHT
  33. TWENTY-NINE
  34. THIRTY
  35. THIRTY-ONE
  36. THIRTY-TWO
  37. THIRTY-THREE
  38. THIRTY-FOUR
  39. THIRTY-FIVE
  40. THIRTY-SIX
  41. THIRTY-SEVEN
  42. THIRTY-EIGHT
  43. THIRTY-NINE
  44. FORTY
  45. FORTY-ONE
  46. FORTY-TWO
  47. FORTY-THREE
  48. FORTY-FOUR
  49. FORTY-FIVE
  50. FORTY-SIX
  51. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
  52. ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Evie stared at her parents, non-plussed. ‘What’s gotten into you two? You’re like high school sweethearts.’

‘Well.’ Anna looked at Peter, who blushed.

‘Should we tell them?’ Peter asked.

‘Tell us what?’

‘We have news,’ Anna said. ‘We were going to wait until after Christmas but—’

‘Well, we can’t wait.’ Peter smiled, taking his wife’s hand in his.

‘Just tell us already!’ Evie’s heart was racing.

Anna nodded at her husband. ‘Okay, let’s tell them together.’

‘On the count of three.’

‘One.’

They’re getting a dog?

‘Two.’

Going on a second honeymoon?

‘Three.’

Finally going on that road trip around Western Australia?

‘We’re getting a divorce!’

A small squeak erupted from Elizabeth, who dropped her fork at the same time as she said, ‘Oh my, well I never.’

THIRTY-FOUR

Thirty-four

In the moments after Evie’s parents’ announcement, time stood still. Everybody sat frozen, their glasses raised in mid-air waiting to be drunk and their mouths slightly agape. Not even William dared laugh.

‘You’re … what?’ Evie said finally, breaking the silence.

Anna and Peter looked at each other lovingly, as if they had just announced ‘We’re engaged!’ instead of the four words that had come back to haunt Evie.

‘My darlings,’ Peter began, but this time, Evie didn’t want to hear it. She couldn’t have this conversation with her parents again.

‘I need some air,’ she said, pushing her chair out and standing up. Hugo took her hand, squeezing it gently.

‘Please wait,’ Anna said softly.

Exhaling deeply, Evie sat back down and released Hugo’s hand. She crossed her arms firmly against her chest.

Peter followed basically the same script as last time: explaining how much he still admired his wife and, of course, how much he loved his daughters. And that getting a divorce didn’t mean the end to their family, but rather the start of a new, fresher, more harmonious future together. All Evie heard was blah, blah, blah, love doesn’t exist and Nicholas Sparks is a hella good con artist lying fraud and I hate him! Evie could feel Hugo trying to catch her eye, but she knew if she met his gaze she would truly fall to pieces.

‘We’ve had a great life together, well, for the most part anyway.’ Anna winked at Peter and reached for Meg’s trembling hand. ‘And I’m so glad that I met your father as it meant we got you two. But we can be better parents and partners to each other if we’re no longer together.’