“All of you?” Alice was confused. “I thought Jess was minding the girls so you and Libby can have a weekend away?” Nick shook his head and suddenly she understood where he was coming from. “If you’re going to all that effort to make it happen, I think it’s only fair and reasonable you’d rather go on a vacation with just your family. What does Libs think?”

“She doesn’t know about it yet. Jess wants it to be a surprise. The thing is, she’s insisting we go the day after Dom’s birth—what should have been his birthday.”

“That’s—” Alice realized she needed a moment to process how she felt about this plan, not that she had any experience of giving birth to a baby, let alone a dead baby. But she was intimate with a level of pain and heartache when life dealt a stinging backhander. And for some reason, Libby had always found Dom’s due date harder to bear than the day he’d been stillborn.

“I suppose it could be something nice after a tough day, although it might not be …”

Nick threw her a grateful look. “Exactly! Thank you for understanding. If Libby was pregnant I wouldn’t be so worried, but she tends to drop her bundle around—”

His phone buzzed again. “Jesus!” He flicked it onto silent, slid it into a drawer and slammed it shut.

His stress hit Alice in the chest, ratcheting up her concern. “Nick, tell Libby how you’re feeling about this otherwise you’re going to make yourself sick.”

He barked out a laugh. “Yeah, right. Come on, Alice, think about it. Picture Libby’s reaction when I reject what she’ll consider Jess’s thoughtful gift?”

“She might surprise you.”

“And pigs might fly.”

Chapter Six

March

Hilary van den Berg popped her head around the classroom door. Karen’s long-time friend was now the chairperson at the University of the Third Age—or U3A as all the members called it. The moment Karen had retired, Hilary had roped her in as a volunteer tutor.

“Have you got a minute?”

Karen paused in clearing away the remnants of the wine and cheese her French conversation students had enjoyed. Recently, she’d been wondering if she should just give in and drop the word conversation from the course entirely and call it, “English Chat with French wine and cheese.”

“Bien sûr.”

“I’ll take that as a yes.” Hilary plonked her behind on the table next to Karen. “How’s Alice? I can’t decide if that serve she gave the Chamber of Commerce in the Gazette about business putting tourism dollars ahead of the environment is a sign she’s feeling more positive about life or the reverse?”