I winced. If only he knew.

“He’ll be okay,” he said. “Just give him time.”

“Thank you so much for coming.” I hugged my dad hard. I meant it, too. He might be under my mum’s thumb but he was great in a crisis. “I couldn’t have done this without you.”

He squeezed me tightly. “Do you want to come home with me? You’re very welcome to.”

I shook my head. “I need to go back home.” For a moment I didn’t know whether I meant the house I’d shared with Tom or my flat, then made up my mind. “I’ll go back to my house.”

“Shall I come with you?”

I shook my head. “It’s okay, thanks. I need to do it on my own.”

CHAPTER 75

Ruby

When I left I drove round aimlessly for an hour or so, deep in thought. Finally I stopped at the car park by the lighthouse and sat outside on a bench, looking at the river. The sun was high and the wind turbines were turning. It was a peaceful scene but I’d never felt so conflicted. Seeing Josh cry had brought home to me just what I’d done. And though I’d gone over it again and again, each time I thought of the way Tom had fallen, I knew that in that moment of fury I’d wanted him to fall. Not necessarily to die, but to learn his lesson. He couldn’t treat me like that. He just couldn’t. And to goad me about the baby. He’d always known what would hurt me the most.

Enough. I had to stop this.

I took a deep breath. Suddenly I had the courage to go back and reclaim my house. It was as much mine as his. I was glad now that we hadn’t filed for divorce. I hadn’t been able to afford it and Tom was playing a different game. It made things easier now; something he would have hated if he’d known.