BooksBarbecue
Back The Jump
Chapters (52)
  1. Title Page
  2. Copyright Page
  3. Dedication
  4. Acknowledgements
  5. BOOK ONE
  6. Chapter One
  7. Chapter Two
  8. Chapter Three
  9. Chapter Four
  10. Chapter Five
  11. Chapter Six
  12. Chapter Seven
  13. Chapter Eight
  14. Chapter Nine
  15. Chapter Ten
  16. Chapter Eleven
  17. Chapter Twelve
  18. Chapter Thirteen
  19. Chapter Fourteen
  20. Chapter Fifteen
  21. Chapter Sixteen
  22. Chapter Seventeen
  23. Chapter Eighteen
  24. Chapter Nineteen
  25. Chapter Twenty
  26. Chapter Twenty-One
  27. Chapter Twenty-Two
  28. Chapter Twenty-Three
  29. Chapter Twenty-Four
  30. Chapter Twenty-Five
  31. BOOK TWO
  32. Chapter Twenty-Six
  33. Chapter Twenty-Seven
  34. Chapter Twenty-Eight
  35. Chapter Twenty-Nine
  36. Chapter Thirty
  37. Chapter Thirty-One
  38. Chapter Thirty-Two
  39. Chapter Thirty-Three
  40. Chapter Thirty-Four
  41. Chapter Thirty-Five
  42. Chapter Thirty-Six
  43. Chapter Thirty-Seven
  44. Chapter Thirty-Eight
  45. Chapter Thirty-Nine
  46. BOOK THREE
  47. Chapter Forty
  48. Chapter Forty-One
  49. Chapter Forty-Two
  50. Chapter Forty-Three
  51. Chapter Forty-Four
  52. Epilogue

Carol shook her head. ‘Why are you so worried about Donna, love? Is she in trouble?’

He saw the worry in her eyes, the concern written all over her face. Carol had never really liked Donna over the years, yet she had rallied round for her when Georgio had been put away.

How could he have wanted Donna, or any woman, when he had all he really needed right here? Inside his home, the mother of his children, his wife. His Carol, whom he had never, ever appreciated.

She would stand by him through prison, debt, anything. Except what he was involved in now. If she knew about that, she would drop him like so much dirty laundry. Why did you have to be on the verge of losing someone before you realised how much they meant to you?

‘Oh, Carol darlin’, I love you more than you’ll ever know, more than you could even guess.’

She looked at Davey as if she had never seen him before. In all their years together, never once had he spoken to her like that. Not even in the dead of night when he took her body. Never once had he offered an insight into his mind, except when he was in prison. Then he loved her in his letters. Wrote her poems, and told her he couldn’t live without her.

But never had he spoken the words out loud before, and they caught her offguard and made her want to cry.

Because she knew that, to speak them, Davey had to be in big trouble.

Donna told Dolly everything, leaving out only the fact that she had slept with Alan Cox.

Dolly had listened in shocked silence, and when Donna told her about Stephen Brunos, she shook her head sadly and said, ‘Poor Maeve. It’ll break her heart.’

It was while they were talking over what could be done, what should be done, that the knock came on Donna’s front door.

Dolly stood up, her arms and legs trembling. ‘Jesus! It might be Big Paddy back again!’

Donna stood by the kitchen door, her heart in her mouth. But it was only Carol Jackson calling through the letter box. Sighing with relief, Donna opened the front door to her.

Carol walked into the house, bringing with her the smell of Estée Lauder and her own sound common sense.

She looked at Donna and said seriously: ‘I want to know where you disappeared to, what you’re up to, and finally, what it’s got to do with my old man.’

Chapter Forty-One

Chapter Forty-One

Donna stared into Carol’s strained face and felt her heart go out to the woman. Knowing Carol as she did, Donna was aware that the knowledge she had inside her could wreck Carol’s life - because here was a decent woman who would never, ever countenance what Georgio, Paddy and her husband were doing.