She’d also just got off the phone with her father. Until now Grace hadn’t burdened him with the news of her separation and problems with Lawrence. He’d disliked Lawrence from the moment he’d met him. Her father had said his piece privately to her after one visit with them a year after the wedding, and that was it.

But today she’d been missing him, and she’d been struck with a pang of guilt when she remembered it had been over a year since he’d seen Daisy. She didn’t want him to feel left out, to feel that he wasn’t important in her life. She’d hoped he wouldn’t say, ‘I told you so.’

In the end, her father had been wonderful: he’d taken the news calmly, saying he wasn’t surprised, and telling her she was a strong, independent woman and that he was thrilled she was standing up for herself. ‘Go get ’em, Gracie,’ he’d said. He’d asked if she was okay financially, and she’d assured him that she’d be fine once the insurance money came through, and that Tina was helping her in the meantime.

Now, as she walked along the beach, she thought how lucky she was to have two parents who loved and supported her so much. Then a thought struck her: if both her parents had always disliked Lawrence so intensely, why hadn’t they said something earlier? She rather wished they had. But then, to be honest, would she have taken kindly to her parents intimating she’d married the wrong man? Probably not, she thought.

Although this walk had helped to clear her head, Grace felt more conflicted than ever. She was worried about her and Daisy’s future, about Lawrence’s threat to challenge her over custody of their daughter, their financial mess, the loss of everything she owned, and the fact that her marriage had failed. She wished simply that she had recognised all the danger signs long before things had gone beyond the point of no return with Lawrence. What upset her now was that it had taken her so long to see the truth of it all.

When had she stopped trusting her instincts? wondered Grace. She’d had misgivings on her wedding day, that was true, but why hadn’t she been able to see that those were not just nerves but a deep intuition shouting at her, ‘Don’t do this’? Over the years of her marriage her trust in her own judgement had become eroded; she saw that now. She had to learn to trust herself again, and she’d make sure to teach Daisy to pause and listen to herself, and think hard before leaping.

Grace turned and headed back up the hill track away from the beach.

*