The Lighthouse Bookshop
Contents (57)
- Prologue
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-One
- Twenty-Two
- Twenty-Three
- Twenty-Four
- Twenty-Five
- Twenty-Six
- Twenty-Seven
- Twenty-Eight
- Twenty-Nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-One
- Thirty-Two
- Thirty-Three
- Thirty-Four
- Thirty-Five
- Thirty-Six
- Thirty-Seven
- Thirty-Eight
- Thirty-Nine
- Forty
- Forty-One
- Forty-Two
- Forty-Three
- Forty-Four
- Forty-Five
- Forty-Six
- Forty-Seven
- Forty-Eight
- Forty-Nine
- Fifty
- Fifty-One
- Fifty-Two
- Fifty-Three
- Acknowledgements
- About the Author
- Also by Sharon Gosling
Sharon Gosling
The Lighthouse Bookshop
A community of book-lovers.
A long-ago romance.
A secret uncovered.
Thank you for downloading this Simon & Schuster ebook.
Join our mailing list to get updates on new releases, deals, recommended reads, and more from Simon & Schuster.
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP
Already a subscriber? Provide your email again so we can register this ebook and send you more of what you like to read. You will continue to receive exclusive offers in your inbox.
For Adam, because books.
Prologue
The letter came on a Thursday, hidden away inside another envelope that seemed entirely innocuous and that Rachel therefore didn’t hesitate to open. It was a little battered, as if it had taken the scenic route to reach her, travelling around for a while before arriving at her door.
The envelope landed on the counter face up. Rachel stared at the name and address printed in the clear window in its front with the curious sensation of falling very fast, as if from a very great height. It took just a split second to rip away all the years that stood between those five short lines and her, between what she had been and what she had become, until all that was left was the sound of her heart beating to a sick, uneven rhythm in her ears as her fingers touched a name that had the power to undo every good thing in her life.
With the envelope there was a note, written in an open, curling hand. At length she picked this up and unfolded it. For a few minutes Rachel stared blindly at the words written there, until the world began to rush back towards her and she could breathe enough to read again.
First of all, don’t worry, it said,
He has no way of knowing I took this. He’s gone. I talked to old Mrs Meadows, who says he told her he was going abroad for work and wouldn’t be back. I don’t know if that’s true, but I also don’t know why he would bother lying to her. Before he went he dumped a load of black bags for the council to collect. The seagulls got to them and there was rubbish blowing all over the road, so I went to clear up the mess and found this. I don’t know what it is. I didn’t open it. But I thought you should have it, just in case. I’m not sure why, really, except that if a man like that throws something away, then it probably deserves to be kept.
I hope you are well. I think about you often. I wish that we’d had more of a chance to get to know each other. I wish that we could get to know each other now, in fact, but I understand that it would probably be difficult for you to know me without thinking about him. Thank you for letting me know that you are settled, at least. I am glad that you have somewhere to call home. I hope you have friends, too, and perhaps even someone to love. I hope you found a way to start again.
Don’t feel that you have to answer this.
All my love,
A