‘Edie,’ Rachel said. ‘Gilly’s right – Ezra wouldn’t do something like that.’

‘He loves you,’ Gilly said. ‘He really does. It’s written all over his face every time he looks at you.’

‘He doesn’t know me,’ Edie said.

‘Of course he does!’

‘All the bad bits, maybe,’ Edie said. ‘That doesn’t bode well, does it?’

‘It does,’ Gilly said. ‘That’s even better. It’s like Benedick said to Beatrice, isn’t it? “You and I are too wise to woo peaceably.” You’ve spent fifteen years getting to know all the bad bits of each other. Now you can have fun learning all the good bits.’

Rachel and Edie looked at each other. ‘She’s not wrong,’ Rachel pointed out.

‘Too right I’m not,’ Gilly declared, and then made a face. ‘And I’d better pass these exams because God knows I don’t want to be around for that any longer than I have to be.’

Edie smiled a little, but to Rachel’s eyes it was far more reserved than it should be with the wedding in view. It made her wonder if there was a story was behind it. That, in turn, made her think about Toby – whether he would think the same and how he would go about discovering the underlying truth if he did. Quite a lot of things these days made her think about Toby, which made Rachel suspect that if she hadn’t quite forgiven him yet, she was at least on the way to doing so. Not that it would make a difference if she did, of course. He’d already moved on, and she wished him well.

For the first time in a few weeks, Rachel started the following day in the bookshop. She and Ron had finished boxing up all of Cullen’s possessions and the gatehouse was ready to clear. Rachel thought she was going to get a breathing space to settle and think about what she was going to do next with her own life, something she really needed to get in order. That was not to be, however. No sooner had she opened the bookshop doors and stepped back behind the counter than she was greeted by the now-familiar voice of Alan Crosswick.

‘Morning, Rachel,’ he said, in a cheerful tone that still managed to hold an edge of reserve. ‘Sorry to spring on you unawares.’

Rachel smiled back, although in her heart she already knew why he was here. ‘That’s all right. Is there something I can help you with? The gatehouse is cleared, if you want to do an inspection?’

‘No, it’s nothing like that. I – have some news. Probably not particularly good news for you, as it happens. Trudy has decided that she is going to accept Mr Stuart’s offer.’

Rachel’s heart sank, though she tried to disguise her reaction. ‘She said she probably would. I’m not surprised.’

Crosswick looked sympathetic. ‘I’m sorry,’ he said. ‘She did think about turning him down, but she can’t afford to. It’s as simple as that.’