BooksBarbecue
Back The Lucky Escape Save as PDF
Chapters (56)
  1. Cover
  2. PRAISE FOR LAURA JANE WILLIAMS
  3. Dedication
  4. 1
  5. 2
  6. 3
  7. 4
  8. 5
  9. 6
  10. 7
  11. 8
  12. 9
  13. 10
  14. 11
  15. 12
  16. 13
  17. 14
  18. 15
  19. 16
  20. 17
  21. 18
  22. 19
  23. 20
  24. 21
  25. 22
  26. 23
  27. 24
  28. 25
  29. 26
  30. 27
  31. 28
  32. 29
  33. 30
  34. 31
  35. 32
  36. 33
  37. 34
  38. 35
  39. 36
  40. 37
  41. 38
  42. 39
  43. 40
  44. 41
  45. 42
  46. 43
  47. 44
  48. 45
  49. 46
  50. Epilogue
  51. Acknowledgements
  52. Publishing Credits
  53. Keep Reading …
  54. About the Author
  55. Fiction by the same author
  56. About the Publisher

A single tear spilled over and ran down my cheek before I brushed it away with the back of my hand. I didn’t even know why I was crying. It just started happening and I was helpless about it.

‘Don’t call my job stupid.’

‘I didn’t. You did.’

‘Don’t use my words against me, then.’

He rolled his eyes. ‘When is this “research trip”?’ I could hear the inverted commas in the way he said it.

‘I fly Thursday morning. Back Friday.’

‘Let me know how you get on, then,’ he said. We stared at each other.

‘I’m upset, Annie,’ he pressed. ‘I can’t figure out what’s changed in the fifteen minutes we’ve been home, but I feel you pulling away from me. We said being back wouldn’t change us. But I can’t fight for somebody who wouldn’t fight for me. I’m not a mug.’

‘Nothing’s changed,’ I insisted, but as soon as the words left my mouth I knew it wasn’t true. It sounded hollow.

‘Like I say,’ Patrick carried on. ‘I’m upset. I can’t do this here. I’m going to go home and calm down, okay? Then we can talk. I don’t think I’m being unreasonable about any of this.’

I nodded gloomily, still crying and tears blurring my vision. He walked away, making the bell above the shop door tinkle as he left. I knew I should have gone after him, but I didn’t want to. Maybe that’s what the tears were for. I had guilt from being pulled in two directions. I’d meant what I said: I couldn’t plan my life around him. I didn’t want to have to ‘ask’ him if it was ‘okay’ for me to go to Antwerp to see what the office there was like. I didn’t want ‘permission’, or to put problems in the way of a chance I wasn’t even sure I wanted to take yet. I just wanted to do it. To be free and able to be the kind of woman who said, ‘Antwerp? Sure – get me on a plane!’ without second-guessing myself. I hadn’t done anything wrong by giving Chen’s assistant my passport details to book the flight. Had I?

Urgh. I felt horrible. I had not expected the day to unfold like this when I’d woken up: this was too fast. It was too much to figure out. I liked Patrick! What was I playing at? And yet … That night was the first night we’d spent apart where I didn’t text him before bed. Patrick didn’t text me either. After so many firsts – first drink, first kiss, first meet-the-parents – we were officially having another: first fight.

39