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Back Where The Story Starts Save as PDF
Chapters (65)
  1. TITLE PAGE
  2. COPYRIGHT PAGE
  3. CONTENTS
  4. PROLOGUE
  5. 1
  6. 2
  7. 3
  8. 4
  9. 5
  10. 6
  11. 7
  12. 8
  13. 9
  14. 10
  15. 11
  16. 12
  17. 13
  18. 14
  19. 15
  20. 16
  21. 17
  22. 18
  23. 19
  24. 20
  25. 21
  26. 22
  27. 23
  28. 24
  29. 25
  30. 26
  31. 27
  32. 28
  33. 29
  34. 30
  35. 31
  36. 32
  37. 33
  38. 34
  39. 35
  40. 36
  41. 37
  42. 38
  43. 39
  44. 40
  45. 41
  46. 42
  47. 43
  48. 44
  49. 45
  50. 46
  51. 47
  52. 48
  53. 49
  54. 50
  55. 51
  56. 52
  57. 53
  58. 54
  59. 55
  60. 56
  61. 57
  62. 58
  63. BOOK CLUB QUESTIONS
  64. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  65. ABOUT THE AUTHOR

‘There’s no need to sell just yet,’ she said lightly, hoping to put him off. ‘I think the house has tenants in it anyway.’

‘Well, if there are, they don’t pay any rent,’ said Hector crossly. ‘I can’t find any record of a single payment since Dad bought the place back in the eighties. I think we should just serve an eviction notice on whoever’s there. Get them out. It’s no good having bits and pieces scattered all over the shop. Nightmare to manage as well. I mean, who the hell wants to go to Whitley Bay?’

‘It’s doing no harm, Hector,’ Grace said. She was starting to feel alarmed and a little irritated by her son. There was no way that she would allow him to sell the house out from under Leah, but she needed to get Hector to accept this without giving him an explanation. He might be running the estate, but she could and would pull rank on him if he forced her to do so. ‘Let’s just leave everything as it is for now.’

‘But Mother, you must see that it makes no sense to hold on to it,’ he said, and Grace heard the tiniest note of condescension in his tone.

‘I see no such thing, Hector. Please do as I ask and leave the tenants alone,’ she said sternly.

Hector tutted loudly and muttered something inaudible under his breath.

51

51

LEAH – NOW

‘Hi,’ said a hesitant voice at the other end of the telephone line. ‘It’s me.’

It was Marlon. He’d not rung before so his number had come up as unknown, but I recognised his voice straight away and my heart turned a little somersault.

‘Hello, Me,’ I said.

‘It’s Marlon,’ he added.

I was smiling at him down the phone now.

‘I know,’ I said.

‘Oh. Right. Are you okay?’

‘I’m fine. Are you?’

‘What? Oh. Yes. I’m fine too.’

He sounded so flustered, all his usual confidence missing. I imagined that this was the phone call in which he was going to ask me out and so, whilst I was feeling a little bit angsty, I was clearly nowhere near as far off my comfort zone as he was. I decided to enjoy it and go with the flow.

‘The thing is,’ he continued. ‘The thing is, you know we went on a, what was it you called it? A “not-date”?’

‘Yes.’

‘Well . . .’

He hesitated and it was all I could do not to burst out laughing. I mustn’t do that, though. I might put him off his stride and I really, really wanted him to ask me out. I pressed my lips between my teeth to stop me giggling and waited for him to spit it out.

‘Well,’ he tried again. ‘I was wondering whether you’d like to go out with me. On a real date this time. Not a “not-date”.’