скачать книгу бесплатно
His brothers already had five (now soon to be six) offspring between them, and had been married years after them. Her own sister, Noelle, also had family; she lived in Germany with her husband and twin girls.
Sometimes it felt like Colette and Ed were the only ones with all these rooms and nothing to fill them.
‘Could you put that in the microwave for me?’ Ed said now, referring to breakfast. ‘Just the eggs, actually. I’m going to take a shower before I eat.’ He duly washed his bottle and set it out to drain, before coming over and kissing her on the cheek. It was his way of letting her know that he understood her disappointment, knowing she wouldn’t want to make a big deal out of it.
Colette was grateful for it, but she sometimes wished they would talk more about the void in their lives, instead of pretending it didn’t exist, the way Ed tended to sometimes.
‘Of course,’ she answered. She’d just taken a seat at the kitchen island, hoping for a cosy breakfast together, but it seemed it was going to be another morning of eating on her own.
‘Thanks.’ Ed kissed her forehead and jogged back out to the hallway. ‘It smells amazing.’
‘No problem,’ she said to his back, then turned to her own food and sighed.
He was so busy these days. Up early and to bed late so many nights. His clients could be demanding, and a call from someone meant he – or sometimes both of them, depending on the effort required – could be called away to the country for a weekend retreat, or invited to a party of rich elites.
It was something that both amazed Colette and made her uncomfortable. She’d adjusted, though: five years of marriage had done that, but in that other world the glaring differences between her and Ed’s peers was more than evident.
He never complained or made her feel unworthy in any way. In fact, it was just the opposite. He was supremely proud of her and loved to talk about her accomplishments.
The translator position, which had started her career, had moved Colette along the path to her present job as Project Manager in the Department of International Development. It was a fantastic opportunity, which sometimes even allowed her to work for the United Nations. She was so lucky to be living her dream, at least in part.
Colette had the wonderful home, fantastic husband and an amazing job making a difference in the world, just as she’d always wanted.
There was just one thing missing.
An hour later, she was dressed in a stylish pencil skirt and heels. A string of pearls draped from her neck and a matching pair of earrings dangled from her ears.
Ed was on the couch going through the newspaper when she emerged downstairs again. This was often the way. Two ships passing in the night.
‘Where are you off to?’ he asked as he looked up.
‘I told you on Wednesday that I was going shopping with your mum, then we’re going to have lunch in Mayfair,’ she stated.
‘You did, but I thought you said Saturday?’
‘Ed, it is Saturday,’ she replied.
He looked perplexed. ‘It can’t be.’ He closed the paper quickly, checking the date on front, then promptly jumped to his feet. ‘Damn! I was supposed to meet the boys at the tennis club for brunch. I can’t believe it.’
Colette watched as he picked up his phone and swiped quickly through his contact list.
She sighed. Her husband was wonderful, just too busy sometimes. If he wasn’t dashing around the city for business, he was travelling around the world on business.
Sometimes his clients demanded he personally check out the companies in which they were interested in investing. It came with the trappings of the life they had. But still she wished that the pace of that life could just slow down a little now and again.
Leaving Ed to call his friends, she made her way out to the hallway, then stopped as the post on the bureau got her attention. Ed must have picked it up earlier when coming in from his run.
She stood, absently flipping through the envelopes to see if there was anything important. A crisp white envelope addressed to Colette and Ed Hargreaves caught her eye.
It wasn’t so much the letter, but the fact that it wasn’t address to ‘Mr and Mrs Ed’ – her name was actually included this time. Turning the envelope over, she pried the flap open and unfolded a piece of paper emblazoned with a familiar logo.
Enjoy La Dolce Vita!
Kim Weston and The Sweet Life family cordially invite you to join us for the launch celebration of Villa Dolce Vita Wellness and Cultural Retreat on the glorious Amalfi Coast.
A smile spread wide across Colette’s face as she skimmed over the invite, pushing her cheeks almost up as far as the lower rim of her reading glasses.
The timing of this almost made up for the disappointment of earlier. As if her old friend had somehow known she needed a boost.
Still smiling, she glanced back at the envelope and saw that there was something else inside. Two aeroplane tickets to Naples and a weekend reservation at a five-star Sorrento hotel, as well as a handwritten note.
Can’t wait for you guys to see what I’ve done with the place!
Perfect excuse for a long overdue reunion?
K xx
Her heart well and truly lifted, Colette walked back into the living room and held the invite out for her husband to read.
It had been a few years since Kim had announced her intentions to buy and restore the old villa, and the process had been less than easy.
From their (admittedly far too infrequent) phone catch-ups, she knew Kim had encountered obstacle after obstacle, from the Italian authorities to some of the locals, almost from the moment she let her grand plans be known.
However, as always, she hadn’t wavered in her intentions, and now the invite was proof of her success.
‘Isn’t it wonderful? She really did it. I can’t wait to see how it looks now,’ Colette prattled excitedly, as she waited for her husband’s reaction. ‘And Kim, too, of course. And I wonder if Annie will come? Oh, I hope so. I haven’t seen her in so long.’
Colette and Kim had always made a conscious effort to stay in touch after their time in Italy, Annie less so. But the trio’s was the kind of friendship that bucked time and place, and Colette knew that once they were together again, the preceding years would simply melt away and it would be as if they were never apart.
‘Seriously?’ Ed replied flatly. He looked up at her. ‘This is only a month away. I know you were looking forward to going back to Italy again, and it’s great Kim seems to have finally got it all up and running, but do we really have time for this just now? You have that new project coming up, for starters.’
Colette looked at him, puzzled. ‘We’d make time, of course,’ she answered. ‘I don’t understand … We knew for ages that Kim’s launch would likely be happening this summer. Why would I want to miss a trip like this?’
‘It’s just with everything we have going on, isn’t the timing a bit off for a last-minute jaunt to Italy? And it’s not as though you two are that close anymore.’
‘What? Of course the timing’s not off,’ she replied, confused by his reaction. She’d thought Ed would be as excited as she was to return to the Amalfi Coast, where, in truth, their own love story began. And perhaps while there, the location might just work its magic again? And yes, while their lives had diverged considerably since their time in Italy, Colette considered Kim and Annie friends for life.
‘OK. I’ll see about making the necessary reservations,’ Ed answered. His mood still seemed off, though, and Colette was completely baffled by it.
‘No need. Kim’s already arranged everything,’ she announced as she handed the envelope to him. ‘We fly out a couple of days before the party and stay in Sorrento over the weekend. All we have to do is show up. It’s really quite generous of her, actually.’
Ed inspected the tickets carefully. ‘Well, that timing definitely doesn’t work for me,’ he declared. ‘The IPO is that very week. I need to be here.’
Disappointment filled her lungs as Colette inhaled deeply. She levelled her gaze at her husband. How could he do this? He knew how important this was to her – and indeed to Kim.
‘Ed, an old friend I care for and respect has offered to fly us both out to Italy for the grand launch of her latest business venture, and to reunite with old friends. Not only that, it happens to be the place where you and I met and fell in love. How could you possibly refuse? I don’t usually say anything when it comes to your work but this time I have to dig my heels in.’
‘But we can always go again afterwards, when it’s not so busy …’
She put her hand on her hips. ‘Kim’s put a huge amount of work into renovating a place that will always hold a special place in my heart. I really want to see how it looks now, and I so want the opportunity to catch up with her and Annie, too. She’s pulled out all the stops, flying us over and putting us up in one of the nicest hotels in the area, and you’re just going to refuse?’
‘I’m not refusing – I just don’t think we can sacrifice so much time to it, that’s all,’ Ed replied, getting to his feet. He reached out to take her by the arm and sighed. ‘Yes, of course I know how much this means to you and I want to be there, too. It’s just work is so hectic at the moment, darling.’ He kissed her forehead lightly.
‘I know work is difficult; that’s another reason why I think we need this trip. This isn’t just for Kim’s sake, Ed, it’s for ours, too. We’ve hardly spent any time together lately.’ She stepped towards him and he pulled her close. ‘I miss you.’
Colette didn’t often let her insecurities show. She didn’t like being a burden on others, especially her husband, who she knew needed her to be strong. How could she put her concerns on him when he had so many of his own?
‘I’m sorry,’ he apologised again. ‘I promise, after things settle with this IPO thing, I will make a conscientious effort to devote more time for us.’ He turned back to the invite. ‘Why don’t we just fly over there on the day of the launch, instead of before? I’m sure Kim wouldn’t mind; the important thing is we’re there at all, isn’t it?’
Colette nodded. ‘OK, sounds fair. But I meant what I said, Ed. This is important – an opportunity to spend time together in a more relaxing way.’
And with luck, she added silently, maybe the necessary break we need in order to conceive.
‘That’s settled then, but first things first, OK? Once the IPO is over, everything will change, my love, I promise.’
She didn’t doubt his words and knew he had nothing but the best intentions. The problem was that things never got easier or settled when it came to his work. He just couldn’t help himself. Being the best was both a blessing and a curse. He didn’t know how to lose or to slow down.
She supposed it was why he was so successful, though. Ed always got what he wanted.
He always had to win.
Chapter 7 (#ulink_a0960d42-5e19-5dd4-a52e-f058409d022e)
Then
‘Mum, what are you doing?’ Colette asked, coming in the back door of her family’s small terraced home in Brighton.
‘What does it look like?’ Miriam Turner replied in a voice raspy from chemotherapy.
It had been four years since her mum’s diagnosis, though for Colette, it had felt like a lifetime.
She could only watch helplessly as cancer ravaged her mother’s body, reducing her from a somewhat plump, pink-cheeked woman into the pale wraith she was now. Still, by some grace, Miriam maintained her smile despite it all.
‘You’re cooking? Why? Let me do it.’ Colette rushed to take over.
Before her illness, Miriam had worked tirelessly at the bakery she set up in the town with her husband, Emmett, and occupied what little free time she had volunteering at the church or hospital near their home.
She’d done her utmost to maintain her way of life for as long as she could, but eventually the chemotherapy and radiation treatment took its toll, her red hair turned light and thin, and eventually began to disappear.
It was then that Miriam had been forced to admit to herself that life wasn’t going to be the same. The whole family had to. Eventually, she let Colette, her eldest, shave her head and handed over the responsibility for the house and business to a girl in her mid-twenties. It was a brave move for them both – until then Colette had spent most her life in books, and was suddenly forced out into the real world.
The adjustment had been uncomfortable and had taken quite a bit of time, but at least her father was there to help her through it.
Until that changed, too.
A few months after Miriam was diagnosed, Emmett began to falter. He spent more and more time away from home, unable to watch his wife deteriorate. Everyone could see it, but no one ever thought he’d just up and leave. Less than a year after his wife’s diagnosis and well into her treatment, he moved out.
And by the time another year had gone by, he’d initiated official separation proceedings.
Now, Miriam shooed her daughter away gently and smiled.
‘Didn’t you hear what the doctor said today?’ she insisted as she continued stirring the contents of the pot she was standing over.
‘Mum,’ Colette challenged, but her mother ignored her entirely.
‘Set your stuff down. How was your walk?’ she asked as she carried on about her business while Colette stood there, dumbfounded as always at her mother’s determination.
When Emmett left, Miriam had wished her former husband well and then refocused her energy on the rest of her family. Colette’s younger sister, Noelle, was about to leave for university and had almost deferred her entry, but Miriam wouldn’t hear of it.
By then, Colette had completed her own time at University of Essex. She missed her sister and she missed college life and her old friends.
Instead, she’d stepped into the kind of responsibility she’d never imagined, especially after her father relinquished his share in the bakery, leaving the running of the business entirely up to her.
Miriam had arranged someone to take over the bookkeeping and day-to-day administration, while Colette baked and worked on recipes with her mother’s guidance, keeping things going when her mother no longer had the strength to stay involved.
Yesterday Miriam wouldn’t have dared challenge her about housework, but today was different. Earlier, incredible news had been delivered by the oncologist. Her cancer was in remission.
Colette could hardly believe it. After four long years of relentless treatment, her mother had finally overcome the disease.
Even though they both could see Miriam looked much better than she had in years, Colette felt running the household was still her responsibility and one she took pride in.
But since today’s news, her mother was apparently ready to dive right back into her life, starting with making dinner.
She slipped out of her jacket and hung it on a hook by the door. ‘It was good,’ she answered with a smile as she inspected the ends of her hair. ‘I went to the beach.’
She twirled the large waves that had wound into curls at the end around her finger distractedly as she took a seat at the heavy wooden kitchen table. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d just sat there and did nothing. It was weird.
‘Why don’t you go get changed into your PJs?’ Miriam suggested as she glanced over her shoulder at her.
‘PJs? Mum, it’s only dinnertime,’ she answered incredulously.
‘Tonight you will do what I say,’ her mother insisted with a smile. ‘Go get changed, have a shower or a long bath, even, eat the lovely dinner I’ve prepared, then settle yourself on the couch to watch a movie and eat popcorn with me.’
Miriam was often tired and went to bed early, while Colette stayed up and read or sometimes wrote in her diary. This would be the first time in years that the pair of them would do something so mundane or simple together, and the idea appealed enormously.
The water heater was working again, allowing Colette to enjoy a warm bath for a change. It had taken her several weeks to get the money together to pay for its repair, but now it was fine.
She lay in the warm water, thinking about the latest turn in events.
Remission. It was a word with a lot of power.
For years her whole life had become a routine centred entirely around Miriam’s illness. Now it seemed that centre was no more, and while of course she was thrilled by her mother’s news, Colette couldn’t deny she felt a bit lost, too.
Tears started in her eyes as she released the emotions she’d withheld for so long. Worry about her mother’s illness, the pain of her father’s abandonment and her sister’s departure. Having no social life or companionship amid the pressure of running a business that was the sole means of her family’s survival.
She’d buried those feelings deep inside and now as she lay in the warm water, they were spilling out uncontrollably.
At that moment, she needed to cry, needed to release herself, so that for the first time in what felt like forever, she could just be Colette Turner, a young woman with no clue about anything and afraid of everything.
