How to Say Goodbye by Katy Colins

Author:Katy Colins [Colins, Katy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Published: 2019-05-15T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter 22

‘Grace!’ Mel waved as I walked through the house and into the garden. Looking over the empty lawn it was a much more intimate family affair than I’d expected. I swallowed and tried to stride forward with a confidence I didn’t have.

‘Hi, the door was open so I just…’ She pulled me into a warm hug.

Callum was standing at the barbecue with two other men, intent looks on their faces as they peered at a line of sausages and hamburgers on the grill. The air smelt of charcoal, cooked meat and freshly cut grass. It smelt of summer.

‘Boys! Come and say hello to Grace,’ she called over to Finley and Noah who were rolling on the grass. Mel’s shout caught the men’s attention.

‘That’s my husband, Nick. I’m not sure if you two have been properly introduced before?’

I shook my head.

Nick raised a hand in the air, squinting in the sun.

‘Hey, you look nice. Thanks for coming.’ Callum jogged over and went to give me a kiss on the cheek. The familiarity between us came as a welcome surprise.

‘And you, love the hat.’

He touched the ridiculous neon pink party hat, tilted at a jaunty angle on his head. ‘Yeah, Finn insisted I had to look like a plonker on my birthday. Can I get you a drink? A soft drink?’ he added quickly, leading me to a long table under a sun umbrella on the patio. He looked relaxed and, well, happy.

‘I’ve made you a cake.’ I nodded to the box I’d managed to place on a spare chair before Mel hugged me. ‘It’s one of Ms Norris’s recipes, a chocolate one. I wasn’t sure if you liked chocolate or had a sweet tooth but I thought everyone likes chocolate.’ Oh dear, I was babbling. What was the matter with me? It must have been the lack of other guests that had thrown me.

‘Cheers,’ he looked genuinely touched. ‘And yeah, I do like chocolate.’

A few bottles of non-alcoholic grown-up squash were chilling in an ice bucket. He fixed me an elderflower fizz. I’d never had it before; the floral taste was a little odd but nice. I felt relieved to have something to do with my hands. He bent down to the cool box laid at his flip-flop covered feet, pulled out a stubby beer and flipped the cap off.

‘The garden looks great,’ I smiled at our hard work.

‘Yeah,’ he said, looking at it as if seeing it for the first time.

‘Cal!’ A man whose face seemed familiar bounded over to us. I knew him from somewhere, but I couldn’t place him. ‘Mel’s sliced her finger on the cheese grater. Honest to god, it’s barely more than a scratch, but she wants to know where you keep plasters?’

‘Er, no idea. We’ve got a first-aid box somewhere, probably in the bathroom.’ He didn’t make any reference to the incorrect pronoun. ‘Grace meet Rory, Rory meet Grace.’

‘Hey, how you doing?’

‘Hello.’

‘Rory here is my best mate. He lives in Edinburgh but we can’t seem to keep him away,’ Callum teased.

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