Kiss Her Goodbye: The most addictive thriller you'll read this year by Susan Gee

Author:Susan Gee [Gee, Susan]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781788547734
Publisher: Head of Zeus
Published: 2018-09-17T16:00:00+00:00

*

Mike doesn’t say much as we sit eating dinner. Without Mum here, the only sound is our forks as they hit the plates and Mike breathing through his nose. It doesn’t feel awkward though; it’s easier to relax without her around. He looks out of the window as if something’s bothering him and I wonder if he’s missing her. She wasn’t always the way she is now. When Dad started to work away, she’d take me to Gran’s caravan and drive us to secret beaches. We’d take potted-meat sandwiches wrapped in greaseproof paper and walk through the dunes to find a special place to eat them. She changed after the baby died. That was when I lost her too and she never really came back. Afterwards, I used to hear his cry in the darkness of the night and wake up thinking he was back. When I told Dad, he said it was just probably foxes mating, but I never really believed him. I shouldn’t have said anything. A week later, he’d gone. I still hear it sometimes. He was a nice baby. We all loved him so much.

‘Cheryl’s husband’s a nightmare,’ I say.

‘Who?’ He frowns. ‘Oh, right. Yeah, your mum said.’

He wasn’t thinking about her after all, then.

‘She’ll be there for at least a week.’

‘Couple of days at most,’ he says, with a mouth full of fish. ‘Said she’d be back by the weekend.’

‘Two weeks it was, last time.’

Mike looks up at me as I spear the last fish finger with my fork. ‘Something else will happen.’ I motion at the clock. ‘Bet they’re in the pub now. Don’t worry, though – Cheryl looks like ET so there won’t be any blokes after them.’

Mike shakes his head. ‘I’ve bought a Viennetta for afters so…’

He says it as though he’s going to take care of me, but I know that I can’t rely on anyone. He’ll be the next one to disappear in the night and never come back so he’s wasting his time trying to get close. I’m not falling for that again. Besides, I’ve already decided that I don’t want him here and nothing will change that.

‘Yeah.’

‘Between you and me, I think seeing your dad is difficult for her. She just needs to prepare herself.’

Maybe he’s not as stupid as he looks.

‘She pisses off every time he comes back.’

He frowns.

‘Runs off. Whatever. She always does it.’

‘And what about you? How do you feel about seeing him again?’

I shrug. ‘Not bothered.’

Dad was always there for me. He never called me a liar and he always said he loved me, so I can’t wait to see him. I nearly tell Mike about my new start until I remember that I don’t tell anyone anything that matters.

Mike clears his throat. ‘Well, I’m here if you need me.’

I stare at him, but he doesn’t look away and I think he means it.

‘You do know that she’s nuts, don’t you?’

Mike exhales through his nose. ‘Aren’t we all? Just give her a bit of space.

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