The Happy Place: A charming and uplifting second-chance romcom by LK Wilde

Author:LK Wilde [Wilde, LK]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: anonymous
Published: 2024-08-02T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Despite labelling it as a meeting, Seb had invited me to his cabin after dinner and promised wine beside an open fire. I didn’t want to look as though I expected anything more than a productive evening pooling ideas for the project, so had selected a clean pair of jeans and my favourite teal jumper to wear. The temptation to apply more makeup than usual was strong, but given we’d be eating dinner with the other residents first, I was reluctant to draw attention to myself and raise any eyebrows.

Since deciding to end my marriage, I felt three stone lighter, as though the weight of waiting for Rob to hand me my fate had been dragging me down. There had been no calls from Marion’s landline since my rash announcement, and I was no further forward with divorce proceedings, but at least I felt more in control.

‘Can I come to Seb’s house with you?’ asked Bertie.

‘No, we’ve talked about this. You’ve got your first band concert tomorrow. You need to get an early night.’

‘What if I can’t sleep?’

‘Maggie and Stephan will be downstairs, so if you can’t sleep, find them and they’ll tuck you in again. Mind you, after cleaning out all the animals with Harry after school, I don’t think you’ll have any trouble sleeping. Now go and wash your hands ready for dinner.’

Bertie shuffled out of the room, and I checked the messages on my phone. Nothing.

‘Ready,’ said Bertie, waiting for me by the door. I’d told him Rob was back in town, but Bertie hadn’t yet asked to see him. I’d need to arrange a meeting soon, but had decided to give Bertie time to settle into his new school before disrupting his life further.

It was Andrea and Christine’s turn to cook dinner. Having decided to stay on an extra month, their time at Lowen Farm was now drawing to a close. The healthy vegetable casserole they served was greeted with thanks, but as Pat and Harry pushed cauliflower around their bowls, it was clear they were hankering after something more meaty.

The last thing I wanted was to offend Andrea and Christine, but with my stomach doing somersaults, it was hard to force the tasteless dish down and my bowl was still half-full by the end of the meal.

‘Sorry,’ I said, as Andrea cleared my bowl. ‘Me and Bertie had a big lunch and are still full.’

Bertie kept his eyes on the table, happy to go along with my lie.

‘It appears everyone had a big lunch today,’ said Christine with a sigh. ‘I’m sorry everyone, I’m trying the approach of healthy body, healthy mind, but it was rather lacking in the taste department, wasn’t it?’

‘No, it was lovely,’ lied Harry.

‘Right,’ said Seb. ‘We’d best get going.’

‘I’ll just get Bertie in his pyjamas, then I’ll be with you.’

‘Pyjamas? But it’s nowhere near bedtime,’ grumbled Bertie.

‘And you’re not going to bed yet. Maggie and Stephan have said you can stay up and watch TV with them, but if you’re already in your jimjams, that’s one less job for them.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.