The Summer Sisters: The Waratah Inn, Book 3 by Lilly Mirren

Author:Lilly Mirren [Mirren, Lilly]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Black Lab Press

* * *

The words blurred on the page as competing emotions fought to gain control inside Charlie’s chest. Bobby was dead. He hadn’t even realised his friend was gone, and he’d been dead for years now. Grief welled up within him and he choked back a sob.

He was happy that Edie and Keith were well, but that she’d married someone else filled him with another kind of grief. Of course, he’d done the same, so he couldn’t blame her. For her to lose both him and Bobby must’ve been more than she could bear. He hated that she went through it all without him.

It made no sense to feel jealous of her husband. He knew it was crazy. But he couldn’t seem to help himself.

He sighed. The relief he felt at knowing his family was well, safe, and still living in his childhood home, washed the other emotions aside for the moment. They were all well, happy and whole. It wasn’t everything, but it was enough for now.

There was a creak on the staircase, and suddenly Maria was there. Her eyes narrowed, and she cocked her head to one side, resting a tender hand on his shoulder.

“What is the matter, my love?”

He shook his head, momentarily lost for words. He pushed the letter towards her. She took it in her hands and scanned the page, her eyes widening.

“I cannot read this. Is it from your home?”

He nodded. “My mother.”

“Your mother?”

He hadn’t told her yet that he’d recovered his memories. For months now he’d wrestled with the truth of what he’d recalled. Telling her would’ve opened him up to more pain and confusion than he was ready to bear. But it was time.

“I remembered everything a few months ago,” he said.

She slumped into an armchair beside him, her hand fluttering over her mouth. “What? You didn’t tell me?”

He shook his head, reached for her hand. “I’m sorry, I couldn’t. I had to work things through in my head first. I wrote to my parents and told them I was fine and all about you and the kids.”

He raised the letter. “And this is what she wrote back.”

“What does it say?” asked Maria.

Marion ran into the room in a rush, a toy car held high in the air. “Zoom, brrrroooom…” she cried, racing around the outside of the living room.

“Papa!” she shouted, when she saw him. In a moment she was on his knee, kissing his cheek.

He laughed, his throat tight, and kissed her cheeks, then held her tight to his chest. “Hello, my love. I hope you’ve had a good day with Mamma.”

She nodded. “We made biscotti.”

“Mmmm, my favourite.”

She grinned, then climbed from his knee and kept playing with the car, pushing it back and forth on the floorboards by his feet.

He sighed and faced Maria. “She and Dad thought I was dead. They held a funeral and everything.”

Maria shook her head. “I’m so sorry.”

“I was certain I didn’t have a family, since I truly believed all these years I wouldn’t have been able to forget 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.