The Forgotten Promise by Paula Greenlees

Author:Paula Greenlees [Greenlees, Paula]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781529158403
Publisher: Cornerstone
Published: 2022-09-02T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

‘How about going into Oxford?’ Melody asked the following morning.

‘We could take a picnic, if you like. It looks like it might stay sunny today.’

‘Great!’ Melody grinned. One of those smiles that lit up the whole of her face and which it was impossible not to give in to. It was a smile that Ella had missed, and one she loved so much. ‘What shall we take?’

‘Let me see.’ Ella ran through in her mind what they could pack. ‘I’ve got some walnut bread left over – we could take some cheese, apples and tomatoes, too.’ She thought of the elaborate picnics she’d had in Malaya. Noor would spend the morning making curries, coconut rice and spicy chilli sambal, roti canai, plantains cooked in batter, all packed in tin containers with lids that kept the food warm until they wanted it. Sometimes they’d drink fresh mango juice or eat soursops or rambutans – she suddenly longed to peel away the red spiny skins and reveal the glistening fruit beneath.

Her mind was still far away as she cut slices of bread and cheese and wrapped them in greaseproof paper. It took her back to that day when she and Johnnie had visited Lake Peyang. She’d worn her favourite teal-coloured dress, the one that set off her delicate complexion and the colour of her hair. Johnnie had carried the picnic basket from his car while she carried a blanket. When they’d finished the curries he’d brought with him in a stack of steel containers, they’d eaten a small selection of the sweet kuih Noor had made, and then out of the blue he got down on one knee and asked Ella to marry him.

‘Yes! Oh, my God, yes! Absolutely!’ She’d been unable to prevent her instant acceptance from fizzing out of her. They’d drunk a bottle of champagne that somehow he’d managed to keep hidden and chilled, and then he’d given her a ring, which sparkled like the iridescent wings of a kingfisher flashing across the water.

Now, as she turned the ring on her finger, she longed for the innocent glow of that afternoon, along with the thrill and promise of their future life together.

‘How about taking something to drink?’ Melody’s voice broke into her reverie.

‘Good idea.’ She nodded. ‘There are a couple of bottles of ginger ale in there.’ She indicated the cupboard.

Melody fetched the bottles and put them in the wicker basket that Ella had placed on the table.

‘What about a blanket?’ Ella asked. ‘To sit on?’

Melody shrugged. ‘No harm, I suppose.’

Ella collected her cardigan, a lightweight blanket from her bedroom along with a pullover for Toby and a hat. From the window she noticed low, long wisps of cloud in the sky that hinted at possible rain.

When she and Melody were ready, Ella picked up the picnic basket, hitched Toby to her hip, and they made their way outside. The scent of roses hung in the air and gentle sunlight warmed their skin.

‘Here we go.’ Ella put Toby in the rear seat and Melody borrowed Polly’s bike, then they cycled along the bank of the Thames.

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