The Long Way Home by Fanny Blake

Author:Fanny Blake
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK
Published: 2021-01-07T00:00:00+00:00

23

Isla hadn’t slept as badly since her brief affair with Chris, a history academic a little older than her, who had snored like a trumpeting elephant all night. The few times he stopped, he rocked the bed violently as he got in and out on his way to the bathroom and back. She had vowed there and then never again to sleep with a man with incipient prostate problems, however much that might limit her options at her age. Jock had kept up a steady snuffling punctuated with loud whimpers when he got close to the rabbits in his dreams. That, combined with Charlie’s constant thrashing about on the other side of the bed, kept Isla dozing in fits and starts until someone started moving the bins and clearing up under their window. From then on there was no hope of sleep. But, at least she finally got a chance to read her book.

By the time she got to the garage that was tucked up a turning at the end of the main street, they had collected her car from the service station and the overalled mechanic was already working on it. ‘Paul at the pub said you needed it urgently so here we go. It shouldn’t take too long.’

She nodded. She wasn’t going to think what she and Charlie would have done if they’d been stranded here for days, waiting for the delivery of a spare part. There was only so much make-up they could apply. But now they would make it to Preston in time to meet Tony’s train. The thought of him lifted her heart.

While the car was fixed, she took Jock round a couple of fields, through a small wood where the sun dappled through the branches, and over a brook babbling back towards the village. A perfect summer morning. While Charlie still slept – there was no reason to bully her out of bed that morning – Isla took advantage of the opportunity to be alone. The previous night’s breakthrough had lasted for a few hours, through a supper of overcooked spit-roast pork and stale rolls, until something on her phone disturbed Charlie again. She wouldn’t say what but rolled onto her side, with her back to Isla, and didn’t talk again before she went to sleep. They had arrived back at square one without even trying.

What was Charlie going to make of Tony? Isla was determined not to make a big deal of introducing them to each other. She tried to see him as Charlie might. Would he like her? Of course he would – he was a kind man and would put up with her granddaughter’s moods. More than anything she wanted them to get along.

She called to Jock, who stopped nosing round a rabbit burrow and trotted up to her, nudging her pocket for a treat. ‘Food! Is that all you think about?’ She tossed a half biscuit in the air that he caught with a practised snap.

And Lorna? Seeing her would be tricky.

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.