Page 81 of The Path to the Last House Before the Sea

‘What I mean,’ Miri said, moving even closer, ‘is that I’d be up for giving our marriage another go.’

‘What about Damian?’ Jack asked, his mind whirling.

Miri shrugged. ‘Damian’s a good guy but he’s not you. I know this is difficult and you’re with someone else now’ – she shot a glance at Alyssa and grabbed his hand, the hand that Alyssa had been holding ten minutes earlier – ‘but you still love me. I know you do, Jacky. It’s obvious. And I want us to get back together, back to how it was. So, what do you think?’

‘I think—’ Jack began, not sure how this sentence was going to end. He was finding it hard to think straight.

But he didn’t have a chance to say any more because Miri suddenly looped her arms around his neck and was kissing him.

This was everything he’d dreamed about. He and Miri back together, as if the last few months had never happened.Damian was toast and everything was good again. Miri still loved him, and he still loved his wife. Alyssa had been right.

Alyssa… Surely he shouldn’t be thinking about Alyssa when Miri was kissing him?

Jack drew back from her and wiped the back of his hand across his mouth. A trace of Miri’s red lipstick smeared across his knuckles.

‘I know this is what you want,’ Miri insisted. ‘And I know you don’t really love anyone else. Not like you love me.’ She glanced at Alyssa, who was now walking away without looking back. ‘So, let’s be together, Jack. As we should be.’ When he said nothing, she added: ‘For Archie’s sake because he misses you so much.’

Was she right? wondered Jack. Whatever had happened between them, surely he and Miri should make a go of their marriage for the sake of their son?That was what good parents did, and he so wanted to be a good dad to Archie.

‘Well?’ Miri asked, a faint smile on her lips, as if she knew what his answer would be.

THIRTY-SIX

ALYSSA

Alyssa walked at top speed through Heaven’s Cove until her legs were aching and her lungs were fit to burst.

She would go home and rest. She should definitely go home and have a good clean up. A shower at Magda’s was out, but she could fill the tiny basin in the caravan and wash away the grime that coated her skin.

But the thought of being alone with her thoughts was unbearable.

First, there was the trauma of being trapped in the tunnel to process, along with finding two skeletons, which would freak anyone out. Although, actually, it hadn’t been so scary once she’d realised who they were. It was odd, but Charity and Josiah felt like old friends – people Alyssa liked and cared about – and realising it was them had swiftly turned her fear to sorrow. But there had also been the trauma of crawling up through the ventilation shaft, which had been awful. Memories of her phone dying and everything going black still made her shiver… and then, there was Jack.

He’d seemed more vulnerable, more accessible, when they were trapped together in the dark. That was why she’d opened her heart to him. And they’d seemed close when they walked into the village, hand in hand, which was when she’d really begun to wonder if she’d been wrong about his feelings for Miri.

Miri was still keen on him, she’d told herself as they walked. That was obvious enough. But perhaps Jack was ready to move on, after all? Would a man still in love with his estranged wife have cupped Alyssa’s cheek in his hand as they stood in the sunshine and stared at her with such… longing?

Once they’d reached the village, she’d been about to tell him that she liked him – really liked him – and ask if he had any similar feelings. It meant putting her heart on the line, which was scary. But she was psyching herself up to do it nonetheless, when Miri had gate-crashed – and she’d got her answer.

Alyssa pictured Miri and Jack locked in an embrace and wiped away tears.

If Jack was still in love with Miri, it was best for him and for Archie that they were back together. Even if the disappointment made her heart hurt. But she still couldn’t shake the feeling that this was all a game to Miri: a game that she was determined to win.

Alyssa shook her head, her mind a jumble of emotions, and let herself into her quiet caravan.

One very thorough wash later, Alyssa pulled her suitcase from the top of the cupboard and started folding clothes into it. Once again, she’d made a total hash of her life and she needed to get away from Heaven’s Cove.

She should never have gone along with Jack’s claim that she was his girlfriend. Upping the ante at Rosie’s wedding by kissing him had been, frankly, ridiculous. And as for dragging him into a dangerous tunnel once roamed by smugglers… what had she been thinking?

She’d been so desperate to follow her instincts and distance herself from the woman she once was. But the fact was her life had been out of control from the moment when, under someone else’s orders, she’d administered too large a dose of medication to Ollie. She’d been running ever since, and punishing herself – cutting herself off from family and friends, scraping a living by running tourist tours, and never getting close to anyone.

Until she met Jack, that is, and let down the guard she’d spent months building up.

That was why the sight of Miri kissing Jack had felt like a knife to the heart.

Alyssa sighed, crammed her toiletries bag into the suitcase and zipped the case shut. Running away again wouldn’t make anything better because, however far she ran, she could never escape herself. But she couldn’t stay in Heaven’s Cove. It would be impossible with no home, and with Jack and Miri wandering around, all loved up, during visits to Stan. It was time to move on.

Alyssa slid onto the floor with her back to the window bench, trying not to think about how much she was about to lose. She would go and visit Ben for a few days and decide what to do next. That was the best idea and, who knew, perhaps one day this wouldn’t all feel so raw?

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