Page 70 of Welcome to Pennycress Inn

Blinking, Laura looked away as she wrapped her fingers around the teddy keyring. The words, ‘And I don’t know what else you’ve lied about,’ were on the tip of her tongue but she couldn’t say them – she had no proof he’d lied about how he felt about Evie Taunton or that he still liked her that way. Hadn’t he been sticking up for Laura when he’d last spoken to her? ‘I need to go.’

‘But—’

She strode down the path and let herself in, shutting the door firmly behind her. Going through to the sitting room, she threw her keyring on the mantelpiece before slumping onto the sofa, her coat still on.

This was it; she and Jackson were over. She’d done the right thing. She knew she had. She didn’t have a choice. She couldn’t live a lie to her family and she couldn’t be with Jackson without their blessing.

Holding on to the arm of the sofa, Laura pulled herself up and made her way across the room to the mantelpiece to pick up her keys. If she didn’t put them on the reception desk as she had every day since she’d moved in, she’d forget where they were.

As she picked them up, she knocked the photo frame with the drawing of Pennycress in it. Bending down, she picked it up,holding it in her hand and staring at it as everything finally made some sort of sense.

Jackson had a photo in his living room of him with her family. Evie must have recognised Laura from the photo. That’s how she’d found out that Laura and Jackson knew each other.

She replaced the photo frame, lining it up with the other one on the other side of the carriage clock. Even so, would that have been enough to make Evie jealous of Laura to the extent she wanted her run out of the village? Jackson had told her both he and Evie had agreed to end their relationship, but what if Evie hadn’t really wanted it to end, what if she’d only agreed to save face and she thought if she could pressure Laura into selling up, she could win Jackson back? Just as soon as she’d answered one question, another one emerged.

Laura shook her head. She needed to go and lie down. She needed a break from thinking altogether. A break from trying to decipher what other people were thinking and the reasons behind their actions – Jackson, Evie Taunton, the villagers, her family. She had so much to think about, so many other things on her mind, the repairs to Pennycress, all the things she had to organise before she could even think about opening up. It was all too much. How was she supposed to wrap her head around it all?

Dropping the keys on the reception desk, she walked up the stairs, pressing against her temples with the pads of her fingers in a vain attempt to disperse the headache forming.

31

Walking out of the village grocery store, Laura glanced around quickly. She hadn’t seen or heard from Jackson since running into him in her garden yesterday and although she was relieved he had listened to her and respected her wishes, she couldn’t help feeling upset that he hadn’t bothered to even attempt to talk to her again.

She gripped hold of the coffee jar she’d just bought as she shoved her purse into her pocket. She was being unfair. Jackson couldn’t win. He’d badgered her to try to explain his actions, and she’d told him to leave her alone, and when he did stay away, she got upset. But did that indicate that she hadn’t meant anything to him after all? If she was so easy to move on from, then surely he hadn’t cared about her, let alone loved her as he’d claimed. If he had loved her, he would still be fighting for her, wouldn’t he?

Pulling her mobile from her pocket, she checked it again. Nothing. No messages, no missed calls. She slipped her mobile back into her pocket and swallowed, fighting back the tears. She’d spent enough time crying over him. If he couldn’t even make the effort to try to talk to her again, then so be it. He wasn’t the person she thought he was.

‘Laura, morning!’

Laura looked up and waved as Catherine from the darts team jogged towards her. ‘Hi.’

‘Been to stock up on the essentials, I see?’ Catherine nodded towards the coffee jar.

‘Oh yes.’ Shoving the jar into her canvas bag, Laura nodded.

‘Are you busy at the moment? For once, I’ve actually got a couple of hours to spare in the day today. Did you fancy going to get lunch at the pub and having a game of darts, maybe? Get a bit of practice in?’

Laura looked across the road towards the pub. The last thing she wanted was to venture in there and be stuck pretending everything was okay between her and Jackson. ‘I’m really sorry, I can’t today, but another day would be great.’

‘No worries.’ Catherine dismissed the idea with a wave of her hand. ‘They probably aren’t serving food anyway, not after what happened to Jackson.’

‘Jackson? What do you mean? What’s happened?’ Had he walked out? Had culinary differences with the landlord, maybe?

‘Well, after the accident, of course.’

‘Accident? What accident?’ Laura could feel her throat drying. Was he okay? What had happened?

‘The car accident. Sorry, I assumed you knew.’ Catherine laid her hand on Laura’s arm. ‘He was involved in a car crash last night. I’m pretty sure he’s still at the hospital. Or that’s what I heard from Mrs Pierce in the bakery.’

‘A car crash.’ Laura froze. That’s why Jackson hadn’t tried calling her again or popping round to talk to her. He was hurt. Or worse! ‘I need to go there.’

‘Yes, of course. I’m really sorry, I honestly thought you’d known. Give him our love.’

Laura picked up her pace until she was running through the streets of Meadowfield, the coffee jar in her canvas bag bangingagainst her leg as she did so, but she didn’t care. She needed to get to Jackson. She needed to see if he was okay.

Her legs felt like jelly as Laura stumbled to the ward she’d been directed to. She’d had to plead her case with the woman on the reception desk and convince her that she was Jackson’s fiancée just to find out where he was. The receptionist hadn’t told her anything else. She hadn’t told her what had happened, when he’d been brought in or if he was okay. Laura literally didn’t know what to expect.

She paused and leaned her hand against the wall, waiting until the wave of nausea had passed. He hadn’t tried to ring her again. That thought came to the forefront of her mind once more. What if it hadn’t been because she’d told him not to? What if the reason he hadn’t contacted her was because he couldn’t? He could be in a coma for all she knew.

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