Page 52 of Heal You
Morgan gazed back at Jan with tired eyes.“My grandad lived on the same street as Finn.”
“Oh!Really?”
“Mmhmm.Finn was leaving her mum’s place when I was clearing out Grandad’s house after he died.Finn, as you know, is younger than me so we didn’t hang out growing up or anything, but we got talking and she seemed kinda nice.Before I knew it, she was helping me to send his things to charity or wherever else they were being shipped off to.”
That sounded just like Finn.From the moment Jan had met her, it was clear she had a kind heart.Even during those days when Gillian didn’t know what to do for the best, Finn was only ever concerned about Gillian.It hadn’t mattered what she, herself, wanted.Gillian was the priority.That had been the very moment when Jan knew they were made for one another.“Finn is…an old soul.”
“She is.She’s a great friend to have in your life, too.”Morgan grazed her fingertips over Jan’s knee and smiled.“She was the one who encouraged me to take on the bar.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah, we were out having a pint together one night in the bar across from The Corner.It had a for sale sign up, and I made a throwaway comment about how it would be cool to open a bar.There are plenty of pubs in town, but we didn’t have something that people could unwind in without it getting rowdy, you know?”
“I doloveThe Corner.It feels far more welcoming than some places in the area.”
“And that was exactly what I wanted it to be when I was thinking up all those plans for the place.I didn’t imagine they’d come to anything; I wasn’t business-minded, and I didn’t know a thing about bars and breweries.”Morgan dragged a hand through her hair.The natural blonde highlights throughout it had started to lighten with the sun.“I was living at my grandad’s place, but I’d always planned to sell it.It was far too big for me, and I was nowhere close to being ready for a relationship, so it would have just been me rattling around in there.”
Jan regarded Morgan with an understanding smile.Right now, shewishedshe could rattle around in her own huge house.“That’s how you came to live in the flat above it?”
“God, the place was a mess.The beams had rotted, the floor was ready to cave in, and I just didn’t feel good about anything I had to undertake.”Morgan shook her head lightly.“Finn came in and ripped the place out.She was on an apprenticeship with a local joinery firm at the time and some of the guys she worked with offered a hand.Without her help, I probably would have given up and left the flat to rot further.I didn’tneedto live above the bar, but it was a no-brainer when I saw what Finn had done with the place.She’s talented, I’ll give her that.”
“She designed and fitted my kitchen.I’ll miss it when we’ve sold the place.”Jan lay her head on a cushion and sighed.“It kind of became the centre of the house, you know?It was just so beautiful, and everyone was talking about it when they came to visit.”
“Itcouldstill be your kitchen if you speak to Phil and mention the idea of staying in the house.”
Jan sat upright and propped her head in her hand.“When you went out this morning for a newspaper, I called Gillian and asked her to do something for me.”
“Okay…”
“She met an estate agent at the house this afternoon.She has a spare set of keys.They’re going to value it, so I know what to expect once we put it up for sale.”Jan’s voice almost betrayed her as the severity of what was happening sunk in.“The time has come to get the ball rolling, and that means selling up.”
“Babe, I didn’t know you were doing that.I could have been here to support you if you’d told me you were making that call.”Morgan took Jan’s hand and brought it into her lap.“How do you feel about it all knowing you’re getting it valued?”
Jan took a moment to find the right words.Her bottom lip trembled as she met Morgan’s gaze.“Heartbroken.”
“Come here.”Morgan opened her arms and pulled Jan in against her.“I wish there was something I could do for you, but nobody knows I’m even in your life.”Morgan lowered a kiss to Jan’s hair as tears worked their way down her cheeks.“I hate that I can’t be there for you.Not standing proudly beside you, anyway.”
“That’s my fault.I’m sorry.”Jan sniffled and wrapped an arm around Morgan’s waist.“If I wasn’t such a coward, Gill would know I was here with you.”
“It’s not about being a coward.It’s about doing things on your own terms.I’ve never not understood that.I just wish I could be there for you…out in public, you know?”
“I know.But this, right here, is just as good…if not better.”Jan buried her face in the crook of Morgan’s neck and sobbed as she realised just what her life was about to become.People would talk, friends would tell her she was stupid for not trying to repair her marriage, and Phil would walk away mostly unscathed.They always did.
“Hey, come on.Don’t worry about it.Everything is going to be okay, babe.”Morgan soothed a palm up and down Jan’s upper arm.“You’re strong, and you’re doing what’s best for you.Don’t ever forget that.”
Jan drew back and smiled when Morgan brushed a thumb under her eye.“It feels as though you’re the only person who is going to understand.That’s what scares me the most—nobody understanding that I don’t want to stay with a man who has hurt me the way Phil has.”
“Nobody else has a right to tell you what you should or shouldn’t do.I get it completely, and I think walking away is incredibly brave.”
If Jan could stay on this island with Morgan forever, she would.But neither of them could do that because they had lives back at home.They had friends and people who cared about them.Jan could only hope they would still care when the truth came to light.“Thank you for being by my side.It means the world to me.”
“Hey,” Morgan whispered as she smiled into a kiss.“Unless you tell me to, I’m not going anywhere, okay?”
Jan touched her forehead to Morgan’s, allowing the sound from the ocean to calm her.“Okay.”
Chapter21
You should have bookeda two-week holiday!
