Page 99 of The Day After Christmas
‘I don’t know how I feel about it, to be honest.’
‘So we were just exploring the possibilities before we told you, that’s all.’
Felicity leaned into him, breathing in his lovely clean-laundry smell.Be honest.‘I get it. I do. But you also know I have trust issues. This is really not ideal for me when all the people I do actually trust in the world have been going behind my back.’
James inhaled sharply. ‘When you put it like that it actually sounds terrible.’
‘I know, right?’
He squeezed her tight. ‘I’m so sorry.’
‘So, what now? I mean, how does this even work, all this? What will you do about your job? I’m not exactly the breadwinner here. And how am I meant to cope without Sophie?’
James kissed the top of her head. ‘Well, my job I can actually do anywhere, I do most of it from here, after all. I only have to go to London occasionally and there are ferries and planes and all that jazz. As for Sophie, that’s a bit more tricky… but I’m sure she’ll be able to visit, once we find somewhere? She can fly or even get the ferry. We just need to make sure we’ve got enough space on the drive for all her Range Rovers.’
‘I suppose so,’ said Felicity absently, her mind whirring.
‘The most important thing is, we’ll be together,’ he whispered. ‘And there will be donkeys.’
‘This is true.’
‘Felicity? I really am sorry.’
‘It’s okay,’ she mumbled. ‘Just no more surprises, okay? I mean it.’
‘Sure,’ he said. ‘No more surprises.’ Was it her imagination or did his voice sound a little strangled?
He may have said no more surprises, but the very next morning James told her he had to go away for business for a couple of days. ‘Sorry,’ he had said, over their cereal and coffee. ‘I know I promised but this is for work, I’ve got to go to Manchester for a conference but I’ll be back by Friday. Then we can talk through the whole Guernsey thing properly, okay? There’s no pressure, remember. It’s got to be right, for both of us.’
Felicity had nodded reassuringly. ‘Of course, that’s fine.’ There was nothing else she could have said. But deep down inside her there lurked a familiar and rather ominous sense of doom.
CHAPTER 48
‘I’ve got a bad feeling,’ she said to Sophie when they met for coffee the next day and Felicity had attempted to explain all the craziness that was going on.
‘He’s just gone away for work, right?’ said Sophie breezily. ‘Nothing to worry about.’ She’d been surprisingly good about the whole Guernsey thing, which had just made Felicity feel worse about potentially moving away.
‘I’m sure you’re right.’
‘So why does your face look like that?’
‘Like what?’
‘All crinkly?’ said Sophie gently.
‘I don’t know,’ said Felicity. ‘What if he’s planning to leave me?’
‘Why on earth would he do that?’
‘I don’t know. Maybe I wasn’t enthusiastic enough about the Guernsey idea? What if this is all just a distraction anyway?’
‘A distraction from what?’
‘I don’t know, to keep my eye off the ball somehow? Metaphorically speaking. What if I’ve messed it all up?’
‘And what if you haven’t?’ said Sophie, taking a sip of her chai latte which was so strongly aromatic with cinnamon and cardamom it was making Felicity feel a bit ill.
‘Fair point.’
