Page 4 of The Key to the Last House Before the Sea

While Rosie dealt with the paperwork, Nessa rushed upstairs to expunge any trace of her and Lily’s existence from the sunny bedroom that overlooked the sea.

It didn’t take long. Nessa hadn’t fully unpacked the large suitcase that was shoved under the bed. She hadn’t wanted to get too settled in Rosie’s comfortable guesthouse. That would make moving on even harder to bear.

She tidied away their few belongings and then stripped the double bed, put on new sheets from the airing cupboard on the landing, and opened the window to let in a fresh breeze.

After ten minutes’ hard work, she stood back with her hands on her hips. The room was guest-ready. No one would know that she and Lily had ever been here at all, sharing a bed.

She dragged her case along the landing to a room at the very back of the house. Opening the door, she clicked on the light and went inside.

Rosie hadn’t been joking when she’d said the room was tiny, and crammed full. Cardboard boxes lined the walls and had spilled into the centre of the room.

It was a storeroom for all the clutter that Rosie didn’t want on show but couldn’t bear to throw away. Nessa ran her hand across an old photo album on a dusty shelf, and a pile of books about Devon folklore. They’d probably belonged to Rosie’s late mother, Sofia, who’d always been into the weird and wonderful.

That was what had sparked the friendship between Nessa and Rosie – the sad fact they’d both lost their mums. Nessa when she was a teenager, still at school, and Rosie more recently. They were both unwilling members of the Motherless Club.

Nessa shook her head. There was no point in feeling sorry for herself. This was a storeroom all right but, with a little work, there would be enough space for her and Lily to move in.

It would certainly do for a few nights while she did her best to find somewhere else. Wherever it was, it would have to be halfway decent. Living in a grotty place was OK for Nessa, but she couldn’t take Lily anywhere too bleak and there was so little available, particularly at this time of year.

Most local places were rented out to holidaymakers, private landlords weren’t keen on single mums without jobs, and the social housing waiting list was depressingly long. So this would do for now.

Nessa got to work, moving boxes and setting up the camp beds that she’d fetched down from the attic. Lily would have the more comfortable bed, she decided, sitting on both to test them. And she fished Lily’s Frozen duvet cover out of her case to make it look more inviting.

By the time she’d finished, the room looked much better and the only two spiders she’d found had been trapped under a glass and put out through the window onto the roof. It would definitely do for a little while.

When she went downstairs, Rosie was sitting at the kitchen table with a book open in front of her.

‘My accounts,’ she said, glancing up as Nessa came into the room. ‘I’m beginning to think I really can make a go of this place, if guest numbers stay up and nothing else drops off the building. That storm last month cost me a fortune in roof tiles, but I’m still making a decent profit.’ She winced. ‘Sorry, Nessa. It’s insensitive of me to go on about things going well when—’

‘When my life is a total shambles?’ Nessa laughed. ‘I don’t begrudge you a moment of your happiness, Rosie. You deserve it.’

‘So do you. I just wish…’ She shook her head.

‘Me, too. But hey, something will come up,’ Nessa butted in, trying to sound upbeat. ‘And in the meantime, let me help you out around here to help earn my keep. What needs doing?’

‘I can find you a few jobs, if you’re sure, before you have to go and get Lily from school.’

‘Valerie’s picking her up and taking her home for tea so I’m all yours for the rest of the day.’

‘OK.’ Rosie narrowed her eyes. ‘Maybe you should take it easy though, after saying goodbye to your gran. Put your feet up for a while and enjoy some peace?’

‘No, I’m fine. And honestly, it’s better if I keep busy and distract myself from thinking too much about… everything.’

Nessa paused, overwhelmed by a rush of grief – for the loss of her grandmother and for losing her way. This wasn’t the life she’d always assumed she’d be living by now. Where were the fulfilling career, comfortable home and loving partner?

But I have Lily, she told herself sternly, and Lily will always be more than enough. So stop feeling sorry for yourself.

‘Are you sure you’re all right?’ asked Rosie, her voice laced with sympathy.

Nessa forced a smile. ‘Yeah, you know me. I’m always all right, and I’m raring to go. So, find me some jobs and put me to work.’

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