Page 98 of Best Summer Ever

‘How?’ Penny asked.

‘Because you already know him – it’s Josh. Algy Alford’s grandson is Josh.’ Penny’s mouth fell open. ‘That’s the guy I’ve been seeing,’ I added for Mum and Dad’s benefit because I couldn’t recall ever mentioning his name to them.

Mum turned to me.

‘And he never mentioned—’ she began and I quelled her with a look. ‘Of course, he didn’t. You would have said…’

‘I had no idea,’ I said, resting my head in my hands. ‘No idea at all.’

I didn’t mention the books full of Wynbrook photos or the fact that Josh had been unwilling to show his face on the estate but eager enough to listen to me tell him all about my childhood and Algy’s recent low mood. All of that combined could have given me a clue, but I’d had no reason to put them together, had I?

‘So,’ I sighed, looking again at Mum and Dad, ‘tell us why Algy doesn’t have anything to do with his son? It might give us an inkling as to his grandson’s motive for suddenly turning up unannounced.’

‘Assuming he does have a motive,’ Penny said.

‘I know you like to see the good in everyone, Pen,’ I huffed, ‘but on this occasion, there might not be any to find. Go on, Dad.’

‘Well,’ Dad began to explain, ‘Algy’s only son, Thomas, wanted him to sell the entire estate well over twenty years ago.’

‘Was that when most of the agricultural land was sold off?’ Nick asked. ‘Just before Algy set the fruit farm up?’

‘That’s right.’ Mum nodded. ‘Thomas wanted shot of the whole place. He reckoned there was no future in it and it would only sink into debt and decline with the loss of the arable land and farming income. He had no faith in his father’s soft fruit venture.’

‘But that wasn’t the real truth behind his desire to sell, was it?’ Dad said scathingly. ‘What he really wanted was to take what he thought would be his share of the money and run. He wanted Algy to sell the entire Alford legacy to the highest bidder so he could invest his chunk in his American father-in-law’s business, instead of waiting to inherit it in the usual way.’

‘But Algy would never have agreed to that,’ I said, shocked that he could be related to someone who was eager to part with his heritage for the sake of money.

My mind then conjured up an image of Laurence. He and Thomas sounded like they were both cut from the same cloth. My ex had become increasingly obsessed with wealth and status since I’d known him, which made me wonder why he was still interested in me. We were chalk and cheese when it came to what we thought was important in life.

‘Of course Algy wouldn’t,’ Dad agreed vehemently, making me forget about Laurence again. Had he not telephoned earlier, I was certain I wouldn’t have thought of him at all. ‘And anyone with half a brain would have known that.’

I thought that said a lot about Josh’s father.

‘So, it was an argument about selling the estate that caused the rift in the family,’ Penny surmised.

Dad nodded.

‘Algy wouldn’t entertain the idea of selling, and Thomas hated him for it, so he took his wife and son and told his father he’d never see him again. He cut all ties and left, everyone presumed, for America, and they haven’t been heard of since.’

‘Until now…’ I unnecessarily pointed out.

‘And now we know that Thomas did take the family to America,’ said Nick, ‘because Josh’s accent is a dead giveaway.’

‘I remember that little boy from when Thomas used to visit and argue with his father,’ Mum said sadly. ‘As I recall,’ she then upsettingly added, ‘he was packed off to boarding school when bartering with him didn’t work.’

‘That’s terrible,’ Penny sniffed.

‘It was,’ Mum agreed. ‘He couldn’t have been much more than seven. So I wonder why he’s come back. What does he want?’

‘Is he here to do his father’s bidding?’ Dad asked crossly.

‘Is he here to worm his way into an old man’s affections and succeed where his father failed?’ Mum joined in. ‘Is he going to convince Algy to sell up?’

I struggled to listen to their speculating. They were assuming the very worst of Josh, and even though I was devastated that he hadn’t been upfront with me about who he really was, the initial shock of discovering his true identity had started to wear off, and I just couldn’t see him as someone who would behave as badly as his father had done.

But then again, it wasn’t all that long ago that I had assumed Laurence was faithful to me and had then caught him withhis trousers around his ankles, so I was hardly an expert in seeing through people. Given my track record, I could hardly defend Josh’s surprise appearance, could I?

‘I think I should go up there,’ said Dad, making for the door.

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