Page 12 of The Forever Cottage

‘Oh.’ He gave a nonchalant shrug. ‘I took a hammer to his car. Poured paint stripper over it and bashed the doors and bonnet in.’

‘Oh no!’ Tess gasped, her eyes widening. Instinctively, she pulled her hand away.

‘Don’t worry. I’m not a danger to the general public, I promise. Only to my ex-business partner,’ he said, with a wry smile, his gaze catching on hers. ‘I promise, all my murderous tendencies are fully under control these days.’

She nodded and smiled, finding it hard to believe that this seemingly normal man sitting in front of her could be driven to such lengths.

‘It was his pride and joy, that car. An Aston Martin DB11. Honestly, I always thought he was a bit of dick driving it into work, but he clearly thought he was God’s gift and Jennifer obviously did too. He took my whole life and seemed to get away with it. I got a suspended sentence and a hefty fine.’

‘Wow. I can see how unfair that might seem.’ The emptiness and shock and anger that Tess had felt when she discovered that Charles was leaving her had been so overwhelming that she could easily empathise with Rob. She’d felt that urge to scream and shout, to throw things and to rail against the unfairness of it all. Not that she would ever have given in to those raw emotions and done anything quite so drastic as Rob. Throwing Charles’s wellies down the driveway seemed relatively tame in comparison now.

‘So, what about your wife? Your family?’

‘It’s over. She’s playing happy families with Jack now. He’s moved into my place. I walked away from it all.’

‘That’s so sad.’ At least Tess still had her home and her friends around her. ‘What will you do next? Where will you go?’

It tore at her heart to think about the future Rob had in front of him, living depressed and alone in a tent. Did he have nowhere else to go? Would he be able to pick himself up and start all over again? Or would this setback send him on a further downward spiral? She suppressed a sigh, viewing Rob dispassionately. Maybe this entire spiel was a fabrication intended to make her feel sorry for him. Perhaps his wife had a very different version of events. She didn’t know, although she had to admit that he was very convincing in his story. He lifted his gaze to look at her, those deep-blue eyes hooking onto hers.

‘It’s time to look for work and find somewhere to live. I’ve got to get my life back on track. My marriage is over and I’ve lost the business, and I’ve spent three months trying to get my head together, although the magic pills are definitely doing their job,’ he said with a grin.

Her face must have given away her concern because he quickly added, ‘Antidepressants prescribed by the doc, nothing dodgy, I promise. Look, I’m not ashamed of what I did, but now it’s about rebuilding and making up for lost time with my kids.’

It sounded convincing to Tess’s ears, but whether it would be as easy as he made out, she wasn’t sure.

‘Look, I’m sorry.’ He pushed away his empty plate and mug. ‘I’m sure you didn’t come in here expecting or wanting to hear my sordid life history. That’s two shocks you’ve had now this morning.’

Tess wasn’t sure what to make of Rob and what he was telling her, only that he was intriguing and likeable, and she felt a connection to him, feeling his pain at the end of his marriage in such a brutal way.

‘Thanks for the coffee and for the bacon butty. It hit the spot perfectly.’ He looked outside of the window of the café at the darkening sky. ‘I might sit here a while and watch the world go by, wait until this weather passes, but don’t let me keep you.’

‘Don’t worry, I have nowhere I need to be,’ she admitted, giving a glance at her watch. ‘Well, I wish you all the luck in the world. I hope things begin to look up for you now.’

‘Thanks, Tess. It’s been nice meeting you. Thanks for listening, oh, and for the breakfast too.’

‘My pleasure.’ She stood up, collecting her bag, part of her wanting to stay, but there was nothing she could do for Rob. She would probably never see him again. Like her, he was on his own journey of starting over and rebuilding his life. She gave him a smile of solidarity and headed for the door.

‘Oh, and Tess.’

She turned round to look at him one last time.

‘Your husband?’ he said, fixing her with a warm gaze. ‘He’s an idiot and you’re better off without him.’

10

‘Darling, what a wonderful day. Thank you.’ Marjorie dabbed her plate with a finger, picking up the last crumbs from the slice of coffee and walnut cake and popping them in her mouth before placing her empty plate on the side table. ‘It’s so lovely to be here.’ Her gaze drifted around the orangery and out into the garden. ‘Don’t get me wrong, they look after me well at the home, but you do become a bit institutionalised after a while. It would be easy to go a bit gaga,’ she said, twirling a forefinger against the side of her head as her distinctive chuckle rang out through the opened windows. ‘It’s nice to regain a sense of normality and I’ve always loved coming to Hollyhocks Cottage, but it’s looking even lighter and brighter these days.’

‘You mean without Charles’s dark, brooding presence about the place,’ Tess said, giggling. ‘It’s not that long ago since we decorated, but basically, I’ve made some subtle adjustments, removing all obvious traces of Charles. Taken down all those old, framed maps that he was such a fan of. I’m more than happy to donate those to Melody. And I’ve put away a lot of the photos as well. I don’t need those reminders on a daily basis.’ Tess took a satisfied sigh, looking all around her. Already, it felt more like her own home. The new abstract, colourful canvases that hung over the fireplace and on the side walls brought a new energy and vibrancy to the room. ‘I didn’t want to change it beyond recognition. Hannah will be coming back soon and I want her to still recognise it as her home.’

Marjorie glanced at her watch, beginning to grow tired after such a full day, but there was one more thing to do before Tess would drive her back to the care home.

‘Talking of Hannah, it must almost be time.’

‘Yes, she was insistent that she would set her alarm early so that she could speak to us both today. Let’s hope she didn’t have a heavy night!’

Marjorie’s eyes lit up as Tess went to fetch the laptop before placing it on the table and pulling up a chair next to Marjorie. Within a couple of moments and a few presses of the keyboard, the screen had sprung into action and there was Hannah’s smiling face.

‘Grandma! Mum!’ Hannah squealed, waving frantically with both hands. ‘I’m so happy to see you. And you look so lovely, the pair of you together.’ She pressed her clasped hands to her chest. ‘I’ve been so worried about you both, but when I see you together, well, it just lifts my heart. God, I miss you so much.’

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