Page 1 of A Second Chance in Seabury
CHAPTER 1
Hannah Carter wiggled her fingers, doing her best to loosen her stranglehold on the steering wheel. Judging by the dull throb gathering at her temples, she could probably do with unclenching her jaw too. She’d clearly been busy grinding her teeth most of the way from London without even realising it.
Five solid hours with resting grump face? Yeah… that wasn’t going to do her any favours!
Letting out a long sigh, Hannah rolled her shoulders, then opened and closed her mouth a few times, doing her best goldfish impression in a bid to ease the ache. It didn’t do much good. How could she even begin to think about relaxing when the rolling hills and golden October hedgerows were leading her steadily towards Seabury?
Urgh, she was dreading getting to the house!
It had been almost a year since she’d last set foot in the place, and even now, the grim memory of that last visit made her want to curl up and hide in a darkened room. Preferably one that was anywhereotherthan Seabury.
So much shouting! So many tears!
Hannah regretted many things about the end of her marriage, but the fact that it had happened in Seabury was definitely somewhere near the top of the list.
The thing was, Hannah couldn’t help but wonder if her Great Aunt Millie might have had second thoughts about leaving the beautiful house to her if she’d known what kind of scenes the old place would have to witness.
Hannah had always adored the house. It held so many precious childhood memories—seaside summers with her Aunty Millie, full of swimming on sunny days and pebble painting when it rained. But thanks to her ex-husband, Gareth, those memories had been buried, and were now composting under the layers of anger, hurt and betrayal that had epitomised the end of their marriage.
Hannah had owned the house for five years now. Five long years without her beloved aunt. She could still remember the will reading as clear as day—that moment when she’d discovered Millie’s final surprise. Right there, in the middle of her fresh grief, she’d not only received a house—but the gift of hope, too. Perhaps Seabury could fix everything for her and Gareth… perhaps Millie’s house would be the perfect place for them to start fresh… and maybe even start a family.
‘And then reality hit!’ she muttered, her fingers finding their stranglehold again.
Gareth had refused point-blank to leave London. He’d even complained about travelling to Seabury for the occasional holiday. When Hannahdidmanage to persuade him to go, he’d spent the entire time throwing away Millie’s precious belongings and badgering her about preparing to sell the place.
Thank goodness Aunty Millie was a smart cookie!
Hannah might not have realised she’d need protecting back then, but Millie had clearly known better. Hannah had always had a feeling that her aunt didn’t like Gareth much. She’d neversaid anything about it, but in the end, she hadn’t needed to—her will had been enough to make her feelings crystal clear.
Aunty Millie had left Hannah the house, but she’d put it in trust for the first five years, along with enough money to pay for the bills and the upkeep during that time. Only once the five years were up could she take full ownership and sell the place, if that was her decision. Gareth knew that much. What he didn’t know was that if the house ever sold, only Hannah—or her children—could benefit from the proceeds.
So, all Gareth’s scheming and his attempts to hide his affairs until he’d bagged his half of the dosh had been completely pointless. In the end, it hadn’t mattered anyway. His complete lack of self-control—and his inability to keep his todger in his pants—had brought the marriage crashing down around their ears long before the deadline.
The fact that it had happened here in Seabury?
Hannah sighed and shook her head. She wished it hadn’t happened that way… but there was nothing she could do about it now. Unfortunately, it did mean that she had several apologies to make before she left the little town for good. Apologies that were long overdue.
‘Okay, you seriously need to chill!’ she muttered.
Blowing out a raspberry, Hannah stared through the windscreen, suddenly wishing she could turn tail and head straight back to London. Things out there were becoming all too familiar. She was nearly in Seabury.
Unfortunately, turning around wasn’t an option. The third and final clause of Aunty Millie’s will had been clear. Before Hannah could legally take full ownership of the house and list it for sale, she had to stay there for two full weeks. At the time, it had seemed like a total non-issue. The solicitor’s words drifted back to her.
‘That’s nothing really, is it? I mean, one last little holiday by the seaside while you get the place ready to sell? Sounds perfect to me!’
Perfect? Sure… any rational human being would probably assume the same thing. Two weeks was nothing really, not in the grand scheme of things. But staying at the house one last time meant that Hannah was going to have to cohabit with the memories she’d spent the last year doing her best to outrun.
Swallowing down an unexpected gulp of a sob, Hannah cleared her throat and blinked hard as Seabury laid itself out before her.
From this vantage point, she could see both West and North Beach—one sandy, the other blanketed with smooth, grey pebbles. The beaches were divided by the King’s Nose, a rocky outcrop of land that jutted out behind the Pebble Street Hotel. The two shores couldn’t be more different from each other… it was all part of the magic of Seabury.
‘No, not magic,’ she muttered.
This place was no longer the fairytale town of her childhood, with ice creams from Nanna’s Ice-cream Parlour for breakfast, swimming in the shallows on sunny afternoons, and walking back up the hill beyond North Beach for boiled eggs and soldiers for supper.
No. Seabury could never be the place it once was. A place of small magics that made life beautiful. Even on a golden afternoon like this, with the faded grasses of summer wafting along the verges and the sea glistening on either side of the King’s Nose, Hannah couldn’t forget the hurt. It was precisely why she’d stayed away for so long.
Hannah shook her head as she wound her way down the hill. She was going to have to pull on a pair of big girl pants, ignore everything, and focus on the task that lay ahead. She had two weeks to get the house ready for an estate agent’s visit.
