Page 32 of A Letter to the Last House Before the Sea

‘Why? What’s the point?’

‘Does there have to be a point?’

‘There’s always a point.’ Daisy sighed. ‘Is it nice down there?’

Lettie looked across the ocean and back towards the village with its tiny cottages and winding lanes. ‘It’s absolutely gorgeous. A bit more picturesque than suburban London.’

‘Quiet though, and deadly dull, I expect.’

‘Not really. It’s quite busy, with lots of tourists and I’ve met some’ – she paused – ‘interesting people.’

‘Well, I must admit that I’m slightly envious. The kids are bickering and Jason’s got the day off and is sitting on his arse reading the paper.’ That was the closest Daisy had ever come to admitting her marriage was anything less than perfect. ‘Talking of the kids, don’t forget it’s Elsa’s birthday later this month and I was going to ask you to make her cake ’cos I don’t have the time and she’s desperate for one of those rainbow cakes with lots of different colours when you cut it.

‘You won’t mind, will you?’ asked Daisy when Lettie said nothing. ‘You’ll be back by then, won’t you?’

Yes, was on the tip of Lettie’s tongue, but Iris’s voice suddenly sounded in her head. You’re too obliging for your own good and your family take advantage. Lettie looked out across the village below her.

‘Maybe, maybe not.’

There were a few moments of silence before Daisy replied. ‘What do you mean, maybe not? You are coming back, aren’t you?’

‘Probably.’

As the word left her mouth, Lettie regretted it. Of course she was going back to London. She just got tired of being taken for granted sometimes.

‘Probably?’ spluttered Daisy. ‘What the hell does that mean?’

Lettie sighed, having learned the hard way that winding Daisy up invariably backfired. ‘It means that I haven’t made up my mind yet when I’ll be back, but I daresay it’ll be in time to make Elsa’s birthday cake.’

Daisy’s voice softened at that. ‘Good. So what are you doing right now?’

‘I’m sitting on a headland in the sunshine, looking out over the sea.’

‘That sounds nice.’

‘It is. Growing up here must have been amazing, Daisy. The air smells clean, and, even though the place is crammed with tourists, the pace of life is less frantic. And the history of the village is fascinating.’

‘History, schmistory,’ groaned Daisy. ‘It all sounds very lovely but if you go AWOL for too long, you’ll lose your job.’

Lettie hesitated. Now was the perfect time to let her family know that she was officially unemployed. But the moment passed and Daisy started burbling on about her training course and the children.

‘Anyway,’ she said eventually, after describing the ins and outs of child rearing, most of which seemed to involve praying for sleep and bribing them with biscuits. ‘Just get back to London soon.’

‘I will as soon as… oh.’

Lettie paused, the breath catching in her throat. Corey had just appeared in the distance. He spotted her and stopped walking. Then he turned as though he was about to flee before turning again and walking briskly towards her.

‘Oh, what?’ demanded Daisy.

‘I’ve got to go.’

‘Why?’

‘Someone’s coming.’

‘Who’s coming?’

‘A local man I know.’

‘What do you mean, know?’

‘He’s a fisherman I’ve met.’

‘What fisherman? What exactly are you getting up to in Devon, Lettie? We need—’

‘Gotta go. Bye.’

Daisy would never forgive her for cutting her off, thought Lettie, switching her mobile to silent. But she couldn’t deal with her inquisitive sister and grumpy Corey at the same time.