Page 10 of A Little Love Song in Seabury (Seabury #16)

LEAH

‘ I think I’d better go,’ said Leah into the astounded silence that fell around the picnic table as Will disappeared back inside Seabury House.

‘Don’t be daft,’ said Connie, shaking her head.

‘Yeah, don’t leave on Will’s account,’ said Ewan, loading his plate with every bit of food within reach. ‘He’s been weird from the moment we arrived at the cliff house to check he was okay.’

‘What happened?’ said Rosie.

‘Honestly? I’ve got no idea,’ said Matt, a frown creasing his serious face. ‘He didn’t even open the door to us when we got there. In the end, we went around the back to see if there was another way in, and he was just there at the piano, playing like a man possessed!’

Leah raised her eyebrows. This was news, because as far as she knew, Will hadn’t played a note since the final concert of his tour. He might have requested a piano at his holiday home, but she hadn’t expected him to actually use it.

Right now, though, she didn’t have the energy left to figure out what was going on inside her boss’s head. All she knew was that coming here to Seabury House had been a mistake.

Hell, coming here to Seabury at all had been a mistake. Thankfully, it was one she didn’t have to stick with.

The sight of Will’s frown when he spotted her at the table was enough to confirm that she wasn’t welcome here. For some reason, her presence at his family home was more than he could handle. If he couldn’t even manage five minutes of polite pretence, she really needed to leave.

‘I’m sorry,’ she said again, scrambling to her feet. ‘I’ve got to go.’

‘Why?’ said Connie in surprise.

‘My head,’ she said.

Frankly, by this point, she wasn’t making it up. Leah’s head was pounding with what felt suspiciously like grief and unshed tears.

She needed to get out of there. Away from these concerned strangers who were so close to becoming friends. She couldn’t let that happen, though… she needed to put an end to it now, because the thought of having to say goodbye to Will’s family was already more than she could bear.

It was better that she slipped off now. She’d pack up the flat and head back to London. Will would be fine here with his family. They’d make sure he was okay.

‘Thank you for dinner,’ she said, her voice breaking slightly at the knowledge that this was goodbye for good. ‘I’m truly sorry to duck out.’

‘Anything I can do?’ said Matt, starting to get to his feet.

‘I’ll be fine,’ said Leah. ‘Paracetamol and early to bed. I’m sure everything will look different in the morning.’

If only.

The only thing that would look different was her entire future as she drove away from William Pepper for the last time.

‘Sure you’re okay to drive?’ said Ewan.

Leah blinked, cursing the hot prickle of unshed tears.

‘I’m fine,’ she said, forcing a laugh. ‘I’ll message you in the morning,’ she added, glancing at Rosie and then Connie.

They both nodded.

‘I’ll walk you out,’ said Ewan, getting to his feet. ‘I need to grab a couple of things from the van.’

Leah gave the others a quick wave and headed towards the back door of the house. The quicker she was out of there, away from their collective concern, the better.

‘Bloody William.’

The parting huff from Connie nearly brought a smile to Leah’s face… but then the sounds of crashing piano hit her from inside the house, and she was back to fighting tears again.

So. Will was clearly fine. Just not with her!

‘Are you sure you don’t want me to drive you down to town?’ said Ewan, catching up as she strode through the house.

Leah shook her head. ‘Thanks. But you go back to the others.’

‘It’d only take me a couple of minutes,’ he said, ‘and you’ve gone really pale…’

‘I’m fine,’ said Leah. ‘Seriously. Absolutely fine.’

If there was an overused word, it was definitely that one.

‘Okay, well, if you’re sure?’ Ewan didn’t look convinced.

Leah just nodded, not trusting her voice. She was nearly free. She just needed to grab her bag and then…

A series of heavy chords burst through the house. Leah jumped, sending her bag sprawling across the flagstones of the hallway floor.

‘Damnit, Will!’ growled Ewan, bending to help her retrieve her scattered belongings.

‘See what it was like being brought up with your boss?’ he added with a rueful grin as he reached for her diary, which had skidded beneath a nearby cupboard.

‘It was like having a stroppy, musical ghost haunting the place. He hated practising when there were people around, so he’d sneak down at night and wake us all up instead!

Leah swallowed. This time, she couldn’t even force a smile. She didn’t want to hear anything else about William Pepper. She just needed to get away from him… everything about him… because every single note running through her body right now was like a caress she’d never feel.

Slotting her diary back into her bag, Leah threw her escaped lip gloss and a couple of pens in on top of it. She was just about to have one last scout around for anything she’d missed when the music came to a spine-tingling climax.

‘I’ve got to go,’ she muttered, scrambling to her feet.

Before Ewan could even get up off his knees, Leah bolted outside and ran towards the car, sending gravel flying in her wake.

‘Leah?’ Ewan called after her. ‘Leah wait, you’ve?—’

Leah sank into the driver’s seat, slammed the door closed behind her and set the engine roaring. She knew she was being rude. She knew she probably looked like a headcase… but she also knew that she couldn’t spend another minute in that house.

One more disdainful glance from William Pepper would break her heart forever… that’s if it wasn’t already broken beyond repair.