Page 101 of The Summer Escape

Ellie stared up at Trystan. “I like dippy eggs. Mummy makes good dippy eggs.”

“I’m a talented chef,” Beth joked.

“I can make pancakes if you want,” Trystan said.

“Yes!” Ellie hopped off the chair to stand beside him. “Can I help?”

“Okay.”

“What are we going to do after breakfast?” she asked him, while Beth pulled flour from the cupboard.

“I can’t stay too long,” he said, surprising Beth, who’d assumed he’d stay for the day. “I’ve got a meeting tomorrow that I need to prepare for.”

Beth ignored the knot in her stomach. The fact that he wasn’t his usual cheerful self wasn’t necessarily anything to do with her and Ellie. Maybe this was just how he was when he was tired. He can’t have slept well the last two nights, so it could just be that.

As the morning went on, she couldn’t shake the feeling it was more than tiredness. She was keen to talk about their future but there was no opportunity with Ellie around. Her previous reluctance to embark on a long-distance relationship had been entirely erased and she hoped spending weekends together would become a regular thing.

After lunch in a local cafe, Trystan packed up his things and they wandered outside with him to say their goodbyes.

“Will you come and visit us again?” Ellie asked and Beth smiled gently as she waited for his reply.

He slung his bag into the boot and seemed to be contemplating how to answer. “I hope so,” he finally said as he bent to hug Ellie.

“You’re always welcome,” Beth told him.

His lips curved to the same tight smile that he’d been sporting for most of the morning. “Thanks.” He hugged her hard enough that she should have been reassured of his feelings for her, but she couldn’t help but wonder if it was more of a “goodbye forever” hug than a “see you soon” kind of hug.

“Thank you so much for coming,” Beth said, trying not to let her emotions overwhelm her as she gave him a lingering kiss.

“Talk to you soon,” he said as he got into the car.

As Beth watched him leave the knot in her stomach twisted even tighter. Beside her, Ellie tugged on her arm as she bounced on the pavement.

“Mummy,” she said, drawing Beth’s attention. “Did you know that Trystan isn’t my daddy?”

She closed her eyes as she sighed, suspecting she might have an idea why Trystan had been in such a strange mood. “Yes. I did know that. Did you ask him by any chance?”

“Yes. I did. He said he’s not my daddy, but I think he might be wrong … there are a lot of things he doesn’t know … he doesn’t know if he’s your boyfriend.”

“Did he say that?”

“Yes. He thinks he’s probably not your boyfriend.”

“Right …” Beth led Ellie back towards the front door. “Trystan definitely isn’t your daddy. It sounds as though you had some very interesting conversations with him.”

“Yes.” Ellie skipped ahead, then turned back inside the doorway. “I’d really like to have a brother.”

“Okay. That’s good to know.” Her mind was spinning, wondering what on earth Trystan was thinking after being subjected to Ellie’s probing questions.

“Can I have a brother, Mummy?”

“I don’t know. Probably not.” She wondered if she’d talked to Trystan about that one too. Sighing again, she closed the door behind her. “How about we go over to see Ferne later and bring her some sweets to make her feel better?”

It would be good to see how Ferne was doing, and it would give Beth a chance to chat everything through with Dee.

CHAPTERTHIRTY-TWO

With the editing work for the wedding photos, Beth had a busy week. It was absorbing enough that it took her mind off Trystan for a few hours a day. Sadly, there were a lot more hours in the day, and worrying about Trystan filled most of them. By Friday she felt as though she was going out of her mind and took Ellie over to play with Ferne again after school so she could vent to Dee.