Finding Home by Kate Field (read book .txt) 📗

Lia leaned against Mim.

‘Don’t go,’ she said. ‘I do need you. You’re the only person who judges me for what I do now, not because of who I am or who I was.’

‘I’m not the only one.’ Mim couldn’t resist the opportunity to meddle. ‘There’s a certain young gardener who seems very impressed by everything you’ve done.’

Lia sat up.

‘Bobby? Do you think so?’

‘I’m sure of it. He likes you. How could he not? But you know, it must be hard for him to look at all this and believe he has a chance. Perhaps you need to give him some gentle encouragement.’

Lia threw her arms round Mim.

‘You are the best sister I never had,’ she said. ‘You know I’ll be on the phone to you every day, until you’re literally sick of hearing from me. I may even have to figure out where this Lancashire place is so that I can visit you. Do they have any five-star hotels there, darling?’

Mim squeezed her back, determined not to cry. And now there was only one person left she needed to tell…

Mim sat on the beach, enjoying the view before her last shift started at the Boat. She loved this view – the way the bay curved upwards on both sides, as if the village lay at the centre of a smile; the way the cliffs rose in a sharp climb on one side and a gentle slope on the other; the way the sea changed every day, never the same twice. The raw, natural beauty soothed her soul, despite the evidence of its danger in the closed-off section where the rock fall had taken place.

She’d called at Corin’s house on the way here, but he hadn’t been at home. She couldn’t decide if it was a relief or a disappointment. As unlikely as it had seemed at the start, his friendship had become a precious thing to her over the last few months, as precious as her relationship with Lia. Maybe even more. She owed him a proper goodbye, but the thought of going through with it made her feel like there was a huge pile of rocks hovering over her chest, ready to fall and crush it. Perhaps Bea or Lia would have told him by now and spared her the trouble? Then they could simply meet and wish each other well for the future…

A wet nose nudged her hand. Dickens had stopped at her side and, looking up, she saw Corin striding along the beach towards her. He smiled and came and sat down beside her on the stones.

‘This is well met,’ he said. ‘I was on my way to the Boat to see you.’

‘Were you? What for?’ Mim asked. He looked remarkably jolly. If he knew she was leaving he clearly wasn’t bothered.

‘There’s a 6k wild swim taking place on Dartmoor in August. I thought we could join in. What do you say? Shall I sign us up?’

‘That sounds great,’ she said. She couldn’t meet his eye and reached forward to stroke Dickens. ‘But I won’t be here in August.’

‘Won’t you?’ She heard the puzzlement in his voice. ‘Where will you be?’

‘In Lancashire.’

She risked a glance at him and caught the return of his smile.

‘Visiting Lucas? The swim is right at the start of the month, so perhaps you can fit it in before you go. Unless you’re chickening out of the 6k after all…’

‘I won’t be visiting him.’ This felt like torture. Mim decided to spit it all out at once. ‘I’ll be living there. I’m moving back. We’re leaving on Sunday.’

The silence stretched, broken only by the sound of the gulls with their urgent calls as they wheeled overhead. Dickens was sitting at her feet, staring at her. She suspected that Corin was doing the same.

‘This Sunday?’ he said at last. ‘In less than two days’ time? When were you going to tell me?’

‘I called round earlier. You were out.’

‘I was at the factory.’ He picked up a pebble and twisted it round and round in his hand. ‘You’re not serious, are you? You’re not really leaving for good?’

‘Yes. I am.’

He stood up and walked off to the water’s edge. He threw the pebble into the sea, where it landed with a violent splash. When he didn’t return, Mim followed him.

‘What about me?’ he asked, still looking out to sea. ‘What about us?’

‘You’ve been a brilliant friend,’ Mim said. The words sounded inadequate even to her own ears; he deserved more than that, much more. But now he was here in front of her, and she had to say goodbye, she didn’t know how or where to start. She tried again. ‘It’s been the most precious friendship of my life. I can’t begin to tell you the difference you’ve made. These past few months have shown me how rich life can be and that I can enjoy those riches too. I’m not going back to the life I had before. I’ll be looking for college courses in Lancashire, so your encouragement wasn’t wasted.’ She smiled. ‘Perhaps I can send you updates like Benite.’

‘Like Benite?’ He turned to face her, frowning. ‘Is that what you think? That I see you as a charity project?’ He shook his head and took a step nearer. ‘Isn’t it obvious, Mim? I love you.’

Love? Corin loved her? For a few seconds, the sound of the waves whispering onto the shore, the calling of the gulls, the breeze ruffling her hair, all disappeared and Mim was aware of nothing but Corin’s eyes on hers and a breathless sense of hope and possibility. And then the world came rushing back in, bringing a reality check with it.

‘Don’t be daft,’ she said.

Corin’s frown deepened.

‘Is that the way you always react when someone tells you they love you?’

‘I wouldn’t know,’ Mim said. ‘No one has ever told me before. Obviously, it’s the way I’d react if someone like you said it.’

‘Someone like me?’ Corin stepped