Christmas Child: an absolutely heartbreaking and emotional Victorian romance by Carol Rivers (i wanna iguana read aloud .txt) 📗

certainly wasn't for the likes of Ray to sit in judgement when he was such a hypocrite himself.

'Bella!'

Dolly's call was panic-stricken. Bella turned round to find Dolly running after her, tripping over the cracks in the pavement in her haste to catch up. Her hair had lost all its clips and her round face was full of concern. 'Ray didn't mean what he said. I'm sorry,' she gasped as she drew level with Bella.

'It's not your fault.'

'He likes you, he really does.' Dolly held her sides, breathing hard. 'He wouldn't hurt you for the world. And what you said about the butcher? You won't let on to Mum, will you? She'd kill him.'

'You know me better than that.'

'It's just a little side line he's got going.'

'I don't care what your brother does,' Bella snapped. 'As long he leaves me alone.'

'He will, I promise.' Dolly groaned. 'I've got a stitch now.'

Bella giggled. 'All you need is a needle.'

Dolly laughed breathlessly. 'Oh, Bella, you're a laugh a minute you are.' Her eyes filled with tears. 'I keep forgetting we won't be going back to school after the holidays. I get a rotten sinking feeling inside when I think of that.'

'I don't,' Bella replied at once. 'I'll be free at last. And anyway, what are you worrying for? You're brainier than me and will get a job without any trouble.'

'Yes, but I'll be all on me own somewhere without you.'

'You'll have to learn to stick up for yourself, Dol.'

Dolly blushed. 'I know. You always stuck up for me. I was such a wimp.'

'Well, it's the real world for us now. People will walk over us if we let them.'

Dolly looked sad. 'I wish I was like you.'

Bella laughed. 'That's a funny thing to say. You've got everything a girl could want. A nice family, a proper roof over your head and you're bound to find a nice boyfriend.'

'But I'm weak and you're strong, Bella. You've always got the answers.'

'Only because I make them up.'

Dolly giggled. 'And you're funny. I never am.'

'Oh Dolly, do cheer up. Look on the bright side of life. You can start the morning with a smile on your face or a frown. It's your choice, as easy as that.'

Bella looked at her friend and wondered where they would both be in ten years time. Would Dolly be a replica of Mrs Taylor, with a neat and tidy terraced house, have kids with shiny faces and be married to a parrot of a husband? If that was so, good luck to Dolly! But that wasn't what Bella wanted and today had confirmed it.

'We can still go out together, can't we?' Dolly asked plaintively.

'Course we can.'

'Shall I call round your house?'

Bella smirked. Dolly never called. No one ever called, except Micky or Ronnie. 'If you dare.'

Dolly went pink. 'He won't answer the door, will he?'

Bella laughed. 'Tell you what, I'll come round to yours.'

Dolly looked relieved. 'Will you? Promise?'

Bella nodded. 'We'll go up the market. Cox Street or the Lane.'

Dolly flung herself forward and hugged Bella so tight, her bones cracked. 'I'm going to miss you so much.'

As they parted, Bella felt the shackles of their friendship fall away for unlike Dolly, she wanted to experience everything! She knew that life had only just begun now they had left school and the thought of freedom excited her beyond measure. She was going to meet new people and make new friends, though she didn't said as much to Dolly who was in floods of tears, trying to wipe her wet cheeks surreptitiously as she said goodbye.

Also by Carol Rivers

LIZZIE FLOWERS AND THE FAMILY FIRM

Another Amazon Bestseller!

Gripping. Unputdownable. Addictive.

She’s a lone woman fighting tooth and nail for her turf in a dirty world.

If you like juicy family dramas, feisty heroines and conflicted romances, then you’ll love Carol Rivers’ page-turning novel.

Lizzie Flowers has history with the corrupt gangs of London’s East End; she’s won more battles than she’s lost. But this time she must think out of the box - and quick!

A violent racketeer nicknamed The Prince threatens the life of her treasured niece and plans to steal her business empire.

To add to her troubles, lifelong lover Danny falls under the spell of another woman and walks away from the action.

Ultimately, it’s close family she turns to. But can the Flowers swallow on their personal issues before the enemy closes in? United, there’s a small chance they’ll bring the most infamous gangster of all to justice. Divided, they fall!

Can one single-minded lady unite her clan in time to save The Firm and the life of little Polly?

Lizzie Flowers and the Family Firm from the Sunday Times and eBook bestselling author of A Wartime Christmas. Read as a riveting STANDALONE or enjoy as part of the Lizzie Flowers trilogy. Please click on cover to purchase.

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First published in Great Britain by Carol Rivers Publications

This ebook edition published 2019

Copyright © 2019 Carol Rivers Publications

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The right of Carol Rivers to be identified as author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either a product of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious sense. Any resemblance to real people alive or dead, events or locations, is coincidental.