Total pages in book: 98
Estimated words: 96833 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 484(@200wpm)___ 387(@250wpm)___ 323(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 96833 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 484(@200wpm)___ 387(@250wpm)___ 323(@300wpm)
My eyes widened. “How is it possible that you don’t know? I thought I told you everything.”
“You might’ve, dear, but I’m going a bit senile, so tell me again.”
I took a deep breath to gear up for the emotion of the story. I’d keep it short so as not to go off the rails tonight. “Britney was traveling to the UK for medical treatments. But I didn’t know that at first—she certainly didn’t look sick. She and I met at an airport in the US. I was heading back home from a trip to the States. We bickered about something, and I think I fell in love with her smart mouth almost instantly. I teased her about being short, and she called me an obnoxious giraffe. We had immediate chemistry like I’d never felt in my life. We ended up sitting next to each other on the plane, but she insisted that we needed to separate once we landed. I couldn’t accept that, never seeing her again. She wasn’t ever able to get rid of me, much to her dismay.”
“What happened after the flight?”
“I followed her to her hotel room—where her parents were waiting. That’s when I found out the truth. Phil and Kate were already in town to accompany her to her treatments. They were in the UK because that’s where the doctor conducting the clinical trial was located.”
“And you stayed…”
“Spent every single day of the next six months with her—lots of hard days, but lots of beautiful ones in between. Fell in love, got married…” I paused, feeling an ache in my chest. “And then she died.” I downed the last of the gin, which burned the back of my throat. “Six months. That’s all we had.” I sucked in a shaky breath. “Changed my life forever.”
Lavinia reached for my arm. “It’s so tragic, but so beautiful, Sigmund.”
“Those months were the greatest gift of my life. I don’t need to fall in love again, Lavinia.”
“Perhaps you don’t. But you do need to have this child. A piece of you and her. That will be your greatest gift.”
CHAPTER 3
* * *
Abby
Track 3: “Crash” by The Primitives
I called my father from the road on the way to the inn.
“This place looks like something out of a movie, Dad. Rolling hills, stone architecture. I can’t believe I never thought to visit the English countryside before.”
“Well, I’m happy you arrived in one piece and that it’s off to a good start. Please keep me posted on everything. If something doesn’t feel right, you come right back home, you hear me?”
I swerved to avoid oncoming traffic. “Thus far, the only thing that doesn’t feel right is driving on the left side of the road.”
“Oh, don’t tell me that. I’m worried enough as it is.”
“It’s a pretty narrow country road, too. But it’s fine. I’m getting used to it.”
“Okay, well, don’t talk while driving. Concentrate. And call me when you get there safely.”
“I will, Dad. Love you.”
“Love you, too.”
It didn’t matter how old I was, my father would always worry about me, especially when I was far from home. I’d only been out of the US once before, to Mexico with a group of people during my high school years. My mother had been alive then, so Dad had a distraction. Now, with her gone and my sister across the country, his focus was mainly me.
Two weeks ago, Phil and Kate had called to say Britney’s husband wanted me to come to the UK to meet him before he agreed to the surrogacy. He’d offered to send a ride to get me from the airport, but I preferred to have a car while I was here so I could explore the sights. He’d ordered me a rental instead, which I’d picked up before driving to the countryside. He’d messaged me the name of the inn where I’d be staying, The Bainbridge in Westfordshire. Apparently, it was run by a friend of his. I had no idea when I’d be meeting the man himself. I didn’t even know what he looked like—not that it mattered, but it would’ve been nice to have some idea going into this. I hadn’t wanted to be rude and ask Phil and Kate for a photo. A Google search had turned up nothing, aside from a fuzzy photo of him and his aristocrat cousin in a gossip rag from years ago. There’d been some kind of scandal involving the cousin... Anyway, the idea of meeting this guy for the first time was nerve-wracking, despite my excitement to be visiting a new place.
I rolled down the car window, breathing in the scent of grass and something that smelled like chamomile. Or maybe that was the daffodils that had popped up everywhere along this road. My hair blew in the wind as I soaked in the fresh air. A week would not be enough to enjoy this magical place.