Feels Like Home (38 page)

‘We'll be gone for a month,' she told an attentive Mrs Clemmens. ‘Ryan was a bit worried about leaving the practice for so long, but he's managed to find a locum to handle any emergencies. Between Dan, Bec and Beth, the farm will be fine.'

Mrs Clemmens nodded her approval. ‘It's wonderful how Beth's come on since her hip replacement. I saw her the other day over at the CWA hall and she looked fit as a fiddle.'

‘Yeah, she's made a full recovery now, thank goodness. We rely on her quite a lot, but she seems to love helping out.'

‘I'm sure she does. She'll miss you all while you're gone, though. A month seems such a long time. How will Ella cope being out of school for so long?'

‘She'll be fine. She's a bright little thing and she'll only miss two weeks of classes because we're going during the school holidays. I'm sure she'll catch up.'

Mrs Clemmens nodded as Jo spoke.

‘We're packing quite a lot into that month. The book tour starts in LA so we can take Ella to Disneyland and Universal Studios while we're there. We're visiting San Francisco and San Diego too. I think Ella will love the San Diego zoo. We have ten days in New York and then, on the way home we'll have a few days in Hawaii. You never know, Ryan might even give surfing a go.'

Mrs Clemmens clapped her hands in obvious delight. ‘Now I'm envious. Sounds like the trip of a lifetime.'

Mrs Clemmens was right about that. It was a wonderful way to celebrate the first anniversary of Ryan's signing of the adoption papers, as well as serving as a belated honeymoon. She supposed most newlyweds wouldn't want to take a child away with them, but Jo wouldn't have it any other way. She was especially looking forward to spending time in New York showing Ryan and Ella all her favourite parts of the city. She couldn't wait to see Ella's face when she saw the vast array of toys in FAO Schwarz, or the Ferris wheel in Toys R Us.

Ryan was nervous about his first visit to the ‘Big Apple' — and he kept calling it that even though she'd told him no New Yorker ever would. Despite his distaste for big cities she knew he would marvel at the open space provided by Central Park, and he'd be impressed by the view from the top of the Empire State Building. Who wouldn't? She'd bought tickets online for a Yankees game and hand-picked some restaurants and diners where she hoped he'd be blown away by the food and the friendly service. And, of course, they'd visit her old neighbourhood so Ryan could meet some of her friends from her NYU days.

The last time she'd visited the States, almost a year ago now, she'd reluctantly gone alone. It was impossible for Ryan to travel at that time. His mother was still recovering from her fall and he was waiting to sign those all-important papers that would make Ella irrefutably his.

Ella begged to go along, and nothing would have made Jo happier than to grant her request. She would have loved to take Ella to the premiere of
Hollywood Kisses
because at least then one of them would have been happy to be there. But Ryan didn't think it was a good idea for Ella to travel so far when her epilepsy diagnosis was still so new. And as much as she wanted to share New York with her, Jo really didn't want Ella exposed to all that stupid media scrutiny.

So she walked the red carpet by herself.

Zach was there with Kiara on his arm, and they were the darlings of the paparazzi and the crowd. Jo had been played by him, made to look as if she'd been having an affair all along when really it was the other way around. Not that she cared anymore. Ryan's identity hadn't been revealed — he was referred to as her ‘Australian mystery man'— and that was all that mattered.

Her split from Zach made front-page headlines in the week before the premiere, so Jo could have chosen to stay away. There was no need to keep up the pretence, and she owed Zach nothing. But she needed to go back to New York to pack up her things and tie up a few loose ends, so she figured she would hold her head high and walk the red carpet anyway. This was the movie of
her
book after all. Why shouldn't she be at the premiere?

Still, it hadn't been easy and she'd been more than a little relieved when she'd stepped on board the aircraft to go home. Back to her family, where she belonged.

The bell on the butcher's door tinkled, indicating a new customer's arrival. Jo put a finger to her lips to remind Mrs Clemmens not to share her secret and the older woman gave her a reassuring nod.

‘Good morning, Mrs Irvine,' Jo said, as she backed away from the counter.

Elderly Mrs Irvine smiled and returned the greeting before turning her attention to the meat on display.

‘Well, I'll leave you to it Mrs C,' Jo said. ‘Thanks for the sausages. They're Ella's favourite.'

Mrs Clemmens smiled as she waved her goodbye. ‘You're a good mum, Jo. Ella's lucky to have you.'

‘I'm the lucky one,' Jo said, and she stepped out into the winter sun.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

My heartfelt thanks go to:

Kate Cuthbert for believing in this book, and all the team at Harlequin for being so great to work with.

Amanda Knight for being my sounding board, my critique partner and a wonderful friend.

Carmen Vicos and Catherine Evans, for reading countless drafts. Your comments and support helped me coax the scribble into a story. Without you this book wouldn't exist.

My editor, Kate James, for helping me to shape this into a much better book than it would have been otherwise.

Georgina Penney, for providing the right advice at exactly the right time.

My lovely writing friends, Delwyn Jenkins, Janette Radevski, Jennie Jones and Rachael Johns, for your friendship and support.

My family and friends, especially my sister-in-law, Tracie, and brother, Dean, who sing my praises every chance they get, and my friend, Fiona, who is still by my side after forty years of friendship.

My beautiful nieces, Georgie and Sophie, for helping me with Ella's character.

All my AWSOM buddies. I love being part of this diverse and dynamic group. You all rock!

Romance Writers of Australia. I'm so grateful for the ongoing support and professional development this amazing organisation provides.

My fellow Escape Artists. What a welcoming and supportive group of people you are. I love working alongside you all.

My book club. Thanks for being such an awesome cheer squad. Special thanks to Kelly for your friendship, support and encouragement (and all the bubbles!).

Shannean and Alison for your expert legal advice.

All my Facebook and Twitter friends and followers. I can always depend on you guys to help me out with a name or a tricky bit of research. I really appreciate the interest you show in my writing. Thanks for sharing the journey with me.

All the readers who take the time to write a review or email me their thoughts about my books. I love hearing from you and your support is what keeps me going. Thank you.

My wonderful husband, David, and my three beautiful sons, Charlie, Will and Alex, for sharing me with my characters. I love you all xx.

And Millie and Lulu, for getting my writer's butt out of the chair and out of the house every day!

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ISBN: 9780857992499

Title: Feels Like Home

Copyright © 2015 by Lisa Ireland

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