Just Between Us (37 page)
Authors: Hayley Oakes
Epilogue
– Just Us
Mick got better. It was a long road to recovery and he wasn’t home for Christmas that year. My mum never left his side, and I had to get involved in her textile business in my spare time to ensure it was running smoothly. Kyle stayed for two weeks until he had to go home. Mick was conscious by then and eating on his own, without being fed by a tube. At that point we didn’t know what brain damage had occurred and what his motor skills would be long term, but he was alive. Kyle came home at weekends to offer his support and to see me, of course, to see me. Mum embraced our relationship after the initial shock and decided that she best break the news to Mick.
It was awkward at first to be affectionate at home, in front of them, and approach the question of us sleeping in the same bed. Mum just shook her head, “it’s nice to be asked, but I doubt very much that that hasn’t happened before.” It was amazing how quickly WE became normal.
My dad was surprised. He remembered Kyle as a difficult teenager and rolled his eyes when I told him how much he meant to me. However, Kyle was eager to set things straight and spoke to my dad on his own for a few minutes the first time they met up again, after that, Dad seemed a lot easier about everything.
“What did you say?” I asked him later.
He gave me his killer grin. “Come on, Soph. I’m not giving my secrets away.” I swatted his arm and he laughed.
Our life became usual, normal, regular, standard, ordinary. We were finally a couple, and if anyone had something to say they never said it to me. We rarely saw anyone from school who could pass comment and our parents friends seemed to take it all in their stride. Even my grandmother, Dad’s mum, didn’t really say anything. I suppose it wasn’t the scandal I had always imagined it to be.
By February Mick was home, his motor skills were much better, but he lost his temper a lot when he couldn’t do things as quickly as he had been able to. He was the same and yet altered, but Mum loved him so much that he was able to immerse himself in her care. She mothered him and made sure that he had everything he might need. Mick watched her like he knew he had won the wife lottery and it made me smile.
He would never go back to work like he did before, he still owned his franchise, but he couldn’t work full time … it would be too much. So by May he was back working three mornings a week and that was mostly customer service rather than the day-to-day running of the place. He left that to his managers.
Finally school was finishing for summer, and Kyle and I had made some big decisions. Life was back to normal for Mum and Mick. They decided to have more of a life than work so hard and so they didn’t need me around cramping their style. So I decided to move to London to be with Kyle. I had even found a job at a local primary school and we decided to look for a house in the suburbs. I wanted to use my little nest egg to help with a deposit and even though Kyle didn’t need it, he understood the significance of my contribution. I wanted to put everything I could into our new life.
Ashley was sad to see me leave, and I would miss Stanley dreadfully but we agreed to meet once a month no matter what. Vinnie and Kyle had reconnected over the past few months, we saw Ashley and Vinnie a lot and the men bonded over their mutual fascination with how fast we could talk to each other.
“They don’t come up for air,” Vinnie would say, nursing a beer.
“I think it’s a world record.” Kyle would laugh.
It was like old times, us four reunited, and sometimes I couldn’t believe I waited ten years to make this happen. My life was Kyle, always had been since that first kiss, he was in my thoughts, my dreams and my fantasies and now he was my reality – finally.
On my last day of school my kids held a special assembly for me to say goodbye. They stood on the stage at the end of the assembly hall and all said a sentence about London, holding up pictures and informing everyone of what it was like. I wiped away quick tears as I watched them hold up their pictures, one piece of A4 at a time. They were so sweet and such good children, I hoped the kids in London would be equally as easy. Then before I knew what was happening some music played over the loud speaker, it was ‘You and Me’ by the Wannadies, a song that I had always loved since Leonardo DiCaprio was Romeo and Claire Danes Juliet, but it seemed wrong in this setting. That’s when I saw him, Kyle, I was stunned, my heart stopped.
He strolled to the centre of the stage where the kids stood with their papers held high, and then he nodded to their turned heads. Slowly they turned over the pages and there written, a letter on each page, was
Will you marry me?
I gasped, my hands over my mouth, and I started to pulse with embarrassment as all eyes turned to me. Kyle stepped down and the children watched on expectantly, he walked towards me as I still tried to take in the whole situation. He stopped at the chair where I sat and kneeled down in front of me, “Sophie King, I love you, and I want you to marry me. Will you?” He didn’t need to say any more as I could see all the angst of the last ten years in his eyes, and with that he held a small velvet box open in front of me.
A wide grin spread across my face and I began to cry. “Of course I will.” I said, springing up and engulfing him in a hug. “I would love to.”
He placed the ring delicately on my finger and beamed, kissing me in front of everyone. God, I loved this man and had spent too long hiding just how wonderful he really was, now everyone could see exactly how great he was, and I didn’t have to hide any more.
Two years later
“For God’s sake, Mum.” I sighed, as she busied herself arranging cupcakes in our large open plan kitchen. We had lived in this converted barn for eighteen months now. It was perfect for parties and to have lots of visitors from the north with its six spacious bedrooms. It was in the London suburbs and close enough for Kyle to commute, it was perfect, and right now it was full of people.
“What?” she asked innocently. “Please sit down, you’ve spent more time in the kitchen than enjoying the party.”
“I like to help.” She sighed.
“Well, help by sitting down with a glass of wine,” I soothed.
“You sit down,” she countered, “that baby could come any day, you need to rest and enjoy your baby shower.” I groaned and rolled my eyes.
This baby shower had been Ashley’s idea, and she had gone overboard organising it. “Where is she?” Tanya poked her head around the kitchen door and walked towards me. “Come on, we’re going to start some games.” She giggled.
“Games?” I rolled my eyes and allowed myself to be led back to the lounge where almost thirty women sat expectantly, holding pieces of paper and colourful biros.
The men were in the bar, a large room that Kyle had had built next to the garage. He had beer on tap, flat screen televisions showing every sport imaginable, and all sorts of games consoles that men found so enticing. He would be propping up the bar with Mick and Vinnie, whilst I was being treated to girly games and endless birth stories. I just didn’t want to know. Our baby girl was due in a week, and the less I knew about what to expect, the better.
Ashley was now pregnant with her second child, and Stanley was roaming around our house testing whether it was child proof or not. Tanya had become a good friend, and I had met a few new friends at the school where I worked. Geraldine was there with her partner Janine, and Tanya had invited the women that we often socialised with who were friendly but not particularly close friends. Ashley was exhausted and sat like a beached whale on the nearby chair.
After a couple of hours and a mammoth present opening extravaganza, I slipped away and crept up to our en suite. I splashed some water on my face and looked at my bloated reflection in the mirror.
“Urgh,” I said, disgusted at my ballooned frame.
“What?” a voice said from behind me as Kyle entered the bathroom.
“Look at me.” I sighed. “I’m huge.”
“You’re beautiful,” he said, engulfing me in his arms and kissing me on the head.
“I’m fat.”
“Pregnant,” he corrected, kissing my nose, “and in a few weeks she’ll be outta there whether she likes it or not.”
“I can’t wait,” I breathed.
“Having a good time?” he asked.
“Honestly?” I asked. He nodded. “No, I just want a hot bath and to get into bed together and watch Netflix.”
“That can be arranged,” he said kissing me again. “A couple more hours then we’ll clear them all out and have that bath.”
“We’ve still got Mum and Mick and Ash …”
“Leave it to me.” He leaned in conspiratorially. “When these people are gone they can busy themselves, and I’ll be at your beck and call.”
“I love you,” I said kissing his lips.
“I love you more,” he said, rubbing a hand over my huge stomach and bending down to talk to her, “and you my baby are the icing on the cake, please come out and put your mummy out of her misery.”
I smiled at him and he walked me back to the bedroom door. “Now mingle,” he said, “and remember, you wanted normal … this is it, baby.” He rubbed my shoulders as we walked down the stairs, him behind me. Sometimes I forgot exactly what we had been through to get here and when I lay in bed and wake up next to Kyle it is easy to forget how hard it has been. I had thought it was so wrong, thought that what we had wasn’t real, and that he wasn’t the one for me, but as soon as I accepted my fate, it became so obvious that no one else would ever do.
The End
Acknowledgements
Thank you to my wonderful proof readers who added invaluable insights into the characters and caught as many bloopers as they could find. You are amazing and meet very trying deadlines Rebecca, Catherine, Claire, Julie, Sheena, Carli and Sian. Thank you for the unwavering support from my work friends Carli, Leanne, Sheena and Claire who are always available for wobbles and advice. Special thanks to Rebecca and Catherine who read as I write and spur me on to get to the finish line, and Catherine you are my little Kyle junkie who always helped me focus when I doubted him.
To my bestie Rebecca, my number one fan, thank you for the constant support and answers to my questions that know no time limits, no geographical distance and mean we constantly annoy our husbands. Your encouragement has meant that I made it this far.
Thank you to my ever patient cover artist Helen, who did so many changes and was extremely forgiving for constant picture and font amendments, just so I could get the perfect cover. She is a genius.
Thank you mum for always being the President of my fan club no matter what I have been up to throughout the years. She is currently pushing my books on anyone that will listen. You have always instilled confidence in me and are a wonderful mother.
Thank you also to the many bloggers and authors that I have met along the way from whom I have learnt so much and am still learning. The author community is amazing. Special thanks to everyone in my street team for sharing and helping me get Kyle and Sophie out there.
Also thank you to all my readers who have enjoyed ‘Waiting for Grace’ and spurred me on to do it again. I love you all and hope that you enjoy this book just as much. I hope the characters are as real for you all as they are for me.
About the Author
This is Hayley Oakes’ second novel. Her first novel ‘Waiting for Grace’ was released in October 2013. She lives in Blackpool, England with her husband and daughter. She loves reading and writing angst ridden romance, socialising with her amazing friends and hates cliff hangers. Her current guilty pleasure is cake.
You can find her at
https://www.facebook.com/AuthorHayleyOakes.
Other Titles by Hayley Oakes
Waiting for Grace
A chance encounter puts Grace Cooper back in touch with her first love that she was never able to forget.
Eight years before she had been a disillusioned teenager, with a complicated home life and Robert was her one steadying influence. However, a summer of adventure ultimately tore them apart and ever since Grace has been seeking a new life to escape home forever and fill the void that Robert left in her heart.
Once Robert stumbles upon her again, he is determined to stay in her life and erase the mistakes of the past. Although Grace has a secret that she has to share and Robert has some unfinished business of his own. Can they conquer the demons of their past and deal with what the future has in store? A young love that has refused to die begins to re-ignite but with it comes further revelation and heartache.
http://www.amazon.com/Waiting-Grace-Hayley-Oakes-ebook/dp/B00FVRFFNE/ref=sr_1_1_bnp_1_kin?ie=UTF8&qid=1395944745&sr=8-1&keywords=waiting+for+grace