Tawrie sat forward, concentrating on every nuance.
‘“A woman infatuated and desperately in love with her husband Dan.”’
‘Wow! Oh my goodness!’ She couldn’t help the tears that now trickled down her face. It was bizarre to hear about them as a couple, something she’d never witnessed first-hand, and new information too, another facet of her dad’s life that helped build a picture. And it wasn’t what she had previously envisaged. Any mention of him when she had so little actual memory was like unpicking the stitches that kept all her hurt contained and out it came now, leaking through her eyes.
‘Yes, wow! And I’m sorry I thought you were a terrible playmate, but honestly? That still holds true for me if you have no Nintendo 64 skills ...’
‘I remember it now, Ed. I remember coming to Corner Cottage. I thought it was familiar when I walked in, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. But that was it – I came to your house for a play date.’
‘I remember it too.’
‘Is there more about my dad, any more about my parents?’ She hardly dared ask.
‘Yes.’ He handed her the sheets of paper, the words painstakingly written out in his uneven script. ‘I think you should go someplace quiet and read it. I’ve read the whole thing and it’s helped me understand my life and a bit of yours too.’
‘Thank you, Ed.’ She took the gift and placed it on her lap. It was the very best present on this, her birthday.
‘Let me know when you’ve read them, maybe we can talk then?’ he asked with so much hope it took all of her strength not to fall into him.
‘Come to the Gunn Fire if you like.’ It felt like the right thing to do, an invite for this man who had taken the time to write out these pages by hand and had waited for her here on the bench by Verity. She stood and stared at the sheets of paper in her hand. Nervous and excited in equal measure.
‘I might just do that.’ He beamed.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
HARRIETWENTWORTH
14 SEPTEMBER2024
‘There you are! I was starting to worry!’ Harriet called as she leaped up from the leather chair, relieved to hear the knock on the front door and knowing he’d hear her, remembering how chatter used to float through the timber as strangers passed by. ‘Oh!’ It was a surprise to see a young woman standing on the step. She knew instantly who it was, as if the folded sheets of paper in her hand weren’t clue enough. ‘Tawrie!’
‘Yes.’ She nodded. ‘I’m sorry to bother you.’ She looked a little awkward, standing on the top step, her eyes clearly red from crying.
‘You’re not bothering me. Not at all. Happy birthday! Bear told me.’
‘Thanks.’ The girl looked down; Harriet got the impression she wasn’t having the best day.
‘I was actually just getting a little bored, thought Bear would be back by now, but he’s off on a trek up to the Torrs and then walking around the reservoir, apparently. I remember it’s beautiful, the view down over the town.’
‘It is. I don’t do it often enough; you don’t do it when you know you can, do you?’
‘I guess not. Come in! Please, come in!’ Harriet hoped it was the right thing to do, inviting her inside without knowing how their mid-morning rendezvous had gone. It felt a little risky, but if reading her diary had reminded her of one thing, it was that when true love came knocking, you had a duty to usher it in. Charles had shown her how to love again, how to trust, and the thought of Bear and Tawrie not being given their shot was almost more than she could stand.
Tawrie hesitated but stepped inside and looked towards the stairs, her eyes double blinking as if in memory.
‘This is rather odd, isn’t it?’ She thought it best to cut to the chase. ‘First of all, as I’m sure you know, this isn’t the first time we’ve met. In fact, the last time I opened the door to you and walked you through into the sitting room you were only a little girl! I can picture you then as plain as day. You were shy.’
‘Still am a bit.’ The girl smiled awkwardly. ‘I didn’t know, or at least I didn’t remember until ...’ She lifted the paper on to which Harriet’s son had transcribed certain sections of her diary.
‘Yes, which brings me to the second odd thing: you’ve read bits of my diary, know some of my deepest darkest thoughts. Bear asked, of course, before he gave them to you and I could tell it was important to him.’ She hoped this was a prompt to encourage Tawrie to be open about her feelings too.
‘Yes, I feel ...’ The young woman tried to find the words.
‘A little awkward?’ Harriet cut in. She knewshedid.
‘No, not at all.’ Tawrie shook her head. ‘A little in awe of you! Absolutely in awe! Is it okay to talk about, that ... that ... time?’
‘Yes.’ It was an easy answer, despite the girl’s hesitation. ‘I mean, for years after I would have given anything not to talk about it, but now, with the glorious benefit of hindsight ...’
