“Down with the Tory government!” Mrs.B shouted.
“For goodness’ sake, Mrs.Bransworth, will you ever give it a rest?” Marjorie said.
“Never. Mary and I are off to a protest up north tomorrow, another council trying to close their libraries.”
“Mary?” June said.
“Mrs.B is spending a lot of time with that woman from the Dornley WI,” Vera whispered to June. “I think she might be one of those les—”
But June didn’t hear the rest of what Vera said, because at that moment she spotted a figure standing at the back of the crowd. June hadn’t seen Alex since the day of Stanley’s funeral, nine months ago, and the sight of him made her stomach somersault. He caught her eye and smiled, and she walked over to join him.
“Hey, stranger,” he said when she reached him. “How are you? I like your hair.”
“So, I’ve got a bone to pick with you,” June said.
Alex looked at her in alarm. “What have I done?”
“I finally readPride and Prejudice and Zombiesa while ago, and I have some major reservations about the plot.”
Alex’s face broke into a grin. “What are you talking about? It’s an amazing book, much better than Jane Austen’s boring original.”
They both laughed, and June felt her heart lift.
“Doesn’t this place look great?” Alex said. “And Ellie just told me Stanley’s son is here. This must be so strange for you.”
“This whole thing has been completely surreal.”
“I hear you’re not working here anymore?”
“No, I’ve left Chalcot. I work at a library in Kent now.”
“Wow, that’s fantastic,” Alex said, and then he frowned. “Why didn’t you reply to any of my texts?”
“Sorry. I meant to but...” June trailed off, unsure what to say.I was embarrassed because I’d assumed Ellie was your girlfriend and I’d made a complete fool of myself? I thought you wouldn’t want to have anything to do with me now you’d gone back to your old life?She took a deep breath. “There’s something I need to tell you.”
“What?”
“During the occupation, Stanley told me that I should learn to seize opportunities, that otherwise I’d end up sad and alone with a life full of regrets.”
Alex raised his eyebrows. “Whoa, that was pretty brutal.”
“I think he knew there was something I wanted, even though I didn’t realize I wanted it myself.”
“But still, don’t you think telling someone they’ll end up sad and alone is a bit full-on? I mean, talk about projecting—”
June sighed; this was not how she’d imagined it would go. “Alex, you’re missing the point,” she interrupted. “He was talking about you.”
She watched his expression go from indignation to surprise. His cheeks flushed and for once he didn’t seem to know what to say.
“I tried ‘seizing the opportunity’ once before, after the wedding,” June said, to fill the silence. “But that was... Well, you know what happened then. It was a disaster.”
Alex looked mortified. “I’m sorry, I just wasn’t expecting you to kiss me. And you were so drunk, I didn’t want to take advantage of you.”
“You don’t have to apologize; I was a mess. And I felt so guilty because I thought you had a girlfriend.”
“I tried to tell you that Ellie’s just my flatmate.”
“I know that now. I’m sorry.”
