And as they laughed together Melissa wondered whether she’d be in the exact same position as Tracy come next year. Was her future really with Jay still, or had coming back to the Cove changed all that?
*
Melissa had gone to bed last night looking forward to a girlie shopping trip with Tracy and Lucy. But right now, after cancelling on the both of them, she was driving over to White Clover after a strange phone call from Ashley. Melissa hoped she wasn’t about to be hauled in front of an ethics committee for probing at confidential information.
When she parked up and went inside Ashley greeted her with a smile and asked, ‘You weren’t busy, were you?’
‘I was meant to be dress shopping for the ball.’
‘I do apologise, but I needed to speak with you and it had to be here.’ But instead of keeping her inside she ushered her back out of the front door and pulled it closed behind them.
‘Am I in trouble?’
Ashley’s laughter, the jovial personality that was perfectly suited to the not-for-profit sector, boomed across the paved area out front. ‘Of course not. But I do have a visitor. It’s Lois.’
Melissa’s jaw dropped. ‘Are you serious? She’s here? Now?’
‘It must be the same Lois as the woman you’re looking for. We only have one Lois on our books. What’s going on, Melissa?’
‘I’m not sure I know yet myself.’ Melissa at best had expected an email from the newspaper in return to her own. She never thought Lois would show up here; she’d been caught well and truly off guard.
‘The Lois I’ve got waiting inside got in touch with us a few months ago about running a wedding dress ball where she lives in Ireland. I didn’t hear from her again until now, when she showed up introducing herself as one of our supporters and reminding me of her enquiry.’
‘I suspect she may be here because of me rather than the ball or the charity.’
‘I thought as much after your questions lately. I don’t know what the story is, and I’m not asking, but do you want to go and see her and take it from here? No point me being the go-between.’
She leaned against the door. ‘She’s really in there right now?’ The journalist must have forwarded her email and attachment, but not let Melissa know.
‘I excused myself and said I’d get the organiser of the ball here in Heritage Cove to come and talk to her. Which isn’t strictly a lie, because you have been helping out.’
All Melissa had said in the letter to Lois was that she was close to Barney Walters, that he’d had a spell in hospital and hadn’t been the same since. Melissa had also added that since Barney had come to Heritage Cove he’d been running a wedding dress ball every year to raise money for the White Clover charity, and that following his hospital stay he was talking about stopping the event altogether. Melissa had left it at that, it was enough information to find out whether Lois was concerned, whether she cared enough to get in touch.
And now, here she was. Inside, waiting.
Ashley put a hand to Melissa’s arm. ‘Stay out here for a few minutes, think about how you’re going to play this.’
‘Will do.’ Melissa shut her eyes, shook her head. She didn’t have long and there was only one person she needed right now. Harvey.
But his phone rang out so she had no choice but to face this on her own.
Back inside Melissa followed Ashley down a thin corridor and into the kitchen, where a filter jug filled with coffee left a pleasant aroma. Melissa might not drink the stuff but she did love the smell and right now it kept her alert and ready in a room that was almost on the too warm side. There was only a thin window, high up on one wall, and having already been opened it wasn’t doing much to bring in a stream of fresh air.
She introduced herself and shook hands with Lois. Slender wrists, pale skin with a delicate bracelet falling from the sleeve of her sky-blue cotton blouse – this was, without a doubt, the woman from the photograph Melissa had found.
‘Melissa…you’re the young lady who wrote to me, aren’t you?’
‘I am.’
Lois rambled on as though chatter could help her reach an equilibrium. ‘This is such a wonderful charity. I’ve been supporting them for many years, right from when they were based near Colchester. But these are much nicer surrounds, not too dissimilar from where I settled in Ireland, out in the countryside, so much greenery.’
‘I thought I detected a bit of an accent.’
‘When you’ve moved around a lot like I have, your accent gets mixed up. You pick a bit up here, a bit up there, and in the end nobody really knows where you come from.’Thin, pale-glossed lips revealed straight if not white teeth, she had laughter lines that were so embedded they spoke of a contented life, at least in the end.
‘I wasn’t sure you’d even acknowledge my letter,’ said Melissa.
‘I started to write a reply, I tried a few times, and then I thought, why not go and see this girl. I decided I’d come here to Heritage Cove, visit the charity, and then I’d decide whether I was going to make my presence known. I wasn’t sure I’d be able to do it.’
