Page 94 of The Only Way Is Up

‘I do love you.’ Tom pulled Daisy into his arms. ‘Even in sensible shoes.’

Daisy looked at him, her eyes blazing. ‘I love you too.’ His eyes flared and a grin lit up his face. He bent to kiss her.

‘Will you help me find a cottage?’

‘Of course. What did you have in mind?’

‘Something pretty,’ Daisy responded happily, ‘big kitchen, nice garden, space to write and have guests, no nosey neighbours. Not too far from you.’

Tom held her shoulders at arms’ length and looked at her intently. ‘Are you sure about this?’

Daisy nodded furiously. ‘Absolutely. I’m not saying I’ll never work in television again, but right now I need a break. I want to breathe, do normal things. I don’t know exactly what, but something else.’

‘And what about me?’ asked Tom, looking a little nervous.

Daisy smiled. ‘You’re definitely something else.’

Tom pulled her into a hug, letting out a long and slow breath. To Daisy it sounded like a release, the beginning of letting go of some of the burdens he’d been hauling around for the past three years. His were much bigger than Daisy’s, but they could work through them together. She was convinced of it.

‘So what’s next?’ Tom took Daisy’s hand and led her out onto the field. They strolled in the direction of the lake, the morning sun in their faces.

‘I’m still going back to London tomorrow. But Katie and Roger are making calls to the team at Spotlight now and working on a statement. They’ve got time to find a new presenter, I’ve always had the option to do this as long as I told them by the end of January.’

‘That’s next week,’ said Tom.

‘I read the signs just in time,’ said Daisy. ‘I’ll need to have some meetings, do some interviews, wrap up some loose ends. I reckon it will take a week or two.’

‘Can you come back for half-term? I’ve got a week off. Usually I’d have tons of admin to do but I’ve got a new secretary and she’s fabulous.’

Daisy smiled, glad that things were working out for Melanie, and crossing her fingers that the pregnancy would go well. ‘I have a lovely little villa in Portugal. We could go together if you can find someone to look after Henry.’

Tom grinned. ‘Angela would be delighted. She’s already asked if she can keep him as an emotional support dog when she moves into her retirement village. That’s obviously a no,’ he added hastily. Daisy couldn’t imagine Tom without Henry.

‘I figure if we can spend twenty-four hours a day together for a week, we’re in with a good chance.’ Her face glowed with excitement.

Tom pulled her into another hug, holding her tight like she might disappear if he let her go. ‘That’s a chance I’m very willing to take.’ Daisy could feel his heart thumping through his shirt.

‘Well,’ Tom whispered into her hair. ‘Today hasn’t turned out quite how I imagined. I woke up feeling a bit crap about you leaving tomorrow, and now you’re moving to the countryside and we get to go on holiday together.’

‘We should celebrate.’ Daisy waited for Tom to suggest they had sex. But he wasn’t Christian. He was a million miles from Christian.

‘Definitely. When’s Ruby going back to school?’

Daisy looked at her watch, struggling to process how much had happened in the past couple of hours. ‘I need to drop her back about five. I haven’t told her my plan yet, but she’ll be cool about it as long as I can still get her free tickets for stuff.’

‘It’s not even twelve. Go talk to Ruby, then let’s meet in the pub in an hour. Ask Simon and Archie if they want to join us.’ He grinned and squeezed Daisy’s hand happily. ‘I’ll message a few people in the village, see if anyone else is at a loose end.’

Daisy laughed. ‘What are the chances?’

‘Very high. But that’s village life, so you might as well get used to it. No red carpets, no fancy parties. You ready for that?’ He lifted Daisy’s hand to his lips and kissed it, his eyes meeting hers with an intensity that she felt all the way to the tips of her toes.

‘Yes.’

And Daisy knew without a shadow of a doubt that she really was.

PART FIVE

JULY