Page 100 of The Summer That Changed Us

‘I’m so glad you came,’ Katie pressed a kiss to her cheek after they’d finished hugging.

‘I almost didn’t,’ said Grace, kicking off her trainers and not meeting her eye. ‘But FOMOG got me in the end.’

‘Do you mean FOMO?’ Robyn said. ‘Fear of missing out?’

‘No,’ said Grace. ‘I mean FOMOG. Fear of missing out on—’

‘Gin?’ Katie cried with glee, pulling some slim cans from her bag.

Grace gave a faint smile and tugged the ring pull to open the can. ‘I meant gossip. But gin works for me.’

‘What’s happened?’ Katie asked.

Grace was normally so animated, her hands drawing pictures in the air as she spoke, her face, her shoulders … every part of her usually told a story. It was obvious that something major had upset her. But Grace downed some of her gin and shook her head.

‘I want to hear from you first. You said you’d discovered who’s been blackmailing you … ’

Fifteen minutes later, the three women had paddled to the far end of the beach and were on their way back. Katie had filled them in on what had happened when she went round to give her condolences to her old school friend and got a lot more than she’d bargained for.

‘It mystifies me that anyone would do such a malicious thing like that,’ Robyn frowned.

Katie shrugged. ‘It doesn’t really make sense, but grief can make people act irrationally, I suppose. The last time she spoke to her mum they rowed. I think Rose felt guilty about that and because my name had come up in the conversation, she laid the blame at my feet. Then when she went back to her mother’s house and found that old photo of me, she became fixated with making me pay.’

Grace shuddered. ‘That’s given me the creeps. But at least you’ve got the original back.’

‘And it’s far better that it had nothing to do with the original photographer because now it means that Katie’s case was a one-off and not part of a bigger scam,’ Robyn added.

Katie nodded and sipped from her can. She felt like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders.

‘Hopefully, I’ll never hear another word from her. She knows that I could report her to the police, and I suppose I could. I took the photo of me from her folder. And if she’s got copies, then … ’ Katie’s voice trailed off. Then what? She thought for a moment. ‘Then I don’t really care.’

Joy and relief surged inside her. It was true. She really didn’t care. She laughed in surprise.

‘Those photos only had power over me because I let them. I’ve been ashamed of something which I had no reason to be. It’s had a huge impact on my life, and I’ve wasted a lot of time hiding myself away. But you know what? I refuse to be defined by one snapshot of time. Those naked photos aren’t me. I’m me: I’m a strong independent woman who works hard and does her best. From now on I’m going to be braver; things can only affect my life if I let them.’

‘Cheers to that!’ Robyn tapped her can against Katie’s.

‘Good for you,’ said Grace, joining in.

Katie smiled. ‘So, all in all it’s been a good weekend. Not to mention Dad being a lot better. Apparently, he’d had been feeling ill on holiday but hadn’t wanted to worry Mum. Now he’s feeling bad because the two of them are missing Thursday’s event on his account. Anyway, I’ve promised to send them lots of photos. And talking of events, how was your sea glass walk?’

‘Great!’ Robyn was aglow with her success. ‘The women loved it; everyone left with their own little sea glass collection. And I’ve got a full house for my first workshop, so that’s good, too. That journalist, Barney, turned up with his daughter. He took my picture, said it might make the paper.’

‘That’s brilliant, and Amber came?’ Katie was thrilled. ‘She is such a cool kid.’

‘Nice guy,’ said Grace. ‘He wants to talk to me to get an architect’s view on redeveloping Merle Bay. Goodness knows what I can possibly add to the debate. He’d be better off talking to Finn and his brother, people who have strong ties to the place.’

‘That’s interesting,’ said Katie distractedly. ‘What else did Barney say?’

Robyn and Grace exchanged amused looks.

‘About you, you mean?’ Robyn prompted.

‘No! Well, yes,’ Katie blustered. She felt her face go hot. ‘So? Anything?’

‘He told us that you’d sent him a message when you reached the hospital, which was quite interesting, seeing as you hadn’t given us an update at all after dashing off,’ said Grace, raising an eyebrow.

Katie’s face couldn’t be any hotter if it tried. ‘Sorry, it’s just I was with him on Friday night when I got the call from my mum and had to rush off. I felt I owed him an apology.’