Page 64 of The Summer That Changed Us

Homes. Terrible shame that her husband died, just after they’d sold their company for several million.’

Several million! Katie tried to hide her surprise. She knew Grace had money, she made no secret of that, but she’d had no idea she was as wealthy as that.

‘I don’t think she cares about the money without Myles here to spend it. I suspect she’d give it all away for a chance of more time with him,’ she said. Although would Grace still feel the same after discovering he’d been unfaithful? She wasn’t so sure.

Barney nodded sympathetically. ‘Grief changes your perspective on lots of things that seemed important before. My priority is Amber, not my career. I couldn’t have done my old job and been a hands-on dad.’

‘What did you do previously?’

‘I worked on big national, and international, news stories. I was away a lot. Sophia made that possible because she worked from home, she was always there when Amber needed her to show up for school stuff. Now that’s my job.’ His tone was light and his smile constant, but Katie was good at reading people and she didn’t miss the sadness in his eyes.

‘But Merle Bay is a long way from London. That’s quite a change?’

His eyes crinkled at the corners when he smiled. ‘It’s a million miles from London. And right now, it’s exactly what I need.’

Right now. So, he’d head back to London eventually, thought Katie, disappointed. Still, he was here now, she thought, holding her glass up as he offered her more wine. She’d just have to enjoy his company while it lasted.

‘Why the north east?’

He nodded. ‘Journalism is quite a tight community and print journalism even more so. Word had got around the industry about me losing Sophia and coming close to losing Amber. It was obvious I wouldn’t be able to carry on where I was; I was approached by the boss at the Gazette asking me if I’d come for a chat. The rest is history.’

Amber reappeared in the kitchen, cleared the table and fetched the bowl of strawberries Katie had washed and hulled.

‘The girls loved the Smalls Things Matter idea,’ she said, dropping back onto her chair. ‘I told them I was helping with it and they’ve promised to bring in any old ones.’

‘That’s good,’ Katie smiled indulgently.

‘Watch out,’ said Barney. ‘Madam will be in charge before you know it.’

They all laughed, and Barney handed round bowls and found some ice cream in the freezer.

‘I’m so glad you came for dinner.’ Amber picked up a strawberry and bit into it, sending juice running down her chin. ‘It’s good for Dad to make friends with people his own age. It takes the pressure off me to entertain him.’

Katie and Barney looked at each other and hid their smiles.

How would Amber feel when her dad started dating again, Katie wondered. Friends was one thing, but a woman coming into their home, encroaching on her relationship with Barney, would be something entirely different.

Barney tutted with mock indignation. ‘You make it sound like you’re my carer!’

‘Just saying. I won’t be around to look after you forever, you know,’ she said breezily. ‘I’ve got my own friends.’

‘You’ve met some nice people here then?’ Katie asked, helping herself to ice cream.

‘Yeah. Some.’ Pink spots stained Amber’s cheeks and she grabbed a napkin and scrubbed it over her mouth.

Katie guessed from her reticence that there was a special person amongst that ‘some’. Good for her; having someone special made school days much calmer waters to navigate. It had been the same with her and Rose. It was the two of them against the world, until suddenly it wasn’t.

‘I’ve got friends too,’ said Barney. ‘Old friends from school and uni and work. We don’t have to see each other every day to be there for each other.’

Katie felt a touch of envy at how easy he made it sound. ‘I’m impressed. I lost touch with all my school friends, I didn’t go to uni and the only colleagues I’ve had are Nula and my aunt, who sadly passed away.’

‘But what about social media?’ Amber looked appalled. ‘I thought all old … I mean adults, use Facebook.’

‘Not me,’ she said, a shiver feathering its way down her spine. ‘I don’t like the idea that anyone can dig into the past of a stranger.’

‘Whoops.’ Amber pressed her lips together and flashed her father a mischievous look. ‘Did you hear that, Dad?’

Barney winced and put his hands up. ‘Guilty as charged. As I mentioned when I came into the shop, I’m planning an interview with all the businesses, I was just getting some background information. It’s amazing what you can find if you know where to look. The skeletons in some people’s closets would turn your hair white.’