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‘It’s a long story, but they found Lili wandering alone on a beach in Corfu when she was a child.’
‘Corfu?’
Hannah nodded.
‘Does it sound as though a return trip is in order?’ he mused.
‘I think it does, yes.’
‘Could you persuade her to go, Hannah – like immediately?’
They stood staring at the flower, both aware it would solve all their problems.
‘But what happens when she returns?’ Hannah asked.
He shrugged. ‘Not our problem. We’ll be long gone.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘I’ll sort out renting our house and we’ll take an extended trip, maybe to Thailand, definitely the Far East.’
Hannah wasn’t talking about that. ‘I didn’t mean us, I meant what about Lili?’
‘What about her?’
‘Won’t she be in trouble when she returns?’
‘Like I said before – not our problem?’
‘But if she gets arrested, it will be our fault. She’s my friend. I don’t want her to get into trouble.’
He threw her a sly grin, glancing at the car. ‘I’m afraid it’s too late. That horse has already bolted.’
Hannah’s bottom lip quivered. ‘What have I done?’
‘Oh, get a grip, for god’s sake. Think about yourself and your daughter. You don’t want to end up in prison – do you?’
Hannah stared at him.
‘So, we stick to the plan. Persuade Lili to go to Corfu. If she hasn’t got the money, we will pay for her plane ticket because she can’t stay here. Then we’ll pack our bags and jet off to a nice island somewhere. We could get married on a beach – you’ve always wanted to do that, remember?’
Hannah swallowed. He was right. ‘What about Maisie? She should be returning to school soon for the start of the new term.’
He frowned. ‘I don’t know. She’ll have to tag along, do some home-schooling, I guess.’ He thought for a moment. ‘I’ve got a better idea. What about boarding school? We’ll have the money.’
Hannah’s eyes went wide. ‘No way!’ She knew she hadn’t been the best mother over the years, but she wasn’t about to send Maisie away, like her own parents had done to her. She looked at the flower, wishing she’d never set eyes on the damn thing. Her thoughts returned to Lili. ‘I don’t want her to go to prison.’
‘It might not come to that if she stays in Corfu. You said yourself she’s searching for her family. Perhaps she’ll find them there.’
Something in Lili’s voice when she’d mentioned her parents over the phone had told Hannah it would not be as simple as that.
Kyle put a hand on her shoulder. ‘Look, right now we should think about the immediate situation. Here …’ He handed Hannah the plant. ‘Take that back to the car and leave it on the front seat. I will go and grab the box.’
Hannah wavered on the doorstep. If only Lili would open the front door and surprise them, then she’d have to give her the orchid, and his plan to sell it would have to be ditched. However much she didn’t want to get her best friend in trouble, Hannah didn’t have the nerve to walk in and hand it to Lili. She turned around and took it back to the car. She got the impression Kyle owed some not very nice people money. This would get him out of whatever fix he was in, and then they could move on.
As she put the plant back in the car, she hoped he was right, and that Lili would stay in Corfu. She had no reason to return, given that Alex was out of the picture.
Hannah shut the car door and locked it, managing a smile for Kyle when she caught up with him in the hallway. Hannah knew she wasn’t strong like Lili. Not the type to be on her own, she needed a man to look after her and Maisie.Pity I always choose the bad boys,thought Hannah, wishing she and Nate hadn’t been so young when they’d fallen into bed together at that party. Things might have turned out differently if they had been madly in love with each other. But they were just two drunk kids wallowing in self-pity, drawn to each other because they’d both been cast aside by their parents. That was the reason she hadn’t told him about her pregnancy, and why she’d refused to let on to her best friend that she knew who Maisie’s father was.
