Love Heart Lane

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HarperImpulse

an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd

1 London Bridge Street

London SE1 9GF

www.harpercollins.co.uk

First published in Great Britain by HarperImpulse 2019

Copyright © Christie Barlow 2019

Cover illustrations © Shutterstock.com

Cover design © HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd 2019

Christie Barlow asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

A catalogue copy of this book is available from the British Library.

This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins.

Source ISBN: 9780008319700

Ebook Edition © January 2019 ISBN: 9780008319694

Version: 2018-11-02

Table of Contents

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

Dedication

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

A Letter From Christie

Acknowledgements

About the Author

About HarperImpulse

About the Publisher

For Roo, Mop, Missy & Mo,

It’s the circle of life.

It’s not negotiable.

Where’s my woodland outfit?

Operation Miaow.

Walnut Wendy.

Thank you all for the best week of summer 2018!

Chapter 1

Staring out of the window, Felicity Simons sat nervously at her boss’s desk. As she admired the view across the city of London, she wasn’t in any doubt that this was the best seat in the building.

It was only a few seconds later that she spotted her boss through the glass walls of the office, her size-eight figure tottering along the plush red carpet on her high heels, wearing the usual well-tailored suit with distinctive buttons that oozed designer brand. Her crimson blouse matched the colour of her nails and made Felicity feel unrelentingly beige in her dowdy brown tunic and scuffed patent shoes.

Eleanor Ramsbottom had arrived at Little Browns department store six months ago, and Felicity had always felt inferior in her boss’s company, knowing from the outset that there was no chance they’d ever hit it off. After sixty years of steady trade, the store had landed itself in financial difficulty and Eleanor, the daughter of a rich businessman, had rescued the store from closing. At the time everyone had been grateful, all the staff thankful that their jobs had been saved – until they’d had to work under Eleanor Ramsbottom, who lacked warmth, compassion and basic people skills.

The second Eleanor glided into the room Felicity bristled. She was aware that she was forcing a smile, putting on a happy face, but she needed this conversation to go in her favour. Under the desk, Felicity had her fingers firmly crossed. She watched as Eleanor pulled out a chair and shuffled some papers into a neat pile before finally settling down at the desk. Clasping her hands in front of her, she stared towards Felicity.

‘My secretary said you needed to see me urgently. It must be urgent to want to see me at 5 p.m. on a Friday night, have you no home to go to?’ Eleanor asked, as she flicked a glance towards the clock on the wall.

Felicity took a breath, knowing home was exactly where she didn’t want to be, because right at this moment in time Adrian would be moving out. They’d lived together for six months, but Felicity had known within hours of him moving into her flat that she’d made a huge mistake.

Initially, Felicity had been swept away on a tide of passion – Adrian was overwhelmingly sexy, after all – but the second she found herself picking up his dirty laundry despite the washing basket being within reaching distance, the lust had worn off and real life had smacked her right between the eyes.

‘I would like … if at all possible…’ She paused. ‘…Some time off.’ Felicity was relieved to finally get the words out in the open.

‘You don’t see me to book time off.’ Eleanor’s manner was curt. ‘You know what to do, fill in your request form and pass it to your team leader and I will authorise it within due course, after I’ve checked the chart.’

Eleanor was always about the charts.

‘Unfortunately, that’s not possible; I would like two weeks off from Monday.’ Felicity was thankful her voice was steady because inside she felt all jittery and even more so when Eleanor released a long, shuddering sound underneath her breath. Felicity could already feel the disapproving tension in the room. She watched Eleanor slouch back in her chair, twisting her wedding ring round and round before letting out a half laugh then fixing a serious expression back on to her face.

‘For a second there, I could have sworn you asked for two weeks off from Monday, and with it being Friday afternoon … not to mention the January sales, one of the store’s busiest times, where we need every hand on deck to reach our targets, and that includes yours, Felicity – both hands.’

Felicity shifted uncomfortably in her seat. ‘I wouldn’t ask … but…’

‘The implication … leaving us in the lurch.’ Eleanor was a trifle short. ‘What’s so important you need time off at such short notice?’

Felicity swallowed the lump in her throat and hoped the tears wouldn’t cascade down her face. ‘My grandmother has passed away and I need to go home, to my family.’

As conversation stoppers go, this one threw Eleanor for a second.

‘I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t important and I have enough annual leave for two weeks,’ added Felicity quickly.

‘I’m sorry to hear your sad news,’ Eleanor finally offered, keeping her gaze fixed on Felicity. There was a veil of politeness, covering up disappointment at the loss of potential drama.

‘Thank you,’ replied Felicity.

‘Where is home?’ That was the first personal question Eleanor had ever asked Felicity.

‘The Scottish Highlands,’ replied Felicity taken aback. ‘A little village called Heartcross.’

Eleanor sighed and made a vague despairing gesture with her hand. ‘If you need anything, please don’t hesitate to call and we will see you back here two weeks on Monday.’ There was nothing in Eleanor’s tone that offered any real compassion; her face was expressionless. Felicity watched Eleanor stand up, a clear indication this conversation was over and that this was her cue to leave.

Felicity forced her lips into a smile and couldn’t get out of the office fast enough. She grabbed her coat from her locker and paused only briefly on the steps outside the department store. The sign illuminating ‘Little Browns,’ had once held a special place in her heart. A family-run business that had cared, this store had given her a chance and provided her with an opportunity. She’d worked here for nearly the last eight years after arriving in London on a whim, ready for a change from village life. She’d had grand ideas of seeking her fortune, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, looking for adventure. But things hadn’t been easy. She’d left Heartcross under a cloud and had spent much of her time in London trying to block out the past, especially Fergus. But it was always there. He was always there in the back of her mind.

Recently, when things had changed at work and Eleanor Ramsbottom had arrived on the scene, the days had become even less enjoyable and now Felicity was questioning what she was actually doing here. She found herself thinking about home more and more, and how she’d distanced herself from that life. She came to realise that she missed Heartcross, the good friends she’d left behind and of course, her mum and her gran.

Feeling glum and seriously hankering after a gin and tonic, she turned and weaved in and out of the masses of people who were powering up the busy high street towards the tube station. Felicity dug her hands deep in the pockets of her coat and fought back the tears of sadness as a pang of guilt hit her hard. As she jumped onto the packed tube and headed towards her flat, thoughts of Heartcross were still very much on her mind; memories of the small bustling village in the Scottish Highlands where she’d grown up, the place she had wanted to escape from, suddenly enveloped her and gave her an overwhelming feeling of comfort and belonging.

In the last eight years Felicity had been home on numerous occasions, but they were always fleeting visits with excuses that she couldn’t take time off work. And that’s exactly what they were – excuses. She knew the real reason why she couldn’t spend time there, but now she felt things were changing.

Felicity had fallen out of love with her job and her man, if she’d ever been in love with him at all, and even though she had friends in London, she didn’t have friends like the ones she’d had in Heartcross … solid friends that would have your back, look out for you no matter what.

Why hadn’t she gone home for Christmas? As the tube rumbled on, the conversation with her mum played on Felicity’s mind.

‘Please come home soon, your grandmother’s health is deteriorating, she misses you Flick, and I do too.’

‘Mum, I live in London, it’s difficult to get time off. Do you know how far away Scotland is?’

It was five hundred and eighty-six miles to be precise and ten hours in the car, not including toilet stops. In the last few weeks the weather had been unpredictable, planes and trains had been cancelled due to severe weather conditions and more snow was predicted soon.

But her mother’s words played on her mind now. ‘Your grandmother won’t be around forever, Felicity.’ And, of course, her mother, Rona Simons, had been right. Bonnie Stewart had passed away at the age of eighty a little over a week later.

Felicity held on tightly to the aluminium pole in the tube carriage and watched the stations whizz by. This journey was never one she relished, especially during rush hour on a Friday when the tube was packed to the rafters with everyone jostling for their own little space. Life had seemed so exciting when she’d first arrived in the big smoke, but now she was tired of the busy pace of life.

Finally, Felicity jumped off the tube at Leicester Square and pushed her way in the direction of one of the side streets towards The Chatty Banker pub. She pushed open the outer door and saw her friend Polly behind the bar, thoroughly at home with all the regulars. She was leaning against the pump, all her usual confidence on display.

‘Felicity! I didn’t expect to see you tonight.’ Polly glanced sideways and beamed towards her friend; she was invincibly cheerful as ever but Felicity thought she looked exhausted.

‘I’m hungry, don’t feel like cooking and could murder a double gin… and when your good friend is the manager of such a good establishment, then it’s a no brainer.’

‘You can’t say fairer than that,’ smiled Polly, immediately sliding a glass towards Felicity who balanced on the bar stool in front of her.

‘Are you okay? You’re looking tired.’

‘I’m all right, I’ve just been run off my feet today … no rest for the wicked.’

‘And you are very wicked.’ Felicity smiled.

‘How was New Year? I thought you and Adrian would be in.’

New Year’s Eve was overrated where Felicity was concerned. As far back as she could remember there had been nothing special about that date, and she’d automatically blocked out the last New Year she’d spent at Heartcross, eight years ago. It still pained her to remember the look on Fergus’s face, the pleading tone in his voice begging her not to leave as she’d turned and walked away, shutting the cab door behind her. Felicity had never forgotten that night, but as time went on, she’d regretted it more and more. She drew her glass towards her and drained the contents of it slowly.

Polly narrowed her eyes at Felicity. ‘Bad day?’

Where do I start? Felicity thought to herself blowing out a breath. ‘You could say that. Adrian and I weren’t around New Year’s Eve, because that’s when I decided we were no longer a “we”.’ She shifted the glass to one side to make room for her elbows on the bar. ‘As we speak he should be moving out of the flat.’

At first, she’d thought he was shocked when she’d asked him to leave, but then he’d retaliated and had the audacity to tell her she wasn’t all that. Felicity had fought the desire to argue with him – after all, what was the point? Adrian’s expectations of their relationship had differed greatly to hers, and he had basically treated her like his mother, not his girlfriend. Now she just wanted her own space back.

‘Oh Flick, what happened?’

‘I just realised he wasn’t the one for me.’

‘You’ll be fine,’ reassured Polly in a soft tone. ‘There are heaps of nice men you could go out with.’

‘I think I’ll give it a miss for a while,’ said Felicity, with tears welling up in her eyes. ‘But that’s not all, Pol. I’ve been the worst daughter in the world,’ Felicity said as sadness overwhelmed her. Her heart sank, and her shoulders heaved, ‘My grandmother has passed away, and I didn’t get to say goodbye.’

Without hesitation, Polly reached across the bar and squeezed her friend’s hand. ‘I’m so sorry to hear that,’ she said in a soft soothing tone.

Without warning the tears rolled down Felicity’s cheek. She felt ashamed that she’d been selfish and put her own self-importance and feelings before her mum’s and now she truly regretted it.

Felicity thought back to her life at Heartcross and memories of her grandmother flooded her mind; the times they’d spent together in the family teashop and the love they’d shared. Bonnie Stewart had lived her whole life in the Scottish Highlands, and sadness flooded Felicity’s veins again as she remembered the way her grandmother’s cheeks had dimpled with her smile, the way she’d planted noisy kisses on the top of her head and the way she’d always smelled of scrumptious baking.

Heartcross village was a tranquil place off the beaten track, surrounded by majestic mountains, heather-wreathed glens and beautiful waterfalls – place untouched by time. Bonnie’s heart-warming traditional stone cottage was snuggled away next to the trim necklace of whitewash houses on Love Heart Lane and had become the hub of the community when she’d turned her front living room into a tearoom over fifty-five years ago. The place had welcomed villagers and passing ramblers walking in the area, and working in ‘Bonnie’s Teashop’ alongside her grandmother still held happy memories for Felicity. Again, she was beginning to question why she’d been so eager to leave it all behind.

‘I should have made more of an effort,’ Felicity said to Polly regretfully. ‘I thought she’d be around forever, but time runs away, and now … and now…’ Felicity couldn’t finish her sentence, her heart was breaking so badly.

‘Flick, you need to go home,’ Polly said gently as she comforted her friend.

Felicity nodded, ‘I know, I am … I leave first thing tomorrow, flying to Inverness … it should only take an hour and half.’ The guilt ricocheted through her body again. She had only ever been an hour and half away by plane so why the fleeting visits home? She knew exactly why – Fergus.

‘How long are you going for?’

‘Two weeks,’ answered Felicity, dabbing her eyes with the back of her hand. ‘I’ll be fine,’ she said, pasting on a smile, but deep down she knew it wasn’t fine.

Taking a second to compose herself, she scanned the menu and ordered a bowl of chips before checking her phone. No word from Adrian but what was she expecting, a farewell text?

Just at that moment a gust of air rushed in as the pub door swung open and to Felicity’s shock, in walked Adrian with a girl she didn’t recognise by his side. His eyes widened the second he set eyes on Felicity and he turned towards the girl, speaking to her briefly, before she nodded and disappeared towards the far end of the pub.

Felicity couldn’t help feeling a little miffed. ‘Moved on already?’ she asked, knowing it was none of her business.

There was an uncomfortable silence before Adrian shrugged sheepishly. ‘Just a friend from work.’

‘Yeah right.’ The words were out before Felicity could stop them.

He appeared indignant. ‘And you care because?’

‘It’s fine, I’m sure you need a friend right now,’ she reasserted herself quickly.

He nodded and Felicity felt the sudden urge to extract herself from this situation. ‘While you’re here, can I have the keys?’ She held out her hand while Adrian dug into his pocket and placed the bunch of keys into her hand.

‘Take care of yourself,’ he said, before turning and walking away to join the girl.

‘Goodbye Adrian,’ she managed, before twisting back on her stool towards Polly. ‘I think I’ll give the food a miss, I just want to go home.’

‘Are you sure?’

Felicity was absolutely sure. Her appetite had diminished further and even though she knew it had been over with Adrian for a while she still didn’t need to watch him have dinner with another woman, friend or no friend.

Polly lifted up the hatch to the bar and walked towards Felicity, her arms open wide, waiting to swathe her in the biggest hug.

‘You have a safe trip and call me when you arrive,’ she insisted, hugging her hard. ‘I’ll see you in a couple of weeks … and make sure you FaceTime me.’

‘I will,’ Felicity promised, pressing a kiss to Polly’s cheek before walking out of the pub towards the tube station.

It was time to go back to Scotland and set aside her personal hang ups to support her mum at such a sad time. At the time she’d thought she’d left with an air of elegant sophistication, but it was only recently she had begun to realise the hurt she’d left behind.

She knew arriving back at Heartcross wouldn’t be easy. In fact, it would be the hardest thing she’d ever done.

Chapter 2

At the airport, the buildings were still shrouded in Christmas decorations and the ten-foot tree sparkled in all its glory. The morning was cold, freezing in fact, with temperatures dropping to minus one, and Felicity had wrapped up warm. Pulling down her unflattering woolly hat over her ears, and with the cold biting the tip of her nose, she wandered towards the glass revolving doors and stood inside Heathrow airport. She was wearing tights as well as socks, two jumpers and a thermal vest. She knew that once the plane landed in Inverness the temperature would be even colder than in London.

After skimming the departures board, she was thankful the flight was on time. She checked in at the desk, then made her way to the lounge area and purchased a skinny latte alongside a ham salad baguette; her appetite was back and finally her fierce hunger was satisfied. Last night, when she’d arrived home Felicity hadn’t felt much like eating. Instead, she’d poured a large glass of wine and soaked in a hot bubble bath. All of Adrian’s belongings had disappeared, and for the first time ever, he’d managed to pick up his dirty underwear off the floor. She was thankful he’d gone; he just hadn’t been her happy ever after.

She’d soaked in the bath for over an hour, until the water was barely warm, her mind whirling. When she’d got out, she’d telephoned her mum to let her know what time she’d be arriving, but there had been no answer. It was more than likely her mum was over at The Grouse and Haggis, the local pub situated in the middle of the village which offered a warm welcome to all with its flagstone floors, wooden pews and roaring log fires. It was the hub of the community, especially during the harsh winter months. The locals all huddled together after work, sharing stories, while sampling the local ales and whiskies. Without fail Hamish would play his fiddle, adding to the good-humoured atmosphere. The pub was run by Meredith and Fraser Macdonald and their daughter Allie had been Felicity’s best friend from school before she’d moved to London.

Up until their early twenties the two girls had been as thick as thieves, and Allie had been the kind of friend that Felicity could always be herself with. But Felicity knew she’d let Allie down. She sighed to herself, feeling glum. Allie had every right to be mad with her. Felicity had never confided in her that she planned to leave for the big city. Looking back now, she knew her actions had been underhand, but at the time she’d known that Allie would have tried to talk her out of it. And after everything that had happened with Fergus, Felicity had needed to escape with minimum fuss. She knew on her return she’d have many bridges to build and even though Felicity had made friends in London, nothing had come close to the bond she’d had with Allie. She missed her and their friendship and hoped things were fixable between them.

Finally, trying to shrug off the guilt, Felicity had packed her suitcase and snuggled inside her grey fleecy PJs, determined to get a good night’s sleep to be fresh and ready for her trip back to Scotland.

The airport was busy and while waiting for her flight to be announced Felicity buried her head in a book, but after reading the same sentence over and over she realised she wasn’t concentrating at all; her mind was on other matters. Lifting her head, she watched a young couple gently chastise their son who was running around leaving a trail of crisps behind him. He hovered in front of Felicity and lifted his blue eyes to meet hers. He was adorable and by her reckoning must have been around three years old. He offered her a crisp with a cheeky smile. Felicity hesitated for a millisecond before accepting. ‘Why thank you, young man,’ she said with gratitude before his expression knotted with concentration and he ran off with his arms stretched out wide pretending to be an aeroplane. The parents’ annoyance now softened as he giggled.