Tell Me No Secrets by Julie Corbin Page A

way.’
    â€˜I’ll take that as a yes, then,’ I tell him, smiling.
    â€˜So how are the girls? Keeping you busy?’
    â€˜The girls are great.’ I nod, remembering that since I confronted her yesterday, Ella is acting like I don’t exist. I have yet to resume the conversation about ‘boys’ and I know that when I do it will be an uphill struggle. ‘Ella has the lead part in Romeo and Juliet so that will be one for your diary.’
    â€˜I’ll look forward to that.’
    A car draws up next door and a young couple climbs out. We all wave. They walk up the path and my dad pulls his chest up and sighs. ‘It’s never been the same since Mo and Angus passed on. Spring comes around again and the house changes hands.’
    â€˜I’ll never get used to it either, Dad.’ I rest my head on his shoulder and we watch the sea grab at the shore, then retreat and gather strength to try again. ‘Time and tide wait for no man, huh?’
    â€˜Aye, it’s a bugger.’
    â€˜I’m going to Edinburgh tomorrow. Is there anything you want while I’m there?’
    â€˜What would you want to be going all the way to Edinburgh for?’ My father is deeply suspicious of all journeys. He can’t imagine why anyone would need to travel beyond a ten-mile radius of St Andrews. ‘Anyway, I thought you could get everything delivered over the Internet these days?’
    â€˜I like to browse the art shops and galleries. Gives me ideas.’ I pause. In my head I say the words: Remember Orla, Dad? She called me twice. She wants to meet me. I don’t know why, but I do know that I’m scared. How much do you love me, Dad? How much? I want to blurt it out and I almost do but just then my mum sets a tray down in front of us.
    â€˜Don’t stand on ceremony, you two. Tuck in.’
    My mother knows how to make a good sandwich, and when it’s time for me to go, my stomach is full. As I drive off, I watch them in the rear-view mirror, their inside arms around each other, their free hands holding on to the gate.
    It’s already two o’clock by the time I round the path to work.
    Euan is on the phone and watches me as I come in. ‘Sure. No bother. We’ll catch up next week.’ He puts the phone back on to the cradle. ‘Morning off?’
    â€˜I was taking photos. Then the churchyard. Had lunch with my mum and dad.’ I drop my bag down on the floor. ‘Is Tom well?’
    â€˜Yeah. He’s fine now.’ He pushes his chair away from his desk and the wheels spin on the hardwood floor. ‘Back at school.’
    I walk over and sit on the edge of his desk. ‘She called again.’
    His eyes widen and then focus on mine. ‘Did you ask her what she wants?’
    â€˜She wouldn’t say.’ I sweep some crumbs off his desk and into the bin. ‘She said she has to tell me face to face.’
    â€˜So how did you leave it?’
    â€˜I’m meeting her in Edinburgh tomorrow.’
    He looks down at the floor, thinking.
    â€˜She also said it wasn’t what I thought.’
    He looks back at me. ‘She’d say that to get you to go.’
    That thought has been at the back of my mind all morning and my heart sinks to hear Euan say it out loud. ‘But there’s really nothing else I can do, is there? I have to go. And when she finds out who I married . . .’ I try to laugh. ‘She wouldn’t say anything then, would she?’
    He stands up in front of me, hands in pockets and moves his shoulders forward and then back again. ‘I wouldn’t put it past her.’
    His chest is level with my eyes and I resist the impulse to rest my head against it and cry with fear and frustration. ‘You really don’t have much of an opinion of her, do you?’
    â€˜She’s trouble, Grace. She always was.’ He lays a hand on my arm. ‘Do you want me to come with