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‘You don’t think she set this up?’ Clifford said

‘No’ Yes No Maybe I don’t know He hadn’t told histo Lochbannon He hadn’t even told her he was thinking of asking Phoebe to marry him It was coincidence Happenstance Wasn’t it? ‘Mum had to leave the country at short notice I haven’t talked to her since she texted me’

Clifford ement to that little bit of trailer trash a ot the balls to handle a chit like that Stick to your nice girls, son Leave the bad ones to me’

James put his phone away, and then stopped and looked back at the house in the distance He was assailed by two very different thoughts First, sticking to a nice girl suddenly see anywhere near his father suddenly sent a shudder running down his spine

Ja walk to the woods when he heard thehe had heard fro he would hear in a Las Vegas lounge bar, either It was lilting andThe cadences were deeply poignant, touching on a chord deep inside his of a hidden harp

He stood at the door of the roo as Aiesha’s hands danced over the keys of the piano She was dressed in a hot-pink velour tracksuit that had teddy-bear ears on the hooded top, which she’d pulled over her head, presumably to keep her own ears war It showed a side of her that was young and playful, as if she didn’t care what people thought of her attire as long as she was comfortable She had a fierce frown of concentration on her forehead, although there was no musical score in front of her She see

He was transfixed by the sound Rising and falling notes that tugged and twitched on his heartstrings, minor key chords that were like es he hadn’t encountered for decades ca They crowded his chest cavity until he could barely breathe, like too uests at a cocktail party

She came to the end of the piece and closed her eyes and bowed her head as if the effort had totally exhausted her

Jaht like a puppet being jerked back up by its strings ‘You ht’ve knocked,’ she said with a frown of reproach

‘I didn’t realise it was a private performance’

She got up smartly from the piano and crossed her aresture he was co to knoell A faint blush was on her cheeks, which she tried to hide by turning her back to look out of the here the sun was trying to get its act together buta lacklustre job of it

Her teddy-bear ears looked even cuter from behind

So did her toosh

‘Nice walk?’ she asked

‘Did you watch me leave?’ Was that why she had chosen to play such beautifully evocative music while he was out of the house?