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She took a deep breath and ploughed on ‘Jack was one of the lads in our group and irlfriends They didn’t like the way I looked, but Jack and I were estion that we just clear off, head for London It seeood idea at the tier around, the Social Services o down that road The ood chance that you’ll end up worse off than you were to start with’

‘So you just…took off…’

‘We stole a car, soood idea at the ti, it was all just a means to an end Jack drove’ In retrospect, she could see the craziness of it all but she could re her drunken but hu to escape the trap she had seen other girls fall into The baby at seventeen, then another two years later, the pathetic desperation of endless relationships with abusive boyfriends who disappeared after a few months or a feeeks The hopelessness

She just wished that he would say so, even if it was to condemn her, but his silence was co in itself?

‘Of course, ere caught We hadn’t even made it halfway down to London when Jack was picked up for speeding It didn’t take long before ere hauled into a police station and, because there had been a lot in the press about joyriders, ere dealt with pretty harshly Fingerprints, the lot I got off because I was just a passenger, but Jack went to prison for six months’

‘And where were you at the time?’

‘Back in Biret soood When Jack got out, he had changed He was into drugs’

Looks or no looks, if Angelo Falcone had met her then, he would have crossed to the other side of the road to avoid her

‘He bu worse and worse…’

‘And yet you stuck by him’

‘Because that’s what friendship is all about It hile I orking in that store that I was spotted It was all a matter of chance The Clothes Shoas on and there must have been scouts around A month later and chances are that I would have ended up in the sahteen and dreas’

‘But you ended up on the other side of the Atlantic, wearing designer clothes…’

Andyou ‘As soon as I had accued for Jack to be privately treated at a rehab centre The top one in the country It’s where a lot of my money went’

Secrecy and lies, Angelo thought

‘He was there for quite a while…and then the balance is, well…’

‘History? You paid for hio on a caterer’s course and it turned out to be your refuge as hen you returned to England’

Francesca nodded and stood up ‘I have a ht not matter to a lot of people but it would matter to you The paparazzi would have a field day if they ever found out Georgina obviously has, but I don’t suppose she’ll say anything, not after you’ve issued your warnings…’ She couldn’tto know the scales had dropped but another thing to actually see it for herself ‘I couldn’t get involved with you then and I can’t get involved with you now I certainly can’tyour reputation’ And his reputation would be ruined It was all true what he had said about the small but powerful circle of movers and shakers in London Gossip could spread like wildfire and not only would he personally be tarnished by his contact with her, but he ht very well be professionally tarnished as well

‘So all we have to decide is hoe deal with this…situation…’ No longer travelling downhiht of her ‘I intend to move away from London, but not too far, perhaps towards Warwick I know that part of the world and it’s a good place to raise a child’ For the first ti you can say or do will stop me’