A Christmas Wish on Arran (Scottish Romances #4)

Chapter Thirty-Five

Beth was stunned into silence. She hadn’t expected Kirsty to say that. ‘I had no idea.’

‘It’s easy to make assumptions. We all do it,’ said Kirsty kindly.

‘But how . . . why . . .’

Kirsty fidgeted with the napkin in front of her. ‘Look, I’m not really at liberty to say anything else. It’s not my story to share. It’s something you should talk to Callum about. I would say you both have a lot of catching up to do.’

Beth sat back in her chair. ‘You’re right. I think we do need to have a chat. Isn’t it funny how our minds quickly create stories around people? I was convinced he was married with a squad of kids.’

Kirsty smiled. ‘We all do it. I’m as guilty as anyone else for making up narratives and getting it completely wrong. But, I can confirm that he is not married, nor does he have a big team of kids. It’s just him and Daisy.’ Kirsty frowned, looking as though she was about to say something else.

‘What is it?’ Beth leaned towards her.

‘Beth . . . I’m just going to come right out and say this. I have the feeling you’ve been badly hurt in the past. I know I’m now the one making assumptions, so please correct me if I’m wrong. But what I will say is that it’s okay to give Callum a chance. He’s one of the good guys. Don’t let the past ruin your future.’

Beth was thoughtful for a moment. She realised that she’d missed having good and dependable girlfriends. She had pushed everyone away after what had happened with Tim. After their relationship had broken down, she vowed never to get involved with a man again. She promised herself she would remain single forever. Tim had reduced her thoughts of love and romance to ash. Until she bumped into Callum, she never thought anyone would spark that fire again. She wrapped her arms tightly around her body, trying to make sense of the maelstrom of thoughts whirring around her head.

Beth had tried so hard to hold things together over the past couple of years. She didn’t want to let the house of cards she’d so carefully constructed to collapse. Yet she knew she had changed since she’d arrived on Arran. She looked at Kirsty and took a deep breath. ‘Can I tell you what happened to me, Kirsty? Do you have time?’

Kirsty’s eyes widened and she reached for Beth’s hand, grasping it. ‘Of course I do Beth. I’m here and I’m listening.’ She smiled and tilted her head. ‘But before you start, would you like another coffee?’

Beth could have hugged her. ‘Yes please. I certainly need one.’ While they waited for their coffees to arrive they made small talk about Christmas and the weather. Then, once they were settled with their coffees, Beth began to tell her about Tim.

She shuddered as she thought back to when she met him — a sophisticated and extremely handsome entrepreneur, on an online dating site, not long after her mother had died. ‘He was a good listener, attentive, and came across as very caring and supportive. Things moved slowly to begin with as we were both busy with work. But after a year he had moved in with me and I thought we were both happy and in love.’

Beth had Kirsty’s full attention as she told her about Tim’s work interests abroad, how he would often fly to Switzerland and Dubai where he had business interests. Beth thought this was glamourous and brought more excitement to their relationship. Especially when their reunions were passionate and he would shower her with gifts. Looking back, because hindsight was such a handy thing, she wasn’t quite sure when she started to question his commitment, or started to see the little cracks. It might have been when he started to borrow money for yet another new start-up he was involved with.

‘I mean, to start with I was completely unsuspecting. Why would I question him when I trusted him?’ Beth sighed loudly. ‘And being the supportive and generous girlfriend that I was, I was always happy to help . . . Until his requests started to be for bigger chunks of cash, which I didn’t have.’ She paused and took a breath. Kirsty nodded reassuringly at her. ‘Whenever I questioned him, which was ironically what I did for a living after all, he always confidently reassured me, dispelling any fears I had.’

He was always able to explain and rationalise, and she soon learned to ignore any doubts she had. She didn’t want to be alone, especially as she had invested several years of her life in their relationship. She blinked hard to stop any tears falling as she told Kirsty how, even when they started to explore the adoption process, he had failed to get his DBS check. He had told her that he couldn’t have children himself and had suggested adoption. It was something that Beth was very happy to consider especially as she would have been happy to take an older child. But even when Beth had received her DBS and reminded him about his, he claimed it must have been held up in the system. Her mind rationalised his behaviour. Especially when he said he thought they should take a break from talking about adoption as they needed to focus on each other for a while. ‘His final parting gift was when he persuaded me to remortgage my flat as he was having “cash flow” problems. Then he abruptly ended our relationship and vanished. Along with all the money I had lent him.’

Kirsty’s eyes widened in horror. ‘Oh Beth. That’s horrific.’

She shook her head. ‘Even then, I thought something awful had happened to him. Meanwhile my own finances were in a complete mess and I couldn’t afford to pay the huge mortgage repayments. That’s when I was forced to put my beloved home on the market. I was mortified, too embarrassed to tell anyone what had happened, especially my dad and my friends, most of whom I lost touch with anyway. I knew they would just think I’d been foolish. I was supposed to be an intelligent woman. What a mug, eh?’

Kirsty shook her head sadly. ‘It sounded like he knew exactly what he was doing. What happened next?’

‘Are you sure you want me to go on?’

‘Of course. As long as it’s helping you to talk about it.’

Beth exhaled loudly. ‘Sharing all of this is tough. But it’s actually good to say it all out loud.’

Kirsty nodded.

‘One night, after watching a documentary on television about romance scammers, the penny finally began to drop. I felt totally humiliated, embarrassed and ashamed over what had happened. I’m a journalist . I kept telling myself that I should have seen the signs, I should have been savvier and known what was happening. When I was commissioned to write an article on romance fraud for a women’s magazine it was cathartic. That was when I finally realised and accepted what Tim had done, and realised that it wasn’t my fault. Interviewing other women for case studies, I realised I wasn’t alone. It’s sadly quite common, and the target is usually women, often vulnerable for a mix of reasons, who are successful and own their own property or business. I also learned that Tim probably wasn’t his real name. Not long after that I spoke to the police about him. They told me that his real name is Zander Evans. He was known as a conman, and there were multiple complaints and reports against him.’

‘This is horrendous Beth. Did they catch him?’

‘Yes. He was eventually caught and sentenced to a ten-year prison term for defrauding two women, but I wasn’t able to recover all the cash I had lost. By then I had started renting a room in Deptford and begun to piece my life back together. I knew that things could have been worse. Some of the women I’d interviewed, their lives had been completely devastated. Their confidence had been shattered to the point they couldn’t leave their houses, and one woman contemplated suicide. Even at my lowest point, I kept holding on to the tiny positives I could find every day. I got a job working at a café, which gave me a focus and a purpose.’ Beth was just beginning to realise now how grateful she was to Frankie for reaching out and giving her that lifeline.

‘I’m not surprised that you feel wary about any new relationships, Beth. That’s a lot to go through.’

Beth was grateful that Kirsty hadn’t fled the scene, that she’d stayed and listened. For too long it had all felt too raw to share. But sitting here now, she realised how much she’d needed to. ‘Thank you for listening Kirsty. It has really helped.’

‘Beth, I am sorry that you had to go through all of that. Thanks for telling me, and thanks for trusting me. I can see now why all the stuff with Callum has thrown you.’

It was true. Her feelings for Callum had surprised her. Being with him had given her a sense of hope, which was something she’d lost after Tim. And Callum was different, she told herself.

‘Speak to him,’ said Kirsty softly. ‘Speak to Callum.’

Beth frowned. She and Callum were connected through their past. Surely that had to count for something.