Second Chances at Samphire Bay (Samphire Bay Village #1)

Chapter 3

‘There you go, Jasmine, have a break.’ Sue Timpson placed the sandwich and cup of tea in front of her daughter with a worried expression.

‘Thanks, Mum,’ she replied, still staring intently at her laptop screen. Jasmine was working on the cover of a book entitled Midnight Murders . The brief was old, Dickensian England, with a thriller twist. She was thinking dark alleyways with a shadowy silhouette of a cloaked man in a top hat, carrying a dagger, possibly dripping with blood? She’d try without, first, then—

‘Jasmine?’ Her mum interrupted her train of thought in a dry tone, finally making her look up.

‘Yeah?’

‘You haven’t stopped since eight this morning. You need a break.’

Jasmine blinked. ‘What time is it?’ she asked, surprised.

‘It’s two o’clock,’ Sue crossed her arms, almost accusingly.

Jasmine glanced at the corner of her screen. So it was. Time had flown. Rubbing her eyes she yawned. ‘I’ll stop for a bit,’ Jasmine agreed and shut down the laptop.

‘Do you want to talk, love?’ Sue took a seat opposite Jasmine, her forehead creased with concern as she chewed her lip. She scanned her poor daughter’s pale face. Jasmine’s eyes had bruised circles around them. Her cheekbones were now sharp, jutting out, and her collarbone protruded where once it lay flat. She’d clearly lost weight. Well, obviously she had. Her beloved, precious child had suffered a traumatic shock. Her husband was dead; Tom had been killed. How on earth was her beautiful girl, who’d been so full of life and laughter, going to cope? For a moment she put herself in Jasmine’s position. How would she have managed without Mike? How would she have coped if her husband had suddenly been swept away in the blink of an eye without any warning? Poor Jasmine had been left a widow, and at such an early age! Then a sudden, sharp realisation hit her. It was Jasmine’s thirtieth birthday this year. Oh my God, how were they going to celebrate that? Tears stung her eyes and she quickly blinked them dry.

Jasmine didn’t seem to register her mum’s concern. She stared into space, nibbling at her sandwich, not even noticing what she was eating. Nothing mattered any more. Not what time it was, not what she ate (or didn’t eat), not what she was doing (mainly working); all the days and hours blurred together, there wasn’t any definition of any kind. Jasmine slept, worked and ate, then repeated the monotonous process again the next day. She was throwing herself into her job – at least the work kept her well occupied and distracted from the torturous thoughts of Tom. Would she ever feel happiness again? Jasmine doubted it. How could she, without Tom? He was her soulmate. Correction, he had been her soulmate. Now she didn’t have one. She was alone.

‘Jasmine, I said, do you want to talk?’ The voice of her mum cut through her thoughts again.

‘About what?’

‘Come on, love, you need to open up. It’s been over six months now and you’ve hardly mentioned Tom’s name. The counsellor said—’

‘Fuck the counsellor,’ Jasmine flatly cut in, making Sue flinch. It wasn’t like her daughter to be so vulgar.

‘We’re all trying to help,’ she coaxed, hoping for some form of constructive response.

Jasmine sighed and closed her eyes. Why wouldn’t people leave her alone? Her mum, dad, brother, friends, colleagues and the bloody counsellor… she just wished they’d all clear off and leave her alone ! None of them knew what she was going through. None of them had experienced what she had.

At first, in the days following Tom’s death, Jasmine had been glad of the support. Both her mum and dad had been the pillar of strength she’d desperately needed. Sam, her brother, had been a tremendous help in selling the boat. It was he who had liaised the sale with Allied Yacht Brokers, who had originally sold the boat to Jasmine and Tom. Moonshine soon sold, being in such good condition. The hefty profit made did little to console Jasmine. She simply couldn’t face living on Moonshine alone, not when it had been her and Tom’s joint dream. Now it belonged to another young couple, and the unfairness of it all cut like a knife. It had been Sam who had ended up handing over the boat keys; Jasmine simply couldn’t face it. Her heart was broken enough without having to watch another excited owner step aboard her pride and joy.

Now though, after six months of living in her parents’ house, she was beginning to feel a little claustrophobic. Albeit with good intention, her mum and dad were stifling. Jasmine didn’t need or want the constant care and attention that was relentlessly being poured on her. Granted, she had needed assistance early on, but now she had to face the music and start making some decisions. Like where was she going to live. Jasmine had loved living on the canal and still yearned to be near the water. That’s about all she knew at the moment.

‘Jasmine?’ Her mum was persistent, she’d give her that.

‘Sorry, Mum, I know you’re trying to help.’

‘We are, love, that’s all we want – to help you.’ Sue sat forward eagerly, hoping this was the moment her daughter was about to confide in her.

Jasmine set her shoulders. ‘I’ve come to a decision,’ she stated, tone firm.

‘Right,’ Sue nodded, filled with optimism.

‘I’m moving out.’

‘What?’ The optimism was swiftly replaced with dread.

‘I’m going to look for a place to live,’ Jasmine said matter-of-factly.

‘But… so soon?’ her mum spluttered.

‘It’s been six months, Mum. It’s time for a change.’ The more Jasmine spoke, the more decisive she sounded.

‘Where?’ Sue’s eyes widened.

Jasmine hummed in thought. ‘By the sea I think.’

‘The sea?’ Sue blinked.

‘Yeah,’ laughed Jasmine, seeing her mum’s jaw drop slightly. Then it struck her – she’d actually laughed.

‘Right, let me get this straight,’ her mum said. ‘You are moving out of here and buying a new home “by the sea”?’ Her fingers mimed quotation marks.

‘Yes.’

‘Where exactly by the sea?’ Sue asked in exasperation.

Jasmine shrugged. ‘Don’t know yet. I’ll have a look, see what’s out there.’

‘Do you need hel—’

‘No,’ Jasmine interrupted with force, then paused. ‘Thanks, Mum, but I’m fine, really.’ Her voice softened.

Sue gave a quivering sigh in acceptance. What else could she do? Jasmine was her own woman after all. She had to do things her way, in her time. All she and Mike could do was be there for their daughter; and they would be, every step of the whole damn way.