CHAPTER 99

CHAPTER 99
Friday October 23rd

Another run with Alex last night. We did ten miles. Just like he said. Didn’t talk much. But it was nice. Just running together.

Saturday October 24th

The whole village is talking about Alex and I.

I’m trying to make out like it’s no big deal. But secretly I’m MEGA happy.

I get butterflies in my stomach whenever Alex calls at the pub.

And also, I’m running further than ever.

Friday October 30th

Alex and I went running EVERY night this week.

EVERY NIGHT!

At times it’s hideous.

Alex is incredibly strict and doesn’t go easy on me.

‘Come on!’ he barks, as he bounds around me. ‘Keep up! Push yourself. PUSH yourself!’

But I have to admit we’re getting amazing results. I’ve run further and faster than ever. There are definitely times when I want to kill Alex and myself. But they’re getting fewer.

I’ve been so full of energy in the day that I’ve even run with the stroller sometimes. Just on a whim. Katy always looks a bit shocked. Like I’m shoplifting her or something.

Saturday October 31st

Halloween

Brandi and I took Callum ‘trick-or-treating’ tonight.

It was pretty embarrassing.

Callum pounded on doors, stuck out his bucket and said, ‘Give me sweets or I’ll silly string you.’

Luckily, most people thought it was funny. Except for one old lady who Callum threatened with shaving foam.

Mum decorated the pub with spray cobwebs and dangling rubber spiders. Then she moaned because no one was drinking her ‘Witches Brew’ – a mixture of all the pub spirits that haven’t been selling.

I’m not surprised no one was buying it – it smelt like boozy toothpaste.

In the end, Mum and Brandi drank most of the ‘Witches Brew’. Then they got up on the bar and danced to theMonster Mash.

Monday November 2nd

Mum is ALREADY putting up our Christmas decorations.

We have two Christmas trees every year – one in the house, one in the pub.

Mum makes sure both trees are so covered with tinsel, flashing fairy lights, and various tacky ornaments you can’t see the branches.

Her favourite ornaments are all from our summer holidays – a mini bottle of Ouzo (Greece 2000), a pink plastic couple having sex (Spain 1991), and a hanging wooden penis (Cyprus 1995).

Mum was annoyed because the village supermarket won’t sell real trees for a few more weeks. The pub one is plastic, so she’s put it up already, but she’ll have to wait to do the house one.

Tuesday November 3rd

Helen phoned today.

She’d heard about Alex and I running around the village.

She said, ‘You’re barely out of your wedding gown and you’re out in public with another man.’

I told her that since Nick got my bridesmaid pregnant I could go out with whomever I liked.

She said, ‘Nobody knows Sadie waswith childon your wedding day. And I think it best we keep that on a low level. No sense in causing a scandal.’

God!

I said, ‘When Sadie has the baby it won’t be hard to do the bloody maths, will it?’

I could almost feel Helen wince down the phone. ‘There’snoneed to swear.’

And then she said how important Nick’s reputation was in hisprofession.

I said, ‘He’s not a priest Helen, he’s an actor. A bit of scandal might do his career some good.’

And she snapped, ‘BUT IT WOULDN’T DO ME ANY GOOD!’

Then she talked about men being men and said Nick’s father had been the same.

I said Nick’s dad sounded like an arsehole.

She got all stroppy then and threatened to ‘end this conversation if you can’t be a grown-up’.

I told her that since she phoned me, I didn’t mind in the slightest if she ended the conversation. In fact, I’d prefer it if she didn’t phone me up and tell me what to do.

I said, ‘I’m not engaged to your son anymore. I’m not living in your apartment anymore. And I don’t have to be nice to you anymore. So if I want to go jogging with Alex Dalton I bloody well will.’

She said, ‘You’re only doing this to get at Nicholas, aren’t you?’

I said, ‘Oh get a life, Helen.’ And hung up.

Mum, Dad and Brandi gave me a round of applause.

Callum said, ‘Who was that headache?’

He sounds so much like Brandi sometimes.

Mum said, ‘The evil stepmother.’

Dad said, ‘Did she ask about Katy?’

I said, ‘No. Not once.’

Wednesday November 4th

Apparently, Alex and I running together is now officially the gossip of the village.

This is according to Mum, who is almost certainly the one spreading it.

Let them talk.

It’s perfectly innocent, much as I wish it wasn’t.

While we were running last night, I told Alex I’d updated my Facebook status to ‘single’.

He said, ‘God, is that what Facebook is all about? Telling everyone whether you’re in a relationship or not?’

It turns out HE’S NOT ON FACEBOOK!

I always wondered why I could never find him. (Yes – I did try to cyberstalk him when I was younger.)

He said I was ‘far too good for Nicholas Spencer’.

My knees go all weak when he looks right at me. Which isn’t all that good when I’m running.

Thursday November 5th

Fireworks Night

Afternoon

Funny feeling in my stomach today.

Maybe it’s all the fireworks going off and the smell of bonfires. But it just feels like something is about to happen.

We let off a few fireworks in the pub garden (why don’t Catherine wheel servers spin round?), and Callum burned himself on a sparkler.

Alex should be calling round soon, although I don’t really want to go for a run tonight.

I’m absolutely stuffed.

Mum did her usual bonfire tea of hot dogs, jacket potatoes, piles of grated cheese, butter, coleslaw, mayonnaise, sticky treacle pudding and a big bowl of Haribo sweets.

So it’ll be a job to squeeze myself into my running gear.

Blah.

Better get ready. Alex will be here soon.

Evening

OH MY GOD!!!!

Fireworks, fireworks, fireworks.

Did fifteen miles with Alex, which I think is amazing in itself (although Alex had already done five by the time he picked me up).

When we got back to the waterfront, Alex said, ‘Fifteen miles. I think that deserves a drink, don’t you?’

I agreed, wanting to add, ‘And five packets of dry-roasted peanuts.’