I Remember You Read Online Free PDF Page B

‘What do you need to do first?’
    ‘Find a place to live,’ Tess said. ‘No idea where to begin. I’ll probably have to get a flatmate, too.’
    ‘When do you start?’
    ‘Four weeks’ time. But my lease came to an end, and I just wanted to leave London,’ Tess said, walking fast to keep up with him. ‘Beside, they wanted me here early to prepare for the summer term.’
    ‘When did the job end?’
    ‘Last week,’ said Tess. ‘They’re folding my classes into Mr Collins’s—he’s the head of Classics.’
    ‘Two people teaching Latin and Ancient Greek at a secondary school in South London, eh,’ said Adam. ‘Wow.’
    ‘Wow exactly, and that’s why I’m the one who got made redundant,’ Tess said, in a small voice.
    ‘Sorry,’ Adam said, putting his arm round her again. ‘You’re back now. You’ve got loads of time to settle in, too.’
    ‘Exactly. I thought I’d use my redundancy to come down early and scout the place out for a bit, before I start at the college.’ She shook her head. ‘Funny, isn’t it. So posh. Going from Fair View comp to this.’
    They had reached the end of town; they were standing in the last lane that overlooked the medieval city walls. It was still strangely dark for the middle of the afternoon. Tess peered over, down to the valley, the hills opposite, the gathering clouds above them. ‘Hey,’ she said quietly. ‘The water meadows.’
    ‘Yeah,’ said Adam. ‘Did you know, they’re—’ he started, but then stopped abruptly and held out his hand. ‘It’s raining.’
    ‘What were you going to say?’
    ‘Doesn’t matter.’ He patted her arm. ‘T—it’s great to have you home again.’
    ‘I need somewhere to live,’ she said, uneasily. ‘Then I’ll start to feel like I’m home.’
    ‘Fine,’ said Adam, clapping his hands. ‘Let’s go and see Miss Store.’
    ‘Who? Oh, the old lady with the bag—why are we going to see her?’
    ‘Because,’ said Adam, looking pleased with himself, ‘Miss Store’s neighbour has just moved out, and there is a cottage for rent by the church, which I am pretty sure you will love.’
    She stared at him. ‘Adam, that’s—wow!’
    ‘I told you,’ he said. ‘I know everything in this stupid small town. I’m like a fixer.’ She laughed. ‘And I want my oldest friend to be happy now she’s back. Shall we go?’
    ‘Is it called something like Ye Olde Cottage?’
    ‘It’s called Easter Cottage,’ Adam said, smiling. ‘And it’s on Lord’s Lane.’
    ‘Of course it is,’ said Tess. ‘You are wonderful.’
    ‘Let’s go,’ he said, and they turned away from the water meadows.
    ‘Aw,’ Tess said. She stopped and hugged him, her voice muffled against his jacket. ‘Oh, Ad. I missed you, man. I’m sorry. I’m sorry it’s been so long.’
    ‘S’OK,’ he said, squeezing her tight. ‘I missed you too, T. But you’re back now. Back where you belong. And it’s brilliant.’

CHAPTER THREE
    Several weeks later, Tess sat on the sofa in the sitting room of Easter Cottage kicking her shoes against the worn flowered silk of the sofa. Her feet beat a steady, echoing rhythm against the fabric in the silence of the room as she gazed out of the window, lost in thought. It was late afternoon. From the direction of the high street, sounds of small-town life drifted up to her—each one, it seemed, redolent of the world she was now in, each one serving to emphasize once again the world she had left behind. The sound of friends meeting in the lane. The ring of the shop bell in the Langford gift shop. A dog barking. Evening was fast approaching, another evening alone in this still-strange new cottage. She was living in a cottage , for God’s sake. She shivered. Tess was uneasy. Unhappy, even.
    She remembered, as she had done several times, the conversation she’d had with her mother the night before she’d moved back to Langford.
    ‘I’m sure you’ll enjoy being back there,’ Emily Tennant had told her