Page 46 of Back Where We Belong
‘Are you really telling me you want to walk away from me and the boys?’ Bex forced herself to hold Briony’s gaze, terrified that she might spot a flicker of doubt in her sister’s eyes, or worse still, a nod of agreement.
‘Of course I don’t.’ Briony threw up her hands in exasperation. ‘The idea of walking away from you all is unbearable and I want every single one of you in my life, but I’m scared because I want what you’ve got with Matt, and I’m terrified that I won’t be able to stop myself from showing that, or doing something to jeopardise your happiness, and that’s going to make you hate me all over again.’
‘You want Matt?’ Bex’s eyes widened in surprise and for the first time Briony laughed.
‘No! I want a partner and a family, but I know I’m never going to get it because of the sort of person I am. I’m frightened that my longing for what you’ve already got will drive a wedge between us. I’m not saying I think for a moment any of that could ever happen with Tristan, but he’s the first person I’ve met in forever who I felt willing to take a chance on. Except if I stay, and things between me and Tristan end in disaster, as they’re bound to do, it’s going to have an impact on you and Matt. So it’s better if I just go.’
Bex shook her head, wondering how on earth she could make Briony realise that the only way her sister could hurt her, was to walk out of her life again. She couldn’t bear that. She’d only just got the missing piece of her heart back and there was no way she was letting it go for a second time. ‘Of course it isn’t better if you go. Even if you and Tristan don’t work out, he’d never let it become an issue that affects the rest of us. He’s a great guy.’
‘He’s far too good for me then.’
‘No, he’s not. No one would be good enough for my little sister, but he’s the best man I know, after Matt, and that means he’s going to come closer than anyone else ever could. He really likes you, so much so that he’s been out looking for you from the moment Tom realised you were gone.’ Bex could no longer stop herself from reaching out for her sister and clasping her hand. ‘Come back for him, come back for the boys, come back for Mum. It doesn’t matter which option you choose, just come back.’
Briony shook her head, her words when they came choked by tears. ‘As much as I like Tristan, I can’t come back for him. And even though I love Mum more than words can say, and I’ve already fallen in love with the boys, I can’t come back for them either.’
‘Please, Briony. I know I messed up this time, but I love you and I just want?—’
‘You didn’t let me finish.’ Her sister cut her off, suddenly smiling through her tears. ‘I can’t come back for any of those things; there’s only one thing I can come back for and that’s you, because I love you too. I always have.’
‘I don’t know whether to hug you or throttle you!’ Bex was laughing and crying, as she finally folded her sister into her arms.
‘That just about sums up our relationship, doesn’t it?’ Briony’s voice was muffled against her chest.
‘It does, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.’ Bex hugged her sister tightly, hoping it sent a message that words couldn’t convey. A love as big as theirs was bound to be layered with frustration and tension at times, because when you wanted to protect the other person as fiercely as the two of them did, there always going to be ups and downs.They’d both made mistakes, and they were almost certain to do it again in the future, but when a bond was built on a base like theirs, nothing could ever rock those foundations enough to destroy them forever. Not time or distance, oreven the silence that had stretched over all those wasted years. But maybe they hadn’t been wasted after all. Maybe their separation had always needed to happen, to make them realise just how lucky they were to have one another. Whatever the reason, as Bex finally released her little sister from her embrace, she knew for certain that, in all the ways that mattered, she was never going to let her go again.
EPILOGUE
It was Wednesday, which meant it was ‘Woody’s Words of Wisdom’ day and Briony needed to do this in one take, because she had somewhere she needed to be that she wouldn’t miss for the world.
‘Welcome to another episode of “Woody’s Words of Wisdom”, today’s broadcast isn’t live, so there’ll be no Q&A session, but if you leave a comment below, I promise to respond to as many of them as possible later on.’ She beamed into the camera as she spoke. Part of her wondered if she should try and temper her happiness, but she didn’t think she could have done if she’d tried. There’d been so many times when she’d used the ‘Woody’s Words of Wisdom’ slot as a kind of therapy, sharing her feelings and problems with the world from behind the safety of a screen, connecting with like-minded people. She knew there would be people listening to the recording whose lives weren’t in a good place right now, but she hoped the message she was about to deliver would give them hope that better days could still be ahead, no matter how bad things might seem right now.
‘The reason I’m not live today, is that I’m off to a Welcome to the World party that my sister is hosting for her best friend’s baby.’ Her smile widened even further at the thought of meeting Rowan’s daughter, who’d been born three weeks ago and was now ready for her first party. It was the October half term holiday and Briony had been helping Bex prepare for the event for the past couple of days.
‘The words of wisdom I want to share today are related to that. The baby’s lovely mum and dad first met when they were at school, but life took them in very different directions and no one, least of all the happy couple, would have envisaged them getting back together. But in the end, all it took to get their happy ending was a willingness to risk taking that second chance.’
Briony took a breath, still staring into the camera, and silently praying that this message would reach the people who needed it most. ‘I’ve been given a second chance these past few months too, one I never dreamt I’d get, and one that I came close to throwing away because I was scared of allowing myself to risk getting hurt, but I’m so glad I took that chance in the end. I read a quote recently which summed it up, and it went something like this: if you don’t take a risk on the chance to have everything, there’s every possibility you’ll end up with nothing at all.’
Briony didn’t care if it sounded cheesy, because this week’s words of wisdom were the most honest she’d ever shared. They were a mantra she’d begun living by from the moment her sister had found her on the beach at Ocean Cove, and she had no intention of ever stopping.
Just as she ended the recording for her followers, there was a frantic banging on the door of the camper and, when she opened the door, she was greeted by a wide smile from Tristan, and an even broader one from Tom.
‘Hurry up, Auntie Briony. Mum says everyone’s going to be here soon. Grandad’s already tried to eat one of the cupcakes that Nan made, and she chased him all over the kitchen calling him a guzzle-guts.’ Tom laughed and Briony found herself thinking how quickly it had become one of her favourite sounds.
‘We can’t let Grandad eat all the cakes before we get a chance, can we?’ She winked at Tom, before turning towards Merlin. ‘Come on then, boy, you’re invited too.’
Merlin didn’t need telling twice, no doubt realising there was a good chance he might be able to score himself a cupcake that one of the children dropped. As Briony stepped down on to the grass, Tristan took her hand.
‘You look absolutely gorgeous.’ He whispered the words quietly enough for Tom not to hear them and pull a face at the affectionate exchange. Tristan’s voice was another one of Briony’s favourite sounds and things between them were going well. But if anything happened to change that, she knew Bex had been right when she’d said all those things about Tristan on the beach. So far there was every indication that they might have what it took to get a happy ever after of their own, but even if they didn’t get that, neither of them would allow it to ruin the happy ever after they already had, in a family whose love for them was already guaranteed.
‘You don’t look so bad yourself.’ She pressed her lips against his briefly, Tom already running off towards the farmhouse ahead of them to stake his claim on the cupcakes. When she pulled away, the two of them turned to follow her nephew in the direction of the house and she knew without question, despite all the places she’d travelled to, that there was nowhere else in the world she’d rather be, because she was back where she belonged.
