‘I already do. I love you, Sam, and I want to be with you too.’
‘But you just said to bear with you.’
‘Not this time. I specifically said: do you think you could bear with me a bit more? Like if you moved in next door and you could see me all the time? You can turn over now.’
I turned to the third cartoon. It was the cottage next door to Jemma’s mum’s, with a ‘sold’ sign on the board, me standing on the doorstep and Thor parked on the drive. ‘You’re sure?’ I said. ‘It’s not too close?’ I’d told Jemma that I didn’t want to live in the flat again but I didn’t want to live with Mum and Dad for too long. Christmas isn’t a good time to be house-hunting, and nothing on the market appealed. Jemma suggested I look around the cottage next door, which would be going on the market in the New Year. Julie had a spare key and the owner, Mrs Denholm, had said they were welcome to let me view it.
I already loved the village and the street anyway, as I’d told them when I visited Jemma’s mum, so I’d been very excited about viewing it. The cottage was perfect. It had so much potential and was so different to what Nikki and I had chosen as our home that I’d have happily put in an offer immediately. I could imagine turning it into a family home for Jemma and me, then panicked that my imagination was running way ahead and I might scare her off by going too fast.
I explained the situation to Mrs Denholm and it turned out she was a sucker for a romance story. She said she was in no rush to sell so would give me until the end of January to make an offer.
‘I’m sure,’ Jemma said. ‘I’d love you to be next door. There’s an alternative ending, though.’ She dug in her bag and produced a green envelope this time. Looking very shy, she handed it to me. I took out the image. It was exactly the same but, this time, Jemma’s car was on the drive with Thor, and I was carrying her over the threshold.
‘Oh my God! That doesn’t have to signify marriage,’ Jemma said quickly, as though the symbolisation had just struck her.
I looked from one image to the next, my heart thumping. ‘You know what I think we should do? I think we should go back to Mum and Dad’s and put these in the frame.’
‘With which ending?’
I smiled as I held up the second version. ‘With this one, of course, although I prefer to think of it as the beginning, rather than the ending. Do you think you can bear to live with me?’
‘I can,’ Jemma said, her eyes sparkling. ‘Do you think you can bear to live with me and a load of bears?’
‘Didn’t I tell you, I was only ever after you for your bears?’ I said, laughing.
I gently placed the cartoons back in an envelope and handed them to Jemma to put in her bag so they wouldn’t get damaged or blown away.
‘I can’t wait to phone Mrs Denholm and put an offer in on the cottage,’ I said. ‘Our cottage.’
Jemma bit her lip. ‘You’re sure I’m not being too forward, inviting myself to move in?’
I shook my head. ‘The moment I saw that cottage, I wanted it. And not because of the swirly orange and brown stair carpet, the woodchip wallpaper or the avocado bath suite, gorgeous as they are. Do you know why I wanted it so badly?’
She shrugged. ‘Cute village? Sea views?’
‘They’re added bonuses. The real reason I wanted it was because of you. There was something about that cottage that made me picture you and me growing old together there. Maybe it was because I knew you’d rest easy knowing you were right next door to your mum and brother. Everything about it seemed so perfect for us that I knew I had to have it. I’d have put in an offer there and then if I hadn’t worried it would scare you off.’
‘You can really picture us growing old together?’
I nodded. ‘Definitely. Can’t you?’
‘I can.’ Jemma leaned forward and tenderly kissed me. ‘Come on. Let’s go back to yours and put that offer in. New year. New start. New life together.’
Hand in hand, we made our way down the promenade towards Thor the campervan, chatting excitedly about the future. Our future. Just over a year ago, I’d lost my best friend, my fiancée, and my future. I’d never imagined in the dark months that followed that I could ever let anyone in again but then Jemma Browne blew into my life and changed everything. Now I had a new best friend and we had an exciting future ahead of us. As for a new fiancée? Bear with me. It won’t be long.
The End
Acknowledgements
Typing ‘The End’ on the final part of the Whitsborough Bay trilogy last summer was both amazing and terrifying. On the one hand, I’d done it: I’d taken the seeds of ideas I’d had 15 years ago and grown them into fully-formed published novels. On the other hand, this meant I had to say goodbye to the same cast of characters who’d been living in my head for 15 years. Not easy!
Sending Bear With Me to my beta reader team was nerve-wracking. They’d loved the trilogy, but what if they didn’t like the new story, or the new characters? Argh! Thankfully, the verdict was extremely positive and they’ve all played an invaluable part in helping to make Bear a little less rough around the edges. Massive thanks go to my primary team: two exceptionally talented writers and great friends, Jo Bartlett and Sharon Booth, for their encouragement and incredibly insightful feedback. Huge thanks also to my secondary team: Joyce (mummy bear), Liz and Susan for their proof-reading abilities, daft mistakes spotting, and extremely helpful comments. If any of the five of you read this final version, you’ll spot where some of your suggestions have taken flight!
As a keen arctophile myself (collector/lover of teddy bears), I always wanted to write a novel featuring a teddy bear shop, especially as I ran my own bear shop for two years. It’s been lovely spending the past year immersed in a world of bears! I also knew that I wanted the story to include either an illness or a life-changing condition. After some research, I settled on Parkinson’s, a condition that my Auntie Jennifer was diagnosed with about 14 years ago. I’m very grateful to my mum and dad’s next door neighbour, Eveline Haigh, who answered a multitude of questions about her diagnosis and life with Parkinson’s. You can read loads of information but nothing beats a lengthy conversation with someone about what it’s really like. As far as reading goes, I’m indebted to all the invaluable information, guidance and videos on the websites of Parkinson’s UK, The Michael J. Fox Foundation, Alzheimer’s Research UK, and NHS.
The Write Romantics have been there every step of the way, bearing with me while I have a panic that I only have a trilogy in me and nothing more, and giving me help on fine-tuning my blurb. Gosh, I hate writing blurbs!
A big, fat, hug of gratitude, as always, is owed to my family. My husband, Mark, has designed me another stunning cover and set the book for me again. He doesn’t moan when I seem to spend all my waking hours either on the day job or writing and I really appreciate that as I know I’m probably rubbish company a lot of the time. My daughter continues to run her story ideas past me, although I think she’s going to follow in Write Romantic Helen Phifer’s footsteps with the horror/crime/thriller genre rather than mine.
Finally, my thanks go to you, my readers. If you’ve enjoyed Bear With Me, please spread the word to your friends and family and tell Amazon with a review. You don’t have to write much. You can even just rate the book if you like, but reviews make a massive difference to a relatively new writer.
So what’s next? I’m currently working on a Christmas novella and I have a clear idea for another full-length novel, but haven’t put fingers to keyboard on that yet. Bear with me. It won’t be long…
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Bear With Me Page 32
