These Days of Ours (39 page)

They stood, clinging to each other, two middle-aged folk in their untidy, ordinary, perfect sitting room. Charlie whispered into Kate’s hair. ‘Hear my soul speak.’

They recited the next couplet in unison.

‘The very instant that I saw you, did my heart fly to your service.’

‘Come on, Kate.’ Charlie switched off the lamp and led her out of the room, his eyes on hers. ‘The party’s over.’

You’re wrong
, thought Kate.
The party’s just begun.

Every book needs a champion and the people who helped me believe in this one were Sara-Jade Virtue, Jo Dickinson and Ditta Friedrich. Thank you all.

And thank
you
, Clare Hey, for being both picky and charming as you edited the manuscript. That’s a hard act to pull off, but you do it with aplomb.

It’s traditional to thank your other half and your children at this juncture and I don’t intend to break with tradition. The reason authors thank their families is that they’re
the poor sods who have to put up with us as we career towards our deadlines. So thank you, Matthew and Niamh, for the love and the understanding and the eating of burned fish fingers without
comment.