Playing her favourite CD, she rested back in her armchair, letting the music flow round her, and closed her eyes, lost in the moment. She allowed herself to sink into a past of memories: remembering the time Albie had given her a first edition of a book she’d mentioned she loved; remembering Rosie racing in to tell her she’d won the Singing Prize, that she was a Head of Year, that Tess was no longer her best friend, that Matt had been seen kissing Gemma behind the chemistry block and wanted to go to second base. Some of the memories caused her to giggle softly as she took another mouthful of wine, floating back in time once more.
She thought of her new friends: pictured Troy in a tattoo parlour lined with his original designs, customers leaving with intricate marks running up their arms; Keith and Mandy on a cruise ship to the Mediterranean, Mandy making him do the Grease duet in front of the other holidaymakers; Pauline sat on her stool knitting in the new-look café, her naughty cackle at something Amrit said; Cara putting her feet up, her apartment clean and comfortable as Owen played and her baby slept in her arms; Nina discovering something gold and wonderful on one of her trips out with her metal detector; Cathie watching the two dogs she so loved, laughing as she threw them sticks; Timothy playing backgammon outside a café as if he was in Rome and not Lynmouth. So many people crammed into the last few months and one person linking them all to her: Albie.
Buttoning up soft pink pyjamas, teeth clean, make-up wiped away, feet bare, she slipped beneath the fresh sheets and rested her head on the plumped pillow. She lifted her hand above her to stare again at the ring she had picked out, that he would have loved on her. Albie. Now, she let herself think just of him.
Albie on the first day he’d met her, Albie on the second Thursday when he’d reappeared and she hadn’t questioned it, on all the Thursdays where he spoke about films, books, politics, his own life – Troy, the library, his childhood – and asked her questions. His West Country accent, the bump in his nose, the soft blue of his eyes that crinkled kindly when she spoke. Albie on the day she had shared her sad story, the serious way in which his eyes had filled with the tears she herself struggled to spill. Albie.
Sitting up in bed, she reached across to open the top drawer of her bedside table. She pulled out the list, staring at the many ticks, the bullet points, her additions on the dog-eared paper. Rummaging for a pen, she took a breath, staring at the gap at the bottom of the back page. Enough space for one more sentence. She removed the lid of the pen, resting the list on the surface of the bedside table.
Writing in a slow, careful hand, she added, ‘To one day be with Albie again.’
Then she closed the pen lid, placed it and the list back in her bedside drawer and reached to turn off the lamp. For a moment her eyes rested on the photo in the frame: herself and Rosie in faux-fur hoods, cheeks pressed together, pink noses, enormous grins, filling the picture. She blew a kiss at her beloved daughter and then switched off the lamp. In the dark, she scooted down, resting back against the pillow once more, letting her head sink in softly. No noise outside the apartment, nothing to disturb her. Taking a long, slow, deep breath, she closed her eyes.
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A Letter from Ruby
I want to say a huge thank you for choosing to read The Wish List of Albie Young. If you did enjoy it, and want to keep up to date with all my latest releases, just sign up at the following link. Your email address will never be shared and you can unsubscribe at any time:
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I thoroughly enjoyed telling Maria’s story and hope you were rooting for her and the rest of the cast. I wanted to write a book that would move my readers and put a smile on their faces. Albie’s list has inspired me to look at my own life and wonder at the small ways I can help those around me. I think we could all be more Albie!
I hope you loved The Wish List of Albie Young and if you did, I would be very grateful if you could write a review. I’d love to hear what you think and it makes such a difference helping new readers to discover my books. I also love hearing from my readers – you can get in touch on my Facebook page or through Twitter and Goodreads.
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Thanks,
Ruby Hummingbird
Acknowledgements
This book was a true joy and a privilege to write. Thank you so much to my editor Christina, who has boundless energy, enthusiasm and positivity. Your obvious love for this book has fuelled the process and working with you has been a pleasure from the start.
To the team at Bookouture: the other editors who have tweeted or messaged and the indomitable Kim and Noelle, I have felt welcomed by you all from Day One. Particular thanks to Natasha Hodgson for her excellent and thoughtful copyedit, Ellen Gleeson, Alexandra Holmes, Jane Donovan, Leodora Darlington, Alex Crow and Jules Macadam. I adore the detailed and unique cover and an enormous thank you to Sarah Whittaker for her work designing it. Thank you to the whole team for everything you do to ensure my book will be read by so many wonderful readers. To the Little, Brown Rights Team: Andy, Kate, Hena and Helena, thank you for talking to publishers in different territories and being so wonderfully passionate in your response to the book. I hope I can connect with readers around the world who will take Albie and Maria to their hearts too.
To Clare, my agent, for her constant belief in my writing and her no-nonsense approach when we discuss things. Thank you for always trying to get back to me so promptly with news and chat when there are a hundred other things going on. The Darley Anderson office is made up of some wonderful people and I want to thank Mary, Tanera, Sheila, Christina, Georgia, Chloe and Rosanna too.
Thank you to my extended family for such happy times and, in particular, my parents for their endless interest in my writing. To my husband and children, I feel incredibly lucky to have you around me every day.
And lastly, to the Jilly Cooper Book Club – an eclectic mix of passionate women – thank you for your support, and practical suggestions in response to my random research questions (from cat adoption through to the geography of Brighton). This book is dedicated to Andrea – a generous, joyful spirit. I am so grateful to have known her.
Published by Bookouture
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An imprint of Storyfire Ltd.
Carmelite House
50 Victoria Embankment
London EC4Y 0DZ
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www.bookouture.com
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Copyright © Ruby Hummingbird, 2019
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Ruby Hummingbird has asserted her right to be identified as the author of this work.
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All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in any retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publishers.
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eBook ISBN: 978-1-83888-091-0
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This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places and events other than those clearly in the public domain are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
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