She glanced up at the stars. A picture of Elliot entered her mind, but she shook her head and the image faded. She would no longer fear his silent haunting.
‘No more Elliot,’ she said. ‘No more anguish. No more dreams. Just here. Just now. Just you and me.’
‘And Conor.’
‘And Conor.’
Then they held hands and looked out over the sultry plantation night, with fireflies sparking among the bushes and the insistent sound of cicadas.
‘This is so beautiful,’ she said.
‘As are you.’
Louisa knew there might be bumpy times ahead as they adjusted to their new life as a family, but she was happy, happier than she’d thought she would ever be, and together they would find their way through. The emporium would take up much of her time but she was strong now, stronger than she’d ever been before.
The sun was shining two days later as Louisa surveyed the emporium. The central area sparkled with sapphires in their glass cabinets, and the ebony counters shone: a wonderful contrast to the brilliance of the white walls, just as she had imagined it would be. Upstairs, in the gallery, Savi Ravasinghe’s paintings were hanging in pride of place, and in the first of the ground-floor rooms gorgeous silks shone with light reflected from the chandelier. The merchants were ready, just putting the final touches to their displays, and a table had been heaped with bottles of champagne and plates of canapés.
As the early guests arrived Louisa welcomed them warmly. She had decided on wearing a gold evening dress with a wrap of silver silk. After all, this was the culmination of months of work and she wanted to make a splash. From the very first she’d had a vision of how the emporium would be and now it had come to fruition, she beamed with pleasure. Leo grinned at her from the other side of the main hall, while Conor offered round plates of canapés to the delighted guests and her father shook hands with his friends.
All her friends and acquaintances had arrived too, and she was pleased to see several rubber planters and their wives. The rooms filled quickly, and as Louisa rang a bell a hush descended.
‘Thank you all for coming,’ she said. ‘I now declare the emporium well and truly open. I hope you all enjoy yourselves.’
The assembled crowd clapped warmly, and after that she stood back to watch.
Gwen walked over, carrying Alice in her arms.
‘I can’t get over how big she is now,’ Louisa said.
‘She’s over a year old now.’
‘Is she crawling yet?’
‘Gosh yes. Much more than that. She’s trying to walk and does a very fast bottom-shuffle. I can’t let her out of my sight!’ She tickled the little girl and was rewarded by an enthusiastic chuckle. ‘She’s full of fun.’
‘And Hugh?’
Gwen glanced around. ‘I think he’s helping Conor with the canapés.’
Louisa smiled. ‘Wouldn’t it be lovely if they became friends?’
Gwen nodded, then kissed Louisa on the cheek before going off to find Laurence.
As Louisa heard the tills beginning to ring, she felt relieved that despite all the trials of the previous few months, she had made the right decision to go ahead with the project. Sapphire was going to be a success. She also felt immensely grateful for all the support she’d had from her father, Margo, Gwen and Leo. Without them it might have been a different story; good friends were everything, the very foundations of her life. Leo continued smiling at her from his vantage point, then he came across to her and, as she held his hand in hers, her heart was full.
What a year it had been. Had she forgiven Elliot? If she was honest, not quite. Her eyes misted over at the thought. Those old easy careless days with him were long gone and, given what had followed, it was impossible to treasure what they had once had. She wanted to think back fondly, uncontaminated by anger, and knew that forgiving him was the only way she would ever be completely at peace. She would do it. She was sure of that, and while she still remembered how deeply she had once loved him, he could no longer hurt her in the way he had, because she was choosing to let him go. She had strength and she had courage but, most of all, she had everything to live for now. The unravelling of her self had given birth to an older, wiser, Louisa, and having experienced the darkest pain, the sunshine of life was all the brighter. And in the end, despite the tragedies that had happened, despite the loss of Julia, of Elliot and of Zinnia, life had given her a precious child to care for. She tilted her head to look up at the cupola and made a promise: whatever life might fling at them, she would never let Conor down.
Acknowledgements
I’m grateful to my agent, Caroline Hardman of Hardman & Swainson, for her support, hard work and all-round brilliance. She has been a rock since day one and I’m very lucky to have her in my corner. I’d also particularly like to thank my editor and publishing director at Viking/Penguin, Venetia Butterfield, who has the ability to read my early drafts and ‘see’ where I need to go with the manuscript. The first feedback is so valuable, and both Caroline and Venetia are wonderful, clear-thinking collaborators who I trust completely.
I’d like to thank the entire Penguin team: Isabel Wall, who read an early draft, my publicist Anna Ridley, who is just the loveliest person, and of course the marketing trio – Rose Poole, Elke Desanghere and Josie Murdoch. Also, thanks must go to my copy-editor, Elisabeth Merriman, to the art department, the rights team, production, sales and distribution. I’m very aware that everyone has played a part in bringing this book, and my other four, to publication.
Huge thanks too to the bloggers who kindly read and reviewed the book. They are the unsung heroes. In addition, Janine Vanigasooriya in Sri Lanka was extremely helpful in sending me information about the birds of the south. And, finally, I want to thank Richard Jefferies for his immaculate research while also keeping me fed.
This writing journey was not something I ever expected to happen but I am so grateful that it has and I hope to continue writing for as long as people want to read my books. So perhaps the biggest acknowledgement of all has to go to you, my readers. Thank you.
THE BEGINNING
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PENGUIN BOOKS
UK | USA | Canada | Ireland | Australia
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Penguin Books is part of the Penguin Random House group of companies whose addresses can be found at global.penguinrandomhouse.com.
First published 2018
Copyright © Dinah Jefferies, 2018
The moral right of the author has been asserted
Cover images © Jeff Cottenden © Trevillion Images © Getty Images
ISBN: 978-0-241-98075-0
The Sapphire Widow Page 34