Tell That to My Heart

by Eliza J Scott

  As they walked on, she linked her arm through his and they continued in companionable silence. At one point he looked as though he wanted to say something, but thought better of it. And, much as she was keen to find out what it was, she didn’t like to push him.

  That evening, they walked the half mile to the Skappanish Inn. They had a cosy table for two by the fire and dined on freshly caught scallops followed by plump monkfish and fresh vegetables, washed down with a crisp bottle of house white. Mim finished her meal with a bowl of homemade rice-pudding and a dollop of raspberry jam. ‘That was heavenly.’ She patted her stomach; she couldn’t remember the last time she’d eaten such delicious food. Herbert had excelled himself and been a well-behaved boy, curling up on the floor beside them.

  ‘Yep, the food’s always good here, and the seafood’s freshly caught by local fishermen.’

  Mim went to bed content again that night. The anxiety and stresses of recent weeks receding into the shadows with every passing day. She was starting to feel her old self gradually re-emerge, as her self-confidence returned.

  The following day, they went for a drive across the middle of the island, an area known for its stunning views and resident golden eagles. The huge, snow-capped mountains looked surreal, almost as if they’d been super-imposed in the background. Mim had never been anywhere like it. The roads were precipitous at times, but the reward was a view so breath-taking no amount of photographs could ever do it justice. Aidey parked the car up so they could get out and see the full length of the valley from the vantage point.

  ‘How do you know about such an amazing place?’ she asked.

  ‘I used to come here every summer as a child; my parents rented the same holiday cottage and my dad used to drive us around the island, soaking up the views.’

  ‘I can see why.’ The air was imbued with an air of tranquillity. Mim took a deep breath and let it wash over her.

  That evening, the pair retraced their steps to the pub, tempted once more by its scrumptious food. Mim sat back in her seat, swirling the wine around her glass. ‘I haven’t felt so content for a long time. It’s as if being here has washed all my worries away, and reminded me what it is to feel properly happy again.’

  A smile spread over Aidey’s face. ‘Yeah, it kind of gets you like that, this place.’

  ‘It’s as if all of the horrible build up, Honey, Caspar, everything to do with Yorkshire Portions, hasn’t actually happened, like I’ve never actually had anything to do with them.’

  ‘I’m pleased you haven’t let it affect you, you needed to be free of the whole lot, needed to move away from them.’

  ‘I did, I just didn’t realise it would be so simple at the time. I couldn’t imagine ever being free of the stress, I’d convinced myself it would follow me everywhere.’

  ‘I’m glad it hasn’t.’

  ‘Me, too.’ Mim met his gaze. He looked so handsome, his eyes soft and kind. Butterflies fluttered around her stomach and she felt the colour rise in her cheeks again – something that had started to happen with increasing regularity when she was around Aidey.

  ‘Mim, I—’ Aidey’s words were cut off by the sound of her mobile phone ringing.

  ‘Who could that be this late?’

  ‘You’d better get it, signal must’ve made a rare appearance.’

  ‘It’s Anna’s number. I hope everything’s okay.’ She shot Aidey a worried look as she pressed her phone to her ear. ‘Hi, Anna, how’s things?’ Mim’s expression changed as she listened. ‘Oh, shit!’

  ‘What’s the matter? Is she alright?’ asked Aidey.

  Mim turned to him. ‘She’s been trying to get hold of us all day. She says the police turned up at Yorkshire Portions this morning, took the bosses off for questioning. Caspar conveniently disappeared as soon as he got a whiff of trouble, but it looks like his family are being investigated for money laundering, and the Pallister-Biggs are implicated.’

  ‘What?’

  Mim turned her attention back to her phone. ‘Are you okay, Anna? Did the police speak to you?’ Mim strained to hear her friend, putting a finger in her free ear. ‘I can’t hear you very well – I’d put you on speaker phone but we’re in a pub.’ Before long, the line went dead. ‘Blast; she’s gone!’

  ‘Did you manage to hear much more?’ asked Aidey.

  ‘A bit.’ Mim nodded, her stomach clenching. ‘Apparently, the police took a statement from her at the office – we’re going to have to give one when we get back.’

  ‘Shit, this is serious stuff. You realise you’ve had a lucky escape, don’t you? That’ll be why Caspar wanted you to have that money deposited into your account.’

  She clamped her hand to her mouth. ‘Oh, my God, the slimeball! So, if I’d agreed to it, the police would be investigating me, too?’ Mim’s heart was pounding.

  ‘I would’ve thought so.’

  ‘Thank goodness I followed my gut, and asked yours and Anna’s advice; without it, he might’ve had the power to talk me round.’ She paused for a moment. ‘I bet that’s why he was interested in me and kept paying me compliments; it was all just so he could manipulate me to do what he wanted. What a creep.’ The realisation didn’t hurt as much as she thought it would.

  ‘And I’ll bet that’s why Simon took over the accounts; then no one else could see the ridiculous amounts getting paid in.’

  ‘No doubt. And more than likely why they gave Caspar a job there.’

  ‘Bloody hell, it’s all starting to fit together.’

  ‘I’m so glad we left when we did. I hope Anna’ll be okay till we get back– I’ll try and get in touch with her again.’ Mim frowned. ‘And what about Clarissa? I can’t see her being involved in anything dodgy.’

  ‘I’m sure Anna will be fine for a few more days; she’s a tough cookie. But Clarissa? I can’t imagine her being involved in anything illegal either, though who knows?’

  ‘When I think of how Catherine reacted when she saw those things in my drawer, like she was all holier-than-thou, it just makes me so angry. She made me feel like the worst type of criminal when I hadn’t done anything wrong, and all the while she was sitting there, busily laundering money for the De Verres.’

  ‘The woman’s got a nerve. But it looks like karma’s taken a massive bite out of her backside and she’s going to have to live with the consequences.’

  ‘And, it might sound unkind, but I think she deserves everything she’s got coming to her, as do Caspar and his family.’

  ‘It doesn’t sound unkind, they could’ve wrecked a lot of people’s lives with their dodgy dealing, yours included. But don’t let it spoil your break; we can deal with it when we get back, a few days aren’t going to make a difference.’

  ‘True.’ There was no way Mim was going to let anything to do with Yorkshire Portions make her cut short her time here with Aidey.

  37

  After a breakfast of porridge and toast, the news of the previous evening seemed like a distant memory and had a strangely liberating effect on Mim; as far as she was concerned, all ties to Yorkshire Portions and Caspar had been severed; they’d already taken up too much of her headspace and they weren’t getting any more. She was moving on with her life and, once she’d spoken to the police, she wasn’t going to give either of them a backward glance.

  With Herbert in tow, Aidey and Mim jumped into the car and drove to a beach at the bottom of the island that Aidey had been keen to show her. ‘It’s great for beachcombing,’ he said. ‘And Herbert will love having a good run around.’

  The beach was everything Aidey had promised, teeming with seabirds, dotted with rockpools that were full of a whole variety of marine life, and amongst the tiny pebbles Mim found a plentiful supply of sea glass and smoothed pieces of blue and white china. She gathered her finds and put them in her pockets; she wasn’t quite sure what she was going to do with them, but they were too pretty to leave behind.

  She stood with her back to the sea, the wind nipping at her cheeks, as
she cast her eyes along the shoreline. She pushed her hair off her face. ‘I never want to leave this beautiful island, it’s so perfect and I feel so happy here.’

  Aidey smiled. ‘It is, I love it here. And Herbert would seem to agree.’

  The Labrador came bounding towards them, his tongue lolling out of the side of his mouth, his coat drenched and covered in sand where he’d been rolling after swimming in the sea. He stopped in front of them and shook, showering them in salty droplets of water.

  ‘Ughh! Herbert! Stop that!’ Mim scrunched up her face.

  ‘Thanks for that, Herbs.’

  Herbert looked at them, a happy expression on his face. Aidey and Mim looked at one another and roared with laughter.

  The fresh air was doing a good job of bringing colour back to Mim’s cheeks, making her feel invigorated and carefree. She watched Aidey, frying two succulent pieces of hake in a pan, bathing them in bubbling herby butter. She set a basket of crusty bread on the table and filled their wine glasses. ‘That smells seriously good. Who knew you were such an accomplished chef, Aidan Lister?’

  ‘I don’t know about that, it’s simple stuff I’m doing.’ He removed the pan from the heat and served the portions onto the two plates, adding chunky slices of lemon to each one.

  ‘I think we both know that if I tackled anything like that, it would bear no resemblance to what you’ve just put on those plates. I’ll stick with cooking beans on toast.’ She giggled and took the bowls of vegetables and potatoes while Aidey carried the plates to the table.

  ‘Beans on toast is good,’ Aidey said with a smile.

  ‘Hmm. You’re just being kind. Anyway, cheers.’ Mim lifted her glass aloft.

  ‘Cheers.’ His eyes twinkled as he looked at her, making her heart squeeze with happiness.

  After they’d eaten, the pair decided to get a breath of fresh air on the decking. A pale moon was suspended in a clear, star-strewn sky, its light pouring over the sea like molten silver. Waves were gently lapping against the rocks below. ‘It’s so beautiful, whatever the time of day,’ said Mim.

  ‘It is. I’m pleased you love the island as much as I do.’ Aidey turned to her and their eyes locked.

  Mim felt her heart somersault. She reached for his hand, weaving her fingers through his, her other hand reaching up to cup his face. ‘Aidey,’ she whispered, and before she knew what she was doing, she felt her lips pressing gently against his. He paused for a moment before putting his hand behind her head, pulling her closer and kissing her hard.

  The intensity of the feelings unleashed by the kiss took Mim by surprise; she could barely stop her knees from giving way beneath her. She’d been aware of her feelings growing for Aidey, aware that the crush she’d had on him as a teenager had never gone away, but now it had grown up and morphed into something she realised was love. It had been hiding in the wings, waiting for the right time to show itself. Being around him felt so right, they slotted together so perfectly, it was as if they were meant to be together. The realisation filled her with a happiness she hadn’t thought possible. And, from the look in his eyes, Aidey clearly felt the same.

  ‘Mim,’ he whispered when they eventually pulled apart. ‘I hardly dared hope you’d feel the same way.’

  ‘It’s kind of crept up on me.’

  He bent to kiss her again, cupping her face in his hands. Feeling her passion rising, Mim took his hand and led him inside and up to the bedroom.

  ‘Are you sure about this, Mim?’ Aidey asked, his eyes dark with lust.

  ‘I’ve never been more sure about anything.’

  They lay entwined together in the crumpled sheets of Aidey’s bed. With her head resting on his broad chest, Mim could hear his heart beating in time with hers.

  ‘I couldn’t ever imagine feeling as happy as this.’ He brushed his fingers over her shoulder.

  ‘Same here.’ She pushed herself up to look at him. ‘And to think you’ve been there all along. I was stupid not to realise.’ Love for him rose in her chest with an intensity she’d never felt before.

  ‘Yep, I’ve been waiting for you to realise, hoping one day you would.’ He rolled her over and kissed her hard. ‘I love you, Mim Dewberry.’

  ‘I love you, too, Aidey Lister.’ She smiled, pushing her hands into his hair, joy dancing in her eyes.

  ‘I can’t tell you how good it is to hear you say that. Now, where were we…

  THE END.

  Afterword

  Thank you for reading Tell That To My Heart, I hope you enjoyed it. If you did, I’d be really grateful if you could pop over to Amazon and a leave a review – if you click on the link below it will take you right there:

  Tell That To My Heart - Amazon UK

  Tell That To My Heart - Amazon US

  It doesn’t have to be long – just a few words would do – but for us new authors it makes a huge difference. Thank you so much.

  If you’d like to find out more about what I get up to in my little corner of the North Yorkshire Moors, or if you’d like to get in touch – I’d love to hear from you! – you can find me in the following places:

  Amazon author page: Eliza J Scott - UK or Eliza J Scott - US

  Website: Eliza J Scott

  Twitter: @ElizaJScott1

  Facebook: @elizajscottauthor

  Goodreads: Goodreads.com

  Instagram: @elizajscott

  Bookbub: @elizajscott

  Also by Eliza J Scott

  The Letter – Kitty’s Story (Book 1 in the Life on the Moors Series)

  You can get it here:

  UK: www.amazon.co.uk

  US: www.amazon.com

  The Talisman – Molly’s Story (Book 2 in the Life on the Moors Series)

  You can get it here:

  UK: www.amazon.co.uk

  US: www.amazon.com

  The Secret – Violet’s Story

  www.amazon.co.uk

  www.amazon.com

  A Christmas Kiss (Book 4 in the Life on the Moors Series)

  You can get it right here:

  UK: www.amazon.co.uk

  US: www.amazon.com

  Thank You

  I have to admit starting a new series felt rather strange at first. I’d got to know the characters in the Life on the Moors series so well that I thought it was going to be difficult to leave them behind and focus on a new batch of folk. However, once I started to write about Mim, Anna-Lisa and Aidey, and got to know their individual characters a bit better, the words just flowed; by the end, they all felt like old friends. And, on the subject of friends, just like the books in the Life on the Moors series, friendship and loyalty has been at the very core of this story too.

  While Tell That To My Heart was set predominantly in the very real city of York, Smiddersgate – the street on which the Yorkshire Portions magazine is situated – is fictitious. Anyone who is familiar with York will be aware that the streets in the city centre are known as ‘gates’, which is a throw-back to its Viking heritage. The ‘Smidders’ part also comes from this rich time in history and is a corruption of the word ‘smith’, which I’ve used as a reference to the many blacksmiths whose work would have thrived at that time when the city was a bustling melting-pot of trade.

  So, I’ve reached the point where I get to thank all of the people who have helped make this book possible. I’m going to start with my family for keeping me topped up with copious quantities of Yorkshire tea and ginger biscuits while I’m writing.

  A huge thank you to Alison Williams for her wonderful editing skills and kind words of support. I really enjoy working with Alison and continue to learn a huge amount from her.

  A great big thank you to Berni Stevens for yet another gorgeous cover! I wanted a different style for the Heartshaped series and am so thrilled with this one for Tell That To My Heart.

  Special thanks go to Rachel Gilbey of Rachel’s Random Resources whose blog tours are fantastic and her organisational skills second to none! Despite being very poorly this year, she bat
tled on and still managed to keep the blog tours going. You definitely deserve your “Wonder Woman” title, Rachel!

  Thanks also to my lawyer friend for advising me on the complexities of money-laundering, how it’s investigated and then proceeds to trial. I owe you a pint!

  I’d like to say an enormous thank you to all of the wonderful book bloggers who have taken part in the blog tour for Tell That To My Heart and for featuring it on their fabulous blogs. Their kindness and generosity of spirit is very humbling.

  Finally, I’d like to give a shout out to all of the fantastic folk I’ve got to know in the book community; what a kind and supportive bunch you are!

  THANK YOU!

  About the Author

  Eliza has wanted to be a writer as far back as she can remember. She lives in the North Yorkshire Moors with her husband, two daughters and two black Labradors. When she’s not writing, she can usually be found with her nose in a book/glued to her Kindle, or working in her garden, battling against the weeds that seem to grow in abundance there. Eliza enjoys bracing walks in the countryside, rounded off by a visit to a teashop where she can indulge in another two of her favourite things: tea and cake