by M J Hardy
Epilogue
Two years later.
“Hi, Emma.”
“Hi, Louise, is he in?”
She nods and rolls her eyes and I smile. “That bad, huh?”
“A little grouchy today.”
We giggle and I shake my head. “I’m sorry, what’s his problem today?”
“One of the new traders messed up a transaction and lost the client a shed load of money. Mr Landon’s been trying to fight the fire all morning and it’s a brave person that ventures in there.”
“Then it’s a good job I’m fearless.”
She laughs. “Anybody but you. I don’t know how you do it.”
I wink and she giggles. Louise took my position at my recommendation and I took over caring for Amelia and Imogen. I am much happier taking care of my ready-made family, and even though it’s not for everyone, I’ve discovered that I’m at my happiest taking care of them. Cressida lives in Florida with her new fiancé and the girls visit her on holidays and she flies in for the occasional weekend. We don’t have much to do with her, but we’ve found our way and it’s civil at least.
Julian and I married after just six months, with the girls as bridesmaids and two strangers acting as witnesses in Antigua. Our little family is all we want and we treasure it above everything else.
Knocking loudly, I hear a terse, “For fuck’s sake, I told you I didn’t want to be disturbed.”
Pushing my way in, I stand regarding my husband who looks up and rolls his eyes. “Thank fuck it’s you. These bastards are seriously pissing me off.”
“Mind your language. You’re getting worse. Anything I can help you with?”
He nods. “You can try.”
Grabbing the spare chair in the corner that I know so well; I drag it to his side and study the screen. He points out where the transaction went wrong and we are soon working out ways to limit the damage for the client.
Julian has taken great pains to educate me on the way things work, and I was a willing student. We love nothing more than poring over stocks and shares and working out ways to increase our customer’s profits by way of anticipating the markets. Finally, my detective skills count for something good rather than bad and we have become quite good at it. I even have my own trading account that I work on from what is now our office at home and have built up my own considerable fortune.
In the aftermath of what happened, I went to live with Julian and we worked it through. Somehow, we got through the dark times and now the future is bright. We still live in the sprawling mansion but are careful with our money. The guest house where Nicola ‘prepared’ me for sale has been knocked down and a tennis court now stands proudly where it once was. The terrible smell that overpowered me that day was industrial bleach, which I still, to this day, have no idea why they used it. Julian believes it was to strip away any DNA that would lead them back to Nicola, which is probably the most likely explanation.
By the time we finish studying the account, it’s getting dark and I stretch out. “It’s a good job the girls are at a sleepover, that was good timing.”
He spins my chair to face his and says huskily, “I have plans for you this evening and we are wasting time.”
“You do? May I ask what?”
He grins and leans forward, saying huskily, “I think I want to make baby number three.”
“You always want to make baby number three.”
“And you always refuse me, why?”
“Because of the girls. I don’t want them to feel upset if we have a baby of our own.”
He kisses me softly and smiles. “They have pleaded for months for a baby to play with, that’s a rubbish excuse. Why are you really stalling?”
To be honest, I can’t answer him because I don’t even know myself. I suppose because my life is so perfect now, I don’t want anything to change. However, as I look into those eyes that always drew me in, I see how lucky I am. Julian loves me unconditionally and why wouldn’t I want a miniature version of him running around?
I laugh and he looks surprised. “What’s so funny?”
“I just imagined a miniature you running around, god forbid. Maybe this is God’s way of telling me to back off, the world isn’t ready for another Julian Landon terrorising the workers.”
He grins and pulls me closer and whispers, “What if it’s a miniature version of Emma Landon. The world could do with another one of those.”
“Then what are we waiting for, let’s go and make a baby.”
As we kiss, it suddenly seems like the most natural thing in the world. Yes, it’s time to add to our family and bring a new life into the world. After all, isn’t that the only dream that matters?
The End
Thank you for reading The Grey Woman. If you have enjoyed the story, I would be so grateful if you could post a review on Amazon. It really helps other readers when deciding what to read and means everything to the Author who wrote it.
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Thank you
I feel very fortunate that my stories continue to delight my readers. The Girl on Gander Green Lane reached the number 1 spot in Australia in the entire Kindle Store. The Husband Thief and The Woman who Destroyed Christmas reached the top 100 in Canada, the UK and Australia.
I couldn’t do it without your support and I thank each one of you who has supported me.
For those of you who don’t know, I also write under another name. S J Crabb.
You will find my books at sjcrabb.com where they all live side by side.
As an Independent Author I take huge pride in my business and if anything, it shows what one individual can achieve if they work hard enough.
I will continue to write stories that I hope you will enjoy, so make sure to follow me on Amazon, or sign up to my Newsletter, or like my Facebook page, so you are informed of any new releases.
With lots of love and thanks.
Sharon xx (M J Hardy)