Christie Barlow - Love Heart Lane Series

A division of HarperCollins Publishers

www.harpercollins.co.uk

Harper Impulse

an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers Ltd

1 London Bridge Street

London SE1 9GF

www.harpercollins.co.uk

First published in Great Britain by Harper Impulse 2019

Copyright © Christie Barlow 2019

Cover illustrations © Shutterstock.com

Cover design © HarperCollins Publishers Ltd 2019

Christie Barlow asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

A catalogue copy of this book is available from the British Library.

This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins.

Source ISBN: 9780008319724

Ebook Edition © June 2019 ISBN: 9780008319717

Version: 2019-06-10

Table of Contents

Cover

Title Page Foxglove Farm CHRISTIE BARLOW A division of HarperCollins Publishers www.harpercollins.co.uk

Copyright Harper Impulse an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers Ltd 1 London Bridge Street London SE1 9GF www.harpercollins.co.uk First published in Great Britain by Harper Impulse 2019 Copyright © Christie Barlow 2019 Cover illustrations © Shutterstock.com Cover design © HarperCollins Publishers Ltd 2019 Christie Barlow asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work. A catalogue copy of this book is available from the British Library. This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins. Source ISBN: 9780008319724 Ebook Edition © June 2019 ISBN: 9780008319717 Version: 2019-06-10

Dedication For the four most awesome people in the world, My gang, Emily, Jack, Ruby and Tilly. I love you more xx

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Chapter 35

Chapter 36

A Letter from Christie

Acknowledgements

About Harper Impulse Конец ознакомительного фрагмента. Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес». Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес. Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.

About the Publisher

For the four most awesome people in the world,

My gang, Emily, Jack, Ruby and Tilly.

I love you more xx

Isla felt the tension bubbling away in the room the second she walked into the kitchen. She hovered by the table and watched her husband Drew slamming every drawer and cupboard door.

‘Have you lost something?’ she asked cautiously, wondering what the hell had gotten into him.

Drew spun round and held her gaze. His face was mottled crimson, the tendons in his neck bulging. Isla knew that look. Drew was spoiling for a fight, but she had no clue to why. It wasn’t very often he reached boiling point but when he did there was little time to duck and take cover.

‘It’s always down to me, isn’t it?’

Trying her best to keep composed against the sudden onslaught – after all, she wasn’t a mind reader – Isla kept her voice calm, ‘What’s always down to you?’

Drew ran his hand through his hair numerous times in quick succession, a trait he had when he was agitated.

‘Everything!’ He threw his arms up into the air. There was an irritation to his anger, a sort of impetuousness.

His words packed a powerful punch. ‘Everything?’ she repeated.

‘Yes, everything. Who’s up milking the cows at ridiculous o’clock?’

Isla narrowed her eyes; this conversation had come out of the blue and wasn’t one she was expecting at all. She didn’t understand the point Drew was trying to make, and for a second she thought about reacting with a flippant comment about the fact that he chose to be a farmer. But instead she replied with a calm voice, hoping not to fuel whatever was burning inside him: ‘And who’s been up three times in the night feeding our son while I let you sleep? I’m shattered too, Drew, as well you know.’

‘That’s not in dispute, but then you go back to sleep whenever you can while I single-handedly keep the farm afloat.’

‘The last time I checked, it was a joint effort.’ Drew was beginning to agitate Isla now. How dare he?

‘You’ve got it easy, Isla.’

Isla absorbed what he was saying, feeling shocked to the core. ‘Are you serious?’ The anger was now rising up inside her. How dare he accuse her of having it easy? Isla couldn’t remember the last time she’d had a decent night’s sleep.

‘You swan around without a care in the world, breakfast at the teashop, lunch at the pub … I’m not here to bankroll your social life.’

‘My social life?’ Isla’s voice rose an octave.

‘While I’m working every hour, you’re frittering it away before it’s even reached the bank.’

‘So now I’m not allowed to see my friends?’ she protested.

‘That’s not what I’m saying.’

‘Goodness knows what you’re trying to say.’

They held each other’s gaze and Drew exhaled.

‘I mean it Isla, I’m sick to the back teeth of bringing in the cash. If you carry on spending it faster than I am making it, then we might have to think about you getting a job.’