Chapter 17
SADIE
I’m alone in the house.
Isla’s taken Lottie to visit her grandkids in the village, and Theo’s gone for a run along the beach. I wanted to go with him, but I’ve neglected my site enough as it is – putting time with Lottie first, and, if I’m being totally honest, Theo too.
It’s been almost two weeks since we came to Pembrokeshire, and I’m not afraid to admit that they’ve been the best two weeks of my entire life. Every day has been its own little adventure, for me just as much as Lottie.
And I’m pretty sure it’s been the same for Theo.
There’s more colour in his cheeks, he’s quicker to smile, quicker to laugh… If I’m glowing, then he’s… what’s the male equivalent?
Sunshine wrapped in stubble.
My laugh echoes through the quiet, and I realise how strange it feels to be alone.
I haven’t been since we got here.
By night, we share a bed, unable to get enough of each other.
By day, we play like your everyday tourists.
Knights and princesses in the castle. Hide and seek in the forest. Football on the beach.
Crabbing in the rock pools. Eating more ice cream than any adult should ever admit to.
And laughing until our bellies ache – purely from the laughing, not the ice cream. Yeah, right.
We make the happiest of trios, and I know what people must think when they see us. Because I see it too, when my guard is down and I’m not thinking too hard.
A family. A real, honest-to-God family. Just one more happy group in a sea of summer families.
And every time I remember we’re not, my chest aches. It’s not intentional. It just is.
That’s the other reason I didn’t go running with Theo this morning. We need space. I need space. Because all those outings… all those nights tangled in his sheets… all those blurred lines… They’re starting to feel real.
Dangerously real.
The temptation to want, to hope, to believe it could be something more… it’s getting harder to ignore.
Because Theo is everything I’d ever want in a partner.
Everything I’d ever want in a father for Lottie.
He’s funny. He’s kind. He’s patient and thoughtful.
Smokin’ hot, and downright filthy when he wants to be.
The way he looks at me. The way he touches me. The way he knows exactly when to be gentle and when to be anything but.
Is it any wonder I’m weak at the knees, day after day?
A part of me never wants this trip to end. But another part – the quieter, braver part – knows it has to. And soon. We said the summer and the summer’s ending.
I need to keep moving forward. Free of Danny. Free of Theo, too.
Because the longer I stay wrapped up in his warmth, the more I fear I won’t want to stand on my own. And I have to. I have to know that I can stand tall – even without him. Especially without him.
I step onto the deck and catch sight of him coming up the coastal path, wind in his hair, running clothes clinging in ways that should be illegal, and just like that, my heart goes on its merry dance, and my lips curve up.
I can’t temper my reaction to him, so I don’t even try.
It’s the flicker of hope I seek to kill off: the one that ponders the way he looks at me, the way he holds Lottie like she’s his own.
The hope that starts to wonder if he feels it too.
The pull. The shift. The terrifying, dazzling promise of something more.
That maybe this life we’ve built in the span of two short weeks isn’t just a holiday dream. Maybe it’s a glimpse of what could be.
And oh my God, how wonderful that would be. How wonderful and perfect and maybe, just maybe… it really could be.
I raise a hand in a wave, but he doesn’t see me. He’s on the phone, talking into his earpiece. Working, probably.
Which is what you should be doing.
I sigh, head back inside, and open my laptop.
Emails first. And then… maybe a welcome-home kiss for Theo.
My inbox pings open – spam, newsletters, the usual avalanche. I start skimming through, finger hovering over delete when one subject line jumps out:
Subject: Your Story Is Changing Lives – We’d Be Honoured to Help You Share It Further!
I pause. The sender looks legit and the email itself… My stomach does a slow, stunned flip.
Dear Anon,
I’m Lucile Baldwin, an acquisitions editor at Empowered Publishing.
We’ve had the privilege of reading your blog and seeing firsthand the extraordinary reach and impact of your voice.
Despite the understandable steps you’ve taken to protect your identity, it’s clear to anyone reading that you once lived a public life as a successful vlogger.
Something you were forced to give up, and yet here you are, reclaiming your story, post by powerful post.
You’ve created more than a blog; you’ve sparked a movement. Your words are helping others recognise abuse, name their experiences, and seek help. The comments speak volumes: people are opening up, connecting, finding the help they need because of you.
We believe we can help you extend your reach even further and would love to offer you a publishing deal, entirely on your terms. Whether you remain anonymous, use a pseudonym, or step back into the public eye, we’ll support your comfort and safety every step of the way.
If you choose to go public, we’ll provide full media, marketing, and PR support to ensure it’s done on your terms. Protected and supported every step of the way.
We’re prepared to offer a competitive financial package, including an advance, royalties, and full editorial support to help shape your story, whether as a memoir, guide, or something entirely your own.
If you’re open to a conversation, I’d love to speak further. We’re also happy to host you at our London HQ, with full accommodation and care. There’s no pressure, just an open door, when and if you’re ready.
With deep respect,
Lucile Baldwin
Editorial Director
Empowered Publishing
Oh. My. God.
It’s like everything I’ve been building towards without even realising it.
Like being handed a dream job you never knew you wanted.
And suddenly, I know, I want this.
More than that, I’m ready.
I’m done hiding. I want to stand tall and face the world. I want to own what happened to me. And give others like me a reason to hope. A reason to fight for something better.
Danny can’t hurt me any more. I am strong. I am smart. I am enough.
And I can do this.
Share my voice. My truth. As me .
And for the first time in a long time, I feel it – faint but unmistakable.
Pride.
The very thing Theo promised to carry until I could carry it myself.
And the hope for a future together flares with my joy…
I’m already moving for the door, desperate to share this news with the one man who believed in me when I couldn’t.
The one man who made all of this feel possible.
The one man I want in my future and always.
Theo.
* * *
Theo
‘It’s been two weeks, Axel. How the hell is he still out there?’
I pace the coastal path, every step grinding the frustration deeper. Two weeks. Two whole weeks since Danny vanished after blindsiding Taylor. And still, no arrest. No sighting. No news.
To anyone watching, I probably look like some deranged jogger, ranting at himself. But I don’t care. I want answers. The right ones. The ones that see Danny behind bars and Sadie, free. Properly, free.
‘He went dark after Taylor. He must have someone local he can hole up with, but all known contacts are cold. We’d have better intel if Sadie was?—’
‘No,’ I snap. ‘She’d know something’s off. Taylor said to keep it quiet, and she’s right.’
Is she? Are you sure about that?
‘And if that blows up in your face?’
I rake a hand through my hair as the wind picks up, the sea crashing harder than it has in days. The sun’s gone and there are dark clouds rolling in on the horizon… a storm I feel building within me too.
Maybe it’s not just that he’s still roaming free. Maybe it’s that I let him become this… a twisted secret between us.
‘Hell, I don’t know any more, Axel. But I know I can’t keep her holed up here forever…’
Though the thought of taking her back to London, knowing he’s still out there…
Or is it the idea of taking her back and ending what you’ve found here that terrifies you more?
‘Better there than here,’ Axel says. ‘Taylor’s strung out enough without stressing about her sister being anywhere near him.’
‘How is she? Taylor?’
Silence.
‘Axel?’
‘She’s Taylor,’ he clips out. ‘She’s as fierce as they come.’
‘She didn’t sound fierce, not when she called me the morning after he got?—’
‘ Theo ?’
The soft voice comes from behind me and my stomach drops. My eyes slam shut.
‘Yeah,’ Axel says in my ear, ‘but she?—’
‘I’ve gotta go,’ I cut him off, heart slamming as I turn. ‘ Sadie …’
She’s standing there, hair billowing in the breeze, white cotton shirt billowing with it – my white cotton shirt. Everything I want and everything I’m about to break.
‘What’s going on, Theo?’
She wraps her arms around her middle, and I can already see it in her eyes: the hurt I’m about to inflict with the secret I can no longer keep.
‘Answer me.’
‘Hear me out, okay.’ I raise a desperate hand. ‘Before you react, just let me explain.’
‘I’m listening.’
‘What did you hear?’
Her brows lift, eyes sharp and piercing, stabbing at my heart. ‘I heard enough, now I want the whole story.’
‘Sadie…’
‘Don’t “Sadie”, me.’ Her voice trembles. ‘ This is about me. The least you can do is tell me everything.’
I swallow hard. ‘Danny’s in London… or he was.’
Her lashes flutter. ‘When?’
‘He— he was waiting outside Taylor’s apartment the night you two met for drinks.’
She goes still. So very still, it’s like the world stops with her. ‘He got to Taylor?’
I nod and her throat bobs, fear widening her gaze.
‘Is she?—’
‘She’s okay,’ I hurry out. ‘He shook her up, but she’s okay.’
Her face tightens. ‘Why didn’t you say anything? Why didn’t she say anything?’
‘I— We didn’t want to upset you.’