To the Moon and Back by Jill Mansell Page A

Isn’t that just so… princessy? And she’s a complete bitch, you have no idea. Seriously, he tried so hard to make it work, but it was just impossible.’
    â€˜So he’s going to leave her?’
    â€˜Well, yes, of course he will.’
    â€˜When?’
    â€˜Soon.’
    â€˜Why doesn’t he leave now?’
    â€˜He can’t do it yet, not while the baby’s still so young. He has to stick it out until it’s a year old. Otherwise it just kind of looks bad, you know?’ Roo paused. ‘You don’t approve, do you? Don’t tell me I’m doing the wrong thing. You’re not allowed to nag.’
    â€˜When it all goes wrong, am I allowed to say I told you so?’
    â€˜It’s not going to go wrong. He’s brilliant. I’ve waited years to be this happy!’
    â€˜But—’
    â€˜Oh please, don’t say anything else,’ Roo begged. ‘When you meet Niall you’ll understand. I love him.’ She clapped her hand to her chest. ‘And it’s not my fault he’s married.’

Chapter 12
    If you wanted to make grumpy Londoners talk to you, Ellie had discovered the answer. All you had to do was carry a huge cellophane-wrapped bouquet home from work.
    â€˜Those for me, love?’ said the newspaper seller outside Brace House as she left the building on her last day there.
    â€˜Ah, thanks, you shouldn’t have!’ a taxi driver yelled out of his window.
    â€˜Cheers, darlin’, they’re my favorites,’ said a transport worker on the underground.
    â€˜How did you know it was my birthday?’ beamed a stranger in the street.
    It was like living in Mary Poppins world.
    Actually, it made a nice change, having her final commute transformed into such a jolly affair. Maybe lugging flowers around wherever you went should be made compulsory. Reaching Nevis Street, Ellie let herself into the flat. Tony was already here; she could smell his Acqua di Parma cologne.
    He came to greet her. ‘Hello, sweetheart. Are those for me? You didn’t need to do that.’ Delighted by his own wit, he relieved her of the cellophane-wrapped bouquet then gave her a warm hug. ‘You’re looking good.’
    â€˜You too.’ Tony was over for a few days to meet with film producers and give a few interviews. It was lovely to see him again.
    â€˜All settled in now?’
    â€˜Completely. It’s brilliant here. And on Monday I start at Zack’s.’
    â€˜Great. How was your leaving party?’
    Ellie began unwrapping the flowers. ‘Emotional. Paula cried buckets. Everyone kept reminiscing about the past. They’re worried about how I’m going to cope without them. I just felt guilty because it was my decision to leave and I’m really looking forward to the new job.’ She had already told Tony this over the phone, but it bore repeating. ‘He still doesn’t know about Jamie, by the way. I’m not going to tell him.’
    â€˜That’s fine.’ Tony nodded. ‘Don’t look so worried. Whatever’s easiest for you.’
    He made coffee while she arranged the flowers in a bowl. Before heading out to meet the film producers, he told her about the project. ‘They’re pitching it as Lock, Stock meets Gavin and Stacey . They want me to play a lovable gangster who runs a line dancing club, keeps Chihuahuas, and has people shot if they annoy him.’
    â€˜I’d watch that.’ Ellie snipped a couple of inches off the stem of a yellow gerbera. ‘So are you definitely going to do it?’
    â€˜Maybe. We’d be on location in London, Cardiff, and Reykjavík. We’ll see.’ He added sugar to his coffee and stirred. ‘By the way, I had an email from Todd the other day. He’s living back here now.’
    She concentrated on the flowers. ‘I know. He emailed me too.’
    â€˜Have you seen