Forget me not, p.1
Forget Me Not, page 1
Forget Me Not
Melissa Tereze
Copyright © 2019 by Melissa Tereze
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any
form or by any means, without prior written permission.
Melissa Tereze
www.melissaterezeauthor.com
Publisher’s Note: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of
the author’s imagination. Locales and public names are sometimes used for atmospheric purposes.
Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, or to businesses, companies, events, institutions, or
locales is completely coincidental.
Edited by Kira Plotts
Cover Design by John Harbourne
Image by cocoparisienne
Forget Me Not/ Melissa Tereze. -- 1st ed.
ISBN 9781093722130
T h a n k s
Without the love and support of the following people, this book would not have been possible.
Lee – Thank you from the bottom of my heart for supporting me in everything I do. Without you,
I wouldn’t have the strength to write. I love you.
Mum – Thank you for allowing me to share a part of your dad, and a part of our life, with the
world. The greatest man to ever grace our lives. We have been truly blessed and unconditionally
loved by him. You are the strongest woman I know. I love you.
Caitlin – Thank you for coming on board and helping me to see the important elements of this
book. You kicked me into touch when things became emotionally draining. I’ll be forever thankful.
Kira – Thank you for reaching out and offering your help and support. This book wouldn’t have
happened without you.
Ash – You know the score. Forever my best friend, you’ve once again cheered me on from across
the pond.
Lorena – Thank you for your input, and your dedication. It means so much.
And to my incredible readers, thank you for your continued support. Without you, I wouldn’t
write. As always, this one is for you.
All My Love,
Melissa
For you, Grandad.
C O N T E N T S
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
Seven
Eight
Nine
Ten
Eleven
Twelve
Thirteen
Fourteen
Fifteen
Sixteen
Seventeen
Eighteen
Nineteen
Twenty
Twenty-One
Twenty-Two
Twenty-Three
Epilogue
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
One
Jess Edwards’ feet pounded the pavement, a light drizzle falling from the
sky cooling her heated body. Ten more minutes. She’d told herself ‘ten more
minutes’ half an hour ago, but that was her mindset and that’s what kept her
going. The early summer rain didn’t matter nor did the fact that her muscles
were begging her to stop; what mattered was that she pushed herself.
Harder than before. Longer than before. Exercise had become her sanctuary
when her world fell apart some thirteen months ago, so exercise was what
she did. Six times a week.
Everything about Jess’ life changed when her grandfather died before the
summer of last year, but she was feeling the effects of her hard work.
Focusing on herself, that self-care element people seem to discuss these
days, had kept her mind ticking over and prevented her from finding solace
at the bottom of a bottle. Her business was thriving, her home was taking
shape, and both mentally and physically, Jess felt better than ever.
Her eyes brightened when she rounded the corner, her home coming into
view. A hot shower was what her brain told her she needed, but more than
anything, she wanted to sleep. She’d spent the morning restocking at the pet
shop, followed by picking up new orders, and before Jess knew of the time,
it was almost five in the afternoon. She often let time run away with itself,
because why not? She had nowhere to be and nobody to spend her evenings
with, so why not fall in love with her business? The one her grandad left to
her when he died.
Growing up, it had just been the two of them. After her mum died during
childbirth and her nanna suffered a fatal heart attack when Jess was just
three years old, her grandad was the only one left to raise her. Jess had
never known her father and her grandad, Billy Edwards, was literally
everything to her. Now that he had also gone, he’d left the biggest hole
imaginable in her life. Slowly, Jess was seeing the light at the end of one
hell of a shitty year, but it didn’t ease the pain any less, and it didn’t make
her feel any better about her future. Jess understood that death was a part of
life, but as with most dreadful things, she never imagined it would happen
to her.
While life could have been better growing up, Jess was never short of an
extended family. Her Auntie Mavis, who wasn’t actually any relation to her,
was a colossal part of her life, but she too was getting on in life. Nearing
seventy with a hip replacement had slowed Mavis down, but Jess knew that
if she ever needed something, anything at all, Mavis would be there in a
shot. I must call her. Jess slowed her pace and took her single key from the
pocket in her leggings. They all laughed when I told them leggings needed
pockets, but who’s laughing now? She pushed the garden gate open and
caught her breath, slipping the key into the lock.
When she stepped inside, the aroma of the chicken casserole she’d
prepared this morning hit her, signalling it was just about ready in the slow
cooker. Her stomach grumbled, her mouth salivated, and a shower followed
by sleep was now the least of her worries. Jess locked up for the night and
cranked the thermostat up by two degrees. Living in such a big house
brought with it a hefty gas bill, even as summer approached, but Billy
Edwards had left his granddaughter with more than enough to survive.
Being the only pet shop in a ten-mile radius meant that the entire
community shopped there, putting everything Jess needed in her pocket.
Her phone rang in the other pocket in her leggings. Yeah, I’m winning.
“Hello?”
“You’ll never guess who I just walked past?!”
“Our Lord?” Jess quipped.
“Funny, Edwards,” Beck, her best friend, scoffed. “Try again…”
“Oh, give me a clue.”
“You had the biggest crush on her growing up,” Beck said,
enthusiastically. “Come on…”
“Well, I know Sarah Michelle Gellar hasn’t just walked past you in the
street.” Jess laughed. “Or Hayley Williams.”
“For the love of God!” Beck groaned. “Amber Powell.”
“Amber Powell…” Jess’ mind wandered. It wandered to a time when
everything was well with the world. “She’s been gone for what, six years?”
“You’ve been counting?”
“What? No. Don’t be ridiculous.” Jess moved into the kitchen and lifted
the lid on the slow cooker. Maybe I have been counting. “Okay, either you
have some big news to tell me or I’m hanging up. I’ve got a chicken
casserole waiting for me.”
“And you didn’t even invite me over?”
“When have you ever waited for an invitation?” Jess asked. “You know
you’re welcome here any time.”
“I know.” Beck perked up. “But I’ve got stuff to do so I’ll just see you at
the weekend. We’re still on for drinks?”
“Of course.”
“It’s been a while.” Beck sighed. “I’m beginning to forget what you look
like.”
“I’m the wallpaper on your phone. I doubt you’ll forget.”
“It’s not the same thing.”
“You were here yesterday.”
“Okay, fine. I’m hanging up,” Beck said, feigning dejection. “Call me
tomorrow.”
“Will do. Bye.” Jess ended the call and took a bowl from the cupboard,
preparing her dinner for one.
Amber Powell was once the centre of her world, the only one she saw
when she closed her eyes. What had led to her feeling that way? A kiss. A
simple kiss that meant the world to Jess. They’d both gone to school
together, taking most of the same classes, but it wasn’t until Jess turned
twenty when her infatuation turned to something more. A chance encounter
at one of the gay bars in the city had confirmed Jess’ suspicions about the
gorgeous redhead, and she couldn’t hold back. A
either, and that only encouraged Jess to feel something more.
They dated for a while, close to a year, but Amber took a move to
London to be with her dad three days before her twenty-first birthday,
leaving Jess a sobbing mess on her doorstep. She hadn’t expected it. She
hadn’t imagined Amber would leave her, but she did. She left her when Jess
thought they were happy. How could we have been happy? We dated in
secret. Beck knew nothing about their relationship, nor did a single soul in
the city. At the time, she would have taken whatever she could get, and
Amber seemed to have appreciated that, but looking back, Jess wasn’t the
kind of girl who hid from who she was. She was out and proud, nothing
holding her back. It wasn’t that Jess shouted her sexuality from the
rooftops, but she’d never needed to tell anyone. Those she loved and was
close to, simply knew. For Amber, though? She would’ve given her the
world if she asked for it. She didn’t ask for it. Instead, Amber asked that
Jess didn’t contact her, something about needing a fresh start and a new life
in London.
“God, this smells good.” Jess chose not to think about what could have
been.
She took a spoonful of casserole and blew, shoving it into her mouth. The
taste of root vegetables and pearl barley sent her tastebuds wild, begging for
another mouthful before she had finished the one she was enjoying.
Nothing tasted greater than some good home cooking after a workout, and
that was exactly what Jess focused on in this moment. Amber Powell
couldn’t enter her headspace. If she did, Jess would contact her.
***
Jess stretched, aiming to grab a bag of dog food from the top shelf for a
customer. All it would take was a lengthier ladder, but Jess being Jess, she
had to go about it the hard way. She stretched again, this time with her hand
landing on the bag in question. She grinned to herself as she jumped down
from the ladder, handing the product over to an older woman.
“Thanks, Jess.”
“No problem, Mrs Garrett.”
“You know, our Ben turns thirty in two weeks. It won’t be anything too
big, just at the local social club, but you’re more than welcome to come.”
“Maybe I will.” Jess gave Mrs Garrett a thankful smile. “Remind me of
the date and I’ll see what I can do.”
“Twenty-seventh,” she replied as they made the short walk to the counter.
“If you wanted to bring someone along, that would be fine.”
“Brilliant.” Jess scanned the item, waiting for her contactless card
machine to boot into action. “Just nine pound today.”
“Thanks, love.” The older woman swiped her card across the machine,
the bleep signalling that Jess had taken payment. “I’ll see you next week for
my next lot. Bye, Jess.”
“Bye, Mrs Garrett.”
The door opened, sending a shudder down Jess’ spine. It was mid-June
up in the northwest and though it may have been Jess’ favourite season, the
air seemed cooler today. Below average certainly. The British weather
always had been hit and miss, but today definitely felt cooler than usual.
Christ, I’ll need a jumper at this rate. She flicked the switch on the electric
heater behind the counter, praying the warm air would soon provide respite
from the draught breathing through the crack in the shop door.
Jess took a seat at the counter, her feet aching from her busy morning so
far. It was nearing midday and lunch couldn’t come soon enough. On the
menu today: leftover casserole. While Jess had plenty of shops around her
to grab something else, casserole reminded her of her grandad. Honestly,
everything in the shop reminded her of her grandad, but casserole… that
was their thing. It always would be, in life and in death. Every Wednesday
was casserole night and when her grandad had deteriorated during his
illness, Jess made a habit of preparing it for him. At one time, it was all he
would eat, snubbing anything else she put in front of him.
She placed her head in the palm of her hand and sighed, her eyes closing.
Occasionally, she would expect to hear him whistling as he came down the
middle aisle. Unfortunately, that familiar whistle would only ever remain in
her head. Her memories. Her thoughts as she closed her eyes every night.
That whistle was known by everybody in the town. Her grandad had not
only been a loss to her, but to the whole community. That whistle was just
one of the many things Jess missed around the house.
“You don’t have to be crazy to live here, but it helps.”
Jess smiled, that familiar line often used by her grandad as they’d share
dinner every evening. Jess with her bottle of HP brown sauce on the table,
Billy with his two rounds of brown bread, buttered immaculately from each
corner to each edge. Many years ago, they’d both decided that a dining
table wouldn’t be necessary, using instead a simple two-seater which folded
away to be stored in the corner. That table was the foundation for their
many topics of countless conversations. From her grandad being evacuated
during World War Two and finding work as a potato picker––the best one
his ‘adoptive’ family had ever seen, as he used to say––to how he’d always
wanted to become a doctor but family life as the oldest of eight brothers and
sisters made that impossible. Billy had always been of the impression that
providing for the family was the most important quality to have, and until
his dying day, whether through his kindness or his wealth, he stood by that.
He never let a soul down, and Jess knew if he was still around now he
would continue to do his utmost to help anyone in need, the community and
his family the only things on his mind.
God, I miss him.
Jess shook herself from her thoughts, her memories, and cleared her
throat. Crying didn’t come as often as it once had with the simple mention
of his name turning her into a mess wherever she stood, but at times she
allowed her mind to run away with itself. That wasn’t always a bad thing,
not at all, but she usually kept those moments for when she was home alone
at night with nothing but the dancing flames of the open fire to keep her
company.
Jess froze, her eyes landing on a familiar body across the street. She
wasn’t mistaken, not in a million years: Amber Powell was standing across
the street talking to a neighbour from their childhood. Oh, God. Her
stomach flipped, a heat rising up her neck to the tips of her ears. Amber
Powell was one of the most beautiful women Jess had ever laid eyes on, and
six years on, that was still true. Wow, she looks great. A sadness settled
inside Jess, her heart suddenly slamming against her ribcage. Over the
years, Jess had wondered if Amber ever thought about her, but judging by
the smile on her face, and the woman now standing next to her with their
hands entwined, that would be a harsh no.
Jess was about to turn around and head further inside the shop when
Amber’s eyes crossed the street, looking directly at the shopfront. Oh, no.
Her heart sped up. Please, don’t come over here. Jess busied herself, taking
a stack of leaflets from the counter and fixing them. They didn’t need
fixing, they were fine as they were, but Jess had to keep herself from
crumbling.
The bell jingled.
Jess shuddered.
Her life was moving in slow motion.
“Edwards,” a familiar husky voice said. “Fancy seeing you here.”
Jess looked up, those green eyes belonging to Amber boring into her
soul, taking every ounce of semblance she had. “Amber.” Jess wasn’t sure
