Read The Impossible Search for the Perfect Man for Free Online Page B

again. 

4
     
     
     
     
    But in spite of everything that’s
happened, my new home works a kind of magic on me. Surrounded by fields and
beech woods, the huge trees catch the wind, and the air is full of the sound of
birds.  The peace and quiet is shattered only occasionally by the roar of
a passing car or tractor - a definite advantage of living out the back end of
beyond.  
    And there’s the paddock… Fringed with
hedges and knee high in shimmering grasses, it really does need a horse in it -
just to keep it tidy, you understand.
     Most mornings, it’s five minutes’
walk to the practice.  And already, I’m hurting less.  Or maybe it’s
just the change, because Agnes was absolutely right and relieved of the clutter
of my joint life with Arian, and trying to look on the bright side of being a
complete failure as a wife, I do feel rather liberated.  
    Emma lives quite nearby, in a snazzy
barn conversion and as she’s single too, we soon start seeing lots more of each
other.  She’s an amazing cook, as it turns out and I’m a more than willing
guinea pig for her mouth-watering recipes. If she hadn’t been a vet, my
multi-talented friend would undoubtedly have been a winner of Masterchef. 
What I don’t understand is why she isn’t fat as a pig. Out of her work clothes,
Emma dresses simply but stylishly, and she’s thin as a supermodel.  If I
cooked the way she did, I’d be eating all the time.  My favourite skinny
jeans are already on the tight side, which I need to do something about. 
Turning into a lard arse is hardly going to improve my self-esteem.  I’m
flabbergasted when she tells me after a few evenings spent together, that she,
too, was married.  And is now divorced.  My mouth literally drops
open.
    ‘No-one else knows, Lou,’ she tells me
hurriedly.  ‘I’d rather keep it that way too.  I met him before Vet
College, and after I graduated we got married.’  Then she adds sadly, ‘I
was so stupid, and well, young, really.  It never could have worked. 
He wanted to settle down and have a family, and I wanted my career.  I
didn’t study all those years to stay at home and have babies - well, not
straight away, anyway.  So a year later we were divorced and that was the
end of it.’
    Just as I’m thinking w hat a bastard, she adds, ‘he wasn’t a bad person.  We just made a mistake.’
    ‘Oh Emma, I had no idea…’ I say
inadequately, the wind completely taken out of my sails by her honesty. 
Then more bluntly, ‘You don’t look old enough.’
    She raises her eyebrows at me.  ‘If
I’d been older, I might have been a little wiser…’ she says soberly. 
‘Anyway, its history and not a mistake I’ll make again in a hurry.’
    And there’s more to gossip about when I
find out that Emma has fallen for a client, which isn’t generally considered a good idea, but after her divorce, I doubt she’s
interested in anything serious.  I’ve met him briefly and actually I have
to agree, there’s lots to like.  Ben is very handsome in a serious kind of
way and has a big horse (of course). Well, several actually – it’s how they
met.  There’s a horse at the heart of everything around here.  He’s
even asked her out to dinner, but unfortunately for Emma, she was on call.
    I’ve been so wrapped up in myself, it’s
passed me by that I don’t have the monopoly on busted marriages.  The
realisation makes me ashamed, especially when everyone’s been so supportive.
    Another thing bothers me too, because
Leo’s gone quiet.  She was often here when I first moved and spent many
evenings devotedly keeping me company and helping, most therapeutically to
dissect Arian’s shortcomings.  But lately, I haven’t seen her.  I’m
sure she’s just busy, but all the same. Something niggles at me and I make a
mental note to call her.
    Tonight my mood is buoyant.  Agnes
is coming for supper, maybe Emma too, if she’s not dashing around saving
horses.  I never try