The Secret To Happiness. Jessica Redland

last.

      3

      Karen

      ‘Breathe in, lift your arms…’ Karen swooped her arms in a wide arc and held them above her head, her gaze sweeping around the group of fourteen bootcampers stretching out on North Bay’s promenade. ‘Breathe out, lower your arms… and give each other high-fives or fist-bumps because you smashed that bootcamp. The Awesome Award goes jointly to Becky and Jayne for some seriously impressive planking so it’s photo time for you two. Everyone else, have a great weekend and I’ll see you again on Tuesday.’

      The bootcampers said their goodbyes and set off along the promenade while Becky and Jayne posed for their photo holding a bright yellow branded Bay Bootcamp flag. They’d been great supporters of Karen’s business, being personal training clients for six years and the first to sign up when her bootcamps started two years later.

      ‘Where do you think Ryan will take you tonight?’ asked Becky, as they walked towards North Bay Corner together.

      ‘I’m hoping for Salt and Pepper Lodge. We haven’t been there for ages,’ replied Karen.

      ‘How many years is it?’ Becky asked.

      ‘Thirteen since our first kiss at the end of college party, which is when we started seeing each other, and five since he proposed.’

      ‘I can’t believe you still haven’t set a date,’ Jayne said. ‘It was one of the first things we did.’

      Karen shrugged. ‘Developing the PT business had to be the priority at first, then bootcamp. To be fair, we’d probably have set a date by now if Ryan and Steff hadn’t started that bloody running club last year. I can’t believe how much time we’ve spent apart thanks to that.’

      ‘Why are they still doing it?’ Jayne asked. ‘I thought it was just for the London Marathon and that was, what, three weeks ago?’

      Karen nodded. ‘Tell me about it. It was the Hemmerby Half on Sunday so they snuck that in too. It’s finished now though, thank God. Tonight will be our first proper evening together in about eight months and I can’t tell you how much I’m looking forward to it. It’s been a strain but normal service is about to be resumed.’

      Reaching North Bay Corner, they paused in front of Blue Savannah. A few brave punters were seated outside the café bar, huddled over their drinks, seemingly determined to take advantage of the rain-free evening despite the chill still hanging in the air from a late-afternoon downpour.

      ‘We’ll see you on Tuesday,’ Becky said.

      ‘With big news,’ Jayne added. ‘Pin him down to a date tonight before he sets up another sideline like coasteering.’

      ‘Oh God, don’t mention that to Ryan. He’d love it.’

      Karen waved them off then jogged towards the car park next to Hearnshaw Park, smiling to herself. Becky and Jayne were right about it being the perfect opportunity to talk about the wedding. Five years was a long time to be engaged with no timescale in mind. When Ryan proposed, she’d not been too bothered about rushing up the aisle; for her, the proposal had been more about the gesture of commitment than the big day itself. Lately, though, she’d started to think about weddings. Her best friend, Jemma, had moved in with her boyfriend, Sam, and it was only a matter of time before he popped the question. A few of her regular bootcampers were tying the knot over the summer, as were a couple of her PT clients. Weddings were definitely in the air. It was time that hers was too.

      ‘Ryan?’ Karen called, kicking off her trainers in the hall. ‘Ryan?’

      She ran up the stairs of the three-bed townhouse that they’d rented for the past eight years. Pausing on the top floor landing, listening to the shower running in the wet room, she stripped off her sports gear before gently pushing the door open. Perfect opportunity to make up for lost time.

      Ryan was rubbing shower gel over his chest. Karen tiptoed behind him and pressed her naked body against his back. ‘I think you missed a bit,’ she said, wrapping her arms around him and rubbing the suds on his washboard stomach, getting lower with each circle of her hands.

      He moaned softly. ‘How was bootcamp?’

      ‘Good. They worked hard.’ Her hands reached lower still. ‘Ooh, speaking of hard…’

      Ryan turned around, rubbing the suds from his eyes. ‘You know you always have that effect on me.’ He kissed her and she wrapped her arms around him, pressing her body close to his.

      ‘So where are you taking me tonight?’ she asked between kisses.

      Ryan tensed. ‘Tonight?’

      ‘Yes, tonight. You’re taking me out.’

      ‘Since when? I’ve made plans.’

      Passion flowing down the drain with the suds, Karen dropped her hands and stepped back so she could see Ryan’s face. ‘You’re pranking me, yeah?’

      One look at his expression told her he wasn’t. ‘Remind me…’

      She stared at him for a moment, then shook her head, not daring to speak because after months of patience, what she wanted to say wasn’t going to be pleasant. How could he have forgotten? How? She snatched at a towel.

      ‘Kaz…’

      Wrapping the towel around her, she fixed him with a hard stare. ‘Come on, then. What have you got on tonight that’s so important?’

      ‘Steff and I are planning the next steps for Bay Runners.’

      ‘What next steps? You promised me it was temporary and we’d return to PT and bootcamps as normal.’

      ‘I know, but we think Bay Runners should become part of the core business.’

      Karen folded her arms. ‘So basically the two of you have made a decision about our business without consulting me?’

      ‘It wasn’t like that.’

      ‘From where I’m standing, it was. Go on, then. You’d better rush round to your best friend’s and get planning, hadn’t you?’ Karen stormed out of the bathroom to their bedroom where she pulled on her PJs and clambered into bed, not caring that she was still wet.

      Ryan appeared in the doorway a couple of minutes later with a towel around his waist. ‘What are you doing in bed?’

      ‘Watching TV and having an early night, seeing as the plans you have with our business partner are far more important than the ones you had with me.’

      ‘Bloody hell, Karen. Stop being so cryptic. Hands up, I’ve forgotten what we had planned for tonight and I’m sorry, but it’s been a crazy few weeks with the marathon then the half. I’ve had a lot going on.’

      ‘It’s fine. Forget it.’ She picked up the remote control and switched the TV on.

      Ryan turned around and switched it off so Karen picked up the remote and switched it back on again.

      ‘You’re being childish now.’ Ryan switched if off and stood in front of the receiver so she couldn’t connect with the remote.

      ‘Really? And you’re not?’

      ‘No. I’m trying to reason with you. I’ve admitted I messed up and I’ve apologised, even though I don’t know what for. You’ve stormed off to bed and you won’t tell me what I’ve done wrong.’

      ‘You want to know what you’ve done wrong?’

      ‘That would be helpful.’

      ‘You really don’t know?’

      ‘Do I look like I know?’

      To