Free The January Wish by Juliet Madison

and the other part was wondering whether it would have been best to leave the past in the past, and keep living the stable life she’d worked so hard to create. The life where no one knew what happened eighteen years ago, and her reputation could remain intact. So many people in town that she knew as a child still lived here today. They’d smile and wave as she passed them in the street, and some had even become patients. It would be a shock for them to find out the real reason she’d left town all those years ago.
    ‘So, do you?’ Grace nudged Sylvia’s arm with her elbow.
    ‘No, I’m single,’ Sylvia replied coolly. She couldn’t say, ‘I did until you turned up.’ It wasn’t Grace’s fault, and she didn’t want to make her feel like she was intruding.
    ‘Me too,’ Grace said. ‘Although I’ve seen a few cute guys around here!’
    ‘I’m sure you’ll find someone special when the time is right.’
    ‘I hope so.’ Grace glanced around. ‘Oh, hey—do you mind if we check out the bookstore?’
    ‘Sure.’ Good idea. Sylvia had nearly finished the book she was currently reading and would need another one soon. She only ever bought one or two books at a time, refusing to buy any more until she’d read the others. Unlike Larissa, whose To-Be-Read-Pile resembled the Leaning Tower of Pisa.
    ‘I’m a bit of a bookaholic,’ Grace said as they walked across the road.
    ‘Well, it’s a good addiction to have, I guess.’ Sylvia smiled.
    ‘Wow, this isn’t like any other bookstore I’ve seen, it’s so…homely.’ Grace’s eyes widened as they entered Mrs May’s Bookstore and wandered along the creaky timber floor aisles. Tall wooden shelves divided the shop into sections, and in the corner were a couple of old-fashioned velvet upholstered armchairs. There was even a separate room housing the children’s books, complete with tables and chairs and a puppet theatre.
    Sylvia always welcomed the warm, rich scent of timber and books, and each time it brought her back to her childhood. This store had been around for as long as she could remember. She’d come in here after school with her mother in the days when Mrs May herself worked in the store. Now in her eighties, Mrs May still owned the store but it was run by her daughter and granddaughter now, although she still came in occasionally to check on things. Sometimes Sylvia saw her at the clinic as she was a patient of Dr Bronovski, and always admired her strength of character and resilience. She’d had a few health challenges, but just as she’d start to look frail, she’d bounce back again. A penchant for hard work seemed to run in the family. Sylvia had gone to school with Mrs May’s granddaughter, Olivia, who now seemed to work at the store every day while raising a daughter on her own.
    Sylvia remembered flipping through books in the store with her mother and tugging on her skirt in hope of having one bought for her. Sometimes they’d sit at one of the chairs and read together. On Fridays, the children’s room would be packed full of kids, waiting in anticipation for Mrs May’s weekly puppet show.
    ‘Yes, the store is definitely one of a kind,’ Sylvia said.
    ‘So, what sorts of books do you like reading?’ Grace asked.
    ‘Um…a bit of a mixture I guess. I like suspense and mystery novels, but I also like real life stories—you know, people who have overcome difficult odds and survived, or have been through something major—that sort of thing.’
    ‘So you like stories with a bit of meat in them?’
    ‘Yeah I guess, but nothing too gruesome, more psychological and intellectual suspense than anything.’
    ‘Oh! Have you read this one? It’s totally amazing.’ Grace shoved a copy of A Difference of Opinion in her face, and Sylvia had to lean back to be able to read the cover properly. God, she wasn’t losing her perfect eyesight was she? She hoped it’d be a while before she’d have to wear glasses like both her parents, who