Sealed With a Kiss (33 page)

Cornwall
is full of magic. It might sound like an advertising cliché, but when you cross the Tamar I swear there’s something in the air. I’m
in heaven watching the waves crashing against the huge cliffs as the children rampage across the beach at Polzeath. Coombe Mill in St Breward is our favourite place for a family holiday, where
there’s something for them all to do – from the smallest child to the teenager. They can run wild and burn off all their energy as well as helping out on the farm, whilst I curl up with
a book and a glass of wine by the fire in a fifteenth-century cottage which is full of history. Down in the beautiful village of Boscastle there’s the amazing Museum of Witchcraft and my
favourite shops full of tarot cards and incense and everything I love (‘all that weird stuff’ according to the children).

If I can get a snow fix once a year in
Bansko, Bulgaria
I’m happy. I learned to ski there as an adult, and after a bit of a dodgy start (day one: I lay
on my side in the snow like a toddler, halfway down a nursery run, and refused to get up for ages, insisting they bring a helicopter to rescue me) I was hooked. The people are amazing, the language
is still completely beyond me, and the food is fabulous. When you’re skiing down the ‘snow road’ home, with beautiful mountains ahead of you and surrounded by ice-draped trees,
it’s hard to remember there’s a real world out there of deadlines and paperwork. If you don’t fancy skiing, you can just catch the gondola up into the mountain, grab a hot spiced
wine and watch the world go by. Bliss.

The Island of Bute
is one of my other secret escapes. An hour from Glasgow and a short ferry ride and you’re in another world, one which might seem a
little bit familiar! Take a drive across the island to Scalpsie Bay, where you can spot ospreys soaring overhead, and the seal population basking on the rocks on the deserted beach. I can’t
guarantee you’ll meet a handsome laird walking his dogs on the shore, but it’s a wonderful place to visit . . .

And finally, my other favourite escape is
the bath
. Like Kate, I spend a ridiculous amount of time in there with a gin and tonic or a cup of coffee and a book.
More often than not that’s when you’ll find me chatting on Twitter, hiding from the children and submerged up to my nose in bubbles – my three main vices are bubble bath, scented
candles, and Emma Bridgewater mugs. There are worse addictions – or that’s what I keep telling everyone . . .

Lots of people have helped me along the way to publication, and I’d like to say a huge thank you.

To my friends Elise and Wendy, who were there when I wrote my first novel every night in my nanny’s kitchen and couldn’t come out to play.

To Polly, because she knew one day I’d do it. To Sarah, for the angels. To Nicola, for hooting. To Diane, for being there. To Melanie, for inspiration and eels. To Holly, for giggling. And
to my girls Elana, Katie, Rhiannon and Victoria: love.

Dan Bramall and Michael Everson did sterling art and editing work on the first edition – thank you. Thanks to Richard Saunders, DZooMed MRCVS, Veterinary Advisor to the British Divers
Marine Life Rescue, who checked all the seal rescue parts for accuracy.

To my fab agent Amanda Preston and my editor Caroline Hogg – I can’t quite believe I’ve fallen on my feet with you two. Here’s to many more girly lunches with a little
bit of work on the side. Thanks also to everyone at Pan Mac who have made me so welcome and made the publishing process such fun.

I’ve been lucky to have friendship and support along the way from some of my favourite writers. Enormous thanks to S. C. Ransom, Julia Williams, Katie Fforde, and Christina Jones, all of
whom took the time to read, give advice and cheer me on. Thank you all, so much. And a huge thank you to everyone on Twitter who helped out with emergency queries (‘Can someone please shove a
photo in their AGA and see what happens?’).

To Ross, and our children, Verity, Archie, Jude, Rory, Rosie and Charlie, with all my love.

To my mum, Anne, and my sister, Zoe – love you.

And thank
you
, too, for reading.

After moving around the world from the Highlands of Scotland to Australia and back, Rachael Lucas has settled by the seaside in the north west of England with her partner, their
blended family of six children, a very hairy dog and two-and-a-half cats. She likes listening to BBC Radio 4 and thinking about writing.

Find out more about Rachael at her website
rachaellucas.com
, say hello on Twitter
@karamina
or
visit her on Facebook at
facebook.com/RachaelLucasWriter

First published in the UK 2013 by Rachael Lucas

This electronic edition published 2014 by Pan Books
an imprint of Pan Macmillan, a division of Macmillan Publishers Limited
Pan Macmillan, 20 New Wharf Road, London N1 9RR
Basingstoke and Oxford
Associated companies throughout the world
www.panmacmillan.com

ISBN 978-1-4472-6704-1

Copyright © Rachael Lucas 2013

The right of Rachael Lucas to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

The author would like to thank Graham Cowley for his winning bid to the Authors for the Philippines appeal (AuthorsForPhilippines.Wordpress.com), which led to his daughter,
Sian Cowley, being named as a character in this book.

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