The One We Fell in Love With by Paige Toon

kids. Rose and Phoebe hadn’t used it for years, but it had sort of become my
sanctuary, my favourite place to go to write.
    It was still light, only just, when Angus and Kieran came down to the back of his garden with a couple of beers. Phoebe and Rose had gone to the movies with a few friends, but I hadn’t
wanted to see the romcom they’d chosen, so I’d stayed at home.
    I listened to Angus and Kieran’s conversation as it carried across the fence to my ears, and it wasn’t long before they started talking about us.
    ‘I can’t believe you live next door to triplets,’ Kieran said. ‘Jeez, mate, no wonder you’re not missing Brighton.’
    ‘They’re pretty beautiful, aren’t they?’ Angus replied, his tone laced with dry amusement.
    ‘Hot as hell.’
    ‘Oi. That’s my girlfriend you’re talking about,’ Angus said.
    ‘I’m referring to the other two.’
    They both laughed.
    ‘Seriously, though, are Phoebe’s sisters single?’ Kieran asked.
    ‘Rose and Eliza? I’m pretty sure they’re both seeing people.’
    We weren’t.
    ‘What are they like?’ Kieran asked. ‘You’re really into Phoebe, right?’
    ‘Yeah, she’s amazing,’ Angus replied warmly. ‘I reckon she could do anything and she’d be good at it. Rose doesn’t have Phoebe’s sense of adventure, but
she’s really sweet and she goes out of her way for people. And Eliza...’ His voice trailed off and I felt like I could hear my heart beating in my throat. ‘Liza is very cool, very
smart, and she’s fiercely protective, especially of Phoebe. But underneath it all, I think that she’s the one who needs protecting, although she’d bite your head off if you ever
suggested it.’
    ‘You sound like you’re in love with all three of them,’ Kieran mused. ‘Ever thought about, you know, getting it on with all—’
    ‘Piss off!’ Angus interrupted.
    They laughed, but that was the end of the interesting conversation.
    I stayed where I was, not wanting them to know I’d overheard, and eventually they got sick of the midges and went back into the house.
    But my head continued to reel. No one had ever had us –
me
– so well pegged. It seemed like everything Angus said or did made me fall for him a little bit more. I knew I was
in trouble, and the feeling was unbearable.
    Sometimes I would catch him looking at me and I’d sense a slight confusion radiating from him. Perhaps he also wondered what would have happened if he and I had got to know each other
before he’d jumped headfirst into a relationship with Phoebe. Did he ever regret doing that?
    I know he’s loved her from the beginning. Even when he was with me, he loved her. But I suspect there’s a small part of Angus that has always loved me, too.
    With all of these thoughts still spinning around my head, I come to a stop on the pavement outside another estate agent’s. Gathering myself together, I push through the
door. If Angus and Phoebe are moving to Manchester, I really have no choice but to leave.

Chapter 10
    Phoebe
    And so here we are again.
    I can’t see Remy’s blue eyes behind his dark glasses, but I watch his attractive, suntanned face as he checks over my equipment. He looks quite a lot older than he did nine years ago
– more weather-beaten, somehow, but in a good way. He’s in his early thirties, now.
    ‘All good?’ I ask in French.
    ‘Oui,’ he replies with a smile.
    Josie was still asleep when I left her this morning, and it’s probably just as well because I know she’d try to talk me out of this. I wrote her a note, reassuring her that I
haven’t lost my head. Honestly, I’ve never felt clearer about what I need to do.
    I fell hard for Remy when I was younger. Our relationship was a rollercoaster ride of epic proportions, but there were times when I hated feeling out of control. So today I’m testing
myself. I need to know that I’m in control now, and then I can walk down the aisle and commit to a life in Manchester with