Me-Before-You-by-Jojo-Moyes

Dad considered this. ‘Then it’s really closer to half an hour. She got a good lot
out of the window in the first fifteen minutes, though.’
‘Your dad says if she really does kick him out this time he’s going to put in a
bid for Richard’s Black and Decker.’
The crowd had grown, and Dympna Grisham showed no sign of letting up. If
anything, she seemed encouraged by the increasing size of her audience.
‘You can take her your filthy books,’ she yelled, hurling a shower of
magazines out of the window.
These prompted a small cheer among the crowd.
‘See if she likes you sitting in the loo with those for half of Sunday afternoon,
eh?’ She disappeared inside, and then reappeared at the window, hauling the
contents of a laundry basket down on to what remained of the lawn. ‘And your
filthy undercrackers. See if she thinks you’re such a – what was it? – hot stud
when she’s washing those for you every day!’
Richard was vainly scooping up armfuls of his stuff as it landed on the grass.
He was yelling something up at the window, but against the general noise and
catcalls it was hard to make it out. As if briefly admitting defeat, he pushed his
way through the crowd, unlocked his car, hauled an armful of his belongings on
to the rear seat, and shoved the car door shut. Oddly, whereas his CD collection
and video games had been quite popular, no one made a move on his dirty
laundry.
Crash. There was a brief hush as his stereo met the path.
He looked up in disbelief. ‘You crazy bitch!’
‘You’re shagging that disease-ridden cross-eyed troll from the garage, and I’m
the crazy bitch?’
My mother turned to my father. ‘Would you like a cup of tea, Bernard? I think
it’s turning a little chilly.’
My dad didn’t take his eyes off next door. ‘That would be great, love. Thank
you.’
It was as my mother went indoors that I noticed the car. It was so unexpected
that at first I didn’t recognize it – Mrs Traynor’s Mercedes, navy blue, low-slung
and discreet. She pulled up, peering out at the scene on the pavement, and
hesitated a moment before she climbed out. She stood, staring at the various
houses, perhaps checking the numbers. And then she saw me.