Me-Before-You-by-Jojo-Moyes

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whole night, and how they had laughed at me and made fun of how drunk andstoned I was, and how I had passed out and later my sister had said it mightactually be a good thing, the not remembering all of what they had done, buthow that half-hour of not knowing had haunted me ever since. I filled it, you see.I filled it with their laughter, their bodies and their words. I filled it with my ownhumiliation. I told him how I saw their faces every time I went anywhere beyondthe town, and how Patrick and Mum and Dad and my small life had been justfine for me, with all their problems and limitations. They had let me feel safe.By the time we finished talking the sky had grown dark, and there werefourteen messages on my mobile phone wondering where we were.‘You don’t need me to tell you it wasn’t your fault,’ he said, quietly.Above us the sky had become endless and infinite.I twisted the handkerchief in my hand. ‘Yes. Well. I still feel … responsible. Idrank too much to show off. I was a terrible flirt. I was –’‘No. They were responsible.’Nobody had ever said those words aloud to me. Even Treena’s look ofsympathy had held some mute accusation. Well, if you will get drunk and sillywith men you don’t know …His fingers squeezed mine. A faint movement, but there it was.‘Louisa. It wasn’t your fault.’I cried then. Not sobbing, this time. The tears left me silently, and told mesomething else was leaving me. Guilt. Fear. A few other things I hadn’t yetfound words for. I leant my head gently on his shoulder and he tilted his headuntil it rested against mine.‘Right. Are you listening to me?’I murmured a yes.‘Then I’ll tell you something good,’ he said, and then he waited, as if hewanted to be sure he had my attention. ‘Some mistakes … just have greaterconsequences than others. But you don’t have to let that night be the thing thatdefines you.’I felt his head tilt against mine.‘You, Clark, have the choice not to let that happen.’The sigh that left me then was long, and shuddering. We sat there in silence,letting his words sink in. I could have stayed there all night, above the rest of the
world, the warmth of Will’s hand in mine, feeling the worst of myself slowlybegin to ebb away.‘We’d better get back,’ he said, eventually. ‘Before they call out a searchparty.’I released his hand and stood, a little reluctantly, feeling the cool breezes onmy skin. And then, almost luxuriously, I stretched my arms high above my head.I let my fingers straighten in the evening air, the tension of weeks, months,perhaps years, easing a little, and let out a deep breath.Below me the lights of the town winked, a circle of light amid the blackcountryside below us. I turned back towards him. ‘Will?’‘Yes?’I could barely see him in the dim light, but I knew he was watching me.‘Thank you. Thank you for coming to get me.’He shook his head, and turned his chair back towards the path.
Page 3 and 4:
JOJO MOYESMe Before YouPENGUIN BOOK
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Chapter 22Chapter 23Chapter 24Chapt
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To Charles, with love
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‘Right,’ he says. ‘Got to go.
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‘I didn’t catch that.’The tax
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‘Yup.’ I hung my jacket on the
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My mother’s hand stilled. Her gaz
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‘Bernard.’ Mum shot him a warni
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sure they do a grant for people lik
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He shrugged. ‘You said you liked
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‘I’ll ring them to confirm the
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I was twenty-six years old and I wa
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old days you wouldn’t have dreamt
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‘Frank - the owner - sold the caf
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the French windows. Finally, she tu
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Treena made a face. ‘I think it w
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3‘This is the annexe. It used to
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‘Then let’s go and introduce yo
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mostly my bag, but you do need to k
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‘Will it help?’I blinked, my mo
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hum of the television in the living
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His head had sunk into his shoulder
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‘Oh.’I could feel her watching
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with him, so I’d usually go and s
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I got the feeling that this was in
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Sasha? I’ve been doing a lot of w
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for you and I hope you do want to s
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Diet Cokes. When they, finally, ord
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to stick with them? To help them th
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I blinked. ‘Well … I think some
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5The thing about being catapulted i
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You said that you were hiring me fo
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‘He says you’re trying to poiso
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By the time Hunchback Man died, I w
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divided into ‘transport’, ‘in
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to lose patience. Then, finally, I
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drew closer, I could see the consul
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I took a step backwards, closed the
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I left.I read my magazine, lifting
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Nathan was crosser than I’d ever
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I could hear my father’s exclamat
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‘I suspect you’re going to.’
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lucky. And she said from the day sh
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‘Will … ’ I said, quietly.
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7Spring arrived overnight, as if wi
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It’s not that I was some kind of
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‘What does she have to be insecur
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There were all sorts of things that
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I twisted his straw round so that h
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dehumanized briskness that characte
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‘Please. Georgina.’ Mrs Traynor
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another long silence. And then Geor
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8CamillaI never set out to help kil
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It was that I could suddenly see no
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When Will first told me what he wan
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9I didn’t sleep that night. I lay
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I had been tidying the living room.
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probably ask why I couldn’t be mo
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I slid out from the porch and was d
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‘No. That’s not it.’‘Which
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whatever it is you’re going to th
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I looked at my sister hard. ‘You
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10They looked a bit surprised. Actu
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We all stared at our cups of tea.
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‘You’re probably going to have
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‘Can quadriplegics get drunk?’
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‘Would you jump in my grave so qu
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Four hours later I had the beginnin
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‘You look cheerful,’ Will said,
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I backed Will’s chair down carefu
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We watched the Sisterwood Cup, and
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fears at all that I was going to or
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Will his posh lunch in a restaurant
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‘It’s not going to happen,’ s
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Nathan was staring at the cans of l
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badges we might have had a nice lun
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And I had ideas. Things I wanted to
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‘You’ve never been to a concert
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‘And it’s incredibly tedious,
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Nathan went to pack Will’s bag. I
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Will looked sideways at me, his fac
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‘Are you all right?’ I found my
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13Patrick stood on the edge of the
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‘Yeah? Well it’s still better t
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‘I get nervous when a girl says s
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‘So … ’ Dad opened the fridge
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‘If you do that,’ Will observed
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it’s like a brain synapse - it ca
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‘It does, Mum.’ My eyes had fil
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‘Good to meet you, Patrick,’ Wi
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I stared at it. Will’s card. I ha
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I looked up the same piece at the l
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Perhaps it was something to do with
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Like it was some kind of contest.I
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Will was silent for a moment. I wat
Page 193 and 194: He swallowed. ‘The day we go and
Page 195 and 196: Mrs Traynor had waited until Nathan
Page 197 and 198: She and Leo’s father had been int
Page 199 and 200: television?’‘No,’ said Will.
Page 201 and 202: ‘I’d be finding out what I coul
Page 203 and 204: him twice, bringing him music and n
Page 205 and 206: I scanned down to the next one.Dear
Page 207 and 208: their lift was out of order. Others
Page 209 and 210: ‘Because your boyfriend says no.
Page 211 and 212: ‘Nathan will enjoy it. Oh, come o
Page 213 and 214: and Dad decided it would be best if
Page 215 and 216: my problems. They seemed embarrassi
Page 217 and 218: ‘Was he with someone?’I put the
Page 219 and 220: ‘Oh, well. Here’s my stop.’ D
Page 221 and 222: ‘Are you okay getting your own te
Page 223 and 224: His voice, when it came, was carefu
Page 225 and 226: he could not live without his girlf
Page 227 and 228: In the afternoon, there was a knock
Page 229 and 230: ‘The Regent Street? Nice.’‘Ye
Page 231 and 232: And then, as he left to go running,
Page 233 and 234: She blinked hard, as if trying to t
Page 235 and 236: ‘How dare you suggest I would do
Page 237 and 238: ‘Come on. It’s finally stopped
Page 239 and 240: moving on with their lives. I made
Page 241 and 242: to work out where I was. The tall h
Page 243: minutes, perhaps talking, and then
Page 247 and 248: ‘Um … nothing. Patrick’s away
Page 249 and 250: The morning of the wedding dawned b
Page 251 and 252: ground. Across the road from us in
Page 253 and 254: I just wanted to make it better.‘
Page 255 and 256: tense. They were like two dogs circ
Page 257 and 258: Will looked as if he were about to
Page 259 and 260: Something happened that evening. Th
Page 261 and 262: ‘Come on. Let’s give these fuck
Page 263 and 264: 19NathanThey thought we couldn’t
Page 265 and 266: propped him up, placing his legs ov
Page 267 and 268: I couldn’t really blame the guy.
Page 269 and 270: 20‘You what?’We were on the hil
Page 271 and 272: ‘But Will Traynor seems to take p
Page 273 and 274: Ritchie, had remembered my previous
Page 275 and 276: She glanced through it all in silen
Page 277 and 278: ‘I could apply for a grant. Or ma
Page 279 and 280: ‘All that said, the college idea
Page 281 and 282: sure that I didn’t lose sight of
Page 283 and 284: ‘But I -’‘Nearly seven years,
Page 285 and 286: We never got to the bottom of what
Page 287 and 288: and that wretched Alicia running of
Page 289 and 290: 22I ran into Accident and Emergency
Page 291 and 292: sure his own passport was still val
Page 293 and 294: I took his fingers gently in mine a
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‘How does he look?’‘Bit bette
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We sat holding our mugs. From the c
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‘I can’t.’I stared at my pass
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moved from his power chair until we
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cover of a blanket. The airline sta
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The hotel had, as promised, come up
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worked out that if he gave Will the
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I walked to the window and pulled b
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Two things happened on the last day
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‘It’s a hard place to leave.’
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Will’s mouth closed on his words.
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I … I can’t live with that know
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24There is nothing more disconcerti
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So although I looked childish - alt
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My voice broke into the conversatio
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25KatrinaLouisa didn’t come out o
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Her voice was small, like Thomas’
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‘Just leave me alone, Treen. Okay
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‘Oh, that.’ She looked distract
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goodness’ sake. You’d think a m
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her umbrella and smiled, reaching r
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Twenty-six. Twenty-six of the bugge
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26In other circumstances I suppose
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knowing what … what he’s …
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I didn’t look back. I ran all the
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things being better for him, then I
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‘I know.’And there it was. He k
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‘You look absolutely beautiful.
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Mr Traynor some questions may be as
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EpilogueI was just following instru
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You’re going to feel uncomfortabl
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Q&A with Jojo1. Tell us a little ab
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highest or lowest, or be the most t
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purpose. I sat upright in bed, drag
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shaven, impassive. Even in the dark
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terrify two women and brutalize an
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as she crouched to hug her daughter
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PENGUIN BOOKSPublished by the Pengu
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