Gary and Ashley were so happy together that they decided to move out of our apartment and move into their own place. They managed to rent a lovely little bungalow in the grounds of an apartment block with really nice gardens and a swimming pool outside their front door. They spent all they earned on new furniture and decorating the bungalow just how they liked it, it was only a 5 minute walk from ours and right in the middle of all our friends.

They were so proud of their bungalow and it was great for Lee and I to see the happiness in their faces when they invited us around for a meal, or when Ashley’s mum Julie and sister Melissa came to stay with them on holiday. On one occasion when Julie was staying with them Gary asked Julie if she would allow him to ask Ashley to get engaged, Julie was delighted and said yes, so Gary went and bought an engagement ring and hid it in ours. The following weekend Gary, Ashley, Julie, Lee and myself all went to our favourite Indian restaurant overlooking the sea on Benalmadena Costa. We had a couple of drinks and everyone bar Ashley knew what was coming, when Gary being so romantic and traditional, got up from his seat went to face Ashley went down on one knee and asked her to marry him. She burst into tears of joy and said yes we were all chuffed to bits then a waiter came over and picked Gary up the waiter didn’t know what was going on he thought Gary had fell and couldn’t get up we were all hysterical, just one of many good times.

In 2005 Gary and Ashley got some great news her pregnancy test proved to be positive, it was tremendous news for them, everyone in Spain and back in the U.K were thrilled to bits for them. After several visits to the ante natal doctor in Spain, Ashley and Gary decided to return to the U.K. It was heartbreaking for Lee and I, but it was more important for Ashley to feel happy in her pregnancy and not to feel uneasy with some of the doctors who didn’t speak English, and some who take exception from the British people who don’t speak fluent Spanish. Lee and I kept in touch with Ashley and Gary, everyone was getting more and more exited as the birth got nearer with all the hospital tests and examinations having good results.

On the 3rd of October Ashley gave birth to Kieran a healthy bouncing baby boy, It was 7am and I was getting ready for work when Gary phoned me and his mum to say he was a dad and he was at the birth. He was sobbing down the phone with happiness he was so overjoyed by it and above all mother and baby were both doing very well. My birthday (4th October) was the next day, so this was my present come early. Lee got a flight the following day as she couldn’t wait to see Kieran. She came back to Spain on the 11th of October, and we planned for a lovely Christmas back in the U.K.

A few days later we got awful news to say that Lee’s dad had died suddenly, we booked flights to go home for the funeral which was on the 20th, we were flying from Malaga on the 19th but as we came out of our apartment Lee slipped on the steps breaking her leg in two places. She was taken to hospital where she had an operation that afternoon to put two metal plates in her leg, she couldn’t fly home and missed her fathers funeral, I flew back home and saw Kieran for the first time. All the family were devastated over Frank’s death, it didn’t help with Lee not being there. The next day Gary and I carried his granddad’s coffin at the cremation, just as he had done a few years earlier at his grandmother’s cremation.

A few days later I returned to Spain to get Lee out of hospital, she was in a bad way as one of the breaks had complications. A few weeks later they gave her permission to fly so we booked some flights, hired a wheel chair and returned home. We met up with all the family and saw the baby together for the first time it was amazing with both of us kissing and cuddling him. As Lee had missed her father’s funeral it was really important to get together with her brothers and family. The lads had arranged for Frank’s ashes to be collected from the office at the crematorium, and after digging a small hole, Lee laid her fathers ashes next to her mothers. The next day we returned to Spain with our emotions completely upside down and inside out.

It was a low time for Lee and I, we felt sort of lonely, we had friends out there but from a family point Lee had now lost her mum and dad (Evelyn & Frank). I loved them both and got on great with them, thankfully in the same way as Lee still gets on to this day with my mum and dad. We’d had many friends and family over the years come and stay with us for holidays, Lee and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary out there and our friends from home couldn’t believe the amount of people who turned up for the party. We loved having parties and bbq’s on the terrace, but it all seemed miles away now Ricky had moved to Brighton and Gary, Ashley and Kieran were settled in their flat. We were really happy for everyone but it’s strange to say that I felt the writing was on the wall for us to call it a day on our time in Spain. I had said this to Lee’s three brothers Stephen, Frank and Kevin at her father’s funeral. I had also told to my best mate Jim Flannery who knew how happy we had been in Spain. Jim and his wife Shelagh are great friends of ours and had stayed with us several times as we have with them .

Lee and I booked the flights to go back to the U.K for Christmas and it was great to see everyone as it was our first Christmas back since we had left. The icing on the cake was seeing Kieran on his first Christmas, Gary and Ashley were so happy. It was a fantastic time, going out seeing friends and family passed so quickly over Christmas and New Year, and it wasn’t long before our holiday was almost over and we were on our way back to Spain. How I wish we had just gone back after saying goodbye to everyone, and I had kept my mouth shut.

Gary and I went for a drink together a couple of days before we were flying back, and had been telling me how difficult it was for him looking after Ashley and Kieran with little and at times no work at all. Most of the jobs said driving was essential, but Gary couldn’t drive, I had tried to teach him how to drive many times over the years but no chance, Gary just wasn’t interested in driving. Gary knew from our conversations that there was plenty of work where we were and so the conversation led to Gary asking Ashley if she would mind if he came back to Spain with us to work for a short time.

This would go some way in helping them to save money for their forthcoming wedding. Ashley agreed and Gary came back with us. Every night after work and a couple of times a day at weekends Gary was on the phone to Ashley checking that she was alright and that Kieran was doing fine. Gary showed his friends in Spain photos of Kieran and they were all delighted when Gary said he was going to get Ashley to bring Kieran out to Spain in a couple of months.

A couple of months later Ashley did come out to Spain.

But without Kieran, and not for a holiday

 She got to Spain just in time for Gary to die in her arms.

I KNEW WE SHOULD NOT HAVE GONE BACK TO SPAIN TO LIVE

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