‘And you’re worried that will take him away from you?’
‘A little bit. But it’s more about his ex-wife. I overheard a conversation between them yesterday. She wants him back.’
‘And does he want to be with her too?’
Anna shook her head. ‘I don’t know. I was too scared to hear his answer, so I legged it before he had a chance to reply.’
Eva snorted. ‘You idiot!’
‘What?’
‘What if he said no? You’re probably worrying about nothing.’
‘Am I? I also overheard that they’d spent time together recently, as a family, something he hasn’t mentioned to me. And he didn’t tell me Lucinda had come to see him either — he told me he’d been working. He lied to me.’
‘What if he hasn’t said anything to you because there’s nothing to tell? You could be getting your knickers in a twist over nothing.’
‘I know, but I also know how desperate he is to spend time with Ben. It would be the perfect solution.’
‘Not if he doesn’t love her.’
‘But she’s the mother of his child.’
‘Maybe so, but there’s a reason they split up. And if he says he loves you, why would he want to lose that? He can still be with you and spend time with Ben. He doesn’t have to be with his wife.’
‘But what if he wants to be?’
Eva frowned. ‘That’s a lot of “buts”. I heard a lot about Lucinda Redfern back in the day and, if what I heard is true, there’s no contest. You’re far nicer than she ever could be.’
Anna felt her face flush. ‘Thanks, but she’s beautiful.’
‘And so are you. But what’s even more important is that you’re beautiful on the inside too.’
Anna stared at her friend open-mouthed, unsure how to take her compliments, but Eva rushed on. ‘My advice to you is to come right out and ask him. Whatever he says can’t be worse than what you’re already imagining.’
‘Maybe,’ Anna replied hesitantly. She’d decided yesterday that she was going to confront Daniel about it. But now the time was nearly here, she wasn’t sure she could do it. What if he told her something she didn’t want to hear? She wasn’t sure she could bear losing him.
‘Ah, here comes my torturer.’ Eva said as her physiotherapist arrived with a wheelchair. ‘Come on, you. We’ve got work to do.’
* * *
Anna opened the front door to Daniel’s house, her hands trembling as she took the key out of the lock. As she’d photographed her friend during her arduous physiotherapy session, she marvelled at how resilient she was. Eva never complained, no matter how many times the physio asked her to repeat the movements. Whenever she failed, she just dusted herself off and tried again. If Eva could be that brave in the face of adversity, then Anna could force herself to ask the questions about her relationship that she needed to. But that didn’t make it any less scary.
‘Anna, is that you?’ Daniel called from the top of the stairs.
‘Yes, I’m back.’ She made her way up to the studio.
‘How’s Eva?’ he asked when she walked through the door.
‘Good. She’s working hard on her physio and doing really well.’
‘That’s great.’
‘Has Lucinda been to pick up Ben?’
‘Yes, they’ll be halfway home by now.’
Home. Did he think of Cheshire as home now?
