“Oh, don’t be ridiculous, Rosie.” Her grandmother settled herself at the table. “This is family.”
“All the more reason to have boundaries,” Rosie muttered, shooting Hayley a look of apology.
Her grandmother hadn’t finished. “I could ask you the same question, Rosie.”
“You could, but you’re not going to,” Jenny said quickly, looking more stressed than ever. “How were the roads when you drove over here? Were they clear?”
“The roads were fine, although what that has to do with being pregnant I have no idea.” Phyllis unfolded a napkin. “Don’t give me that look, Jenny. All I’m saying is that I approve of Jamie and Hayley just going ahead and getting married, whatever the reason. There’s too much fuss these days. And the money people spend! I always wanted to elope, but Brian wouldn’t hear of it.”
“Is that true, Granny? Tell us more.” Rosie sat down next to her grandmother, her focused expression suggesting she wastaking personal responsibility for the conversation topics for the remainder of the season.
“I didn’t want all that fuss, and my parents couldn’t afford it. If we’d lived in Regency times, I would have gone straight to Gretna Green, particularly as your grandfather wanted us to get married before having sex. He was very old-fashioned. Fortunately I put an end to that thinking and successfully seduced him.”
“Granny!” Rosie screwed up her face in appalled horror at the image. “Too much information.”
“Stop being prudish. I was young once too, you know.” She gestured to Hayley to sit next to her and Hayley dutifully sat, braced for whatever was coming next.
She’d asked Jamie on more than one occasion if he thought his family would assume she was pregnant. He’d replied that if they did, they would be far too polite to ask. Clearly he hadn’t factored in his grandmother.
“I thought you did live in Regency times.” Rosie was still trying to steer the focus of the conversation away from her and Hayley. “Just kidding. You’re a spring chicken, Granny. And if you had lived in Regency times you would have looked gorgeous in the dresses.”
“Except that I would have been cleaning the kitchens, not wafting around the manor house. And anyway, I’m not sure I would have looked good in Empire Line. Do you have photos, Hayley? An album? I’d love to look at it.”
“I have lots on my phone but it’s upstairs charging,” Hayley said. “I’d love to show you later.”
“I look forward to it. I should have known the photos would be on your phone. These days everything is up in the sky, isn’t it.”
Rosie grinned. “It’s the cloud, Granny.”
“Same thing. Basically it’s not real. Not the same as having a lovely old-fashioned album that you can flick through. Now tell me, Rosie, how wasThe Nutcracker?” She reached into herbag and pulled out her glasses and a cutting from a newspaper. “I saw this review and cut it out for you. I wish I could have seen it.” She turned to Hayley. “I used to take Rosie to the ballet when she was little. It was something we did, just the two of us. Being a twin wasn’t always easy, and those girls were so different from each other. I like to think I contributed to Rosie’s career choice.”
Hayley imagined Rosie and her grandmother seated side by side in the darkness, enchanted by the shimmer and twirl of dancers onstage.
“I’ve never been to the ballet, but I’ve seen it on TV and I once illustrated a book about a dancer.”
“I’d love to see those illustrations. You must show us later. I’ve seen some of your drawings on your website. Wonderful. Rosie loved ballet as a child,” Phyllis told her. “She was a very talented dancer but she also loved making things and in the end that passion won.”
The tension around the table eased as the conversation shifted onto safer ground.
“I did love dancing, but I was a bit clumsy. Remember that performance when I tripped over that boy who was a tree trunk?” Rosie reached down to stroke Percy, who had settled himself by her chair, hopeful of being given a treat.
“I seem to remember he couldn’t keep still, which was why you tripped. Now tell me aboutThe Nutcracker. Was it as good as that performance we saw together in Edinburgh when you were sixteen?”
This is what a family is, Hayley thought,a group of individuals knitted together by shared moments and memories.How did you become part of that? It wasn’t about doing or saying the right thing. It was so much more than that.
“No, but that might have been because that time we were in the audience,” Rosie said. “This time I was backstage and in full-blown panic mode. It was the first time I’ve made acostume for the Sugar Plum Fairy. I have photos to show you. The tulle was a bit of a nightmare to work with and I never want to see another sequin in my life, but it looked fabulous under the lights. I wish I could have sneaked you in to see the performance.”
“London is too far away. Why can’t you work closer to home?”
“Because London is my home.” Rosie reached out and stole another couple of berries.
Jenny pulled the bowl away from her. “Stop snacking on berries! Or at least serve yourself a proper portion in the bowl.”
“I like grazing.”
“You’re not a horse, and we’re trying to make a pretence of being civilized here. What is Hayley going to think of us? Martin, how are those pancakes coming?” Jenny bustled around, checking for missing items on the table and encouraging everyone to sit down. “Isn’t this a treat? All together, apart from Becky, and she thinks they should be with us just after lunch. Oh there you are, Dad!” She crossed the kitchen and hugged the man who had just walked into the room.
Phyllis put her hand on Hayley’s arm. “Brian, this is Hayley.”
