‘Thanks. Um… Mum’s in there,’ she said, gesturing to the sitting room. ‘You’re very early. Dinner won’t be ready until?—’
‘Oh, we’re not staying,’ Michelle explained. ‘We’re off to the garden centre for the afternoon, but we thought we’d drop the kids off here so they can spend some time with their granny.’
‘They hate being dragged around the garden centre with us,’ Neil said. ‘It’s so boring for them.’
‘Mum’s still a bit tired,’ Claire protested, ‘and she’s supposed to be taking it easy. And I’ll be busy making dinner.’
Michelle gave a brittle laugh. ‘Welcome to my world,’ she said. ‘When you’re a mum, you have to get used to doing twenty different things at once. And I’m sure Espie would like to spend some time with them,’ she added reprovingly. ‘She hasn’t seen them in ages.’
And whose fault is that? Claire wanted to shout. But she gritted her teeth and said nothing.
‘We’ll just pop in and say hello,’ Michelle said, ‘and then we’ll be off.’
Claire followed them into the sitting room. Her mother was sitting in an armchair with one leg elevated, and Holly and Cian were quizzing her about her false hip while trying to climb on top of her.
‘Can we see it?’
‘No, it’s on the inside.’
‘Does it make you go really fast?’
Espie laughed. ‘No, it makes me go slower at the moment.’
‘That’s no use!’
‘You’re very early,’ Espie said to Neil and Michelle, as they came in. ‘Have you come to help Claire? That’s very nice of you.’
Claire hid a smirk. Her mother knew damn well that it would never have occurred to either of them to help out.
‘Oh, er… no. We’re off to the garden centre,’ Michelle said.
‘We’ll be back in time for dinner,’ Neil added helpfully.
‘Well, that’s the main thing,’ Espie said. ‘As long as you’re here to help eat it, it makes it all worthwhile.’
Michelle looked confused, as she often did around Espie. She was always off balance with Espie’s acerbic humor, and never seemed quite sure whether she should take offence or not. ‘We thought we’d drop the kids in with you for the afternoon, we knew you’d love to see them,’ she said. ‘They were dying to see you.’
‘And I was dying to see them too,’ Espie said, smiling at her grandchildren.
‘Mum,’ Claire interrupted, ‘I was thinking of asking a – a friend over for dinner as well. Is that okay?’
‘Oh.’ Michelle turned to her, frowning. ‘I thought it would be nice just to have the family today.’
‘Of course, love,’ her mother said breezily. ‘Have anyone you want – you don’t have to ask.’
‘You don’t want to overdo things, Espie,’ Michelle said. ‘You’re only just out of the hospital.’
‘Claire’s the one doing all the work,’ Espie said, fixing Michelle with a beady eye, ‘so if anyone’s going to be overdoing things, it’ll be her. I’ll be sitting here like LadyMuck, getting waited on hand and foot, like the rest of you.’
‘But it can be very tiring, having a big crowd around you – family’s different, isn’t it?’ Michelle said. ‘You don’t have to make an effort.’
‘You know I love having a big crowd in the house,’ Espie said, adding predictably, ‘the more, the merrier.’
Michelle gave Claire a sour look, clearly intended to make her feel she was being very selfish and thoughtless inviting a friend to join them for the dinner she had spent all day preparing. ‘Well, I’ll leave you to it,’ Michelle said.
‘Yes, I’ve no doubt you will,’ Espie said cheerily.
Michelle’s smile wavered uncertainly. ‘Be good for Nana,’ she said to the children.
