‘Well, obviously Sorrel is,’ Mum soothed. ‘But Robyn and Fabian are here in Yorkshire. Just at the other end of the village and, as far as I can see, here for the duration now that The White House is a reality. I mean, if not for this new restaurant – and especially with St Mede’s closing down as it inevitably will – then I’m sure the pair of them would have been hotfooting it back to London asap.’
‘I know, I know… but Mum… I feel so… so…lonely.’ There, I’d said it, actually come out with the ‘l’ word.
‘Darling, I’m going to be twenty minutes up the road. You know you’re welcome there any time. And let’s get one thing straight: Kamran might be treating Sorrel to a posh hotel this week, as well as tickets toPhantom– you know she’s always wanted to see it – but there’s no way I’m letting him pay for anything else for her. He gave the London outing and theatre tickets to her for her sixteenth birthday in February.’
‘OK, OK!’ Well and truly told off, I put up both hands and moved away from Mum, reaching into the pantry for an extra-large bag of carrots.
‘Here, let me,’ Mum ordered. ‘I might not be the best cook, but I can aways peel a few carrots.’ She paused. ‘I’ll go and fetch that extra mint you want in a minute as well.’
‘It can’t be cheap kitting Sorrel out with all she needs.’
‘It most certainly isn’t.’ Mum paused once more. ‘Your father came up trumps.’
‘Jayden did?’ Surprised, I turned to face her.
‘I don’t know why you’re so surprised, Jess,’ Mum admonished. ‘Jayden might have spent most of your growing-up years not here, but who do you think paid all the bills? We may not have had a great deal,’ Mum went on, ‘but you didn’t need free school meals, you always had new shoes and uniforms and?—’
‘OK.’ I attempted to cut Mum off mid-sentence once more.
‘—and you were loved. You were safe and secure and loved, Jess. That’s the important thing, I reckon. Far more important than material things.’
‘Well,’ I said, trying to smile, ‘it would have been nice to have had a father around.’
‘I know.’ Mum began to systematically peel one carrot after the other. ‘How many do you want doing?’
‘There’s seven of us,’ I replied. ‘But, you know, that’s why I’ve tried so hard to hang on to Dean, slippery as he is,’ I went on. ‘For Lola’s sake.’
‘I reckon Lola’s turning out pretty well.’ Mum smiled. ‘As did you.’
‘If I’d felt a little more grounded growing up, then maybe I wouldn’t have needed or wanted the security I felt Dean would give me. I’d have gone off to university and had the confidence to branch out on my own, becoming a professor in food sciences and…’
‘Steady on!’ Mum laughed. ‘Listen, Jess, you’ve got the opportunity to move on up now with The White House. You can do what you want; meet new people, be independent.’
‘The thought terrifies me.’
‘I know it does. So, why not start by using those gym passes George gave you?’
‘The gym? What the hell’s thegymgot to do with anything? And how d’you know about it?’ I looked at Mum. ‘Who’s been talking about me?’
‘No one’s been talking about you,’ she soothed. ‘Stop being so damned prickly, Jess.’
‘Well, they obviously have.’
‘So, I’ll come with you. You know how anxious I was at starting to swim again. But honestly, I love it.’
‘You’ve not got a big behind.’
‘Neither have you, Jess. So, how about it?’
‘Might do.’
‘And then the hockey,’ Mum continued, seeing a chink in my armour. ‘You love hockey. George said?—’
‘Oh, bugger George!’ I almost exploded. ‘Standing there in his pinstriped suit watching us all. Creepy!’
‘Don’t be so daft, Jess. He just loves all sport. He must have been at some meeting the other day or he’d have had his kit on. Kamran says he just can’t get over not playing tennis at international level any more…’ Mum broke off, obviously hoping to impress me with this little snippet. It didn’t.
‘Yes, I heard he was a Wimbledon wannabe.’
