‘Aw, my lovely.’ Clara patted his arm. ‘That’s harsh, but it’s the right choice. Those boys need their dad.’
He nodded, and his lips quirked up, but his sharp blue eyes were still far away… perhaps in Somerset with his mum and sister.
‘What’s Somerset like?’ Clara asked.
‘Bits of it are very beautiful,’ he said. ‘It has some lovely villages, countryside, and, yeah, it’s a pleasant county. It’s handy for Dorset and Devon too if you like the beaches.’
‘You don’t sound too West Country.’ Clara grinned at him.
‘I suppose I’ve lost it over the years.’
‘I think you should be on TV,’ Lissa said. ‘You’ve got a great voice. You ever thought of joining the drama club? I could get so many parts for you.’
Sam smiled. ‘Yeah, I might. I’m not keen on acting, but I like directing and I can definitely use my knowledge of plays to do vocal coaching.’
‘The next time we do a play or a show, you are definitely getting roped in.’ Lissa gave him an insistent stare.
‘Ok.’ He caught Clara’s eye, and they shared a giggle again. ‘Oh, hang on. My phone’s buzzing.’ He fished in his pocket and pulled it out. Clara glanced at it, not meaning to, but saw the name Kaleb on the screen. ‘Hello.’ Sam put the phone to his ear. ‘Yeah, sure I can, but wait for me. I might be a bit late if I get held up if the traffic is bad… Right, see you then.’ He shoved the phone back into his pocket.
‘How was Jacob’s party on Saturday?’ Clara smiled up at him.
‘Um, good.’ He frowned a little like he was surprised she’d remembered. ‘He certainly had a lot of sugar and was very hyper the rest of the day.’
Lissa let out a sigh. ‘Oh boy, that’s the worst.’
That annoying pang, which always hit when people talked about their kids, rose up inside Clara again, but she kept it buried and didn’t react. She was going to have to get used to it.
‘Skye’s a lovely dog,’ Sam said. ‘Have you met her?’ he asked Lissa.
‘No, not yet.’
‘She’s so cute.’
‘Aw, thank you, my lovely. You’re so kind.’ Clara patted his arm. As her fingertips brushed the soft hairs on his wrist, Lissa’s smoke-show comment flared in her mind, and a little fire started in her gut.
She kind of had a point.
He moved his other hand across and very briefly squeezed hers before dropping it to his side again. Clara let out a fitful breath and had a weird sense of wanting to cry. Not because she was sad, but whenever she was beside Sam, she felt like no matter how low she fell, he would be strong enough to pull her back out again. And words couldn’t express how that filled her heart with warmth and wrapped her whole body in a sense of safety and calm that she rarely felt with anyone outside of her family.
Chapter Six
Sam
March
Sam glanced up from his desk during his prep time to see two girls hovering outside his door. It was a relief to see them – the inspectors had arrived, and every knock or movement at the door made him think someone had come to see his class. And while he wasn’t too nervous, there was always added pressure when someone was watching – even if all they’d see right now was him marking work.
‘Mr Addison?’ One of them gave the faintest knock on the frame.
‘Yes?’
‘Could you… come to Mr Emery’s class straight away? He needs… you.’ She swallowed.
‘Sure.’ Sam closed his laptop. Isaac wasn’t one to call for help unless something serious was going on.
Sam followed the girls to the room two doors down. Someone inside was shouting. One of the girls looked back at him with wide eyes.
‘In you go, and I’ll speak to Mr Emery.’
