‘Yes. And that’s my final word on the subject.’
They were all making a move towards the door, when Alastair said, ‘Irina and Nikolai wanted you to know they were asking after you; they’re both very upset by what happened.’
‘I bet they are,’ muttered Simon darkly, throwing Alastair a murderous look.
‘Dad,’ warned Rachel. ‘I thought you’d promised to play nicely.’
‘Just a slip of the tongue, that was all. Take no notice of me.’ He went back and kissed her on the cheek. ‘Now go to sleep and your mother and I will check on you later.’
He loves her so much, thought Danny, was it any wonder he’d wanted to lash out at the nearest person he could to blame? And wouldn’t Danny do the same if it were Jenna?
His arm around his daughter’s shoulders, he said, ‘So tell me about this Blake character, then?’
‘Dad, not you as well!’
He smiled. ‘At least we’d know you were in good hands.’
‘Stop it.’
‘Yes,’ agreed Frankie, ‘stop meddling, Daniel.’
‘Uh-oh, I know I’m in trouble when she calls me Daniel.’
‘And rightly so. You know jolly well it’s my job to meddle in such matters, not yours.’
Jenna shook her head. ‘Honestly, you two are as bad as one another.’
‘Always happy to take a compliment,’ smiled Danny. ‘Happy to eat something too. Breakfast seems a long time ago. Alastair, what’s the plan for lunch?’
He gave Danny a bewildered look. ‘I’m afraid I haven’t thought that far ahead.’
‘How about Simon and I go the shops and get what we need for a barbecue, something easy, burgers and sausages, and maybe some steaks?’
‘Yes, and your poor old heart will just love that, won’t it?’ said Frankie.
He groaned. ‘Please don’t suggest a salad. I need more than that. Simon, come on, help me out here. Back me up.’
They were at the top of the stairs and Danny was working hard to inject some levity into the proceedings. Trouble was, everyone else knew exactly what he was doing and the false note of his cheerful banter was clanging with all the subtlety of a fire alarm. Help came from an unexpected source.
‘Why don’t you three go off together?’ said Sorrel. ‘Frankie, Jenna and I can get things organised here.’
‘Somebody should be with Rachel.’
‘Simon,’ she said tiredly, ‘go and get some fresh air. I’ll put my head round Rachel’s door every fifteen minutes to check on her.’
He grunted and started off down the stairs.
‘Perhaps you could ask Valentina to help you all?’ said Alastair, standing back to let Sorrel go ahead of him. ‘You know, as a way to make her feel more included.’
Sorrel stared at him as if he’d just handed her a plate of dog excrement. ‘As if she hasn’t done enough to help already,’ she said sourly, following Simon and leaving Alastair to look awkwardly at Danny and Frankie.
‘Well then,’ said Danny, suddenly catching his breath, when they were downstairs, ‘shall we drive or take a boat?’ He fought the urge to clutch a hand to his chest, feeling the pressure building inside his ribcage, reminding him of the old pressure cooker he and Frankie were given as a wedding present. For twenty years it worked perfectly, never gave them a moment’s trouble, then one day, without warning, it exploded, sending a lamb casserole flying into the air. This tension wasn’t doing him any good, he thought. Frankie was right; he had to stop caring so much. It wasn’t his job to solve everyone else’s problems.
‘Simon?’ asked Alastair. ‘What would you like to do?’
‘Your house, your rules, you decide. It’s not as if you’d take any notice of what I say anyway.’
Alastair sighed like a man at the end of his tether. Or a man counting to ten to keep his patience in check.
