‘That’s true,’ he said, ‘but you need somewhere to live, and this seems perfect to me.’
She went over to the cot and rested a hand on the rail. ‘Did Mum ask you to do this?’
He smiled, having expected this question from Willow. When he’d first raised the idea with Naomi, she had been overwhelmed that he would do this for Willow, but then she worried that Willow would regard it as an act of charity too far and say no. Everyone had their pride, and maybe this would be the moment when Willow would feel she had to make a stand for going it alone.
‘Your mother knew you’d say that,’ Ellis said, ‘and the honest answer is no, she didn’t. She was as surprised by my suggestion as you are. And please don’t think your mother and I don’t want you with us next door, but wouldn’t you like your own independent space? Your own little nest for you and the baby?’
She shook her head with a wan smile. ‘It’s a nice idea, but I can’t pay you any rent.’
‘Have I asked for any?’
She moved from the cot to the window which looked down onto the small garden and beach. ‘It’s extremely sweet of you, Ellis, but I couldn’t possibly accept. I really couldn’t.’
Ellis wasn’t to be beaten. ‘Yes you can. Just view it as a temporary measure, if only to keep your mother from worrying about you. Having you close by, for however long you’re comfortable with, will give her peace of mind. Otherwise, if you go back to London, she’ll worry constantly about you. And you needn’t worry that there would be any annoying interference from us; we’d help as much or as little as you wanted.’
She turned around from the window and smiled so sadly at him he thought she was going to turn him down flat.
‘Do you truly mean it, Ellis, that you’d let me live here?’
‘I wouldn’t have suggested it if I didn’t mean it.’
‘What about Lucas? Won’t he have something to say on the matter?’
‘Such as?’
‘Perhaps he sees it as his inheritance?’
‘He doesn’t, I can assure you of that. I’ve discussed it with him, and he can’t think of a better use of the cottage.’
‘Did he really say that?’
‘He did, and a lot more besides. He said that if you didn’t accept the offer, he’d never speak to me again. Which means by hook or by crook, I have to employ all my persuasive charm to convince you to say yes.’
‘But what if I’m still here in a year’s time?’
‘Then we’ll have celebrated your baby’s first birthday together and be looking forward to Christmas again. Now why don’t I leave you on your own for a while so you can picture yourself living here?How does that sound?’
Still in the bedroom where Ellis had left her, Willow stood at the window and looked out at the pale sky and milky sea which was as smooth as glass.
In the days after bringing her daughter home from the hospital, the weather had turned stormy, whipping up the sea into a roiling cauldron of crashing waves. Wind and rain had lashed at the windows and only the very hardy had braved the elements to go for a walk along the beach. Now, on this calmest of days, the sweep of curving seashore was garlanded with ribbons of seaweed and pieces of driftwood.
Willow had joked with Martha that maybe the bad weather was a sign that she should call her baby Storm, but they’d both agreed that actually there was nothing about her that was the least bit stormy. She was such a quietly contented baby and wonderfully easy to settle after a feed. When she did cry, it was never for long.
At the hospital the nurses had encouraged Willow to touch her baby as much as possible, and to talk to her. Initially she had been terrified of holding such a fragile little thing, but very quickly any fear she felt was eclipsed by a strong need to hold her precious baby, and to tell her that she was going to be the most loved child in all the world. Sometimes those blue-grey eyes would stare back at her with such an intensity, Willow’s heart would swell so much it felt as though it was pressing against her rib cage. That was the power of love, she thought as she pictured her beautiful little daughter sleeping next door in Willow’s old bedroom,her face a sublime picture of angelic serenity.
Her mind lingered over the mental image of her sleeping baby and a thought came to her.
Serenity, she repeated inside her head.
She said it again, this time out loud.
Serenity.
Serenity Miller.
A happy smile crept over Willow’s face. Finally, and with only a few days to go before she had to register her daughter’s birth, she had come up with a name for her, a name that was perfect in every way. It made her want to rush next door and run upstairs to wake her daughter and give her the good news.
But putting her happy excitement on hold, she had something important to do.
