But here she was, and still she hadn’t told Martha and Willow about Ellis. The trouble was, she didn’t feel it was right to tell them in front of Tom and Rick. She wanted their reaction to be contained to just the three of them. But how to engineer that? Perhaps she could hint that the girls should help her clear the table and then corner them in the kitchen. Except Tom would never stand for that; he would always say that Naomi had done quite enough in cooking the meal, that she should leave the clearing up to them.
Roused from her thoughts, and glancing across the table and through the centrepiece of a large candelabra she had decorated with ivy, she suddenly became aware of a big smile on Rick’s face and his hand clasped firmly around Willow’s. ‘I’ve asked Willow to move in with me,’ he said, ‘and I’m delighted to say she’s said yes.’
Naomi wasn’t at all sure how to respond. What was the etiquette in this situation? The way Rick had said what he had, it seemed as though they were meant to offer their congratulations.
‘But, Willow, what about Simon and Lucy’s house?’ asked Martha before Naomi could say anything.‘You can’t just abandon it. Or their cats.’
‘Would you believe it, they’ve had a change of plan and are coming home earlier than originally thought.’
‘The timing really couldn’t be more perfect,’ said Rick, still smiling.
There was a slight lull in the conversation and Naomi wondered if she should take advantage of it when Martha said, ‘Talking of the time being right, I have something to—’
Willow gasped. ‘You’re pregnant!’
Next to her, Naomi heard Tom’s sharp intake of breath and on the other side of her Martha looked across the table at her sister. ‘No,’ she said coolly, ‘I’m not pregnant. And I don’t know why you would rush to assume I was.’
Willow’s expression dropped. ‘Oh, I’m sorry. I thought you and Tom … I just thought that maybe … oh, honestly, me and my big mouth. Just ignore me.’
‘I would if you’d keep quiet,’ muttered Martha.
Naomi knew that her eldest daughter wanted to start a family and for a moment she too, just like Willow, had leapt to the same thought. It was not a topic of conversation that Martha openly discussed, other than to say that she and Tom had decided they were now in a position to have a child. Naomi had certainly never pushed the subject, preferring instead to accept that when there was something for Martha to share, she would.
To fill in for the sudden drop in mood around the table, Naomi offered seconds before it all went cold, and while Tom and Rick both came to the rescue and took her up on the offer of more lamb and potatoes, she said, ‘So, Martha, what was it you were going to say?’
Her face set, Martha said, ‘Willow and I have talked about this, as did you and I, Mum, a while back, and we really think now is a good time for you to consider moving from here so you can be nearer us. You know how much we worried about you after Dad died and then when we all went into lockdown.’
‘I’ve told you before that there’s no need to worry about me,’ Naomi said, her expression as neutral as her voice. ‘Although that’s not to say I don’t appreciate your concern,’ she added.
In all probability it would have been Martha who had instigated things and Willow would have been jockeyed along, but Naomi couldn’t help but feel disagreeably cross at her daughters for colluding behind her back the way they had.
‘Wouldn’t you like a smaller and more manageable house, though?’ said Martha
‘No. And when the time comes, when there are grandchildren, trust me, the more space there is, the better.’
‘But wouldn’t you like to live nearer your grandchildren,’ Martha persisted, ‘when that day comes?’
No two ways about it, the girl was her father’s daughter; once she was set on a course, there was no dissuading her. Colin had been just the same. Many a time both he and Martha had, and for quite different reasons, buzzed about the house like angry bluebottles relentlessly hurling themselves against the window looking for a way out.
‘But it’s my home,’ asserted Naomi. ‘It’s your home too.’
‘Of course it is. But only earlier in the kitchen you said that you felt the need to shake things up. What better way to do that than move somewhere new that would give you new horizons to explore with lots of new possibilities? And with the added advantage of being nearer to Willow and me.’
Naomi didn’t trust herself to speak, so she filled her water glass and took a sip from it.
‘I don’t think it’s anything you should rush into, Mum,’ said Willow. Avoiding her sister’s eye, her tone was placating.
‘Maybe it’s something to think about in a few years’ time,’ said Tom, ever the diplomat. ‘Just something to mull over. There’s no rush.’ He turned to Martha. ‘Is there?’
‘I know I’m a relative newcomer to the family,’ joined in Rick, ‘so maybe I shouldn’t say anything, but this is an exceptionally beautiful house and the location is stunning.’ He twisted round in his seat and indicated the garden and, beyond it, the view of the sea glittering in the bright sunshine. ‘And if it were mine, I would only give this up if I really had to.’
Naomi smiled gratefully at Rick. ‘Thank you,’ she said. ‘I couldn’t have put it better myself.’
To Naomi’s left, Martha slowly sat up straighter. ‘Well, Rick,’ she said quietly, ‘as you rightly say, you’re a newcomer to the family, technically an outsider, so on this subject maybe you should keep your opinions to yourself.’
‘Martha,’ warned Tom. ‘That’s uncalled for.’
‘Yes,’ agreed Willow, ‘there’s no need to be rude to Rick. He’s only trying to offer another viewpoint.’
