‘It’s a memorable name, isn’t it? So, d’you think he’d be okay with lending it to us?’
‘Oh, yeah. Any time, he’s always saying, as long as he’s not away. I have no idea what it’s like, but?—’
‘But it goes, doesn’t it?’
‘Yes.’ He chuckles. ‘It definitely goes.’
‘And could you take time off from the shop?’
‘I’ve been manning it a lot lately,’ he replies. ‘Fletch wouldn’t mind covering a few days. But what about you? Are you having to work notice?’
‘Doesn’t look like it.’ She pauses. ‘I called him this afternoon. Rupert, I mean. Apologised for flouncing out. I thought we could figure things out, but he wasn’t having any of it.’
‘God, I’m so sorry,’ Shane murmurs.
‘Thanks. I’m okay, honestly. I’ll find something else, even just to tide me over. Anyway, I’m paid till the end of the month, and I’ve done loads of extra hours, so…’ She trails off.
Shane leans against the worktop, allowing all of this information to settle and wishing there was a chilled beer in the fridge. So it’s actually happening. After all these years – and all that awful stuff he’s tried to forget – they’re going to be thrown back together again. Not just for an afternoon and an evening, like at the Kapoors’ and in that hotel bar, but for five whole days.
What will they do all that time? What’ll it be like?
He’s trepidatious, of course. He doesn’t know Josie at all – at least, not as a grown-up woman. Yet the prospect is also sort of… thrilling.
‘Okay,’ he says, trying to keep his tone light, ‘so if we’re going to do this, when would be a good time? I mean, when are you free?’
He senses her smiling and now Shane, alone in his kitchen, is smiling too. ‘Right now,’ Josie replies, ‘I guess I’m free pretty much all of the time.’
12
TEN DAYS LATER
Josie
Incredibly, it’s been agreed that I can visit Cora today. Perhaps she felt sorry for me over the Rupert business.
I have a nervy feeling in the pit of my stomach (ridiculous! I’m only visiting my daughter!) and a present for Poppy stashed in my bag. Just a few picture books I picked up, wrapped in cheerful bunny-patterned paper and tied with a bow. I know Zack said they were ‘a bit overloaded’ with books, but what else can I bring her? The cuddly lion and collection of plush Winnie the Pooh characters were greeted by Cora with a brief, ‘Ah, nice!’ and have never been seen since.
Theirs is a lively and interesting area – a mix of ramshackle grocers and takeaways with smart new coffee shops always popping up. Their flat, one of several owned by Zack’s wealthy parents, is in a pleasant Victorian terrace, bordered from the street by freshly painted railings and small, neatly tended gardens.
Trying to quell my unease, I press the bell to their ground-floor flat. It’s Cora who comes to the door, with a pink-cheeked, wide-eyed Poppy cradled in her arms. ‘Hello, love! Hello, Popsy-baby!’ I hug Cora – hug both of them, really – very lightly.
‘Come in, Mum!’ she says brightly, and I follow her into the living room. When Cora was a baby, my flat was an explosion of nappies and toys and splattered milk and baby food. Where did I go wrong? The impression here is that Poppy’s arrival has been no more disruptive than buying a new cushion. The light tan sofa appears to be unmarred. Apart from her bouncy chair – spotless, parked neatly on the floor beside the coffee table – you’d never know a baby was resident here.
I lift off my shoulder bag and tug off my jacket, wondering where to put them. Placing them on the sofa would feel like tipping out the kitchen bin onto their fluffy cream rug. So I dart out to the hall, pull out Poppy’s present and hang up my bag and jacket on one of the hooks.
I return to find Cora perched neatly on the sofa with Poppy on her knee, and sit beside them, placing my gift on the coffee table next to the Diptyque candle. ‘So, how’s it going?’ I venture.
‘Really well.’ Cora smiles, although I detect a hint of tension in her pale blue eyes.
‘She’s grown so much,’ I say truthfully. It’s been nearly three weeks since I’ve seen her. Three weeks since I was last allowed through Border Control.
‘I’m sorry, Mum,’ she says, seeming to relax a little. ‘It’s been crazy lately. So many visitors, you know? We’ve tried to space them out…’
Is that what it is? I’ve been spaced out? ‘Don’t worry.’ I touch her arm. ‘I do remember what it’s like, you know.’
She nods and smiles. ‘You did it all on your own.’
‘After a fashion.’ I chuckle. ‘So, is Zack around today?’ I ask, in what I hope is a neutral tone.
