‘Would you?’ Cam threw the question back at her but Molly remained silent.
‘You are winding me up, aren’t you? This is just silly. Look, I am really sorry about tonight’s news, and if I could turn back time then of course I would in a heartbeat, but please tell me you don’t believe every word that Martha said.’ He sat up straight, looking at Molly in disbelief.
‘But there’s something in my gut that is telling me something isn’t quite right, that there’s something going on with you. You won’t even commit to the baking competition when this is the ideal time to be practising. You told Dixie it was your dream to be invited and we can’t fathom why you wouldn’t be shouting it from the rooftops. It just doesn’t make any sense to me or her.’
Cam raised an eyebrow. ‘It doesn’t actually need to make any sense, though, does it? It’s my choice, my decision, and the timing isn’t right for me.’
‘Why isn’t the timing right for you?’ Molly asked, pushing him further.
‘This is getting blown up way out of proportion. I’m really not going to argue with you about something Martha has made up for entertainment value. It’s just ridiculous and I’m not getting into this. There’s no talking to you when you are like this.’
‘Like what?’ replied Molly, on the defensive.
‘This conversation is getting us nowhere.’
Molly was shaking her head in despair. ‘You are right, it isn’t, but just for the record, I think Martha is right.’
Cam was still shaking his head as Molly placed her mug on the table.
Molly had never rowed with Cam on such a scale and she was hurt and upset by his unusual attitude. Determined not to cry in front of him, but feeling as though the tears were bubbling just underneath the surface, Molly stood up. ‘I need some space.’
Taking one last glance at the blizzard outside, she pulled shut the living-room curtains before walking straight past Cam and up the stairs to the spare room.
Molly was angry, saddened, frustrated and confused.
Sitting on the bed, she tried to calm her beating heart. She propped herself up on the pillows and rested her hands on her stomach. Closing her eyes, she took in deep breaths. The last thing she needed was her blood pressure rising. It had been a very long time since Molly had prayed, but that’s exactly what she did, quickly saying a prayer for Bree’s safety. Opening her eyes, she caught her reflection in the dressing-table mirror. She stared at herself for a moment wondering if there was any truth in what Martha had said.
Hearing Cam walk up the stairs, Molly looked towards the closed door. Her heart was thumping as she heard his footsteps petering out towards their bedroom.
‘Where are you?’ he shouted.
For a moment, Molly stayed quiet, which was stupid because there weren’t many places a pregnant woman could hide, but she just wanted to be on her own and have a little space to calm down.
She was beginning to wonder where all the fun had gone in their relationship; when had they last spent some real time together and talked about stuff other than children and routine? She remembered the first time she’d ever set eyes on Cam, in the car park of a posh hotel. Well, actually, she wasn’t looking where she was going and knocked his unzipped holdall clean out of his hands leaving his pristine white Calvin Klein boxer shorts lying on the ground in front of them both. She smiled at the memory of how lovestruck she’d been, mesmerised by his handsome good looks. He’d had a glint in his eye and fitted into his tight white T-shirt with perfection and she’d acted like a schoolgirl with a crush. At that moment she’d believed in love at first sight. And now she was hiding away in the spare room after an argument. They’d always promised each other that they would never to go to bed angry but Molly knew she was about to break that promise, because she had every intention of spending the night in the spare room.
‘Molly, are you in there?’ Cam had sussed she was in the spare room and opened the door wide. ‘What are you doing in here?’
‘I just need some space.’ Molly could barely look in his direction.
‘Are you serious?’ he asked.
‘Deadly serious.’
They stared at each other for a second until Cam broke the silence.
‘Can I get you anything?’
Molly shook her head, not trusting herself to speak, and felt her lip beginning to quiver.
Cam didn’t say any more, he simply turned around and shut the door behind him.
Sitting on the bed, she felt the hot frustrated tears slip down her cheeks. He hadn’t even put up a fight, he’d just turned and walked away. Not only was she down in the dumps, but she knew staying in the spare room would escalate things to another level. She couldn’t help it though. Cam hadn’t given her any sort of answers, except to say that Martha was not to be believed. So why had Molly got a niggling feeling that what Martha had said was just the beginning and something was about to unfold?
Taking off her clothes and slipping under the duvet, Molly turned on her side and cradled a pillow in her arms. She let her tears freely fall as she held on the pillow tighter, and as she closed her eyes she prayed that Bree would turn up safe and sound.
Against the odds and despite the anxious feeling swirling in the pit of her stomach, Molly fell asleep.
Chapter Ten
