“That sounds really good.”
Carrie made the drinks and joined Michael who’d sat back down on the sofa and was now flicking through a book on Norse mythology. She handed him his mug. “A bit of a random choice,” she said, indicating to the book.
“Not at all. I love mythology from all over the world. Have done since I was a kid. I’ve got quite a collection of books on the subject, many of them either bought or gifted from your aunt.”
“That’s lovely,” said Carrie, pulling a blanket over herself.
“Wanna tell me what was going on about Poppy’s birthday earlier?” Michael asked, gently. “You seemed... unsure about me being involved. I honestly don’t want to intrude.”
“You’re not at all,” said Carrie, quickly. “I just felt bad because I thought Poppy had put you on the spot and you might not want to do what she’d planned out.”
“It’s her birthday. Of course I want to do what she wants. I’m not interfering too much though? You must tell me if you need me to back off and leave you two to it.”
“No. It’s actually really good to have someone to plan her birthday with. My mum’s wonderful but she’s not just down the road, and it’s just nice not to have to organise everything myself. But then I feel bad because it should be Tony who I’m planning our daughter’s birthday with. Not that he’s ever been interested in any of this to be honest, even if he wasn’t in Germany.”
“He sounds like a bit of an idiot.”
“I’d like to be able to argue with you about that, but...” Carrie shrugged. “Let’s not talk about Tony, yeah?”
“No problem. Oh, there’s a really great ice cream place I know. It’s right by the sea and on the way back from the climbing centre. I thought Poppy might like to go there on the way back from bouldering on Tuesday.”
“She would love that. You know how she feels about ice cream.”
“I do.” Michael laughed. “Layla’s no different on that front. Mary’s back on Monday, isn’t she?”
“She is. I really hope she’s happy with the way I’ve looked after the shop while she’s been away. I know how much it means to her.”
“You’ve done a great job — with Poppy’s help of course.”
“It would be a mess without Poppy,” Carrie said with a laugh.
“I’d better get back to check on Tabitha and the kittens,” Michael said, finishing his tea. “Thanks again for dinner — it was delicious. Oh, I forgot to say that your car’s working fine now. The battery was flat, but I got it going and then a mate of mine popped over and gave it a once-over and we took it for a spin.”
“Oh, my goodness, thank you! You’re an angel! I didn’t expect you to do that.”
Michael reached out for her hand. “Carrie, I’m happy to help you out. You help me out too. No worries.”
“What do I owe your friend?” Carrie tried to ignore the way her body seemed to be waking to his touch.
“He didn’t charge,” said Michael. “He just came over at lunchtime and we had a catch up.”
“Thank you so much! I was dreading having to take it to the garage on Monday and being landed with a huge bill.”
“It was my pleasure,” he said, giving her hand a final squeeze before letting go and telling Monty the unfortunate news that he’d have to get up.
Why did he have to be so perfect? Carrie mused as they said their goodbyes.
Chapter 17
Sunday dawned and Carrie was up early. She’d struggled to sleep. Poppy’s birthday always brought worries about her daughter’s relationship with her dad to the forefront of her mind; this year these thoughts were added to having watched Michael with Layla and seen what a genuinely good and involved father behaved like. Was it something about her which sent the men in her life running in the opposite direction? She hadn’t heard from her own father for more than thirty years. He’d never tried to get in contact with her or her mother, and now Tony seemed to be doing his best to spend as little time with Poppy as possible.
Her phone beeped with a message from her mum, Ellen, checking to see how she and Poppy were. Thank goodness for her mum. She gave a little smile before replying:Time for a chat?
A few seconds later, her mum video called.
“Hello, darling,” she said. “Look at you all tanned! You look so healthy!”
“Thank you! I’ve been spending more time outside. Poppy loves the beach here.”
