“Let’s make a start,” Jill says after we put the shopping away.
I follow her instructions bit by bit as we assemble and mix the ingredients for dinner. It’s amazing to think I made a meal.
“See, it’s easy,” Jill says as we put the food in the fridge, ready to be cooked later in the oven.
“I couldn’t do it without you.”
“If nobody has shown you before, how do you expect to learn? Tomorrow, we’ll tackle the ironing.”
She leaves me to clean up the mess as she has an appointment.
After collecting the children from school, we head to the park and buy an ice cream.
“Right. I need to do a new video for my online account. Are you going to film me?” I ask them.
“Do we have to? I want to play,” Eden moans. She licks her lips, searching for the last bits of chocolate which has covered her face.
“Ace?” I ask, hopeful.
“Sure,” he agrees half-hearted.
After several minutes, Ace looks over at the slide, he sees Eden running up and down on it. He turns back to me holding the phone up and I do some lip syncing to a new song with a little dance routine, but I sense he’s bored. I check on Eden; she’s busy laughing and playing,so I take my phone from Ace.
“Go. I can do this later,” I tell him with a smile.
He runs over to his sister, following her as she runs back up the slide.
Chapter
Six
ALEX
I arrive at my office,get a cup of coffee, and sit at my desk. I keep checking my phone for news that the house has burnt down or that someone's died because Gemma's tried to make toast in the bathroom. Is that something she would do? I wouldn't put it past her. I have to resist the urge to call her; my mother is there, keeping an eye on things.
I try to focus on work, but it's hard. Gemma is a social media influencer. What can she know about kids? Still, Eden loves her to pieces, and she makes Ace smile. Maybe she isn't a terrible thing, although showing up in the middle of the night to move in is off-putting. She is spoiled, entitled, stubborn, and yet, I can't stop thinking about that video of her in the bikini.
There's a knock at my door and I look up.
"Hi, I'm here for an interview," a tall girl says. "My name is Fern Fletcher. I was told to come straight here." Her red hair is wound up in a bun, and she looks smart in her white blouse and black trousers.
“I recognise you from somewhere,” Fern says as she scrunches up her brows and gazes at me.
I do the same, trying to figure out where I know her from. It hits me—the Edwards’ ball. I remember her well.
“One of those faces,” I say with a smile. “Anyway, the job.” I am not interested in the fact that we had met briefly before. We’re here because of work-related matters.
“Sorry, yes. I’ve had several years working for my brother. He’s in charge…” she begins to explain.
I wave off her explanation. “Yes. I’ve seen your application. Look, I’m not going to mess around. Can you do the job? Ivy thinks you’ll be perfect and to be honest, I don’t have time for this. Ivy normally does interviews for me, but she’s off now until next week. You seem qualified enough.” I stare at her.
“Is that all you have to say?” Fern crosses her arms. She seems mad at me because I’m offering her the job.
“Do you want the job, or not?” I ask, waiting for a yes or no answer.
“Yes. But…”
“Look, I’m busy. Ivy isn’t here. I’ve got a meeting and nobody to assist.” An idea pops into my head. “Can you start now?”
