‘Mum.’ He interrupted her with a slight shake of his head, and again the colour seemed to drain from his face, his wide-cheeked elation giving way to a rather grey pallor of sickness.
And she knew.
Before he said aloud the words that would cleave open Holly Hudson’s heart, make a declaration that would drive an ice pick into the harmony of life in Mablethorpe Road, would mean strained conversations on bin day, put her business plans in jeopardy and scatter shards of glass on the floor of her friendship, she knew. Words that meant their lives would never be the same again because they lived in a connected bubble; a deck of cards that had stood proud for the longest time, and one that she was sure, in that moment, was about to tumble.
Her stomach rolled with nausea at the very prospect. She gripped the steering wheel, anything to try and steady her shaky hands.
Chapter Nine
‘Oh God!’ Her son exhaled and hid his face in his hands briefly.
‘It’s okay, Aiden, take your time. We can sit here for a bit. No need to rush.’ Enya spoke slowly and softly, even though her mind screamed for him to get to the point and end the agony of her imaginings.
He nodded and gasped, as if it were difficult to get air into his lungs.
‘I’m not sure how to feel or what to say,’ he began. ‘I’m really tired. So tired. Exhausted, in fact.’
Enya nodded, knowing there were no prompts to help him with this. He needed to find clarity and express what it was that occupied his thoughts. Her son took one deep, long breath and gave the words free rein.
‘I met someone.’
‘You met someone,’ she repeated quietly, waiting for more, needing to hear him say it, to give her the details, as she tried and failed to mentally pave the fast-paced route from meeting someone to wanting to get married in such a short space of time.
‘We were on the same plane. She was heading out to Rome to work for a fortnight but then took a few days’ holiday so we could be together. She had to leave yesterday and the moment she went, I felt lost. I hated being there without her. She’s...’ He pursed hislips and blinked away the obvious emotion that rose at no more than the mere mention of her. ‘Her name is Iris Sutherland, and she’s’ – he swallowed – ‘she’s like... she’s everything.’
This was one of those times, and there had of course been others over the last three years, when she wished Jonathan were here to tag-team their response. It was a well-practised method, one with a hand on the tiller while the other acted as lookout, helping them navigate choppy waters as and when they encountered them.
‘But... but... you can only have known her a maximum of three weeks, it doesn’t sound like you, love. You’re not spontaneous, you’re considered, thoughtful, you don’t make snap decisions, you never have. We sit for what feels like hours in a restaurant while you mentally tussle with whether you want the steak or the chicken! You take your time over things!’
‘Until now,’ he countered, ‘and I know it sounds nuts, Mum, but after seeing her,talkingto her for no more than an hour, if she had said,Pack up, we’re off to go and live in deepest, darkest Borneo, I’d have gone. I’d have trusted the feeling in my gut, handed my life over to fate, and I’d have gone.’ He shook his head as if it were a fact that he too was still trying to come to terms with. ‘I mean, I’d probably have had to google where Borneo was first, but...’ He smiled weakly then, as if aware, as was she, that his choice came with consequences and heartache that rather robbed the news of its glitter.
His words and intentions were utterly terrifying. Her son was declaring that he would run away with a complete stranger! He would willingly throw away the lovely life he had constructed,theyhad constructed, for what? Her second thought was for Holly, the girl who adored him, who had always adored him, Jenny’s daughter. Enya felt the seeds of discord take root in her gut, aware that this was going to be one hell of a bloody upheaval for them all. She did her best to smother the flames of anger that flickered inside her,knowing they were as unattractive as they were unfair, but what the bloody hell had he done?
‘Wow, I’ve never...’ She didn’t know if it was insensitive or helpful to admit that she had never felt that way. She had loved Jonathan, loved him still, of that there was no doubt. But that instant gut-pull of attraction that was strong enough for him to flirt with the idea ofdestiny, and the intervention of the universe? No, nothing like that. It was a concept that she believed to be utter rubbish. Bunkum. Something that only happened in movies and poems. It wasn’t real. It couldn’t be real! An image of Dominic, the grey-haired car klutz, floated momentarily into her thoughts. ‘And you went from feeling like that to wanting to get married inthreeweeks?’
It was as close as she could get to screamingAre You Absolutely Mad?Knowing that kind of reaction would help no one.
‘Actually no, I pretty much felt like that after three days, less maybe, hours even! But as I said, it’s not just that I want to get married, wearegetting married. I spoke to her dad on the phone, bought a ring, and we’ve... we’ve set a date...’
‘Oh my God, Aiden!’ She closed her eyes and let her head drop. It was worse than she had thought, not just a possibility, but they’d set a date? Bought a bloodyring?
At this admission of all the things he had failed to do for Holly in the last decade, she felt truly sick. This was no flash in the pan, not a mere possibility, but was instead a crisis or, more fairly, asituationto be dealt with.
‘I don’t know what to say, love. I’m... I’m pleased for you, I guess.’
‘Wow, Mum! Go steady with that enthusiasm!’
He huffed, sat back in the seat and her heart sank, wanting so badly to be the person who cheered him on, who championed him, but this was lunacy.
‘I want to support you. I want you to be happy, I want that more than anything, but I’m also worried about how everyone will take the news.’ She pictured having to tell Jenny and Phil and her throat constricted. ‘And of course I’m a little heartbroken for Holly, more than a little.’
The thought of the girl sitting at home, so very excited for his return, did nothing to help ease her angst.
‘I know, and it’s not something I’m doing lightly. Obviously, I didn’t want to tell her over the phone, it’s been awful, texting her, telling her I was busy, making excuses.’ He sighed and rubbed his eyes, and she could see that the deceit had not sat easily on his shoulders. Yet it angered her still; lying by omission had never sat well with her. ‘But life’s short, Mum. I think it’s time we stopped worrying about how everyone else thinks and feels, and started doing what’s right for us.’
It was her turn to stare at him, unsure exactly what he meant by this, but knowing she had to tread carefully. ‘Aren’t you worried that maybe what you feel is a reaction to the novelty of being with someone else?’
‘No, definitely not.’ He was adamant.
