‘I hope you have a lovely Christmas, Nanny. I’ll call you,’ Angel said, smiling at her grandmother.
‘Oh don’t you worry about me, Angel. I’ll have one of those meals for widows and single people from Marks and Spencer.’
Hayley closed her eyes. If she mentioned getting out the electric fan heater or watchingPollyanna,she was seriously going to lose it.
‘Right then, off we go,’ Hayley said, pulling Angel towards her by the fabric hook on the back of her rucksack.
‘Bye, Nanny,’ Angel chirped.
Hayley felt her mother’s eyes on her but didn’t know what to do. Hugging always felt so awkward and air-kissing was even worse. Guilt was now winning out over everything else.
‘Bye, Mum. Happy Holidays as they say in New York.’ Hayley stepped forward, ready to embrace her mother with everything she had. Instead, she impacted on Rita’s foot.
The noise that came from her mother’s mouth was akin to a cat having its tail trodden on. A yelp and a stagger had Angel rushing to her grandmother’s side.
‘Sorry,’ Hayley breathed. ‘Sorry, Mum.’
‘Are you all right, Nanny?’ Angel asked, concern etched on her features.
‘Yes…’ Rita let out a jagged breath. ‘Nothing the chiropodist can’t fix, I don’t expect.’
Hayley didn’t dare move her feet a second time. ‘Well, if you’re sure you can make it back to wait for the taxi driver then we’ll head off.’ They really couldn’t wait any longer. And the emotion just wasn’t coming.
‘Bye, Nanny,’ Angel said again.
Hayley put her arm around her daughter and, drawing her close, she simply waved a hand.
7
DRUMMOND GLOBAL OFFICES, DOWNTOWN MANHATTAN, USA
‘Good morning, Mr Drummond.’
It wasn’t a good morning. He felt like shit. Christa had turned out to be the most insatiable woman he had bedded in over a month. His mouth was dry not only from the champagne but also from the humidity of the hotel room heating she insisted on turning up to simulate the temperature of a rainforest. That had been just one of the fantasies she’d wanted to act out. Some of the others involved food from the room service menu he never wanted to see again.
He forced a smile at the blonde receptionist and noticed for the first time that she wore glasses. Did he know her name? Had they dated? He wasn’t sure he wanted to know the answer to that last question.
‘Good morning,’ he responded, heading for the bank of lifts.
As he waited for one to arrive, he looked through the glass doors to the street outside. The snow had stopped overnight and only a fine dusting remained. It was business as usual on the street, taxis, bike couriers, shoppers, workers, guys on roller-skates like they were auditioning forStarlight Express. Icicles hung from thebuilding signs, there was a glaze of frost on fire hydrants and lampposts and the corners of billboards were streaked with a sprinkling of white.
The bell chimed and the silver, metal doors slid open. He stepped inside and hit the button for the eightieth floor. It struck him then, as the elevator began to rise, that he had no idea what was in his schedule for the day. How had that happened? Maybe Clara was right. Had he dropped the ball lately? He checked his watch. It was a little after nine. He hoped there was nothing for at least an hour or he might have to send out for mouthwash.
The elevator finally came to a stop and when the doors opened, there was Clara. She was wearing maroon, another statement necklace at her throat, but the expression on her face was one of concern.
‘Good morning, Clara,’ he stated hesitantly.
‘We have a problem,’ his PA said without prelude.
‘Have you called Mackenzie?’ he asked, beginning to walk along the corridor towards his office.
‘It isn’t a legal problem,’ Clara said. ‘It’s?—’
He interrupted her. ‘I didn’t have a nine o’clock appointment, did I?’ He powered on past the other offices towards his room at the very end of the walkway.
‘No, but, Oliver wait, listen to me before you go in there,’ Clara rasped as she broke into a jog, chasing him.
He put his hand on the door but stopped, turning to look at his assistant. Her face was the colour of an overripe strawberry and there were beads of perspiration above the beads of the necklace.
