53
‘Can you take me home?’ Aria asked, still in a grump when Felicity caught up with her.
‘Not yet,’ Felicity said. ‘I’m taking you on a boat.’
‘I’m not really up for sightseeing.’
‘Nothing as shallow as that,’ Felicity reassured her. ‘Tell me about those summers you spent with your dad,’ she said as Aria trailed behind. A little reluctant at first, Aria described learning to crawl along the surface of the water and diving for the weighted toys her dad threw in. She told Felicity about her education in everything that flew, from the murmurations of the starlings to the hornets he believed would threaten the bee population while inflicting a much bigger sting on humans.
‘Did your mum spend much time at the lake?’
‘It was a special place for us all. A simple way of life. We were a close family.’
‘Oh, I know that. Together, you and your dad were a fortress. He didn’t invite me to your home for ages and, when I finally got my feet under the table, I felt like a third wheel. He wasn’t wrong to do that. You were young when she diedand needed mooring. He just tied you up a bit too tight. I don’t think he’d have even sent you to school if he didn’t have to.’
‘In the beginning, he didn’t. We did a lot of walking.’
‘And talking?’
Aria cast her mind back to that vulnerable time. ‘Well, kind of. We talked about ferns. And butterflies and lizards. And how to pickle things. There isn’t much I don’t know about fungus. He did his best.’
‘He did more than that. He survived and stayed mentally strong. You know, I never saw the hut before now? He didn’t take me there, which is an indication of how special your time there together was and how protective he was of it.’
‘It was a dive, really,’ said Aria. ‘Little more than a summer chalet. I shouldn’t have tried to live in it.’
‘Why didn’t you ask me for a bed?’
‘It wound me up that you got the house. I was jealous – thought you’d grabbed the best of the inheritance.’
Felicity laughed. ‘I think you got me confused with a wicked stepmother. I simply loved your father and wanted to be loved in return.’ When they turned the corner, Felicity approached the sales booth for the steamer. The ticket officer offered his condolences and refused to take any money. They climbed on board and sat together. Felicity put her hand on Aria’s knee. ‘Nic says it really was a mistake. He talked to me after you left. He’s very contrite.’
‘He gave you the spiel about his father, I imagine. A very convenient accident.’
‘He seemed pretty devastated by the whole thing.’
‘Yeah, so he said. On the phone and in texts and every other way possible. But I’m done with his promises and apologies. I should have known everything about him was fake.’
The boat moved off, and the pilot began his safety announcement.
‘He’ll pay whatever fee you ask for. Meanwhile he’s building you something with his own bare hands. Isn’t it worth giving him a chance? Or at least listening to him?’ Felicity pressed her.
Aria laughed bitterly. ‘He’s trying to wrapyouaround his little finger, now? Who knew a few planks and a patch of scrub was worth this much effort and heartache?’
Her stepmother smiled. ‘Your dad did. It wasn’t a nostalgia gift, Aria. Your inheritance might not have been what you wanted, but you need to think carefully about what to do with that land. It’s time to walk steadily on two feet like the amazing adult you have become and use this opportunity to change your situation and set yourself up with the future you want.’
Aria looked her stepmother in the eye. ‘I’d never have parted with that hut. It would have been like selling Dad.’
‘Then maybe Nic did you a favour. Your dad would understand.’
‘He might, if he was here,’ Aria uttered miserably.
‘I can’t arrange that, but I did bring these.’ From her rucksack, Felicity produced a box filled with the dried wildflower heads Aria remembered from the funeral. ‘I kept some back. I thought we could scatter him here. In his favourite place – the centre of the lake. If you are up for it?’
Aria nodded. ‘That’s a lovely idea.’
54
Two weeks later, Nic still hadn’t heard from Aria, resigning himself to the thought he may never see her again. After putting up the kit house, he’d returned to London, getting used to living on his own again now Theo had moved out. He caught up with him over a shopping trip – his brother scrutinising Nic’s jacket as he emerged from the changing room.
