‘She says she’s happy to come to us. She said she feels at home, but I suspect she was trying to save us some money by not asking to go out to a restaurant.’
He chuckled. ‘To be fair, she’s come a long way since I first knew her because she’d always want the fanciest of everythingback then. But if she’s happy to do that, I’m happy to oblige. We can all drink if we’re here, and we won’t have to worry about getting home.’
‘I said she could stay.’
‘Are you sure?’
Zoe nodded. ‘I was going through some stuff last time, wasn’t I?’
‘I suppose you were. I wish you’d told me sooner.’
‘So do I.’
‘But we’re on track, aren’t we?’
Zoe nodded. She hadn’t been able to admit that she didn’t really feel on track, but she was working on it, and that was all she could offer right now.
26
The vase of flowers had been a last-minute thing. Zoe had been determined to put her own misgivings about Virginia firmly out of her mind. Whatever else she felt about Alex’s ex, Virginia was the reason he was so relaxed and happy again. They still had worries, but the immediate, existential threat of them losing his business and possibly even their home was gone, and Zoe had been able to see the difference in him as soon as he’d opened the letter telling them so. She was hopeful that now he was in a better place, he’d also continue to be positive about her fertility issues. He’d brought up the subject of them trying for a baby a few more times since their initial chat, and she’d always countered with the same argument, but she liked that he hadn’t given up.
And she’d come to a decision. Simon had mentioned storing some of her eggs before they disappeared completely. It wasn’t certain by any means that this could be done, but she would at least discuss it with her consultant when she went to her appointment. She’d mentioned it to Alex, and he’d been full of questions that even she couldn’t answer, but he hadn’t been entirely against the idea, though he still seemed sold on doingthings naturally. She’d joked and said he’d been more interested in the endeavour than the end result, and even though he’d laughed, there had been a lick of guilt when she caught a faint look of hurt. He wasn’t that shallow, but the only way Zoe could get through this was to try and inject some lightness into it, and she’d thought he might be the same.
She fiddled with a couple of the peonies so they looked evenly spread and then set the vase down on the table.
Alex came over with some napkins and cutlery. ‘I think we’re in the wrong game.’ He swept the table with a glance of approval. ‘We ought to have opened a restaurant instead of a camping site.’
‘No thanks,’ Zoe replied, tweaking the flowers in the vase again. ‘That’s enough work. I don’t think I could cope with a restaurant. But nobody’s stopping you if you’re feeling daft enough.’
‘You might be right.’ He put down the cutlery and offered her a light kiss. ‘Thank you, again, for this. It means a lot to me that you and V get along. I’m not saying she’s going to be a regular part of our lives now,’ he added hastily, ‘and we might even lose touch again when all this dies down, but she’s done a lot for us, and she didn’t have to.’
‘I know. She can go on the Christmas card list at the very least.’
He smiled as he kissed her again, and then a voice came from the kitchen doorway.
‘Ugh. Why is it every time I walk into a room this week, I have to see that? I preferred it when you were arguing.’
They both turned to Billie with sheepish grins.
‘Sorry,’ Alex said. ‘We’ll try to spare your blushes in future.’
‘I’m not blushing; it’s you who’s blushing.’
Billie bounced Louisa on one hip. The little girl was holding her head up now, strong and alert, and she offered them a drooling smile.
‘I think she’s started to cut her teeth,’ Zoe said.
‘Probably,’ Billie agreed. ‘She slobbers more than Grizzle now.’
‘I hope he’s OK with Victor,’ Zoe said.
Alex chuckled. ‘It might be Victor we have to worry about, not Grizzle. I know he’s used to dogs, but I bet he’ll still be glad when we fetch him back tomorrow. It’s best he’s out of the way tonight, and he’ll have a better time over there than he will here.’
‘It’ll be like a spa day for him,’ Billie agreed.
‘Spa day…’ Zoe let out a dreamy sigh. ‘That sounds nice about now. I could do with a spa day.’
‘We’ll see about getting one then,’ Alex said. ‘When things calm down.’
