“Well, maybe we can go and ask them, and then, when we have all the facts, we can decide how we’re going to punish them.” Billy grinned mischievously.
“Are we going to ground your mother?” Rosa chuckled.
“I’m sure we can come up with something suitable.”
They each carried two mugs into the lounge. The quiet whispers between Imogen and Meredith came to an instant halt as they both turned and looked up at Rosa and Billy.
Drinks were set down on the table. Billy and Rosa were barely seated before Meredith and Imogen both blurted out a tumble of words that became incoherent.
Billy held a hand up. “How about we do this one at a time?” She turned to her mother. “As the adult in this little charade, maybe you can start by explaining how you ended up in cahoots with our daughter.”
Meredith didn’t flinch. She took a slow sip of hot chocolate, as if she’d been waiting for the interrogation.
“Oh, don’t look at me like I’ve committed a crime,” she said. “I’m not the one who raised a child who can organise a small coup before breakfast.”
Rosa stiffened, unsure whether to feel attacked or proud of who Imogen was becoming.
“Ma,” Billy warned, but there was no bite in it.
Meredith set her mug down. “Fine. You want the truth? We’re not blind. I’ve watched you for years. Pretending you’re fine. Pretending you’re over it. Dating women who were never a fit. And every time anyone mentioned Rosa, you lit up…it was written all over you.”
Rosa’s jaw tightened. “That doesn’t mean you get to interfere.”
“I didn’t interfere,” Meredith said, calm as ever. “I facilitated. There’s a difference.”
Imogen made a noise that sounded suspiciously like a laugh.
Meredith shot her a look. “Don’t.”
But Imogen’s grin was already spreading, like she couldn’t help herself. “It was mostly me, to be fair.”
Rosa turned slowly and glared just enough.
“What?” Imogen’s eyes were bright, almost gleeful. “It worked, didn’t it?”
Billy’s mouth opened, closed again, then gritted out, “Immy…”
Imogen sat forward, elbows on her knees, like she was about to present a school project—proud of herself and what she had organised.
“Okay. So…step one was getting you both to Austria in the first place. I must admit, I knew it wouldn’t be easy, but with a little guilt tripping, I knew you’d come, Mum.”
“Imogen,” Rosa said again, quieter this time.
Imogen barrelled on, “Step two was the cabin. That was where Gran came in. I needed her to make sure you both wentthere. Because if you stayed in the big house, you’d just avoid each other. Or you’d be polite and weird. So we needed…forced proximity.”
Rosa’s face didn’t change much, but something about her went still.
Meredith cleared her throat. “Imogen, that’s enough.”
“No, it’s not,” Imogen said, too quickly. “Because you’re acting like I’ve done something awful, and I haven’t. I’ve done something smart.”
Rosa’s voice came out flat, “You trapped us.”
Imogen blinked. “I didn’t trap you. I just…made it harder for you to run away from each other.”
“That’s the same thing,” Rosa said. “You decided you knew what was best. You decided you had the right.”
Imogen’s excitement faltered, confusion flickering across her face. “Mum, I was helping.”
