draping gossamer thin spider’s webs across shelves stacked with autumnal wreaths and papier-mâché pumpkins, she was looking forward to a long soak in the bath, but before she could get out of the car, her phone started to ring.
‘Sorry I haven’t called. I know it’s been ages,’ Sarah began, ‘but I’ve been ridiculously busy.’
‘It’s all right,’ Nina said with a twinge of guilt. She hadn’t exactly gone out of her way to contact her friend either.
‘Anyway, I’ve got a spare five minutes and thought I’d check on things in the Carrington household.’
‘Thomas household,’ Nina corrected.
There was a pause. ‘Are you OK, Nina?’
Sarah’s remark hit a nerve. After barely two words, her friend was ready to assume Nina’s life was in freefall, which was why she had been less than eager to phone her. From the moment she had started dating Bryn, a lowly taxi driver and a bankrupt to boot, Sarah had been convinced Nina was going through a full-blown midlife crisis.
The question alone made Nina check her reply, but she felt confident when she said, ‘I’m fine. A bit tired, that’s all. It’s been a busy day at the shop.’
‘You should see my desk. I’m snowed under with paperwork and Miles has gone on strike. He has some major project at work that’s slipping, so he’s never here. I’ve got planning objections to deal with and, to top it all, the delicatessen has just secured contracts to supply another two restaurants.’
‘And that’s bad news?’
‘Oh, you have no idea how draining success can be.’
‘Couldn’t you simply hire someone to help?’ Nina said.
‘You mean the job I had in mind for my darling daughter until she decided to betray me and turn her back on her heritage?’ Sarah asked. ‘I told her the other day that all this pressure will put me or her dad in an early grave, but she wouldn’t listen, said I was trying to manipulate her.’
‘I’d be happy to swap you one career-minded student for a teenage cave-dweller.’
‘Ah, so that’s what’s bothering you,’ Sarah said. ‘I knew there was something. Did you have that talk with Liam?’
‘In a fashion,’ Nina said. ‘He wants to do something in computers but I have a suspicion he thinks he’s going to invent some amazing new program that will earn him millions without ever having to leave his room.’
‘Maybe the problem is he doesn’t want to leave home, as in, leave you and Scarlett.’
‘And why would that be, Sarah?’ Nina said, already knowing the answer. ‘We have Bryn to look after us now.’
‘The kids do seem to be getting on well with him.’
Sarah had been watching Bryn throughout their Sunday lunch the month before. Her friend’s eyes had narrowed every time Liam, or especially Scarlett had spoken to him. And when Scarlett had disappeared and Bryn had fetched her back to the table, Sarah had made a fuss about Scarlett looking unsettled. The only reason she was unsettled was because Sarah had pulled the ‘Are you OK?’ routine on her too.
‘Yes, they are. If anything, they’re starting to take advantage of him. I’m sure Scarlett thinks he’s her private chauffeur.’
‘It’s a shame he doesn’t get on so well with his own daughter. Did you ever find out why she didn’t show at the wedding?’
Nina had never met Bryn’s daughter Caryn who lived in Wales with her mum. Bryn and his first wife had divorced when their daughter was in her early teens, around the same time his printing business had collapsed. Caryn was in her early twenties now and from what Bryn had told her, she hadn’t had that much to do with him since his move to Sedgefield a few years ago. He had been hopeful that she would come to the wedding, but not surprised when she hadn’t.
‘I’m sure she had her reasons.’
‘Doesn’t that worry you?’
‘Why should it, Sarah?’ Nina said, too tired to control her frustration. ‘If Adam were to remarry, I’m not sure either Scarlett or Liam would be rushing up to Scotland to wish him well. I’m not for a minute comparing Bryn to Adam, by the way, I’m only saying that family relations can get complicated.’
‘OK, don’t bite my head off,’ Sarah said, her voice echoing because she had pulled the phone from her ear. ‘I only say these things because I love you and I worry. And if I’m honest, I worry most of all about Scarlett.’
‘You think I don’t?’
‘Of course you do, but you still see a little girl, whereas I can see a beautiful young woman emerging.’ Sarah dropped her voice when she added, ‘Is she on the pill yet?’
‘No,’ Nina said levelly. Through the windscreen, she peered towards her front door, which looked more inviting than ever.
‘It’s just that Miles and I were talking, and you know how impressionable young girls can be. They try to act all grown-up when they’re still children – and by grown-up, I mean doing grown-up things.’
‘I know what you mean,’ Nina said. ‘And you and Miles can put your minds at rest. We’ve had that talk.’
‘Recently?’
‘No, but nothing’s changed,’ Nina said, stopping short of saying that nothing had changed since the wedding, but she refused to play along with Sarah’s game.
‘Hmm,’ Sarah said.
Nina had had enough. ‘Look, Sarah, for the first time in years I feel like I have a fighting chance to be happy, and for my family to be happy. It might take time, but with patience things will settle into a new rhythm. Don’t look for problems that aren’t there. Please.’
‘I only want what’s best for you,’ she said. ‘As lovely as Bryn seems, I would have felt a whole lot better if you had drawn up a pre-nup, like I told you to.’
‘Well, I didn’t, and strangely enough I still manage to sleep at night. If you really want what’s best for me, Sarah, don’t try to get me to worry about problems that don’t exist. I’m sorry, but I have to go. There’s a long, hot bath with my name on it and I’m looking forward to relaxing. Maybe you should give it a try.’
Nina let out a frustrated sigh as she ended the call, but the sigh transformed into a groan when the phone started ringing again the moment she went to open the car door. The call was from a mobile number she didn’t recognize, and Nina was tempted to ignore it, but she went with her gut instinct which, despite Sarah’s doubts, turned out to be as reliable as ever.
‘Hello, Mrs Carrington?’
‘Well, it’s Mrs Thomas now.’
‘Ah, yes, of course, sorry,’ the man said. ‘Mrs Thomas, this is Rob Swift. I’m Scarlett’s form tutor.’
‘Is everything all right?’
Nina had received many calls from school in her time, but it was usually during school hours when one of her children was ill. Neither Liam nor Scarlett had ever been a cause of concern, certainly not one that necessitated a call from a teacher out of hours. Not once.
‘I hope so,’ Rob said, but his tone didn’t instil confidence. ‘It might very well be nothing to worry about, but sometimes I think it’s better to nip these things in the bud.’
After two difficult phone calls in quick succession, Nina dragged herself out of the car. The knot in her stomach twisted as she put her key in the front door. Inside the house, she imagined an idyllic scene where Bryn would be cooking dinner, humming to himself contentedly while Scarlett and Liam were upstairs in their rooms. OK, maybe it wasn’t idyllic, but at least her kids weren’t hanging around on street corners causing trouble. Scarlett