‘But you’re Dom.’
‘Dom-i-nic. Nicky to my gran only – who gets away with it because she wanted me named after Granddad.’
‘Stan?’
‘Stanley Nicholas Adams – Gran usually finds a way of getting what she wants.’
Lisa remembered her trip to the cemetery, Stan’s full name etched in the white marble and theblank page left for Winnie. She gasped against the tightness in her chest. With the shock of the loss of Winnie, Jack still jumping around between them and the dawning realisation that she had just hit Dom – Dom who was Winnie’s grandson, no less – around the head with a book, Lisa staggered.
Dom caught her. ‘Maybe we should both sit down before we fall down,’ he said, putting his armround Lisa’s back.
Lisa felt too dumbfounded to resist as they made their way to the kitchen. As she sat at the table watching Dom put the kettle on, she knew it should be her doing it and checking he was OK.
‘I’m so sorry. I don’t normally hit people around the head with books, or anything really. I mean I don’t normally hit people. It’s just—’
Dom smiled. ‘It’s OK. Iknew you were coming. I should have checked to see if you were here. It’s just Jack was so muddy – my fault for taking him over the brook out the back – I was looking for an old towel and—’
‘And I hit you!’
‘Yes, you did. But don’t worry,’ Dom felt down the side of his face, ‘not everyone can say they got sucker punched by Leonardo DiCaprio.’
Lisa gave him a quizzical look.Surely, as Rose, she’d be Kate Winslet? Dom slid the offending book across the table and Lisa realised it was a book of the filmTitanic. Leonardo DiCaprio, standing in his finest at the bottom of the grand staircase, was on the front cover.
Lisa began to laugh. It was completely inappropriate. Winnie was gone and she could have killed Dom with the blow to his head. But the thought thatshe had hit the man who had repeatedly called her Rose since they met and embarrassed her with the theme tune toTitanicon a tannoy with a book of the film, simply made her hysterical. Jack turned his head at her quizzically while her emotions ran free: tears, laughter and sobs escaped simultaneously.
Lisa realised Dom wasn’t laughing. But despite the fact she knew her reaction was inappropriate– Dom had recently lost his gran and would be quite within his rights to charge her for assault – she couldn’t stop.
‘I’m sorry!’ she uttered between gasps of air.
Jack became more animated and Dom sent him to his bed before moving closer to Lisa. He fixed his gaze on hers and spoke calmly, the way she had seen him speak to Fred. He told her to breathe with him, deep and slow.As much as she could she mirrored him. The two of them sat holding hands, looking into each other’s eyes for several minutes while Lisa managed to regain her equilibrium.
‘I’m sorry, Dom, I—’
‘I shouldn’t have made you jump like that; it must have all been a bit of a shock.’
‘Really, I’m fine. I should be the one checking you are OK!’ Seeing a bruise forming on the sideof Dom’s face Lisa reached up, but realised touching it wouldn’t help. ‘Does your Gran have any parsley?’
‘Parsley?’ Dom looked at her, brows furrowed.
Aware Dom seemed to think she was talking gibberish Lisa continued, ‘Seriously, I’m fine. We need parsley to help your bruise.’
Dom scoffed. ‘Parsley, really?’
‘It is a tried and tested remedy in the Blake household—’
Dom pulled back from Lisa and laughed. ‘Well, in this house most things get solved with a cup of tea.’ He met her eyes. ‘Trust me, I’m fine.’
Lisa watched as Dom made the tea. She offered to wipe off what little remaining mud there was on Jack’s paws; she needed to feel that she was doing something to help. Jack welcomed being allowed back out of his basket and rubbed himself againstLisa’s legs. When he was finally clean and suitably fussed over, Lisa turned to the table. The sight of the teapot and biscuit barrel was sobering. The fact Dom had brought both to the table showed it was a ritual he and Winnie had also shared many times. Lisa swallowed hard.
Dom got an ice pack from the freezer, wrapped it in a clean tea towel and held it to the side of his face. BeforeLisa could point out that parsley was an equally good option he motioned to the book. ‘It’s Gran’s favourite, you know,Titanic. I’ve watched the thing so many times with her.’
Lisa bit her lip to prevent it from quivering, the realisation that Winnie had gone, once again washing over her.
‘Have you seen it?’ Dom continued.
‘Yes.’
‘It’s the end. Gran loves the end.Jack and Rose back together again. It gets her every time.’
