He waved and gave Mum a thumbs up.
Mum peered at her phone screen. ‘He looks pale. Are you feeding him properly?’
‘Yes, he had a cooked breakfast this morning and last night he had a casserole.’
The sound of Zac grizzling as Layla brought him into the living room made Mum sit up on her sun lounger and cast me a puzzled look. ‘Did I just hear a baby crying?’
‘It’s Layla’s baby.’
Aunty Karen clip-clopped at speed back towards Mum. ‘Is there something I should know, Janice? Why has Rachel got a crying baby?’
‘Layla is Maddie and Frank’s cleaner, Mum. She has a little boy called Zac.’
‘Cleaner?’ Mum gasped. ‘Why is the cleaner there with her baby son? Have you opened a creche at your sister’s palatial home?’
With a heavy sigh, I glared at my mother. ‘It’s fine, don’t worry.’
‘How did you sleep? Did you feel like royalty in Maddie’s satin bedding?’
‘It was very relaxing,’ I said, although I left out the bit about Zac crying for most of the night and keeping me awake. Even though he and Layla were in the east wing, I still heard him. Layla had apologised over breakfast saying that with the constant change in Zac’s life he was out of his routine. I told her I’d not heard him.
Mum had got distracted and was clicking her fingers at Gary. ‘I’ll have another gin and tonic please. Make it large. I’m stressed, so bring me my ciggies as well. I tell you, parenting is hard work.’
‘I have to go now.’ I was getting irritated with my mother, so I told her I needed to walk Humphrey.
Mum nodded. ‘Do not lose that dog, Rachel. Maddie doesn’t want to come back from her gorgeous and relaxing holiday in Malibu to find her dog is missing.’
‘Enjoy your Sunday, Mum.’ I cast her a fake sugary smile.
In the background, Aunty Karen shouted, ‘Tell Rachel to make sure Dad is near a toilet. His bowels play up a lot.’
I ended the call and looked at Grandpa. ‘Aunty Karen says your bowels play up a lot.’
He chuckled. ‘What does Karen know about my bowels? She pops her head around the front door and shouts, “Everything all right, Dad?” I shout “Yes”; she says, ‘Great” and she gets back in her car and goes home.’
Rolling my eyes I walked to the door. ‘Humphrey, walkies.’
After I returned from walking Humphrey, Grandpa suggested we all play cards. Layla and I joined him in the living room. Zac crawled about as Layla, and I tried our best to beat Grandpa at rummy.
He won every time.
It made me smile and remember those Christmases Maddie and I spent with him and Nana. He would do the same then – beat us at every opportunity.
‘I’ve missed playing cards,’ said Layla. ‘My nana used to play cards with me when I went to stay at her house.’
‘Was she any good?’ Grandpa asked before laying down a perfect hand of rummy and winning the round.
Layla grinned. ‘She had little mirrors placed around the room so she could always see my cards.’
I gasped at Layla. ‘Your nana cheated?’
Grandpa cast me a knowing smile and I found myself looking around for strategically placed mirrors. Had Grandpa used mirrors with us? To my horror I spotted one hidden behind Layla and one in the branches of the tree behind me. I reached for it, crying, ‘Grandpa, you’ve been cheating all this time.’
He began to belly laugh. ‘I have been fooling you for years. If I ever tell you where to sit before a game of cards, check for mirrors. Your nana Edith used to tell me off. “Eric,” she’d say, “how can you trick those little girls?” and I would say, “With ease.”’
I turned to Layla. ‘Thanks for telling me about your nana and her little mirrors. I have seen my grandpa in a different light now.’
She broke into a fit of giggles. ‘Sorry, Rachel, I can’t believe you never worked out what Eric was doing when you were little.’
