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“I thought they didn’t own the hall?” He looked to Mandy.
“They don’t, not legally,” Lucie answered with a shrug. She always forgot that. It felt like they did, in their hearts at least. “But, anyway, that’s not all I need to tell you. Frances and Rose are moving to London too.”
“To their house?” Mandy asked. “You’ll all be living together?”
“Yes. And” — Lucie hesitated, then went for it — “Frances and I are together.”
“Okay. Leave that little gem until the end,” Mandy said, a glint in her eye. “When did this happen?”
“Well, we... err.” Lucie flicked a glance at her dad, who quickly turned his attention back to cracking eggs into a sizzling frying pan. “We kind of hooked up in London.”
“About time!” Mandy smirked.
“You can talk,” Lucie shot back.
“Fair point.”
“She said she wasn’t interested in a long-distance relationship, and then by the time I got back last night, she’d quit her job, and everything had changed.”
Mandy clutched her hands to her chest. “Ah! She couldn’t resist our Lucie.”
“Seems that way.” Lucie laughed. She knew it wasn’t quite that simple, but she hoped it had something to do with it.
“You hardly know each other,” her dad pointed out.
“Some of us don’t need decades to get together, Dad.”
He raised an eyebrow that she knew from experience meant not to go there.
“But living together?” he went on. “Will you be paying rent?”
“I will pay my own way, Dad. I’m not looking for a handout.”
“And Rose?” he asked. “How does she feel?”
“We haven’t told her yet. I’m going up after breakfast.”
“I’m sure she’ll be as pleased as we are,” Mandy said, stating her opinion firmly in his direction as she reached for some plates in a cupboard.
Lucie was grateful, as he accepted the party line and returned to his task.
“I hope she will be,” Lucie replied. “I imagine she’ll be very happy about moving to London. We had a lovely time there together. The square is so peaceful compared to the hall, and she loved going to the theatre. She got a bit upset about coming back to Winterbourne.”
“Oh, poor Rose,” Mandy sighed.
A flicker of unease settled itself inside Lucie. How would Rose really feel about her not only dating Frances but moving in? Up to this point, Lucie had thought she would be happy for them, but now she wondered if she’d assumed too much. Rose liked her as a regular visitor, a friend perhaps, but as her daughter’s girlfriend?
She recalled what Rose had said to them once about them making a lovely couple, but it did little to reassure her. There was no guarantee Rose would even remember saying that, let alone still feel that way. Alzheimer’s made its sufferers unpredictable. What if Rose became distressed by the idea? Would it put a spanner in the works? Frances would need to do whatever was best for her mum, not herself.
“I think I’ll skip breakfast,” Lucie said suddenly.
“Keen to be with your love?” Mandy teased.
“I’m not very hungry, actually, but yes, I think I’ll head up to the hall.”
The sooner they spoke to Rose, the better.
“More for us,” her dad said, sliding the eggs onto slices of bread that Mandy was laying on the plates. “Good luck,” he said with a reassuring wink. “I’m sure everything will be fine.”
