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“Um, no. We live here,” he said slowly. I raised my eyebrows and looked at the house before me. Things really had changed. The house triggered no memories. There were no sparks of recognition in my mind, in fact I found the whole thing distressing.
Why couldn’t I fucking remember anything?
“Em, it’s a house. It’s not a big deal,” Simon said as he tried to reassure me.
“Maybe it’s not to you, but it’s a fucking big deal to me.” I said, gritting my teeth.
Chapter Thirty-One
Simon
Ninety percent of the time I felt as though I was saying or doing the wrong thing. It was that other ten percent that made it all worth it. That ten percent more than made up for the pain and sadness I felt for Em most of the time.
Gently I pulled the bedroom door open. I leaned against the doorframe watching my beautiful girl sleep. Closing the door, I went into the living room to check on Mirabella, who was amusing herself in her bouncer. I watched her wordlessly, still amazed by this tiny little creature that could captivate me for hours and then cry for hours at night. She had a set of lungs to rival Pavarotti. My cell vibrated on the coffee table. I collected it and checked the number. It was Maria.
“Hello,” I said, surprised to be hearing from her. I’d only spoken to her a few times, when I was organizing for them to come over for the wedding as a surprise for Em.
“Simon, Hi. How is she?” Maria asked in her mixed accent. It didn’t surprise me that after fourteen years over in New Zealand she had picked up a slight accent.
“She’s okay. She gets tired easily, and her emotions are pretty messed up, but the doctors are confident that will all improve.”
“Oh, that’s good, and Mirabella? How is she?” asked Maria fondly.
“She is great. Really good. Did you get the photos?” I asked. I’d taken a heap of pictures and sent them to Maria. I knew she felt bad about not being able to be here for Em.
“Good, that’s fantastic news. Simon, the reason I’m calling is Phillip and I have spoken at great length, and we’ve decided to move back to the U.S. He’s put in for a transfer to a research hospital near you and Emma and I’m waiting to find out about a job I’ve applied for.”
“Wow, Maria, that’s huge news,” I said, pleased. This was great, exactly what Em needed right now. While her family had been around, they hadn’t exactly been as supportive as I would’ve liked. In the two days Em ad been home, they hadn’t even called once. During her whole hospital stay they visited twice. If it were my daughter, or even my niece, I’d have been in nearly every day.
Maria, however, had been the polar opposite, calling or emailing every day for updates. Now she was ready to pack up and relocate back to a place full of bad memories for her daughter.
“What can I do to help?” I asked.
“Well, there are a few places we like the look of. Is there any chance you’d have the time to go and check them out for us? I know you’re really busy with Em and Mirabella, so if you don’t have the time I completely understand…”
“I’d love to do that for you, email me the addresses, and the agent details okay?”
“Thanks Simon. Oh, and maybe keep this quiet from Emma? I’d love to be able to surprise her.”
“Of course,” I chuckled.
The next morning, after feeding Em an excuse about having to drop into the office to pick up some work, I went looking at houses. There were three in total for me to look at. My first thought as I drove down the street of the first was holy shit, these guys must be rolling in money.
The place itself was huge, with five bedrooms, three bathrooms, a double kitchen and three living areas. The outside was beautifully landscaped, with an in ground pool and a tennis court in the backyard.
The agent walked me through the layout, sneaking glances at Mirabella in her capsule.
“How old is she?” she finally asked, smiling.
“Almost six weeks. She was two months premature though, so she’s still so tiny.”
“And you’re out shopping for a new house while mom recovers?” she guessed.
“No,” I chuckled, “I’m shopping for my future parents in Law, who are relocating back from overseas.”
“Ohh, nice. You wife must be looking forward to having her family around her.”
