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Art wasn’t comfortable talking about his past, and she didn’t have any great desire to talk about hers – not that he’d asked – so she’d curtailed her curiosity, but they’d still found so much to talk about. All that basic day-to-day stuff, which Dan had got bored with as soon as she brought it up, Art listened to with genuine interest. Getting his take on her social media plans for the shop, hearing how work on his latest commission was going, chuckling over something daft that Toto or Josh had said or done had been rewarding in ways she never would have expected.
And discovering that Art was a bit of a snuggler on the sly had been almost as much of a surprise as discovering how much she still liked sex.
She sighed as she dumped the last pin on the dresser. If only she could talk about him to Tess and Annie.
Keeping their liaison a secret from everyone made sense, and for the last few weeks the secrecy had been as exciting as those midnight dashes through the woods, but she was starting to feel uncomfortable about pretending nothing was going on. And keeping how much she was enjoying herself from them was next to impossible.
Obviously this affair had no future. She was going back to New York soon, and Art had made it very clear he wasn’t interested in anything more. And neither was she, of course. Long-distance relationships never worked, and she would need all her energy in the months ahead to finalise her divorce, sort out the custody arrangements with Dan, navigate Josh’s situation when his new sibling arrived and find a new place to live – because she had no desire to return to their soulless six-bedroom show home in Orchard Harbor. But even so, what seemed like a simple affair at the outset was starting to become more complicated, and she would love to have had some advice about how to handle it.
She cleansed her face, and re-applied her make-up, ready for the customers.
She was being juvenile. She didn’t need her friends’ input or advice. It was obvious what was going on here.
She had a crush on Art Dalton. They were having awesome sex. And becoming friends. But, ultimately, that’s all this was, a throwback to her youth. She’d been stressed beyond belief when she’d arrived at Willow Tree for the summer, and she’d taken advantage of everything it had to offer. And when she returned to Orchard Harbor her real life would begin again. At least when that happened, she’d have a much better understanding of what she wanted and what she was capable of. And she had Art to thank for that as much as anyone. And four more weeks to enjoy him.
She was staring into the mirror, trying to align her lips in her I-can-do-anything smile before applying a new coat of lipstick when a loud thumping sound made her jump.
What was that? Had it come from her bathroom?
‘Is someone there?’
Could it be Josh? Weren’t he and Toto busy building a new hideout near Maddy and Jacob’s place? Exactly how many hideouts did two kids need?
She heard another muffled thump, definitely coming from the bathroom.
She grabbed her hairbrush off the dresser ready to investigate. Perhaps a squirrel or a bird had got into the room through the window she’d left open in the heat. She whipped the door open, hairbrush raised, ready to do battle with whatever wildlife had invaded her space.
Toto yelped and leapt up from her crouch on the floor, her face ablaze, Ellie’s box of panty liners strewn across the floor.
Ellie lowered the hairbrush. ‘Toto, what are you doing?’ The poor kid looked as if she were about to pass out.
‘Nothing,’ Toto said, not at all convincingly. She had whipped her hands behind her back when Ellie had opened the door, but Ellie had seen the panty liners in her fists.
‘Did you need to borrow some panty liners?’ she asked. Toto was thirteen. It was more than possible she was having her periods already.
Toto shook her head vigorously.
Unfortunately for Toto, she wasn’t a very convincing liar.
But before Ellie could question her further, Toto dropped the panty liners and went to dart past her. Without thinking about it, Ellie grabbed the girl’s arm as she barrelled past. Toto slammed to a stop.
‘You can have them back. I’m sorry. I’m sorry,’ Toto said, as she struggled to get loose, tears leaking from her eyes. She pulled a wad of liners from her pockets with her free hand and tried to shove them at Ellie. ‘Please don’t tell my dad.’
She held on as the girl wriggled and squirmed. ‘Toto, calm down. It’s OK. I won’t tell your dad.’
Why was Toto so scared of Art finding out? If his daughter was having to steal essential sanitary items this was partially his fault. She shoved the thought to one side. Not her concern. And there were more pressing concerns for now. The child was in considerable distress and she could only think of one possible reason for that.
‘Did you start your periods today?’ Ellie asked.
Toto stopped struggling, and tucked her chin into her chest, her breath heaving in and out as if powered by a bellows. Her face was so red now the sprinkle of freckles across her nose stood out like stoplights.
The child’s biceps tensed, as she continued to examine the floor. The nod so tiny, Ellie almost didn’t catch it.
‘How exciting,’ Ellie said, trying to put as much of a positive spin as she could on the news in the face of the girl’s distress. ‘You’re welcome to take all the panty liners you need. But you might need something more substantial. Is there a lot of blood?’ Hopefully dealing with the practicalities would also put the girl at ease.
‘No,’ Toto said into her chest, as if the onset of puberty meant the end of life as she knew it. It might well feel that way to a tomboy like Toto, but it really didn’t have to.
Had anyone spoken to her about menstruation? Wouldn’t Dee have talked to her? Or Art? Surely she would have learned about it at school at least?
