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Feeling superfluous to requirements, Annabelle moved towards the enormous windows and gazed at the view.
‘See that smudge in the distance?’ Brett said, coming to stand next to her. ‘That’s Devon.’ An expanse of sea lay in between, and nearer to the shore the water looked rather choppy. ‘Apparently, this channel has one of the highest tidal ranges in the world,’ he added.
‘Right.’ Annabelle wasn’t sure how she was supposed to respond.
‘Great for rock pooling,’ he continued. ‘I used to love doing that when I was a kid – maybe Jake would enjoy it?’
‘I’m sure he would.’ Her son loved anything to do with the sea, although she wasn’t sure what he’d make of these cold Atlantic waters. ‘He says you can go surfing here?’
‘You can.’ Brett nodded. ‘Just up the coast.’ He pointed to the right. ‘See that red-roofed building over there? That’s the golf course. There’s a little bay just there and that’s where they surf. You can hire wet suits and boards.’
A car turning into the drive caught his attention and he looked down. Annabelle followed his gaze.
‘Ah, here’s Kate and the girls,’ he said. ‘When was the last time you saw each other?’
‘Goodness, at least twenty-two years ago, because I went out to Australia then.’ She shrugged. ‘A couple of years before that, probably.’
‘It’ll be nice for you to catch up,’ he observed.
Annabelle wasn’t so sure. She’d hardly known Kate when they were growing up, Kate being a couple of years older. They hadn’t had anything in common then, and she wasn’t sure whether they would now.
As she waited nervously for Kate to appear, she very much felt the outsider.
Annabelle needn’t have worried. As soon as Kate saw her, she gave a squeal and hurried over, her arms wide open, her face wreathed in smiles. Annabelle let out an ‘oomph’ as Kate barrelled into her and threw her arms around her.
‘Long time, no see, cuz!’ she exclaimed, hugging her hard for a moment, then Kate pushed her away to gaze into her face. ‘You haven’t changed a bit! I’d know you anywhere. Ooh, it’s so good to see you!’ Kate hugged her again, before stepping away and linking her arm through Annabelle’s. ‘We’re going to have such a good time!’ she cried, then lowered her voice. ‘Or as good a time we can have with a couple of sulky teenagers and a pair of squabbling old ladies around. Where are your two?’
Finally, Annabelle was able to get a word in. ‘Downstairs with Sam.’
Kate hadn’t changed much either. Her hair was shorter – shoulder-length now – and her face was more angular, but she was still the same Kate, with the same twinkle in her eye and ready smile on her lips. She did look older, admittedly, but then so did Annabelle herself, and wondered what Kate saw when she looked at her.
Annabelle stared curiously at Kate’s daughters. Ellis was a tall and willowy eighteen-year-old and Portia was a sporty fifteen. Ellis wore a wafty, floaty dress made out of cream cheesecloth, a pair of gladiator sandals and her hair was long and plaited. Portia was clothed in riding gear and was holding a helmet, and her short black hair was mussed and spiked. Annabelle’s mum had said the teenager was a Goth, but apart from the dyed hair and the eyebrow piercing, Annabelle could see little evidence of it.
The girls eyed her for a second, then lost interest and headed for the breadsticks. There’d be none left at this rate, Annabelle thought, wondering whether she should go in search of her children to tell them dinner was almost ready.
Kate beat her to it. ‘Portia, change out of your riding gear, wash your hands and go and find Sam and tell him dinner won’t be long. Jake and Izzie should be with him. And Portia…?’ The girl paused. ‘Play nice,’ Kate warned.
‘I’m always nice.’
Ellis barked out a laugh. ‘Yeah, right. Er, not so much.’
Kate sighed and rolled her eyes. ‘Teenagers! Who’d have ‘em? You’ve got all this to come. Anyway, enough of that – you must tell me your news. We’ve got such a lot to catch up on.’ And with that, she dragged Annabelle across to the massive dining table, adding, ‘As soon as dinner is over, we’ll find a quiet spot, crack open a bottle of wine and have a good old chinwag.’
To her surprise, Annabelle thought that was a wonderful idea.
***
Feeling mellow, Annabelle leaned back against the cushions and tilted her face up to the sky. The scudding clouds of earlier had disappeared with the onset of darkness and the night was a relatively clear one. She huddled deeper into her fleece and gazed at the heavens, clutching the remains of her glass of wine. She and Kate had gone out onto the terrace for a good long chat, but it was getting late. The younger kids were in bed, the men were playing snooker with Ellis and Portia in the games room, and the last time Annabelle had ventured inside, the older women had been ensconced in front of the TV, arguing over what to watch.
Five minutes ago Kate had yawned and had got to her feet, saying that she was knackered, and had taken herself off to bed.
Her cousin had been right, Annabelle thought, it had been fun to catch up, even if it had proved to be a little emotional in places. She had shed a tear or two when she’d recanted what had led her to staying in the UK and, after downing half a bottle of wine, Annabelle was still feeling a little weepy.
It was her children she felt the most sorry for. How could Troy do such a thing to them? What the hell had he thought she was going to do when she found out about the house? It was sheer luck that she’d had their flights booked, otherwise she’d be in Australia with nowhere for her and the kids to live.
She sniffed and wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her fleece, then let out a yelp when she realised she wasn’t alone.
‘Sorry,’ Ron said. ‘I didn’t mean to disturb you. I didn’t know you were still up. I’ll go back inside.’
