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“Before?” Maya frowned. “Oh! At the gym?”
“Oh, yes, and at the gym, I think I caught you with my racket. I didn’t hurt you, did I?”
“Maya, the Prosecco’s getting warm! You must need a top up!” Emma called again from the kitchen. Maya could hear the children giggling and imagined Emma pulling faces. She had a way of getting down to their level. But it wasn’t what Maya needed right now, with Sam in her hallway.
“Oh, no, no.” She shook her head, the embarrassment of bumping into him at the sports centre, sweaty and smelly, making her even more uncomfortable in his presence. “So… Shall I fetch Chloe?” She thumbed behind her towards the kitchen. “Or would you like to come through?”
“Uh…” He paused, thinking about it. “No, I’ll come through. No rush.”
Sam followed Maya through to the kitchen, where Emma was hurrying Owen and the rest of the children up. “This is Emma. Emma, Sam.”
“Oh, hello,” Emma said, smiling at Sam, holding the Prosecco bottle. Maya put her glass on the kitchen counter, and didn’t encourage Emma to top it up, worried she would look like some alcoholic lush in Sam’s eyes.
“Dad!” Chloe shouted, jumping up from the table and hugging her father. Sam returned the embrace. Maya noticed Sam still wore his wedding ring. She watched nervously for a negative reaction about the butterfly on Chloe’s face, but to her relief none came.
“Have you had a good time?” Sam asked, still holding his daughter.
For a moment Maya forgot he was an idiot, as she could see he was a doting dad. Amber was missing so much with Kyle not being around enough. He was too loved up with his girlfriend, who he’d been seeing for over two years — a part of that relationship had been behind Maya’s back. They now had a three-month-old baby girl. His focus was his new family, not his old one. She felt sorry for Amber and Lewis; their father had turned his back on them, moved further afield, to accommodate his girlfriend, and could only see them properly during the holidays and the occasional weekend.
“Yes, we had loads of fun. Amber’s nanny and granddad are awesome.” Chloe was hopping from one foot to the other with excitement.
Maya smiled. “I’ll tell them that.”
Emma was giving her a look which she hoped Sam wouldn’t notice — a sort of stare with a wiggle of her eyebrows in his direction. Maya felt her cheeks flush.
“Right, are you ready, Chloe?” Sam asked. He looked from Maya to Emma and then to his daughter, smiling nervously.
“Yes, I’ve finished my ice-cream.”
“So, what do you say?”
“Thank you for having me.” Chloe beamed at Maya.
“It’s not a problem. Anytime, Chloe,” Maya said, then forced herself to look at Sam. She found it hard to meet his eyes. Would she have passed the test? Would his daughter be allowed over again to play with Amber? “Apparently they’ve all been well-behaved.”
“Thank you,” Sam said to Maya. He smiled at Emma, who waved.
“Lovely to meet you,” she said.
Maya went to show Sam and Chloe out. She was glad to have a glass or two of Prosecco inside her; it had kept her calm. She had worried that she was blushing in Sam’s presence. The memory of Amber’s party still played vividly in Maya’s mind. Until this afternoon, she hadn’t been aware how attractive he was. Surely she could be in the company of a good-looking man and not get embarrassed? Now she worried if she had enough make-up on and whether she smelt of pepperoni pizza.
She bet the gorgeous brunette he was with earlier still smelled of roses after their game. Did she mind that he still wore his wedding ring?
“Maya…” Sam looked at her, then down at his daughter, who was fidgeting, getting her shoes on.
“Yes?” She frowned, hesitantly. What had she done wrong now?
“There’s something I wanted to say … uh … about —”
The doorbell trilled.
“Oh, that must be Lucas.” Maya hastily reached for the front door and opened it.
Lucas smiled, sheltered under Maya’s porch. Behind him, streetlamps lit the cold, dreary evening, highlighting the now heavy rain. “Is my darling wife ready, or has she not quite drunk you out of house and home yet?”
“Lucas, come in,” Maya said, beaming as she ushered him. Were her best friends embarrassing her deliberately?
“Erm…” Sam hesitated, then shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. I’ll catch you some other time.” He guided Chloe out. The two men nodded at each other.
