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A tear splashes on her hand, and a fist squeezes my heart. She’s just a child herself. I crouch down beside her. ‘Bella, darling, talk to me. I’m not going to judge. I just want to help you. I’m your mother, Iloveyou, no matter what.’
‘Taylor thinks people who have abortions go to hell,’ she says miserably. ‘Her parents are Catholic, they’re really strict—’
‘No one’s going to hell!’ I exclaim angrily. ‘Bella, Catholics may be strict, but they believe in forgiveness, too. I can’t believe Taylor’s been telling you this nonsense. Of course you’re not going to hell!’
‘Not me, Mum!’ She raises her tear-stained face. ‘It’sTaylorwho was pregnant. Not me.’
I hate myself for it, but I can’t help a brief, selfishsurge of relief. I feel desperately sorry for her friend, of course, but my daughter is my first concern. ‘Oh, Bell. I’m so sorry. Poor Taylor.’
‘You won’t say anything, will you?’
‘Of course not.’ I hesitate. ‘I take it she hasn’t told her parents?’
‘I told you, they’re super strict. They’d never forgive her.’
‘This is a pretty big secret to hide, darling. You’d be surprised what a mother can forgive—’
‘No! You can’t say anything!’
‘It’s OK. I won’t break your confidence.’ I sigh, sadder than I could have imagined at the thought of such a young girl going through something as traumatic as an abortion without her mother by her side. ‘What about the baby’s father? Where was he in all of this?’
‘I don’t know. I don’t even know who he is. All she said is, he’s married. I think it’s one of her dad’s friends – that’s another reason she can’t tell her parents.’
I hope my shock doesn’t show on my face. Taylor is only seventeen. An affair with a married man twice her age, a secret abortion – it’s a lot for a child who’s still at school. And no matter how grown-up Taylor may seem, that’s what she is, legally and morally: achild. What kind of man gets a vulnerable teenager pregnant? Bella’s right: no wonder the girl’s afraid to tell her parents.
If it were my daughter in trouble, I’d want to kill him.
The day before the party
Chapter 40
Min
I feel like I’m herding cats. No sooner do I get one of the boys clean and presentable, than another spills toothpaste on his new shirt or splits his trousers doing cartwheels down the hall.
‘Luke, could you watch Archie while I see what the twins are up to,’ I pant, corralling our youngest son in the corner of the hotel room and liberating a complimentary pot of boot polish from his sweaty hands. ‘Archie, I want you to sit on this chair andnot moveuntil I come and get you.’
There’s a sudden wail from the bathroom. ‘Mum! The loo roll fell in!’
‘Sidney! Don’t you dare try to fish it out!’
‘Mu-u-m! There’s poo all over my hands!’
Luke holds up one hand to me like a traffic policeman. ‘I’ve got it, Min.’
‘Sidney’s got poo on him!’ Archie shouts, leaping up and running into the corridor to find his brothers. ‘It’sdisgusting!’
I open the emergency suitcase I brought with me.Fifteen years of motherhood to four sons has taught me to bring backup outfits, a stash of gin, and plenty of wet wipes. I find Sidney’s spare polo shirt, and take it through to Luke, who has managed to get our son stripped naked to the waist in the bathroom. It’s very generous of Celia to treat us all to a weekend away at a five-star hotel, but I’m going to be on tenterhooks for the next forty-eight hours, trying to ensure the priceless Art Deco artefacts aren’t used for target practice, and that none of my children fall off the cliff or drown in the sea. It would’ve been so much more relaxing, on multiple fronts, if she’d just made the party adults-only.
Eventually, we manage to get the four boys suited and booted, though I’m not entirely sure Dom’s Whitesnake T-shirt could be considered appropriate evening wear, but in comparison to the expletive-ridden hoodie hewaswearing, it’s progress. I change into a forgiving navy linen cocktail dress, and go into the bathroom to sort out my hair, which has turned frizzy in the humidity.
‘Fancy a quick drink before we go down?’ Luke asks, appearing in the doorway.
‘Who’ll watch the kids?’
‘I bribed Dom and Jack to mind the other two for five minutes. A tenner each, and I’ll turn a blind eye to a beer later.’
‘In that case, make mine a double.’
