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‘What other night?’ Daniel asked; there was no way his grandad could know about that. Daniel hadn’t told anyone he’d spent the night in a pub in the middle of nowhere with Seren because of the weather.
‘That night you got stuck in the snow,’ Edwin said.
‘How do you know about that?’
‘Nelly’s nephew, your young lady’s dad, told Nelly that Seren had got caught in a snowstorm the other night.’
‘So?’ Daniel was conscious of his mother’s probing stare and he tried to ignore it.
‘I might be old, but I’m not daft,’ his grandad declared. ‘Your mother told me you’d gone haring off to give your young lady a hand because she was on her own. It stands to reason you were with her when it started to snow. So I put two and two together.’
Dear God, was nothing private? ‘And came up with the grand sum of mind your own business,’ Daniel said, more sharply than he’d intended. ‘She’s not my young lady. Not any longer.’
‘I knew there was something wrong. I could tell by your face. You can’t fool me, Danny-boy.’ Edwin shovelled a forkful of peas into his mouth and chewed noisily.
Linda put a hand on Daniel’s arm. ‘I’m sorry,’ she said. ‘I hope you’re not too upset.’
‘Not at all,’ he lied, his heart constricting with the pain of what he had to do later. ‘It’s for the best. I’ll be moving away and even if she didn’t have a job here, she’s got a young daughter and I doubt she’d want to uproot her. Besides, it’s not serious – we haven’t known each other very long.’
Edwin frowned. ‘Are you sure? Nelly hasn’t mentioned anything about Seren having a child.’
‘I’m sure. Tobias saw Seren and her daughter in town the other night.’
Linda shot him a doubtful look. ‘Why do I get the feeling you’re not telling me everything? You might as well tell me now as later, because you know I’ll get it out of you eventually.’
Daniel pressed his lips together – his mother had always been able to see straight through him. ‘If you really want to know, my relationship with Seren isn’t going to work out anyway, because she’s got a kid, and I can’t and I won’t get involved with another woman who has children. Not after Amelia.’ He blinked rapidly, but carried on, ‘Gina brought Amelia to see Father Christmas yesterday, and do you know what Amelia asked for?’ He swallowed, his throat raw with the ache of it. ‘When Santa asked her what she wanted for Christmas, she said she wanted him to bring her daddy back. Me!’ He jabbed himself in the chest. ‘She meantme. I’m her daddy.’ He drew in a shaky breath and let it out slowly. ‘Iwasher daddy. I’m not any more.’
His mother let out a sob and dabbed at her eyes. ‘Oh, Daniel, you must do what you think is best. I just want you to be happy,’ she said, and Daniel bit his lip.
‘So do I, Mum. So do I.’
Seren couldn’t wait to tell Daniel her news. She’d been stewing over it since she’d left the supermarket yesterday and had been itching to tell him, but she wanted to do it face to face and not via a message, because she knew she’d be upset and she wanted to have his arms around her and tell her it would be all right, that it would all work out in the end. She briefly considered asking him to pop over, but she knew he was going to his mum’s for lunch, and she didn’t want to intrude on his family time, especially since she was going out for a bite to eat and the cinema with him later.
However, she knew something wasn’t right as soon as she got into his truck and leant towards him for a kiss, because he turned his head a fraction, so instead of their lips connecting, her mouth landed on his cheek just above his jaw.
‘Are you OK?’ she asked, disquiet teasing at the edges of her mind as she wondered what could have possibly happened for him not to meet her eye. His jaw was clenched and his knuckles were white as they gripped the steering wheel.
‘Fine,’ he said. ‘You?’
‘Not really.’ She pushed the faint alarm to the back of her mind. If he said he was fine, she had to believe him. ‘I’ve got something to tell you.’
The glance he threw her was fleeting. ‘I thought you might.’
She blinked, puzzled. He couldn’t possibly have heard about her being sent home from work in disgrace. Unless…? Perhaps he’d called into the shop, expecting to find her there, only to be told she was suspended. But if that was the case, why wasn’t he being more supportive?
‘If you already know, I don’t need to explain,’ she said shortly, tears pricking at the back of her eyes.
‘I’ve got something to tell you, too,’ he said, his eyes on the road as he indicated to pull out onto the bypass. The cinema was in an out-of-town complex, as was the fast-food place they were intending to eat at.
Abruptly, he swerved into a layby, and Seren grabbed the edge of her seat for balance as she swayed to the side.
‘I can’t do this,’ he said, coming to an abrupt stop. ‘I’m sorry Seren, but this isn’t going to work, me and you.’ He was still staring straight ahead and refusing to look at her, and her stomach roiled in dread.
‘What do you mean?’ Her voice was a whisper.
‘I’ve got another job.’ His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed and she noticed his fingers tightening on the wheel even further, his white knuckles in stark relief to the black sleeves of his jacket.
‘That’s good, isn’t it?’ she said, trying to work out how him having another job could have anything to do with things not working out between them.
