One Moment At Sunrise. Karen Aldous

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СКАЧАТЬ friend’s extreme animated behaviour. ‘I’ll make you a drink,’

      ‘You’re a sweetie. Thank you.’

      ‘I’m mystified.’ Suzanne blazed a quizzical frown and marched off.

      Evie kissed Charlotte’s hair again and watched her friend. The only person she’d got to know since moving into Seb’s villa over two years ago was the diminutive titian-haired neighbour. They’d met when Charlotte began walking at eleven months. Suzanne and her husband Bram were Dutch. They lived in a sweet little cottage, next door but one, and they’d been converting the run-down cottage adjoining them to rent out. Bram, a local chiropractor, had often swapped his work-whites for old jeans in his spare time whilst Suzanne spent most of her Fridays and weekends cleaning holiday lets close by. Only married for two years, and not having children of her own, Suzanne took great pleasure in having Charlotte around; even looking after her once or twice. Evie was quite proud and didn’t like to put on her. Not that she ever had anywhere to go, alone. And, as Charlotte and Suzanne adored one another, she preferred it when they could all spend time together. She enjoyed having someone to talk to, particularly an adult. It was hard to admit, but her relationship with Seb wasn’t turning out to be all she’d dreamed, and when he’d texted this morning, once again letting her down, Suzanne intuitively rushed over, hearing her shriek. It was Suzanne who had insisted she go out for some fresh air this morning after seeing her upset.

      Once Evie’s exhilaration subsided, she wiped tearful eyes and sat down with Charlotte on her lap. Suzanne brought her a tall glass filled with homemade lemon and ice and sat beside her, listening as Evie recounted the drama.

      ‘Oh my dear, now I understand,’ Suzanne reached out and embraced her. ‘You must have been so frightened.’

      ‘Yes. It really shook me up. Thank God I didn’t have Charlotte on the back of the bike. It was lucky for us you insisted Charlotte stay here. I was so angry with Seb. You must have suspected how upset I was.’ Evie pinched her nose with embarrassment.

      Sitting back and taking Evie’s hand, Suzanne looked concerned. ‘I could hear he had got to you.’

      Charlotte pointed to the floor. ‘Baby.’

      Suzanne crouched to the floor, picked up Charlotte’s dolly from the floor and placed it in her hands. A gleeful chuckle spread across the little girl’s face as she squeezed it to her chest.

      ‘You hide it so well, Evie. I’m so glad I’ve never met your partner. I don’t think we could ever be friends. He is so inconsiderate leaving you so long alone.’

      Evie sighed, rolling eyes at herself for displaying her disappointment to Suzanne earlier. Suzanne was her friend, the last thing she needed was her to become involved in her and Seb’s relationship. If she discovered who Seb was, Suzanne could be tempted to go to the press. That side of their relationship had never been put to the test.

      Back home, Evie lowered Charlotte gently down in her cot for her nap and swiped a warm kiss on her daughter’s pink cheek. She covered her with a light cotton sheet then, yawning, opened a window to let in the breeze and slumped into what she affectionately named the nursing chair. She slid her legs onto the footstall. It always reminded her of an old person’s chair, high-backed with wings but comfy nonetheless. Intent on just watching her infant, within seconds her eyes drooped. The cage – as she’d aptly named the house, even before Seb installed metal bars at the numerous blue-shuttered windows – for once felt refreshingly welcome, although it still never felt like home. It lacked that family vibe. In the early days here, Evie had imagined they would be more like a family by now, spending more time together, but it became less. She’d also hoped that her family would have accepted Seb by now, but that divide was wide enough to require a suspension bridge to cross it. She rarely imagined this beautiful villa as a refuge, but after today’s events she felt overwhelmingly grateful to be here safe, and with Charlotte out of danger. But then fear whipped its tail in her face. What if she had been killed, who would look after Charlotte?

      Seb was the natural candidate but often so far from home. She decided she would have to discuss an emergency strategy with him and ensure somebody had Seb’s contact details. Seb led a parallel existence touring the world, singing and partying, it was likely he would probably hire some inadequate nanny. She shivered at the idea. But who else? Even if she hadn’t been killed, she could have been seriously injured, which could mean Seb would leave her with a nurse. She wondered if he would even bother to contact her family. Apart from a highly stressful visit on Charlotte’s first birthday, her parents and sister had all but disowned her because they found him vile. Maybe they had been right about Seb all along. Maybe he was just keeping her sweet. No, Seb did care. He was just busy. Vulnerability crawled into her skin. She would have to have some sort of emergency strategy, just in case. Maybe Suzanne was best placed to deal with any emergencies close to home.

Chapter 3

      Evie must have dozed off because the next thing she knew she was being woken by her phone buzzing. She reached for her rucksack, snatched her phone from the pocket and dashed to the landing expecting it to be Seb, ringing up and apologising for this morning. She pressed the button and made her way down the stairs.

      ‘Hello,’ she said in a cheerless tone.’

      ‘Evie, how are you, and Charlotte?’ Cally’s voice blasted into her ear.

      Mirroring the upbeat sound, she said. ‘Erm, very well, thank you. This is a surprise Cally. Unusual to hear from my big sister.’ Evie couldn’t believe the lively pitch of her own voice. Cally and she weren’t at all close. Quite the opposite in fact. There must be something wrong, she concluded. Something has happened to make her call.

      ‘That’s so lovely to hear. I’ve been meaning to call you for about a month,’ her sister continued. ‘It’s been chaotic. I wondered if you’d mind me coming over to see you both. And of course, it’s Charlotte’s second birthday next week.’

      Evie felt her heart swell. At least she remembered. ‘Well,’ she coughed, still swallowing the surprise, ‘we haven’t seen you for such a long time. Yes. It would be nice to see you again.’

      Cally took a paused breath. ‘Are you sure? Only I know I’ve been a bit harsh on you.’

      A tinge of suspicion rose in Evie’s chest. She licked her lips. ‘Cally, nothing’s changed but I’d like to think we’ve both grown into adults who are capable of respecting how we each lead our lives. If you are just coming to judge and labour my past decisions, then don’t bother. I don’t want you here just to…’

      ‘Evie, I thought we could try to get along, even be friends. And, yes, I do have my reasons, I have to confess; I am worried about Mum’s health.’

      ‘They’re ok though, aren’t they? Mum and Dad?’

      ‘To be honest, Mum sounded pretty bad on the phone last night and it shook me a bit.’

      ‘Her asthma you mean?’

      ‘Exactly. I thought the whole idea of living in Florida was to improve her asthma but maybe she had a cold or something, she was rasping heavily.’

      Evie felt the lump rise in her throat. ‘Oh God, she’s not going to die is she?’

      ‘No. Well, I hope not. I did get a bit scared. And, it sounds selfish considering I haven’t been the best sister, but I felt in need of support.’

      Holding СКАЧАТЬ