‘I think he thinks that I’m simply full of nostalgia and sentiment, and while some of that must come into it, it’s not all I’m fighting for.’
‘Take off your tie, darling. I’m going to massage your neck.’
‘I ought to ring Rachel – make sure she’s all right.’
‘Not now, Hugh darling. Just relax while I do your neck.’ Her strong little fingers kneaded and probed, and he could feel the muscles easing and the hammering in his head becoming quieter – more distant.
‘Bless you, Jem,’ he said, when she had finished.
‘The boys are at the cinema, and Laura has a friend staying the night, so we can have a nice quiet evening together.’
He said he would just go up and say goodnight to Laura, and she grilled the bacon that they were going to have with their kidneys, a dish that he particularly liked; none of the children would eat kidneys so they had them seldom.
‘They’re playing hospitals,’ Hugh announced, when he joined her. ‘Poor Jennifer is bandaged from head to foot. I don’t think she’s liking it very much. Laura, of course, is the doctor.’
Jemima said she would see to that.
She sees to everything, Hugh thought gratefully. He yawned. Apart from being tired, he realised that he was extremely hungry. He had not been able to eat anything at the pub with Edward, and he had simply drunk one cup of coffee before setting off from Home Place. He would ring Rachel tomorrow morning. First thing, he added to himself, to make him feel less guilty.
But when Jemima came down, she said, ‘I’ve just rung Rachel and said you were worried about her, and wanted to know whether she was managing alone. She said that Mrs Tonbridge and Eileen were angelic to her, and that Edward had rung and said he’d go and see her next weekend. I hope that’s all right, darling.’
‘It’s more than all right. You are even more angelic than Mrs Tonbridge and Eileen combined.’ He felt lightheaded with relief.