She was obviously getting a bit careless, not looking after things as they deserved to be looked after. Juno contemplated her mug of tea, her solitary kitchen and the events of the last few days as she leaned against the ancient Aga for warmth, unable to stop a tear rolling down her cheek. She sniffed as it was joined by several others, dripping unheeded into the collar of her denim shirt and turning the faded sky-blue almost navy.
First Fraser, leaving her for the String Bean, then poor old Theresa May, victim to the bloody fox and now Scott, cavorting in a yellow suit and purple wig, leaving her for a – let’s face it – much younger and exceptionally attractive new model. She’d not worked hard enough at her marriage; not protected Theresa from her murderer and not been attractive enough (sexy enough?) to keep her lover from straying. Even the kids had been more than happy not to spend the first days of their Easter break with her. Juno glanced towards Lady Gaga’s cage at the far side of the kitchen: she’d bet anything the gerbil had buggered off too.
A slight scratching, scurrying sound emanated from the cage and Lady Gaga suddenly popped up, ignoring Juno as she tried to force herself though the narrow metal bars, intent on her freedom once more. Juno walked over, opened the cage door and reached in for the gerbil, seeking comfort from the warmth of the tiny creature.
‘I messed up here, didn’t I?’ Juno stroked Lady Gaga’s silky head gently as the gerbil looked up at her in surprise.
Total pushover, Lady Gaga agreed before giving her a look of utter disdain and setting off at speed along the kitchen work tops and disappearing behind the fridge.
Juno walked over to the sink, rinsing her cup before upending it on the draining board while simultaneously glancing out of the window and into the garden. Her heart began to hammer as she realised someone was out there.
A flash of yellow and purple caught in the one, outside light and then a tentative knocking at the kitchen door.
‘You left,’ Scott said, unsmiling as she opened the door to him. ‘Was my singing that bad?’
‘You looked to be otherwise engaged,’ Juno responded tartly.
‘As have you, the last few days.’ Scott shivered. ‘Look it’s still feels like winter out here and this cotton suit isn’t much protection against your perishing English weather. Are you going to let me in?’
Juno peered over Scott’s shoulder into the dark of her garden. ‘Are you alone?’
‘Alone?’ Scott shivered once more. ‘Apart from that damned pony of yours giving me the evil eye and following me along the other side of the fence as I walked past?’
‘Oh hell,’ Juno pulled a face, ‘I haven’t put him away for the night. I promised Tilda I would…’
‘Look, Juno, I’ve really been needing to talk to you. I rang before you went off for the weekend and your son said you were in bed with your husband.’
‘No, he didn’t,’ Juno snapped. ‘He said I was in the bedroom with my husband…’
‘Same thing.’ Scott frowned.
‘No, it’s not,’ Juno snapped again.
‘Please, Juno, I’m freezing my tush off out here.’ Scott held up his hands towards her and she saw the tips of his fingers were white.
‘Reynaud’s disease,’ Juno sniffed, still with her foot in the door.
‘Yes, I’m a doctor, I’m quite aware of that,’ Scott said crossly. ‘Had it all my life but much worse when I’m here in your freezing cold country.’
‘You’d better come in.’
‘Are you alone?’
‘Why are you repeating what I just asked you?’ Juno led Scott into the kitchen as, out of the corner of her eye, she saw Lady Gaga looking down at her from the safe haven of the top of the pine kitchen dresser.
Pushover. Juno could have sworn the gerbil was shaking her head sadly.
‘Your husband’s gone?’
‘Well, he doesn’t appear to be here, does he?’
‘Your sisters told me.’
‘My sisters?’
‘All three of them were in the pub. With your daughter too. She’s great, isn’t she?’ Scott smiled for the first time since he’d arrived.
Ignoring this, (sucking up, Lady Gaga sniffed) Juno turned to Scott and folded her arms as he pulled off the purple wig and ran still-frozen fingers through his dark hair. ‘So, talking of daughters, your new girlfriend?’ Juno glared. ‘She’s young enough to be your daughter.’
‘You’re right. She is.’ Scott smiled down at Juno, flexing his fingers as the blood began to pump painfully back through them.
‘Oh.’ Well, that took the wind right out of her sails. The bastard could at least have looked ashamed, contrite, at his admitting that yes, he had a new woman.
‘She is,’ Scott repeated.
‘I know, I saw her,’ Juno glared at Scott. ‘She is.’
‘No, she is.’ Scott began to laugh.
‘Is what?’
‘My daughter.’
‘Don’t be ridiculous. You can’t have a daughter that age.’
‘But I can. And have… Look, Juno, do you mind if I get changed out of this yellow suit? I feel at a bit of a disadvantage in it. I’ll just get my jeans from the car. Any chance of a coffee?’
*
Back in his mufti of faded denims and navy sweater, Scott sat at Juno’s kitchen table, hands clasped round a steaming mug of coffee. ‘Juno, Maya was as big a shock to me as anyone.’
‘Maya’s the girl? Your daughter?’
Scott nodded. ‘I had absolutely no idea I had a daughter… had ever fathered one. You know, I’ve always wanted children.’
‘Not really a child though, is she?’ Juno, sat opposite and drinking in every aspect of this gorgeous man she’d so fallen in love with, raised an eyebrow.
‘No.’ Scott was visibly sad. ‘She’s twenty-two. If I’d only known. If she’d have only told me.’
‘Who? The mother? Maya’s mother?’
Scott nodded. ‘I was a bit of a lad when I was here at university…’
‘I heard.’
‘Declan?’
‘And Izzy.’
‘I think Izzy’s interpretation of me as the Lothario she likes to portray, is vastly exaggerated,’ Scott sighed crossly. ‘Anyway, I was late applying to do medicine at Sheffield. My parents would have preferred me to study in Auckland or Wellington or even Sydney but I really wanted to come to the UK and at the last minute was given a place at Sheffield. By then the halls of residence were all taken so I was offered digs with Mrs Burkinshaw.’
‘Mrs Burkinshaw?’
‘My landlady.’
‘Right?’
‘She was really lovely. We got on straight away and well, one thing led to another.’
‘You had an affair with your landlady? Oh, for heaven’s sake.’ Juno glared at Scott before crossing to the fridge for the bottle of wine she knew was in there. This needed alcohol.
‘It does sound sleazy, but it wasn’t.’
‘And where was Mr Burkinshaw?’
‘In the army. And away a lot.’
‘That was handy.’
‘Juno, I was just eighteen. I was seduced by an older, exceptionally attractive woman: every young boy’s dream. She must have been around thirty-five then and rented out two rooms to students to make ends meet. She always said she couldn’t have children. I think she knew she could, but Mr Burkinshaw couldn’t. Anyway, after three months I moved out to share a house with a few others and didn’t see her again.’
‘And?’
‘Tony Burkinshaw, Maya’s father, died six months ago – pancreatic cancer. For some reason Esme Burkinshaw decided to tell Maya the truth, you know that her dad wasn’t her real dad. Tony knew from day one that he couldn’t have been her real father, but apparently was happy to go along with it all if it meant he and Esme had a child. Anyway, Esme told Maya what she knew of me and Maya set out to find me. Ended up tracking down my parents in Auckland who told her I was in England. Back in Yorkshire again.’
‘So when did you find all this out?’ Juno poured wine for them both.
‘Just last week. My mother had given her my address here in Westenbury and she wrote to me. I’d been on the late shift, got home and opened the letter and desperately needed someone to talk to. I just needed you, Juno.’ Scott took Juno’s hand, stroking it gently. ‘That’s when I rang you and Gabe answered. Said his dad was back. I reckoned the last thing you needed was me on the phone messing things up for you.’
‘I think they were pretty much messed up before you even arrived on the scene,’ Juno sighed. ‘I’ve failed as a wife.’
‘Have you ever thought that Fraser might have failed as a husband?’ Scott continued to stroke her hand, and Juno had to cross her legs as waves of pure lust threatened to have her jumping up and ravishing him, right there on the kitchen table. ‘Stop beating yourself up, Juno.’
‘So, she came to see you?’
Scott nodded. ‘We arranged to meet on neutral ground as it were, up at the Coach and Horses at Upper Clawson. Oh Juno, she’s lovely. And so bright.’ Scott’s eyes lit up as he spoke and he started to smile. ‘She finished at Durham last year with a first in Psychology. Imagine that! Now she’s on with a Master’s at Sheffield and going to be a Clinical Psychologist. Not many people get accepted for that, you know. I’m just one proud dad… We’ve met up every day since Thursday.’ He laughed. ‘There’s so much to talk about; you know, little things like she has Reynaud’s like me, she hates Marmite like me, loves otters…’
‘Otters?’ Juno began to laugh.
‘Yes. I’ve always loved them. Beautiful creatures.’
‘Right. So how come Maya was at rehearsal this evening? How come you’re suddenly Herod?’
‘I’d been telling Maya about the production, how it had fallen apart because we’d lost Jesus, Mary Magdalene and Herod. When Izzy told me it was being resurrected—’
Juno giggled. ‘Apt description.’
‘… and that you were going to be Mary…’
‘… thrown over for a better offer, as you now know…’
‘… Maya persuaded me to put myself forward for Herod. We’ve all been round at Pandora’s since this afternoon, rehearsing.’
‘All?’ Juno frowned.
‘Lexia, Maya, Josh Donnington – it’s a good job it’s the school holidays – Pandora and myself. Your sister is incredible, amazing…’
‘Alright, alright, I suppose you’re now going to drool all over Lexia like everyone else does?’ Juno knew it wasn’t an attractive trait, but she couldn’t help herself still feeling a bit miffed, a bit left out.
‘I was actually talking about Pandora,’ Scott said seriously. ‘She’s taken all this production on, picked it up again when it had crashed and is quite determined to see us win.’
‘Pandora is nothing if not determined,’ Juno agreed, relieved that Scott didn’t appear to fancy Lexia after all.
‘And Ariadne is great too, isn’t she? Sparky, a bit feisty?’
Juno nodded.
‘In fact,’ Scott went on, ‘I’ve actually fallen a bit in love with all your sisters.’
‘Right.’
‘But, there’s only one of you Sutherland sisters I’m so in love with I can’t sleep at night just thinking about her.’
‘Ariadne?’ Juno raised one eyebrow, staring at this heavenly man who was gazing at her with such love in his eyes she thought she might just crumble away into nothing.
‘Ariadne, yes, if you say so,’ Scott murmured into Juno’s neck as he leaned towards her, his mouth moved softly downwards.
‘Because,’ Juno managed to say as she gave herself up totally to Scott’s kiss, to his warm hands on her skin, to the feeling that everything was just as it should be, ‘if that’s the case, then there’s something you should perhaps know about Ari…’
‘Juno, do be quiet,’ Scott laughed, kissing her some more. ‘It’s you. It’s always been you.’