“I have a proposal to put to you,” Marcy said, coming into Claudia’s craft room and perching on one of the high stools next to the table.
Intrigued, Claudia abandoned the sketch she was halfway through and went to turn off her audiobook.
“First of all,” Marcy said, “have you heard anything back from Marcus’s lawyer since you filed for divorce?”
“No, I’d have told you if I had, but I’m not worried, honestly. It’s still early days and it’ll happen.”
“Of course it will, I’m just asking. Anyway, it doesn’t really affect what I’m about to suggest, and it’s just some thoughts I’ve been having. I haven’t even mentioned anything to Henry yet, and a lot of it will depend on him.”
Trying to imagine what was coming, Claudia settled herself on another stool and waited for her mother to continue.
“What I’ve been thinking,” Marcy said, rubbing her scarred hand as she often did unconsciously, “is that a time might be coming when I will want to move in with Henry, and if I did I wondered if you’d like Dan to buy out my share of this place?”
Claudia’s eyes widened with surprise. She hadn’t seen that coming, although perhaps she should have, certainly where her mother and Henry were concerned.
“Is it a good idea?” Marcy prompted.
Claudia said, cautiously, “I guess so, provided he wants to, but I don’t think I can ask him.”
“It’s OK, I’m just putting it to you as a possible that we both might like to consider.”
Unable to deny that it was something she was glad to think about, Claudia said, “Do you have any kind of time frame in mind?”
“No, not really, but with Jasmine off to uni next September I thought now would be a good time to start planning ahead.”
That was just over nine months away, and Claudia was getting the impression that her mother would like these changes to happen sooner. “So, will you ask Henry?” she asked. “Or will you wait for him to ask you?”
“I’m not sure. What do you think I should do?”
Claudia pondered it.
“Actually, I think we ought to talk to Dan first, because if he doesn’t want to buy into this place with you I won’t want to leave you here on your own,” Marcy declared.
“That’s just silly,” Claudia scolded, smarting at the fear of Dan turning her down. “If it comes to it and you’re ready to move in with Henry, I’ll use the money I took from Marcus—my money—to buy you out.”
“But it would be better if Dan was here. Maybe you could talk it over with him, tell him I’ll give him an excellent price . . .”
“Mum, I can’t just . . .”
“Listen, I’ve seen you two together, so if you want my opinion he’s not suggesting this himself because he wouldn’t want me to think he’s trying to crowd the nest, or push me out.”
Accepting there was a chance that might be true, Claudia said, “OK, for the record, between us, I think it’s a great idea, especially as you’ll only be one thousand seven hundred and eight steps away if you do go.”
Coming to hug her, Marcy said, “Talk to him and let me know what he says.”
DAN BLINKED, ALMOST as though he might not have heard correctly. “Would you like to run that past me again?” he prompted.
Trying not to be annoyed that she was having to ask twice when once had already been awkward enough, Claudia was about to begin again when she caught the tease in his eyes and slanted him a menacing look.
“Come here,” he said softly.
Going to him, she raised her face to his as he circled her in his arms. “Even if your mother asked for double the going rate,” he said against her lips, “I’d want to do it.”
Melting against him she gave herself to the deepening tenderness of his kiss, until it became the sort of kiss that wasn’t going to allow them to stop there.
Because no one else was at home, they didn’t.
An hour or so later, as they lay together on the bed that was now destined to become theirs, she said, “You know, I was thinking, if you do move in . . .”
“When,” he corrected.
“When”—she smiled—“We could reconfigure things so that Mum’s sitting room becomes your study, and maybe we could add a sunroom to the kitchen and build the deck out from there. That way we’d have a place for you to read and me to embroider while we listen to music, or just watch nature . . . Did I ever mention that I wouldn’t mind building a small studio out there for a kiln?”
Rolling over to face her, he turned her to him and said, “Yes to everything, and now how about this? We could make one of the rooms into a nursery and see what we can do about filling it?”
“HERE WE ARE, two gin and tonics,” Marcy declared, sitting down beside Henry on the comfy conservatory seat that overlooked his garden, the rooftops that staggered down to the sea, and the golden sunset a long way out on the horizon. “I’ve made yours extra strong because you might need it when I tell you what I have in mind.”
Blithely he said, “Whatever it is, if it involves you I’m up for it. Oh, unless it’s having to sing at this blasted karaoke night. I thought that went out in the eighties—and it was cheesy then.”
Leaning over to plant a kiss on his cheek, she replied, “It’s only you who’s calling it karaoke, the rest of us are referring to it as a music event. Anyway, what’s wrong with cheesy?”
He eyed her skeptically.
With a laugh, she said, “Jasmine has probably got something new she wants to play for us, and by the sound of it there’ll be an entire orchestral backing. Should be wonderful.”
“I won’t disagree with that.”
She sat quietly, thoughtfully, for a moment. “If we are expected to perform, and no one’s said yet that we are, maybe we can do a duet. ‘Don’t Go Breaking My Heart’?”
“I couldn’t if I tried,” he responded dryly.
Laughing, she kissed him again and said, “No, it’s not about the party that I want to talk to you, it’s about whether or not you feel you could wake up to this awful face of mine every morning.”
There was a moment before he seemed to catch on to what she might be suggesting. “Am I? Are you?”
She nodded.
Putting down his drink, he took her face in his hands and planted a loving kiss on the tragically scarred cheek. “I hope that’s a good enough answer,” he told her gruffly, “but if it isn’t I can take off all your clothes and kiss every other part of you as well—and if that still doesn’t convince you I’ll just do it all over again.”