Least Said (70 page)

With
no
mid-afternoon
school
run
to
break
it
up,
the
whole
day
stretched
out
in
front
of
me.
I
was
determined
to
make
the
most
of
every
second.
It
seemed
increasingly
likely
that,
at
some
point
in
the
future,
I
could
find
myself
a
single
parent.
That
being
the
case,
keeping
up
with
my
current
orders
and
increasing
my
client
list
was
more
important
than
it
had
ever
been.

This
time,
I
made
quite
certain
the
house
was
empty,
and
Jon
definitely
wasn’t
at
home.
I
also
locked
my
work
room
once
I
was
inside
and
anticipating
the
phone
call,
I
rang
Tina
first.

Also
anticipating
what
her
first
words
would
be,
I
began
the
conversation
by
saying,
‘I’m
fine.’

‘Did
he..?
Was
he..?
What
will
you..?
How
will
you..?’
the
questions
came
thick
and
fast.

‘How
will
I
cope?’
I
shrugged,
though
I
knew
Tina
couldn’t
see
the
dismissive
movement.
‘Well,
we’ll
have
to
rub
along
for
now
until
such
time
as
Jon
decides
what
exactly
he
wants
to
do.
I’ve
moved
his
things
into
the
spare
room,
using
his
head
wound
and
the
need
to
be
careful
of
it
as
an
excuse
that
William
seems
to
have
accepted.
It’s
all
a
bit
awkward,
but
I
can’t
expect
much
else
under
the
circumstances,
can
I?’

‘Well,
as
you
heard
me
tell
Jon
last
night,
he
is
hardly
blameless,’
Tina
said,
her
tone
firm.

‘But
he
didn’t
actually
cheat
on
me,
did
he,
Tina?
I
have
to
hold
my
hands
up
and
accept
my
punishment
–
whatever
that
turns
out
to
be
–
and
as
I
said,
at
the
moment
it’s
all
a
bit
awkward.’

‘So
take
a
break
away
from
the
situation,
love.
It’s
half
term
next
week,
isn’t
it?
So
why
not
bring
William
and
stay
with
us
for
the
week.
You
won’t
disturb
me,’
she
said,
obviously
anticipating
what
my
main
objection
would
be.
‘You
can
come
and
go
exactly
as
you
please,
and
Will
is
just
at
the
right
age
to
enjoy
all
the
touristy
things
London
has
to
offer.
Go
on,
say
yes.
We
would
love
to
have
you
–
and
it
will
give
Jon
time
on
his
own
to
think
about
the
future
and
exactly
how
he
sees
it
working
out.’

‘We-ell,’
I
hesitated,
though
I
was
already
halfway
to
being
convinced,
‘I
have
a
lot
of
orders
in,
but
if
I
can
get
on
top
of
those
we’ll
come,
thank
you.’

The
invitation
gave
me
the
incentive
I
needed
to
crack
on
at
a
steady
pace.
I
mixed
and
baked,
marzipanned,
iced
and
decorated,
moving
seamlessly
from
one
area
to
the
next,
appreciating
the
space
available
that
allowed
me
to
keep
cakes
at
various
stages
in
the
process
separately.

I
worked
steadily
and
totally
lost
track
of
the
time
but,
eventually,
feeling
light-headed
and
a
bit
sick,
I
unlocked
the
door
and
went
in
search
of
a
lunchtime
sandwich.
Coming
face
to
face
with
Jon
in
the
kitchen
I
almost
jumped
out
of
my
skin.

‘Christ,
you
almost
gave
me
a
heart-attack,’
I
yelped,
clutching
my
chest
theatrically.
‘I
wasn’t
expecting
you
home
for
lunch.’

He
looked
at
me
strangely.
‘Lunch?’
he
said.
‘It’s
seven
o’clock
in
the
evening.
Lucy
will
be
dropping
William
off
any
time
now.
Have
you
been
working
all
day
–
without
a
break?’

‘Well,
I’ve
got
a
lot
on,’
I
don’t
know
why
I
sounded
so
defensive.

‘Shall
I
order
in
a
takeaway?’

God,
my
mouth
watered
at
the
very
thought
of
a
Chinese,
Indian.
KFC
or
anything
at
all
really,
but
there
was
no
way
I
was
going
to
admit
it
and
luckily
the
doorbell
went
just
at
that
minute.

As
I
went
to
answer
it,
I
said
over
my
shoulder,
‘No
thanks,
I’m
not
really
hungry.
I
might
have
a
sandwich
later.’

Will
threw
himself
into
my
arms
and
I
hugged
him
so
tight
that
he
squealed.
He
smelled
of
fresh
air
and
his
favourite
shampoo.

‘What
do
you
say
to
Lucy,’
I
prompted,
and
he
said
obediently,
‘Thank
you
so
much
for
having
me.
I’ve
had
a
lovely
time.’