The Other Son (34 page)

“And I quite like this one, actually. Where the others all want food – you know, when you come in, they just want food and then they bugger off – but this one, all she wants is company, don’t you?” Alice says, stroking the cat’s head. “Which is rather special for an animal, really. Plus she’s old, like me. We have that in common.”

“You’re not
that
old, Mum,” Matt says. “So, did you have a good day with the in-laws?”

“I did,” Alice says. “They’re rather lovely, really, aren’t they?”

“Yeah,” Matt says. “They’re OK!”

“And that Bruno,” Alice says. “You’ll be wanting to hang onto that one.”

“You like him, huh?”

Alice nods. “A lot.”

“Well, I intend to,” Matt says. “Hang onto him, that is. I even thought we might, you know, get married.”

“Yes, that’s possible, now, isn’t it,” Alice says. “I forgot about that.”

“The Catholics here kicked up a stink about it, but it went through in the end.”

“They’d do better to deal with their pedophile priests,” Alice says.

“You’re right,” Matt agrees. “They would. Um, Dad phoned, by the way.”

Alice sighs. “He’s been calling my mobile over and over. I just switched it off in the end. I don’t want to talk to anyone anyway.”

“I told him you were staying for a while. For a few months,” Matt says, chewing at the edge of a fingernail.

“You did?”

Matt nods. “That’s a good idea, don’t you think?”

“If it’s possible,” Alice says, “I think that would be a very good idea. I bet Ken didn’t like it though.”

“He surprised me, actually,” Matt says.

“He did? How?”

“He said not to worry about money. He said to keep on using the card. That there’s plenty more where that came from.”

“Oh,” Alice says, pulling a face. “Gosh.”

“I know,” Matt says. “Maybe he had a bump on the head.”

“Maybe. But I bet it won’t last.”

“No,” Matt agrees. “Probably not. But are you having a good time here?” he asks. “I mean, despite everything?”

“I think so. I feel... I feel... more free, I suppose you’d call it. I feel a bit more free with every day that passes. Like a mist is lifting.”

“That’s good,” Matt says. “And you don’t mind being stuck up here? Because we could maybe look for somewhere down on the coast. Or in Aix en Provence.”

“No,” Alice says. “It’s a surprise to me, but I do like it here. I think this life you’ve built for yourself is wonderful.”

Matt laughs. “Careful, Mum,” he says. “You almost sound like you approve of me.”

Alice reaches across the table for her son’s hand. She places her own on top of his, exactly as Bruno had done when she first arrived. “Matt,” she says. “I don’t
approve
of you...”

Matt frowns. “I thought that was too good to be true,” he says. He tries to pull his hand away, but Alice grabs it and forcefully yanks it back towards the centre of the table.

“It’s more than that, son,” she says. “It’s as if... I don’t know how to explain it. But when you were little, I always thought you’d grow up to be a painter or a writer or something creative like that. I thought you’d do something like Bruno does, really.”

“The Other Son disappoints again,” Matt says, drily.

“Listen to me, Matt,” Alice says. “That’s what I used to think. I did. I
was
disappointed. But now I see that it’s this.” She gestures around her. “It’s all of this. It’s this life you’ve built. It’s France and the cabin and the pots and it’s Bruno and the dog. And it doesn’t look like any other life, does it? Because that’s it. That’s your creation. And it’s beautiful. And I’m so proud of you. Really I am.”

Matt finally pulls his hand from Alice’s grasp. He looks up at her wet-eyed. “I’ve been waiting so long for that, Mum,” he says, his voice wobbling with emotion. “I’ve waited so long just for one of you to say that. I gave up really. I thought it would never happen.”

“I’m sorry,” Alice says through her own tears. “I should have said it a long time ago.”

She pushes back from the table, and crosses to Matt’s side. “This is where we hug,” she says, when Matt remains seated.

Matt looks up at her sheepishly. “I’m not a very huggy person, I’m afraid,” he says.

“I’m not surprised,” Alice replies, crouching down to throw her arms around his rigid frame. “You didn’t come from a very huggy family. But we can try. We can change. We can get better at things. There’s still time.”

They embrace, albeit awkwardly, for a few seconds, and then Alice releases him and straightens. “I am sorry,” she says again, “that this has taken so long.”

Matt stares at his feet. “It’s OK,” he mutters. “We got there in the end. That’s the main thing.”

“It’s late,” Alice says. “Shouldn’t you be getting back to that... to that...
fiancé
of yours?”

Matt looks up at her through a fresh bout of tears. “Fiancé?” he laughs.

Alice shrugs cutely.

“But yeah, I suppose I should,” Matt says, then, “Would you come? To a wedding, I mean? If we did do it, would you come, Mum?”

“Of course I would,” Alice replies. “I’d be proud to.”

Matt stands. “Thanks,” he says.

“Drive carefully.”

“I will. And I’ll see you tomorrow, right?”

“Yes, I’ll see you tomorrow,” Alice says. “Bruno said he’d help me look for something on the Internet.”

“Fair enough,” Matt says. “You’ll be OK, won’t you?” he asks, hesitating with one hand on the railing.

Alice nods. “I’ll be fine,” she says. She glances at the house and sees that Paloma is sitting in the open doorway, waiting expectantly for her to go to bed. “Yes,” she says again. “I’ll be absolutely fine.”

THE END

A note from the author

Dear Reader. 

I do hope you enjoyed reading
The Other Son
. 

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The Photographer’s Wife

A novel by Nick Alexander

A number #1 ebook hit.
Over 150,000 copies sold.

From the author of
The French House
,
The Half-Life of Hannah
and
The Case of The Missing Boyfriend
, Nick Alexander’s #1 bestseller,
The Photographer's Wife
, is an epic tale set in two eras, a tale of the secrets one generation has, rightly or wrongly, chosen to hide from the next."

Barbara – a child of the Blitz – has more secrets than she cares to admit. She has protected her children from many of the harsh realities of life and told them little of the poverty of her childhood, nor of the darker side of her marriage to one of Britain's most famous photographers.

With such an incomplete picture of the past, her youngest, Sophie, has struggled to understand who her parents really are, and in turn, Barbara sometimes worries, to build her own identity.

When Sophie decides to organise a vast retrospective exhibition of her adored father's work, old photos are pulled from dusty boxes. But with them tumble stories from the past, stories and secrets that will challenge every aspect of how Sophie sees her parents.

ISBN:
1-8450-2955-0

Legal Notice

The Other Son

Nick Alexander has asserted his right to be identified as the author of this work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents act, 1988. Text by Nick Alexander, Copyright © 2015

The characters and situations in this book are entirely imaginary and bear no relation to any real person or actual happenings.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication can be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publishers and/or author.

While every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this book, the publisher assumes no responsibilities for errors or omissions, or for damages resulting from the use of information contained herein.

This edition, Copyright © BIGfib Books, 2015
Cover photo ©
Olga Reutska
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