Pat was busy scrambling eggs when Mia entered the kitchen. Mia was showered and dressed, a little pale beneath her make-up, but feeling at peace with things. Pat looked over and Mia could see that her face was a little puffy also. They shared a smile of warmth and understanding but didn’t speak of what had passed. They ate breakfast together and discussed the best way forward for Mia.
‘I’ll have to go to the hospital and see Mother, make sure that she’s all right. Well as all right as she can be. I think I’ll go and do that first thing.’ The last thing she wanted was to go within a mile of The Royal Brook, but now to be in the area and not check up on Vivian would be unforgivable. ‘And after, I’ll go over to Kiki’s and see if I can persuade her to let me bring the kids back here.’
‘Do you want us to come with you, dearest?’ Bill was frowning in concern over the top of his paper. ‘I don’t want you going there alone.’
Bless his sweet heart. He’d gone with her last time. Held her hand, offered to go in alone and do the identification, but she’d felt the need to see for herself. Had carried a tiny seed of hope the police and everyone had got it wrong and Jamie was just lost somewhere, not lying on a cold slab. Don’t think about it. ‘I’ll be fine, Pa. Quick in and out and then I’ll be on my way.’
He frowned. ‘Well, as long as you’re sure?’ The doubt in his voice said he was anything but, but at least he let the matter lie there.
Daniel sat at the kitchen table and watched Luke and Aaron both scrape the last of the gravy from their plates with thick slices of bread. Madeline was bustling around looking as pleased as punch to have a brood to take care of and Richard sat at the head of the table with a fond smile on his face as he watched his wife lift an apple crumble from the Aga. The sweet fragrance filled the room and Daniel felt his mouth water, even though he was already full to bursting from the second helping of stew that had been heaped on his plate earlier.
They had all worked hard that day, heaving stacks of furniture from inside the barn into the open air of the yard. Richard had suggested they get as much out into the light as possible so they could examine the pieces for rot and damage and to then group pieces that would work together. It had been a clear, fresh day and although they were filthy by the end of it, Daniel was sure that Mia would be pleased with the results. Luke had already selected a few pieces that would suit his plans for the back wing although he was remaining remarkably tight-lipped about exactly what those plans were.
Daniel couldn’t help but smile as Madeline ruffled Luke’s hair and patted Aaron on the cheek as she took their empty plates from the table and replaced them with bowls of steaming crumble and custard. He looked over at Richard and was surprised at the sadness on his face, so he leant forward to catch his eye. Richard shook himself slightly and forced a smile.
Daniel stood up from the table and casually nodded towards the back door. ‘I’m going to stretch my legs for a couple of minutes before I try and tackle pudding.’ Richard stood quickly and followed him, looking relieved of the chance to escape the cosy scene.
They strolled across the garden, hands in pockets, not talking in the way of men. They paused at the top of the steps that led down to the beach and Daniel drew in a great lungful of fresh, salty air. He still couldn’t believe that he was here in this idyllic place and he made a mental promise to himself to not take the situation for granted.
The wind was picking up and there was a slight sting of sea spray in it. He turned and leant against the side rail and Richard turned to mirror him on the other side.
Keeping his head facing towards the water Richard began to speak in a low voice. ‘We could never have children. We tried for a few years but Madeline couldn’t keep them. Not that I blame her at all, it’s just one of those things. After the third time, she nearly bled to death and I went and got a vasectomy whilst she was still in the hospital recovering. I couldn’t bear the thought that I would lose her and she eventually forgave me for it. It might have been different if we were of your generation. The advances in medical science are extraordinary from when we were your age, but we can’t change that. When I see her with you boys, with our Mia, it fills my heart with such joy and yet I can’t help mourning the loss of the family we could never have.’
Daniel stood quietly as he watched Richard blink hard, the moisture on his cheeks not entirely from the sea spray.
‘I miss my dad, Richard. Miss him and Mam so much. I was so lost when I came here. I think Madeline saved my life when she gave me a lift that day at the station. I know how much Mia values you both and I want you to know that I already feel the same way. I don’t know what will happen between us—you know what I want to happen, of course, and I’m hopeful she wants that too. If things work out, then maybe one day we’ll be able to give you that family.’
Daniel watched as Richard drew a shuddering breath and turned to face him with a huge smile on his face. ‘It would be the icing on the cake, son.’ They stepped together and Daniel allowed himself to lean against Richard as they embraced. It felt good to be held and supported and he knew that it would mean a lot to Richard that he was looking to him for such support and strength.
He thought again about how close he’d come to throwing everything away on a cheap buzz and a life of false friends and hangers-on. His muscles ached and he had paint and varnish stains on his hands and yet he couldn’t be happier. He’d even had his camera back out again today, capturing the stacks of dusty and damaged furniture sitting forlornly in their odd groupings in the yard. He still had it in his mind to put together an album for Mia, a memory piece of the work that had gone into transforming Butterfly House from a sad wreck into a vibrant and beautiful home.
He hoped that they would one day be able to show it to their children as a part of their history, telling them the story of how their parents had met. He knew he was getting way ahead of himself but these secret dreams of his heart were growing day by day.
Mia had been honest about going to stay with Jamie’s parents and part of Daniel was terrified that she would decide she wasn’t ready to move on from the past or that with a bit of distance perhaps she would find Daniel lacking in comparison to her lost love.
They’d kept in touch via text messages and he had deliberately kept his light and amusing, afraid that he would let his burgeoning feelings loose otherwise. He didn’t want to speak what was in his heart until Mia was back home and he could gauge her reaction. There was also the risk she would run a mile and he needed to be face to face with her so that he could persuade her not to.
He stood quietly in Richard’s arms and allowed these doubts and fears to wash through him. Richard squeezed his shoulder tightly and Daniel raised his head to meet the older man’s concerned gaze.
‘You’ll do right by each other, son. Just be honest with her and with yourself. If thirty years of marriage have taught me anything, it’s that the secrets and unspoken doubts will spoil things. Nothing good ever came from trying to shield your partner. Trust her with your dark places.’ With another squeeze on his shoulder, Richard steered them both back towards the warmth of the kitchen where Madeline and her delicious crumble awaited them.
They entered the cosy glow of the kitchen. The wave of warmth made Daniel shiver. It was strange how sometimes you didn’t realise how cold you were until after you got somewhere warm. Aaron was tapping away on his phone and Luke and Madeline were huddled together, foreheads almost touching as they perused some of the sketches Luke had put together for the suite. Madeline glanced up to wink at Richard briefly before she turned