More Than Just One Night (The Selwood Sisters Novellas) (8 page)

He seemed to sense that she was pulling back,
having second thoughts about them. His hands dropped away from her waist and he
stepped away, his eyes wary. “Let’s eat while the steaks are still edible. I
turned the gas off and closed the hood. Hopefully, they’ll be all right.”

She nodded and reached for the salad bowl. How
was it possible to go from such a high to such a low in such a short time?

“So, Cora,” Gwen said as she handed her a
plate of cake in the kitchen of their childhood, “how did you get on with Alex
last weekend? Did it work out the way you planned?”

Cora put the plate on the table in front of
her, took a mouthful of wine and swirled it across her tongue before saying,
“He was glad to see me, and we had a lovely time.”

Lily frowned. “Why don’t you sound happier
about that?”

To Cora’s horror, a tear dripped onto the
hand holding the wineglass, and she hadn’t even realised that she was crying.
She used the back of her other hand to wipe her eyes and blinked to clear her
vision. “Sorry. I don’t know where that came from.”

“Hey, don’t apologise,” Gwen said, waving her
fork. “It’s good to see that you’re human. I always wondered.”

“Gwen,” Lily said with a frown, “that’s not very
nice. It’s safe to cry here if you want to, Cora. We’re your family and we
won’t judge you,” she added with a pointed glance at Gwen.

Gwen nodded. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it. Go
ahead and cry.”

Cora took a deep breath. “Thanks, but I don’t
want to. Alex’ ex-wife turned up on Saturday to drop off their daughter. It
wasn’t pre-arranged, and he wasn’t pleased, but apparently this happens often.
Sounds to me like she’s selfish and immature, possibly even  manipulative, but
I don’t know enough about her to make that call.”

“Did she say something to upset you?” Lily
asked.

Cora smiled at Lily’s indignant tone. Shaking
her head, she said, “No, she barely spoke to me at all. She argued with Alex
outside, then left. No, it wasn’t that. It was Sophie.”

Gwen and Lily exchanged a glance, then Lily
said, “Is she a brat?”

“Not at all. She’s adorable. Completely.
But...” She took another drink. “I know this is going to sound shallow, but the
thing is, I’ve already had my family. I don’t want to get involved with another
one. I don’t want to go through all of that again.”

Lily frowned, and Cora belatedly remembered
her sister’s longing for a second child and her husband’s resistance. “Sorry, Lily.
I should have thought about your situation.”

“Oh, God, no. Don’t worry about me,” she
said. “I was just wondering how involved you’d need to be. I mean, she already
has a mother, so it’s not as if she’d live with you and Alex — if you decided
to live together, that is.”

Gwen said, “Lily’s right. You wouldn’t be
expected to do all that stuff like making costumes for school plays. Her mother
would do that, wouldn’t she?”

Cora tried to imagine the woman she’d seen at
Alex’s place making a turtle costume as she’d once had to do for Fern. “I’m not
sure that she would, but I might be misjudging her. Still, I’m thinking rather
of Alex being available to look after Sophie whenever her mother feels like
going out on her own. I’d have to get used to our plans being overturned, and
doing things appropriate for a four-year-old.” She sighed. “And I know it
sounds like I’m being selfish and shallow, but I’m also thinking of Sophie,
because if Alex is worrying about letting me down, he’s not going to be fully
available for her, is he?”

“She won’t be four forever,” Gwen said, “but
I do see your point.”

Lily looked bemused. “I’m sorry, but I don’t.
Maybe I’m being dense, but couldn’t you just see Alex when he doesn’t have
Sophie? Do you even know whether Alex is thinking about living together? Is he
that serious?”

“We haven’t talked about it, but it feels as
if he’s serious. If not, he’s gone to an awful lot of trouble for someone he
considers short-term.” She shrugged. “But it would be difficult enough to make
a relationship work in our situation, without adding in the complication of a
child. Alex’s career is in Sydney, and that wouldn’t change. I couldn’t leave Selwoods—”

“Couldn’t you, though?” Gwen gave her a
questioning look. “I mean, really, what’s to stop you? You could sell Selwoods,
and live comfortably in Sydney on the proceeds. I certainly wouldn’t object to
you selling — I could use the money. You could have a much simpler life if
that’s what you want, and then you might be able to handle the occasional
disruption of caring for his daughter.”

“It’s our children’s inheritance. And
Justin’s going to take over from me when he’s ready. That’s always been the
plan, but I need to make sure it’s still viable when I hand it on to him.”

“Does he want to take over? Have you asked
him? Or was it a dream of Paul’s that’s no longer relevant?”

Cora couldn’t answer the question. It had
never occurred to her that Justin might not want to take over Selwoods. It had
been a given, ever since Paul had told her that he dreamed of one day handing
down the company to their son.

Justin had never given any indication that he
wasn’t keen on the idea, but on the other hand, he hadn’t shown any eagerness
to come home and take up the reins. He was young, and she understood the urge
to see some of the world before settling into such a demanding role, had
encouraged it even, believing that the experience could only benefit him when
he did take over. But — and it was a very big but — she’d never talked to him
about what he wanted in the long-term. Was it possible that Justin would be
pleased, even relieved, if she sold the family business?

Gwen and Lily were watching her, waiting for
her to respond. She shook herself. “I’ve just realised that I don’t actually
know. I’m going to have a talk with Justin before I get ahead of myself.”

“Right. Well, good luck with that. I hope a
chat with Justin helps you to decide.”

Lily said, “I don’t think I want you to sell,
though. I like working at Selwoods.”

“You won’t need to work once you have your
share,” Gwen pointed out.

Lily shrugged. “I enjoy it.”

“I do feel responsible for the people who
work there,” Cora said. “Some of them worked for Dad.”

“I know, and it’s understandable that you’d
care about them,” Gwen said. “The business has been a big part of your life,
but you shouldn’t let it stop you having the future you want. How did you leave
things with Alex?”

Cora sighed. “I told him I needed more time
to think about us. He wasn’t happy, but he agreed to let me have the time to
think.”

Cora decided it was late enough in London to
phone Justin. Even if she woke him, he couldn’t complain that it was an
unreasonable hour.

He answered on the first ring. “Mum, hi!”

“Hello, darling. I didn’t wake you?”

“Nah, I was up. I’ve got a full-day planned.
I’m going sky-diving.”

Cora closed her eyes. “Just what a mother
wants to hear. Tell me you’re kidding.”

He hesitated, then said, “All right, I’m
kidding. Uh, but I can’t talk for long because I’m going...out, okay?”

“You’re really going sky-diving?”

“It’s perfectly safe. I’ve got a parachute
and everything. I bought it second-hand.”

“You bought a
used
parachute? Is that
safe?”

“Well, it’s used, but the advert said
never-opened.” He laughed. “I’m kidding, Mum.”

“Justin, that’s not funny.”

“Sorry. In fact I go to a reputable club with
high safety standards. All their equipment is checked and double-checked.”

“You’ve done this before?”

“Yes, and lived to tell the tale. Now, did
you call for a reason, or just for a chat?”

“For a reason.” She took a couple of deep
breaths, trying to put the horror of unopened parachutes out of her mind. “I
want to talk to you about Selwoods.”

“As in, the business, not the family?”

“Yes, the business. It occurred to me that
we’ve never talked about what you want to do about the company.”

His tone became serious. “Do about it? What
do you mean? Is there a problem?”

“No, no problem. It’s just that I’ve never
asked you whether you want to take over the company the way your dad always
intended.”

He sounded puzzled when he said, “I don’t
understand why you’re asking the question, but the answer is, of course I do.”

“You do? Oh. Really?”

“Are you struggling to cope, Mum? Is that it?
Do you need me to come home now?”

“No, I’m not struggling. I just want to make
sure that you mean it, and you didn’t just say it because you consider it’s
your duty to take over.”

“You’re making my head hurt now.”

“Because if that’s the case, we could sell
the business and you could use your share of the money to set yourself up in
whatever you really want.”

The line went silent for a moment, then,
“Mum?”

“Yes, darling?”

“You can’t sell Selwoods.”

“Well, I can if—”

“No, you can’t. Grandad started it and built
it up. Dad made it more successful. It belongs in the family. Please, don’t
even think about selling it. I do want to take over, and seriously, if you need
me to come home sooner than planned, I will.”

“No, that’s not necessary. There’s no reason
to change your plans.”

“Okay, if you’re sure, I won’t. I don’t want
to rush you, but if there’s nothing else, I’d better go. People are waiting for
me.”

“Well, be careful, won’t you? I love you.”

“Of course I will. Love you too.”

She stared at the phone in her hand. She’d
almost convinced herself that Justin would jump at the chance to be relieved of
the burden of managing the family business, but she’d been wrong, and now she
was back where she started. 

It  had been lovely to hear Justin’s voice,
even if she was now going to worry about him jumping out of a plane. Why he
wanted to do such a thing was beyond her, but then, she wasn’t in her twenties.
Life looked different at that age. At her age she should know better than to
believe things would fall into place so conveniently just because she wanted them
to.

Fern knocked on the open study door, then
stepped inside. “Were you talking to Justin?”

“Yes.”

“I thought so. I couldn’t hear what you were
saying, but I could tell by your tone of voice.”

Cora looked up, surprised. “How is it
different?”

“It’s just obvious when you’re talking to
your darling son. Not that I mind. I’m not jealous or anything.”

Taken aback, Cora said, “I should hope not,
because I love you both equally. You must know that.”

Fern flopped into the recliner where her
father had often read stories to her and Justin, one sitting on each knee, Cora
remembered. Fern shrugged. “I just came in to say that I’m leaving now,
and...there’s something else.” She moistened her lips. “You’ll be pleased to
know that Russell and I have broken up.”

“Oh, Fern! Are you all right about that?”

“Yeah. Well, I was the one who ended it.”

Cora fought her curiosity, and lost. “Why did
you do that?”

Fern gave her a
puh-lease
look. “You
know why. He’s too old for me. Huh, he bought some
yellow
trousers.” She
rolled her eyes.

Cora bit the inside of her cheek to stop
herself smiling. “He didn’t. Did he?”

“With checks. Can you imagine that?”

“Like Rupert the Bear.”

“Who?”

Cora  waved the question away. “Before your
time. I’m showing my age.”

“Right. He said they were only for playing
golf in, but he was still wearing them one day when he picked me up for lunch.”
She grimaced. “My uni friends saw him in them. I’ve never been so embarrassed.”

Cora struggled not to laugh. “That’s one of
the three classic signs of a mid-life crisis, you know. Seriously, it’s been
studied. Wearing yellow pants is one. Buying a sports car is another,” she
said, counting on her fingers. “And dating a child is the third. So, there you
go. He satisfies all three criteria. He’s having a mid-life crisis, and believe
me, you’re better off out of there.”

Fern looked at her. “Does this mean you don’t
want to throw me out now?”

“I never
wanted
to, honey. I just
couldn’t stand that man coming here. I hated seeing you with him. Honestly, if
I thought Russell would make you happy, I wouldn’t have a problem with the age
difference.”

“Really? I thought you had a huge problem
with it.”

“I did at first, I admit. Now, though, I
don’t think age makes a difference to how happy people are in a relationship, it’s
who they are that matters. And Russell…I’m sorry, but he just wasn’t right for
you. Even if he’d been in his twenties I wouldn’t have liked him.”