What She Wants (85 page)

‘You look beautiful, Delphine,’ said Fonsie, staring at the vision of loveliness that was his only child. Her dress flowed out into a full skirt from a tight bodice. Pale cream with hints of gold thread embroidered in the bodice and bottom of the skirt, it was a glorious dress and Delphine, her hair flowing in luxuriant curls around her shoulders, looked indeed like a fairy princess. ‘I’m so sorry about your mother but she’s here. I’m sorry I didn’t stand up to her,’ he said, looking down miserably. ‘Nonsense, Dad,’ said Delphine kissing him softly on the cheek. ‘You’re here now and that’s all that matters. Will you give me away?’

‘Mummy!’ yelled Millie, running into the hall in Kilnagoshell House with her flower girl dress on but only half-buttoned. Auntie Sam couldn’t do them properly in the back of the car because it was so bumpy. ‘Darling Millie!’ Hope swept her daughter up joyously. ‘I was scared you wouldn’t make it. Auntie Delphine is just ready now.’ She spun Millie around and did up her buttons. Then, she picked up the coronet of creamy roses that she’d had waiting for Millie, fixed it on with hair clips, and handed Millie her posy of flowers. ‘Ready?’ Millie nodded excitedly. Hope peered into the hall mirror to see if she looked terrible in her amethyst jacket and trousers. The trousers were too tight and Hope had had to leave the top button undone. She just hoped they didn’t fall to the ground at some vital moment, leaving everyone staring at her big knickers and pop socks, a dazzlingly elegant combination. ‘Where’s Toby?’ she asked Millie. ‘He’s with Daddy.’ ‘Daddy! What’s Daddy doing here?’ Hope gasped. ‘Coming to the wedding. I was invited, wasn’t I?’ said Matt. He stood at the door, a tall dark figure with the sun behind him. He’d had his hair cropped too short and he

looked tired, but even that couldn’t disguise his fierce glamour. And he was all dressed up, in his best suit and the tie Hope had searched Bath for on the occasion of his fortieth birthday. He looked so dear to her that all she wanted to do was rush into his arms and never let go. ‘Matt!’ squealed Delphine delightedly, coming down the stairs with her father by her side and Mary-Kate bringing up the rear. ‘Right. Are we all ready?’ There was no time to say anything. Millie was stationed behind Auntie Delphine and Mary-Kate and Matt and Hope had to rush outside to take their places in the rose garden. The traditional musicians who played in the Widows struck up the wedding march, which sounded odd on fiddle, accordion and bodhran, but no sound had ever sounded sweeter to Delphine or to Hope. Delphine stared at her dear Eugene, standing proudly there in his rumpled suit, waiting for her. Hope stood beside Matt, feeling his hand clutching hers in a vice-like grip. Beside them stood Sam and Toby, who was tired and was leaning against Auntie Ham’s knees. Matt leaned over to Hope. ‘I love you,’ he whispered. Hope squeezed his hand even more tightly. All the worry, all the anger seemed to have melted away as she held his hand. ‘Please,’ was all she could say for fear of floods of tears bursting out. Virginia stood with her family, little Alison asleep in her arms. ‘How do you do that?’ asked Jamie in astonishment. ‘She’s a little terror with everyone else.’ ‘She knows she’s with her granny.’ Virginia smiled down at the little girl and stroked her russet curls.

There wasn’t a dry eye in the house when Eugene finally leaned down and kissed his bride firmly on the mouth. Even Pauline could be seen to poke around in her handbag for a tissue.

‘Have one of mine,’ said Mary-Kate, handing one of a travel pack to her sister. ‘Glad you came, Pauline?’ Pauline sniffed yes. ‘And there’ll be no more arguments, right?’ Pauline nodded again. ‘Great. Now come into the house with me: as mother of the bride you get to help supervise the catering. We don’t want to ruin your reputation, do we?’ ‘It’s a pity Nicole wasn’t here,’ Reenie said, patting her eyes with a tissue. ‘She’d have loved it.’ ‘She would have,’ Sandra agreed, fanning herself with her handbag. ‘You are having a nice time, Mum, aren’t you?’ ‘Nice time?’ said Reenie. ‘That doesn’t even describe it. I’m having a grand time. By the way, I had a chat with that nice priest and I told him that my family are long gone but I’d love to trace any other relatives. He’s going to give me a hand on Monday. You never know what we might find.’ ‘Nicole would love that,’ Sandra said. ‘But what she’d really love is to find her dad.’ Reenie patted her daughter’s hand. ‘There’s a time for everything, Sandra, it’ll all work out, don’t worry. And you did a great job rearing her on your own, anyway, father or no father.’ ‘Really?’ Sandra looked astonished. ‘Really.’ While Delphine and Eugene were hugging and kissing everyone, Matt pulled Hope away onto the lawn at the front of the house. Sam, watching and hoping, took Millie and Toby by the hands and suggested finding Dinky for a game. ‘Why did you come back today?’ Hope asked, still holding Mart’s hand tightly. ‘Because I’ve been so stupid,’ Matt said. ‘I missed you so much, you wouldn’t believe it.’ She thought of the sleepless nights and the painful weeks when she thought she’d never be happy again. ‘Yes I would.

I’ve missed you too. I thought you’d never come back to me. And I couldn’t beg, you understand that.’ ‘I couldn’t understand that for a long time,’ he admitted slowly. ‘I thought of the old Hope who’d never even start an argument and who’d be first to apologize even when it wasn’t her fault rather than have a fight lurking in the air. To be honest, I thought you did love him, I was sure that was why you didn’t phone me every hour, begging me to come back.’ ‘Oh Matt,’ she turned to face him. ‘Nothing happened with Christy. I flirted with him, that was all, and I was too stupid to let him know it was just flirting. I didn’t love him, I didn’t care one iota about him.’ ‘You’re an innocent,’ Matt said, stroking her face gently. He sat her down on the lichen-covered stone seat. ‘I knew it all along, really, but I was hurt, my pride was hurt. I couldn’t understand how you’d do that to me and I couldn’t understand why you didn’t beg me to come back.’ ‘I’ve changed,’ she interrupted. ‘If I’d begged you to come back, I would have hated myself for begging and you would have hated me for what you thought went on. You had to forgive me because you’d worked it out for yourself,’ she said earnestly. ‘When I began to think about it, I did understand a bit,’ Matt replied. ‘I was pretty shitty to you. I’d left you to cope with everything when we moved here and then I was surprised when having to cope changed you.’ ‘For the better, I hope,’ she said. ‘I relied on you too much, now I’ve learned to rely on myself. Which reminds me, you never even told me the book wasn’t working. If you had, I’d have understood why you were so…’ ‘Hard to live with?’ Matt supplied, wincing. ‘I didn’t want to tell anyone that. After all these years of thinking I could do anything, it was a humbling experience to find that I couldn’t. I’m sorry. It turned me into a total bastard. It wasn’t fair on you. I neglected you and the kids.’ His eyes were pained. ‘What was killing me was that I was a failure

and that you’d soon see I was a failure. I couldn’t bear that. I brought you all this way to a strange place, left you alone to deal with it all and I failed at my part of the bargain.’ ‘You’re anything but a failure, Matt,’ Hope said, eyes shining. ‘You’re the man I love, you’re not perfect but you’re no failure. I’m not perfect myself, you know,’ she laughed. ‘I know. But I still neglected you and I promise I won’t do it again. Especially not now.’ He put one hand gently on Hope’s swelling belly. ‘It’s your baby,’ she blurted out. ‘I know,’ he said. ‘I know you wouldn’t have gone off with another man, I should have given you the benefit of the doubt. Seeing you with him made me freak out and made me feel more like a failure than ever. I wanted to roar off in a rage and get away from everything. I was running away from life not working out here as much as running away from you.’ He hung his head. ‘If I’d acted sensibly, none of this would have happened.’ ‘But…’ Hope was puzzled. ‘How did you know I was pregnant?’ ‘My first inkling was due to Millie thinking that morning sickness is a sign of being a grown up,’ he said wryly. He told her all about the pickle jar contents in the toilet bowl. ‘And,’ Matt added, ‘don’t go mad, but Sam phoned me yesterday to tell me to cop on and the pregnancy was discussed.’ Hope rolled her eyes. ‘I’ve spent months telling her not to get involved,’ she said. ‘I’m amazed.’ ‘Sam loves you.’ ‘That’s not why I’m amazed. I’m stunned that the pair of you could bury your differences for long enough to talk on the phone.’ ‘We managed it. She’s great with the kids, isn’t she? They went mad when they saw her at the airport. It’s no joke looking after them. I don’t know how you do it,’ he said. ‘I think we’ll have to get a nanny so that when we’re off travelling, the kids can be looked after.’

Hope just looked at him. ‘What do you mean get a nanny? We’re broke. We can barely afford a babysitter. Have you got your job back at Judd’s?’ ‘It’s a long story,’ he said. ‘Adam is back and to be honest I’d find it hard to go back to working for him after so long running the show. So I won’t be going back. The only option, under normal circumstances, would be to set up my own agency.’ Hope looked anxious, missing the reference to under normal circumstances. That would cost a fortune. How would they cope? ‘What do you want to do?’ Matt could barely contain himself. ‘My great novel was a bit of a disaster but when I was in Bath, missing you, I started writing this comic novel for fun. It’s not literary or anything, but I enjoyed doing it.’ Hope was still staring at him, not sure where this was all going. ‘Dan persuaded me to send it off to an agent. I thought he was mad,’ Matt commented, ‘but I did it, expecting to hear nothing back, to be honest. The day that Millie played morning sickness, I dropped the kids off at Betsey’s and went back to the flat to open the post and there it was. A letter from my agent.’ He grinned. ‘I love saying those words: “my agent”. Anyway, a letter from my agent begging me to phone because I had forgotten to put my phone number on the original letter. I phoned up and you won’t believe it, he loved the book and he was so excited that he’d already asked a publisher to have a look at it.’ Matt took both Hope’s hands in his and looked at her gravely. ‘They’ve offered me a quarter of a million pounds for three books,’ he said. ‘I’ve done it, Hope. I’m a writer. It’s worked!’ ‘Oh Matt,’ wailed Hope. ‘That’s so wonderful, I’m so proud of you.’ She threw her arms round him and kissed him madly. ‘We’ve got two productions on the go,’ whooped Matt, patting her belly.

‘Just one thing,’ Hope said, suddenly anxious. This was a vital point, but they had to discuss it. ‘I’d like to stay in Redlion. It’s very important to me. Do you think we can manage that?’ ‘Leave this oasis of creativity?’ said Matt. ‘Not likely.’

The first moment Nicole realized that her life had changed inexorably, was when she stepped out of the apartment building on Wednesday afternoon to see a crowd of at least fifteen photographers hoisting their cameras in the air and start clicking madly. Her mobile held to her ear as she spoke to her mother, Nicole looked blindly around to see who the photographers were so keen to photograph. But there was nobody behind her, no superstar in dark glasses attempting to be anonymous. This frantic activity was for her, Nicole Turner. ‘Nicole, how does it feel to be tipped to reach number one with your first single?’ yelled a female reporter, balancing a tape recorder in one hand and an enormous handbag in the other. ‘Will you be phoning Lorelei to tell her or are you still feuding?’ Several more tape recorders were shoved under Nicole’s nose. Nicole blinked in shock and was relieved to feel Isya from Bob Fellowes’s office grab her by the arm and haul her off for a quiet word. ‘Nicole will be back in a moment,’ announced Talia, the tall, commanding publicity woman from LGBK who’d virtually been Nicole’s shadow for the previous two weeks of non-stop interviews and performances. ‘We’ve been trying to reach you all morning to tell you,’ she said to Nicole. ‘We’ve left so many messages on your mobile,’ pointed out Isya. ‘I didn’t turn it on until just now,’ Nicole said, who’d spent her longed-for morning off in bed sleeping off a hectic two weeks of travelling. It had been her first time off in

weeks. ‘I got such a shock when I came out and saw all of these people…’ ‘We only just got here and we didn’t think there’d be any press activity here,’ Talia admitted. ‘I don’t know how they got your home address. We have a photocall set up for tomorrow morning’s breakfast television show, I thought that would generate the most interest.’ ‘But why are they here anyway?’ asked Nicole, still in shock. ‘The single was only just released on Monday. It’s not even in the chart, how can they be talking about the number one slot already.’ Talia allowed herself to smile with pride that all her hard work had paid off. ‘The sales have been incredible,’ she said. ‘We’ve got the mid-weeks and “Honey, (Don’t You Know) I Need You?” has had 50,000 over the counter sales in just two days. That’s fantastic. If the single keeps selling this way, you’ll definitely be number one and with one of the biggest sales figures ever.’ Nicole could barely take it in. ‘Now,’ said Talia, glancing at the waiting press, ‘I want you to smile, pose and tell them how thrilled you are.’ ‘Don’t mention Lorelei,’ begged Isya. ‘She is with the same management company as you.’ ‘And she’s a right bitch,’ Nicole said quietly. ‘It’s time to be magnanimous in triumph,’ advised Talia. ‘Lorelei’s single was released on Monday too and according to the mid-weeks, the only place it sold well was round the corner from where her mother lives.’ Nicole allowed herself to grin. Served bloody Lorelei right. She posed for the photographers and Talia said they had time to answer four or five questions. Nicole smiled and told everyone how thrilled she was when asked. Suddenly the question from hell arrived. ‘You’re half Indian but you never discuss your heritage. Do you think you’re copping out of half your heritage by making yourself white?’ demanded one journalist.

Talia and Isya both gulped but Nicole was ready for him. ‘I’ve never met my dad,’ she said simply, ‘that’s why I don’t know anything about Indian culture, but I’d love to change that. I’m willing to learn, I’m proud of what I am a little bit of everything.’ She smiled that hundred watt smile at them all. ‘Interview over,’ snapped Talia, whisking Nicole away to the waiting limo. ‘You handled that well,’ she said admiringly. Nicole shrugged. ‘It was going to come up some time, so let’s see what they make of that. I talked it over with Darius, my mum and my gran. We’ve nothing to be ashamed of and who knows, maybe I’ll find my dad after all. I’d like that.’ Talia stared at her. There was no doubt about it, Nicole Turner was very different from the usual girl-with-a-fabulous-voice. Refreshingly different. ‘Right,’ she said. ‘Next,’ she consulted her list, ‘we’ve got two press interviews, four radio drive-time interviews, and you’ve got to get all dolled up like a dog’s dinner for the movie premiere tonight. The stylist has a load of great dresses for you to try on, so let’s get moving, OK?’ ‘Yeah,’ said Nicole, suddenly not able to stop grinning. Her single was selling brilliantly. How wonderful was that? Even if she didn’t get to the unbelievable number one slot, she’d never forget the thrill of this day.