Page 88 of Under Ground

“I hope you don’t mind me feeding her. She was up with Melly, and the two of them were hungry,” Delaney says from behind the kitchen counter.

“Oh, no. I’m so grateful. I thought it was weird she didn’t come into our room,” Lana says.

Delaney laughs. “She wanted to. But my daughter distracted her with the old toys she has tucked away in the wardrobe. She’s been saving them for Addison, but it’ll be a while before Addison’s old enough to play with them.”

Lana holds up her palms. “Hey, if she’s happy, I’m all for it.”

“It gave you guys a chance to sleep in too. I’d expect the next couple of days will be a bit rocky for you after your trip.” She beams. “Do you want breakfast? Take a seat at the table and I’ll get this sorted.”

I sit with Casey while Lana joins Delaney in the kitchen.

Delaney starts the coffee machine, and the scent of coffee fills the air.

Last night, I saw just how happy Casey was. Now I see Lana with the biggest smile on her face that I’ve seen in a while.

This was the right move for us.

23

Lana

A few days later, Alex starts work with Josh and Reece. They’re not filming yet, but they’ve given him the opportunity to experience the other aspects of movie-making.

And, spending time with them has boosted his ambition to learn everything he can. The more strings he has in his bow, the longer his career will go on.

“I am so glad they’re gone. I thought they’d never leave.” Delaney laughs as the boys walk out the door. “Want another coffee?”

My shoulders slump. “I’d love one. I can make it.”

Delaney wags a finger at me. “You’re not because you’re my guest, and also, I’m really possessive of my coffee machine.”

I laugh. “Fair enough.”

“Besides, you should put your feet up. You just relocated your life halfway around the world.”

She gets up from the dining table and walks into the kitchen to the coffee machine. I’ve never seen a kitchen like it. Everything’s so shiny and new, and the only time I’ve ever seen a coffee machine that complex has been in a cafe.

I close my eyes and take in the scent of freshly ground coffee beans. This is the life. No worrying about getting to work on time and Gareth breathing down my neck. I’m not sure what I’m going to do in this brave new world of mine, but eventually I want to do something.

For now, I’m content with taking a break.

Casey’s right next door in the living room, playing with more of Amelia’s toys. They’ve made quite a pile of things in the corner, and when I went to tidy up yesterday, Delaney waved me away and told me they have more room than they know what to do with—she’s not worried about a bunch of toys.

I guess she’s right. My old flat could fit into their house multiple times.

“How long have you been living here?” I ask Delaney.

She pours the coffee into the mugs. “About three years-ish? Must be, because Amelia is nearly eight.”

“How long did it take for you to settle in?”

Handing me my coffee, she rounds the kitchen bench and nods toward the living room.

I sit on a couch while she sits opposite. Taking a sip of coffee, she closes her eyes and lets out a loud sigh. “Oh, that’s good.” Shaking her head, she opens her eyes and places her coffee onto a small table beside the chair.

“Settling in. That’s a bit of a loaded question. I owned a diner back home, and sold it before coming here to start a new life with Josh, but didn’t think about anything much past that. And I was so bored at first. I didn’t really have anyone, and once Melly started school, my days were really empty.”

I lean forward. “I guess when you’re used to being so busy, it’s a big change.”

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