Page 33 of Sleep

“Hummus needs to be stored in the fridge. It was still in a bag on top. Since last week! All rotten.”

“Oops!” I put the toddler down—Frazer or Felicia, I could never tell them apart, dressed in identical rompers and matching haircuts.

“So,” Jenny said.

“Yes?”

“Contracts on the side. Fridge cleared out and restocked. Prescription will be delivered before ten tonight, and I sorted out that HR proposal for the Lambeth site. Kizzy will cover the Ealing site visit on Thursday with Jasper, and Brendan and Dylan Scotland and his team want to move that meeting next week. Anything else I can do for you?”

“No.” I shook my head. Perfect. All good. I still felt a little ashamed about the fridge situation. I was better than this. “Jen?”

“Yup?” She was still tapping into her keyboard.

“Can you find someone’s number for me?”

“Who?”

“A Mabel Donovan who lives in Newbury.”

“Okay.” A curious glance. I didn’t blame her.

“Not much to go on there. A business contact? Or is this personal?”

“Personal,” I admitted, feeling my face start to heat up. Breathe, for heaven’s sake. “Jenny, Mabel is a friend, and I want to check in on them.”

“Okay…have you googled them? Social media? LinkedIn?”

I grimaced. Jenny sighed and took a seat, dragging her laptop closer. One of the twins claimed a place on her lap. The other one…was chewing my knee. Our weekly face-to-face was playing out the same as usual, exactly how I liked it.

“There’s a Mabel Donovan working for Royal Mail in Belfast.”

“No.”

“Aged seventy from County Down? Just had a birthday?”

“Mabel is around forty and works…” Damn it. I didn’t want a therapy session, just a number, but there was no getting around it. “Next door.”

“Oh.” Jenny’s face was a picture, only for a second, though, before she fished her phone out of her pocket and pushed it up to her ear. “You could have said that from the start. I can’t mind-read, but I can perform miracles.” She winked as the call connected. “Amelia, yes, hi. Jennifer Foster… Yes, brilliant… Look, I have a favour…Yes, I know… No, absolutely no problem. Love that for you. Now, I have a VIP client and need to have a discreet conversation with your Mabel downstairs. Any chance you can give me a number?… Yes, no problem. Fully understood… Yes? Great. You’re a star. Brilliant… Absolutely. Bye.”

She hung up. Then her phone pinged. She smiled. I knew that smile. And then my phone pinged as well.

“I deserve that raise.”

“You do,” I agreed, warmth spreading through my body, coupled with fear.

“Do I want to know what this is about?”

“No,” I said, fairly certain my face betrayed me.

“It’s good to see you smile, Jonny.”

I wasn’t so sure but deflected by picking up the toddler who was currently untying my shoelaces and smooching an awkward kiss on their head while I shot off a quick text message before I lost my nerve.

Please drop by. Any time. I mean it. Jonny.

“In return for that small favour, I’m going to ask you to babysit next week,” Jenny said. “I wouldn’t, but yes, I am that desperate.”

“You know I never mind. What’s the desperation this time?”

---