Page 50 of Just the Beginning

‘Guess who called in to see me at the hotel the other day,’ Anya said a bit later as she was sorting through a bag of offcuts.

Chloe glanced up from the box of yarn she was sorting into colour combinations. ‘Who?’

‘Shelly.’

All eyes, Chloe set the yarn aside. ‘No! Really? What did she want?’

‘To say thank you for rescuing Leo.’

‘Well, I should think so too.’ Her cousin snorted.

‘And she apologised for being horrible to me; we had quite a good chat actually. Did you know her husband was working away?’

‘I can’t say I did, but then again we don’t really mix in the same circles.’ Chloe seemed to consider that for a minute. ‘Actually, I’m not sure who she hangs out with these days.’

‘I got the impression she’s pretty lonely and managing three small kids is clearly getting her down.’ Anya folded the square of fabric she was holding and sat back on her heels. ‘I felt sorry for her, actually, and I’ve arranged a playdate for Freya and Leo next weekend.’

‘That’s kind of you, especially after she was so rude.’

Anya shrugged. ‘I figured I need all the friends I can get, and Leo and Freya are going to be classmates for the next few years.’

‘Good point. Hey, if she’s really struggling, why don’t we speak to Mum about inviting her and the kids over?’

‘What, today?’

‘Why not? The fridge is packed full, so it’s not like we’re going to be short of food – and that’s before we add whatever Rachel and Jago bring with them.’

Anya finished folding the contents of the bag and reached for the next one. ‘Let’s see what your mum says.’

25

By the time Rick had finished up and put all his gear away he was ready to go home and fall face down on his bed for a few hours. He should be grateful business was thriving, but it was too much for him to handle on his own on busy weekends. He’d have to do something about hiring some help, but not tonight. Tonight he was going to relax and have fun with the people he loved. Knowing he was going to be seeing Anya, even if it was with the rest of the family around, was enough to give him a lift and by the time he was showered and changed he’d shaken off his tiredness. It wasn’t far to Ryan and Helen’s so they decided to walk. Somehow his mum had found time over the past couple of evenings to prepare desserts so they were laden down with a cheesecake, a treacle tart and a huge trifle.

They followed the path down the side of the house to find everyone sitting around the large, rectangular patio table. ‘Here they are!’ Helen called out by way of greeting as she stood. ‘We were just wondering where you’d got to.’

His mum leaned forward to kiss Helen’s cheek. ‘Sorry, wegot here as soon as we could.’ She raised the box with the cheesecake. ‘Shall we put these inside?’

‘Yes, come on through and grab a drink while you’re at it.’

Rick’s parents followed Helen while he scanned the garden with a frown. ‘Where’s Anya?’

Chloe got up with a laugh. ‘Don’t panic, lover boy, she and Shelly are giving the kids a bath and putting the twins down for a nap.’

That stopped him in his tracks. ‘What’s Shelly doing here?’

Chloe took the trifle he was holding and carried it towards the back door. ‘She’s having a hard time with Jason being away so we invited her to join us,’ she said to him over her shoulder before disappearing inside.

Rick caught up with her in the kitchen where Helen and his mum were trying in vain to make room in the fridge for the desserts they’d brought. ‘Is he still away? I thought it was just for a couple of weeks.’

Chloe raised an eyebrow at him. ‘Of course you’d know what’s going on.’

He lifted a hand to rub the back of his neck. ‘I just remember Jason coming into the Hub a while back when he was looking for work.’

‘It’s good that you know what’s going on with everyone,’ Chloe reassured him as she handed him a bottle of beer then leaned back against the kitchen counter next to him. ‘I feel a bit bad that I never thought to check in with her myself. Now I wonder what else is going on with other people that we used to hang out with. Even if we’re not good friends, we should at least try to be good neighbours.’

Not liking how downcast she looked, Rick nudged her foot with his. ‘I bet it was your idea to invite Shelly today.’

Surprised, Chloe met his gaze. ‘How did you know?’

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