Page 72 of First Impressions
Chapter Twenty-Six
‘Daniel, have you got a minute?’
Daniel frowned at the sight, once more, of his ex-wife standing on his doorstep. Despite her assertions that she’d accepted his decision not to get back together, she was becoming adept at finding excuses to talk to him.
He glanced at his watch in an attempt to fob her off. ‘I’ve only got a few minutes.’
‘That’s fine,’ she replied. He felt he had no choice but to invite her in. He led her through to the living room but didn’t offer her any refreshment. Unperturbed, she settled herself down on his large sofa. He selected a chair and sat as far away from her as possible.
‘I’ve got a bit of a problem with the charity ball on Saturday,’ she said.
‘Oh, yes?’ Lucinda was a supporter of the Brain Trust — her cousin’s husband had died of a brain tumour at the age of twenty-six — and every year she held a charity event to raise funds. With her wealthy Cheshire contacts she usually raised a huge amount of money, and when they’d been married he’d helped her organise it. Since their split, he’d always attended the event in support of the charity, and in memory of Craig, whom he’d grown close to during his marriage to Lucinda.
‘The MC for the night is ill and won’t be able to attend next Saturday.’
‘And?’
‘And I need a replacement. I wondered if you would do the honours?’
‘Me?’ Daniel was astounded. Although he had a certain amount of fame, he much preferred to be behind the camera than standing in front of a crowd. ‘Oh, I don’t think so — it’s notmy kind of thing. I doubt I’d make a very good job of it. What about Axel? He’s much better suited than me.’
Lucinda pulled a face. ‘Axel won’t be here. He’s doing a gig in London.’
‘Oh, I see.’
‘I really can’t think of anyone better, Daniel. You’ve been involved with the charity for years and despite your misgivings you’ll do a brilliant job.’
Daniel sighed. ‘Very well, I’ll do it, but don’t blame me if I make a hash of it.’
‘You won’t, I know you won’t.’ Lucinda leaped up and threw her arms around him. Daniel gently extricated himself from her grasp. He had a feeling he was going to regret this.
* * *
‘Dad, when’s Anna coming up again?’ Ben asked when Daniel dropped him off at Lucinda’s on Monday morning.
‘I don’t know, son,’ Daniel replied. ‘She’s really busy at the moment with her work, but I’m sure she’ll be here as soon as she can.’
‘I hope so, because I really miss her.’
‘Me too,’ Daniel replied, wishing he wasn’t so bogged down with his own work while she was in London. She never had time to talk when he phoned at the moment, was always just rushing off somewhere and often forgot to phone him back when she’d said she would, and he was beginning to worry that she was avoiding him. He feared that he was losing her. Maybe he should have decided to set the new school up in London, then he would have had more time to spend with her. But the flip side of that would be having less time to spend with Ben. Whatever he did, he was going to lose out. He stayed in the car while Ben got out. Lucinda came out on the doorstep, but he waved to her cheerily and drove off, avoiding yet another conversation.
Charlotte was coming up on the train to see the new venue for the photography school and he couldn’t wait to show her what he’d found. The property was in Didsbury, just outside of Manchester, and although it was in the Manchester commuter belt, and a bit of a posh area, he thought that by being based there he might encourage sponsorship. Although he’d be working for free, he hoped he could get others to sponsor the students to help them throughout the course. That way it would spread the costs and give the students a bit of security in the long term. It had been Charlotte’s idea and it was one he was really excited about.
‘It’s a great venue,’ Charlotte said as Daniel snapped some publicity shots. It had a number of rooms that could be portioned off for private editing studios, a larger area for portrait work, another area that could be used as a lecture theatre with smaller rooms for offices. Although initially he would be the only teacher, he hoped that over time he would be able to recruit more. That would free him up to concentrate on other things. He wondered if, after her exhibition, Anna might be interested in getting involved too. At least then they would be able to see a bit more of each other.
‘So, how’s life in London?’ he asked when he and Charlotte were seated in an Italian restaurant, enjoying some pasta for a late lunch.
‘Great,’ Charlotte said between mouthfuls. ‘Busy. Things are really beginning to take off. I’ve rented an office and I’ve even taken on some staff. Youngsters, mainly, eager to learn the ropes, but their ambition and enthusiasm is amazing, and of course they are so much more tech and social savvy than I will ever be.’
‘Sounds good. Have you seen much of Anna?’
He’d tried to frame the question casually, but he realised from the way she was staring at him intently that he had failed spectacularly.
‘Some, but she’s really busy.’
‘So I’d noticed.’
‘Something wrong?’
