Page 115 of Merrily Ever After
‘On the condition that you and Lydia agree,’ I said, shrinking back into the bench.Nice one, Merry, interfering again.
‘Er.’ Cole scratched his head. ‘Let’s talk about that tomorrow; there are other things to sort out tonight.’
Harley’s shoulders slumped. ‘Here we go.’
‘I just want you to know how much I love you, son,’ Cole said, tilting Harley’s chin up so he could look him in the eye. ‘You’ve been through a lot of changes over the last few years and I’m very proud of you. But if there is anything,anythingat all, that’s bothering you, please trust me with it, OK? Because you and Freya and Merry’ – he looked at me over Harley’s shoulder – ‘are the most important people in my world. If you’re not happy, then neither am I, OK?’
Harley didn’t say a word, he just leaned into his dad and wept, his thin shoulders heaving with sobs.
‘OK?’ Cole repeated, his own voice breaking.
‘OK.’
‘Good.’ Cole held him at arm’s length. ‘And now that’s out of the way, I think there’s someone you need to say sorry to.’
‘Mum?’ Harley asked, looking nervously over his shoulder to the house. ‘Is she here?’
Lydia stepped from the shadows and raised her hand. ‘I am. Thank you, Merry, thanks for doing what you did and I’m sorry for what I said earlier. I was out of order.’
‘Already forgotten,’ I said with relief. ‘And I’m sorry too. I’ve still got a lot to learn about kids.’
Lydia and I smiled at each other across the garden and then she extended her arms. ‘And now I need a big hug from my son.’
Harley was across the garden in seconds and in his mum’s arms and together they went into the house.
Cole and I looked at each other, both of us brimming with emotion.
‘I should have told you,’ I said. I got up from the damp bench, quickly putting on Harley’s gilet that I’d had across my knees. ‘But he made me promise. I didn’t want to break his trust.’
‘Darling, I’m so sorry,’ he said, sweeping me into his arms. ‘The way I spoke to you earlier was unforgivable.’
I shook my head. ‘Under the circumstances, I—’
‘No,’ he said firmly. ‘No. You deserve my trust and my faith. Lydia and I are grateful that he felt he could confide in you. She’s feeling wretched about what happened; she thinks he might have seen her kissing this new bloke.’
I winced. ‘He did.’
He nodded. ‘That’s what was behind this whole escapade. Nothing else. So whatever he told you didn’t cause this.’ He waited a beat and I knew what he was asking.
‘He’s missing Canada,’ I said, wrapping my arms around his neck. ‘And the old life he’s come back to has moved on without him and he feels like he doesn’t fit in. Although I think singing might be helping. But tonight he told me something else and I think you should know about it.’
‘OK.’
Cole listened intently while I told him what Harley had said about his parents taking turns and how that made him feel.
‘Poor kid.’ Cole tutted sadly. ‘It’s obvious when he puts it like that. How can I have been a parent for over thirteen years and still be making mistakes?’
I shrugged. ‘Because that’s how we grow. Because failure is part of success. And, I guess, kids change all the time, which means their problems change too.’
‘That is profound.’ He nodded thoughtfully before lowering his lips to mine.
‘Apparently exposing your brain to extreme cold makes you say clever things,’ I said, pulling his shirt out of his trousers and slipping my freezing fingers into the warmth. ‘Which might explain it.’
Cole sucked in a breath as my fingers found his skin.
‘You’re incredible, Merry Shaw. From now on, I’m going to be involving you in decisions about the kids more. You’re more perceptive than me, and I know you love them too.’ His breath was warm against my lips. ‘And I love you, more than I could ever have imagined.’
‘You see,’ I said, my breath catching, as he snuggled in as close as he could, closing the space between us. ‘You’re getting smarter by the second.’
