by A. E. Radley
Selina couldn’t help but grin. “Very well.”
She picked up her purchases and turned without another word. She was pleasantly surprised. The interaction hadn’t been as terrible as she’d imagined.
Kate had obviously settled into her role well and had progressed from cleaning tables to serving customers. Selina couldn’t help but feel a little pride in that. Whether she was proud of Kate for her own achievements or proud of herself for putting it all together, though, she couldn’t quite tell.
Meeting the Family
Selina looked at her reflection in her handheld mirror and attempted to tidy her hair. She hated that a simple meeting with her sister made her feel so on edge. Weren’t people supposed to enjoy meeting up with their siblings?
Gemma entered Selina’s office. “Margaret just dropped off the new seating plans. I pushed your meeting with Tom back to next week. He hadn’t got the figures finalised, so there’s no point in you wasting your time. Jonathan wants a meeting with you at Bradshaw’s next Monday. You had an appointment with Sylvia, but I moved her to a later appointment on Thursday. I smoothed it over by telling her you had more time on Thursday and didn’t want to hurry her along.”
“Perfect.” Selina slammed her compact mirror closed.
“Can I get you anything else?” Gemma asked, placing a few pieces of paper in Selina’s in-tray.
“No. I’ll be over at Edge with my sister if you need me. Shouldn’t take more than fifteen minutes. If I’m lucky.”
After a week of dodging her sister’s calls, she’d received a text saying that Abigail would meet her in a local coffee shop or else she would bring both boys into the office to meet their aunt at work.
Blackmail was Selina’s go-to, so she couldn’t be too angry that Abi had finally grown a backbone and used it herself.
The thought of both children running around her office—if indeed they were walking yet—was horrendous. A flurry of texts followed, and a meeting at Edge was set.
“When was the last time you saw your nephews?” Gemma asked.
Selina wasn’t entirely sure. She had a vague idea of the last time she was at Abi’s house, but she couldn’t quite remember if the boys were there. And there was a family gathering where there were many children in attendance, but she really didn’t know who was who.
But that wasn’t something she was about to share with mother-to-be Gemma.
“Quite a few months ago,” she said.
“Ah, it will be nice to see them and bond with them. They forget so quickly at that age.”
Selina frowned. It seemed her assistant was aware of how old the children were, even if she had no idea.
“Indeed, they do,” she agreed.
This new relationship with Gemma was difficult to navigate. She’d taken Kate’s suggestion on board, and the very next morning had asked Gemma to sit down in her office for a few minutes under the guise of catching up.
She had asked about the pregnancy, the sex of the child—which she promptly forgot—and about preparations being made at home for the arrival. Gemma lit up and had talked without pausing for breath for more time than Selina had initially budgeted.
As Gemma spoke about clothes and nursery colours, Selina mentally prepared her day and thought about what day the following week would be best to take her car in for a service. She nodded in the right places, and then followed the most well-organised and ably assisted day in recent memory.
She wondered if it had been a fluke, and so the next day she had asked Gemma another random question about the baby, listened to another far too long response, and then enjoyed another day with an assistant who finally appeared to be awake.
Naturally, Selina was irritated that Kate had been correct, but she was happy to push that to one side and enjoy the benefits. She continued to make idle small talk with her assistant regarding her pregnancy and her useless-sounding husband.
It was hard not to fall back into old patterns, but she knew that this touch of kindness was reaping rewards, so she forged on.
“Did you finish painting the nursery last night?” Selina queried while hunting through the cupboard in her office for some shoes she didn’t mind sacrificing to baby vomit. Her sister’s children leaked from every orifice.
“Nearly. We think it will need another coat. That’s the problem with putting a light colour over a dark colour.”
“Absolutely.”
Selina had no idea whether this was true or not. She hired decorators for such things. When she returned home from the office, it was either done or the decorator would return until it was done.
“I hate to mention it,” Gemma said, “but Jeremy rang again. He sounded really fed up.”
“He’s probably exhausted from sending out invoices to me.” Selina slid on some shoes. She smiled sadly at them, figuring it could be the last time she wore them.
“He told me to pass on that a court date will be inevitable unless you get back to him as soon as possible and are willing to enter negotiations with your wife.”
“Ex-wife,” Selina corrected.
“Ex-wife,” Gemma agreed.
“Very well. Consider your message passed on.”
“Will you call him?” Gemma asked.
“We’ll see.”
Selina grabbed her bag and coat and walked out of the office.
Before Selina could even step foot into Edge, Julian exited and looked at her with the pathetic lost stare of a man needing advice.
“Can I talk to you for a moment?” he asked.
Selina rolled her eyes. She didn’t have time to be delayed. She had a sister to see, nephews to attempt to commit to memory, and a job to get back to.
“I don’t deal with your invoices; you’ll have to call Kathy in accounts.” Selina tried to walk around him.
“It’s not about that,” he whispered.
She stopped and looked at him. He was the personification of a man stressed.
“Spit it out,” she demanded.
“It’s about Kate, you know, the homeless woman you told me to hire.”
“I know who Kate is. It may have escaped your knowledge, but I frequent these premises three times a week. What about her?”
“Employment law states that a worker must be paid—”
“This is already sounding like something that’s not my problem,” Selina said. “As I believe I mentioned to you before, she needs a job. And I do rather enjoy those little bagel things that you provide when you cater one of our many, many meetings. Although I am aware that I have leaflets from four other businesses who would love the opportunity to quote for us. And, as much as I’d miss the bagels,” she leaned in close, “I’d get over it.”
Julian swallowed. “Absolutely. Understood.”
He rushed to the door and opened it for her. She stepped in and looked around for Abi. She quickly saw a pram parked up in a discreet corner of the café. After a deep breath, she approached.
To her surprise, Kate was standing with her family, with a child in her arms. The child’s face was red and wet. He’d clearly been engaging in some histrionics recently but now seemed to be calming down. Kate looked cool and collected, holding the boy to her in a practised grip and gently bouncing him. Her blonde hair was swept back into a ponytail, with a few strands framing her face. She looked relaxed and happy, clearly a natural with children.
“Hey, Petey, look,” Kate said once she saw Selina standing there. “It’s your Auntie Selina.”
Petey didn’t give a damn, and neither did Selina. Petey burrowed his face into Kate’s shoulder and let out a wet sigh. Selina shivered at the sound.
“Hey, sis.” Abi stood up and pulled her into a hug.
“Hello, blackmailer.” Selina returned the hug.
“How else am I supposed to see you?” Abi turned and addressed another boy, this one playing with a racing car on the table. “Phillip, say hello to Auntie Selina.”
“Hello,” the boy said without looking up.
/> “Sorry about Peter,” Abi said as she took her seat again. She gestured for Selina to take the seat opposite her. “He’s been sleeping badly and throwing tantrums all over the place. Thank goodness for Kate here, she was a lifesaver.”
“It was nothing,” Kate said. “I love kids, and you had your hands full.”
“Trying to carry a tray of drinks to the table, with a pram and these two,” Abi explained.
“Sounds like a living nightmare,” Selina said seriously. “Speaking of, I should get a drink. Can I get anyone anything?”
“Nonsense, I’ll bring it over.” Kate handed Peter back over to Abi. “You two can catch up.”
Selina levelled her with a glare. “I’d like to look at the menu.”
“You always order the same thing,” Kate replied with a sweet smile. “Really, I insist. Spend time with your lovely family.”
Selina didn’t have a chance to reply before Kate quickly left the table.
“She seems lovely. When I said I was meeting my sister here, she seemed to know it was you right away,” Abi said.
“She’s rather perceptive,” Selina replied. She wasn’t going to mention their first meeting in the car park or her snivelling little runts comment. Even if she did stand by it. She looked at Peter in Abi’s arms and tried to commit his name to memory.
Peter, she reminded herself. The smaller one is Peter.
Not that it mattered. She knew the knowledge would vanish in no time at all. The second there was a crisis in the office, unimportant information such as this would be pushed out to make way.
It wasn’t that she didn’t want to remember. It was just hard to show interest in something she was plainly uninterested in.
Abi understood.
“So, what excuse are you going to use this time to not come to Peter’s birthday?” she smiled good-naturedly.
“You know I’m very busy,” Selina said.
“I do. I just wish they’d see you a little more. I want them to know you. At least be able to pick you out if you walk past them in town.”
“Do they often go shopping on their own?”
“You know what I mean, Selina.”
“I do.” She shifted uncomfortably. Every now and then Abi pushed, and Selina still hadn’t worked out how to say no to her own sister.
“How is the divorce going?” Abi suddenly asked.
“It’s going.”
Abi had been trying to get information out of Selina since the moment she had texted to advise her sister that Carrie was no longer a part of her life. Even though Selina made it painfully obvious that she didn’t want to talk about it, or even think about it.
“Have you agreed on a settlement yet?”
“I don’t see why there should be one,” Selina said. “She wants to leave, she should leave. Why we should be talking about assets, my assets, is frankly beyond me. I was the one who worked all the hours, brought the money home, and managed everything. All while she was off saving the world in that ridiculously low-paying charity.”
“Has she said what she wants?”
“I don’t know.”
“You don’t know?”
“Her solicitor keeps wanting to arrange meetings. I refuse to see her, so nothing happens.”
“Can’t they write to you?” Abi asked.
“I assume they do. I shred correspondence from her.”
Abi sighed and shook her head. “Selina, you need—”
“I’m so sorry to interrupt.” Kate appeared in front of them. She glared at Selina, with something akin to fury in her eyes. It was a look Selina knew well, but she’d yet to experience it emanating from Kate. “May I speak to you? In private?”
It didn’t seem like it would be a conversation Selina wanted to have, but there was a possibility that it was better than the one she was having. She stood up and gestured for Kate to lead the way.
Kate grabbed her arm and dragged her towards the window. “Did you threaten Julian?” she demanded.
“What?”
“Did you threaten him? To force him to give me a job?”
Selina turned around and levelled a displeased glare towards Julian, who was serving a customer at the till. When he caught Selina’s glare, he sheepishly looked away.
She turned back to Kate. “I suppose it could be interpreted that way.”
Kate’s eyes bulged, and a vein in her neck started to pulsate hypnotically. Selina was fascinated by Furious Kate. The younger woman stood close, presumably in an attempt to intimidate Selina. But Selina didn’t scare easily and instead appreciated the deep blue of Kate’s eyes.
“He told me it was some kind of community outreach project. But it was you, threatening some contract. You blackmailed him!” Kate fumed.
“Then he lied to you, and your anger should be directed at him, not me. I didn’t tell you that I didn’t blackmail him. And I don’t see the problem. You were homeless, and now you have a job. You’re welcome.”
“He lied because you were threatening him!” Kate whispered through clenched teeth. “He has to pay me for the work I do. It’s the law.”
“I fail to see the big disaster here.” Selina looked back to Julian, another person to add to her hit list. How hard was it to keep his mouth shut? Now she was in the line of fire.
“He can’t afford another member of staff,” Kate said as if it explained everything.
Selina wasn’t following along with the cryptic trail that supposedly explained Kate’s rage. “The point being?”
“The point being, he is going to have to sack another member of staff in order to keep me. Because if he doesn’t keep me, you’ll kill a contract that the shop needs to stay afloat.”
“So… you’ll still be employed?”
“But someone else will lose their job,” Kate said with exasperation.
“I’m really not seeing how this is an issue,” Selina said.
“I’m not taking a job from someone else because you are blackmailing the manager,” Kate explained. She untied her apron and tore it away from her body. “It’s wrong. I won’t do it.”
She stalked away.
Selina shook her head and watched the proud woman until she vanished into the staff area behind the counter.
“Pride comes before the fall,” she muttered.
She returned to her sister who had placed the little one—damn, name’s gone already—into the stroller. Abi was straining her neck to see if she could see anything behind them, where Kate had disappeared.
“What was that about?” she asked, eager for gossip as usual.
“She’s quitting her job,” Selina said as she rejoined her sister. “Which is irritating because I got her the job in the first place. And I never got my coffee.”
“Does she have another job?” Abi asked eagerly. “My au pair recently left, and we can’t find a decent replacement. The agency sends people, but they are all awful. She was great with the boys the moment she saw them. Do you think she’d consider a trial period?” She stood up. “Watch the kids, I’m going to go and chat to her.”
“Watch the—” Selina spluttered, but it was too late. Abi was gone.
She turned to look at the smaller one in the stroller. Somehow, he’d gone from sleepily dozing to wide awake and was now staring at her like a ticking time bomb. The bigger one continued to play with his toys.
She turned around and looked for her sister, her foolish sister who was so thrilled at the idea of help with her offspring that she was chasing after a stranger in a coffee shop. Not to mention leaving said brats with Selina while she did.
“Have I met you before?”
She turned toward the voice. The older one still wasn’t looking up from where he played, but she assumed it was he who had spoken.
“Yes,” she replied.
“When?” he asked.
He had her there. She had no idea.
“A while ago.”
“Do you live a long way away?”
“About ten
minutes by car.”
He looked up at her, a small eyebrow raising in confusion.
She felt chastised. “That’s a nice car,” she said to try to distract from her own failings as a member of his family.
“Hmm.” He turned his attention back to playing.
Abi came stalking back towards the table. “Selina,” she demanded, “tell Kate that you have nothing to do with my job offer.”
Selina looked at Kate, who followed in Abi’s wake, looking at her suspiciously.
“This hare-brained scheme of my sister has nothing to do with me,” she said truthfully.
“It isn’t hare-brained,” Abi said.
“You don’t know this woman, and you want her to take care of your children. You met her five minutes ago,” Selina pointed out.
“Well, she’s already ahead of you in the queue.” Abi turned to Kate. “Seriously, this has nothing do with her.”
“Charming,” Selina muttered.
“My au pair left to go back to Italy. The agency is sending the worst people. You’re clearly good with kids, you must have experience?”
“I—I do. I used to babysit a lot in the past,” Kate admitted.
“I believe you’ve just left your job, and I need a new nanny. This couldn’t be more perfect. It’s fate.”
Selina rolled her eyes. Abi proclaimed everything to be fate, good or bad. To Abi, life was akin to sitting in a boat on the ocean, with waves of fate taking you wherever the tide decided. Selina preferred a boat with an engine and a compass.
“We could do a trial. You come and live with us—did I mention it’s a live-in position? That won’t be a problem, will it? Anyway, you could come and live with us for a week or two. And then we could talk it over and see how we all feel about it. I pay the standard industry rates. It’s not much, but all your meals are included.” In case Kate needed any further job perks, she added, “We have satellite TV.”
Selina often wondered how her sister got through life. Hearing her negotiate with a new nanny was positively soul-destroying.
“I’m going to go and get that coffee that never showed up.” She stood up and walked over to the counter. Anything to get a few precious moments away from her sister and her sister’s new nanny.