by A. E. Radley
“Will Miss Spencer come over for dinner again?” Rosie asked in between taking swipes along her tongue with the bristles of the toothbrush.
“I hope so. We’ll see. She might be very busy,” Hannah said, already knowing the excuse she would intend to use if things went awry. Busy. It was a very flexible, very blameless excuse.
“I hope she does,” Rosie said.
“If she doesn’t, you’ll still see her at school,” Hannah explained.
“She told me the other day that I might need to go to another class, or even another school.” Rosie spat out the toothpaste and rinsed her toothbrush.
Well, that was news.
“Why did she say that?” Hannah asked in confusion.
“She said she might run out of work to give me. And that I’d need to take my exams early.” She turned around and looked seriously at Hannah. “The others are still learning how to tell the time.”
Hannah almost snorted a laugh at Rosie’s disgust at how far behind her the class was. As if she were a human in a class full of gorillas.
“We talked about this, pumpkin. Your brain is just too big for your friends. They want to play… and eat glue… and you want to read. We’re all different.”
“I know. It was really boring until Miss Spencer gave me new work.”
Hannah knew this was a conversation that needed to be had soon, but not right before bed.
“We’ll talk about it this weekend, I promise,” she said. “For now, it’s time for bed.”
“I don’t need anyone to read to me tonight,” Rosie said.
“Okay.” Hannah knew that was Rosie’s way of staying up later than usual to read. She made a mental note to check in on her later to ensure she wasn’t propped up in bed with a book.
In Rosie’s room, Hannah closed the curtains and cleaned up a little while Rosie dived into bed and got comfortable.
Hannah leaned over and gave her daughter a kiss. “No reading. Sweet dreams, love you.”
“Love you, too,” Rosie said.
Hannah hurried out of the room and closed the door behind her.
She paused for a moment, fluffed her hair up in the mirror in the hall, and checked her clothes were sitting correctly. She entered the sitting room and realised something was different. The stark ceiling lights had been switched off, and the cosy lamp by the sofa was on. Two fresh glasses of wine sat on the coffee table.
She looked at the kitchen and realised it had been cleaned. The counters were clear and glistening, the washing up had been done and put away.
“You didn’t have to do that,” she said to Alice who was sitting on the sofa reading the local newspaper.
“I wanted to,” Alice said without looking up. “This local paper is ludicrous. What counts as news is ridiculous.”
“Yeah, I get it for a laugh,” Hannah admitted. She sat down next to Alice.
“Like this, a segment on Fairlight throughout history. Fair enough. But this picture, supposedly of the high street from 1942 is just fog. It could be a photo of anything.”
Hannah had laughed when she saw the article and was glad that Alice thought it was crazy as she did. She was still surprised that everything in the kitchen had been cleaned away. She was mentally switching gears from cleaning up and offering her guest another drink, to sitting down and relaxing with said guest.
She felt eerily comfortable, which made her feel wholly uncomfortable. Being with Alice was so easy and nice. Rosie adored her, and Hannah, well, Hannah found herself careening down that path as well.
It was only the second date, and already it felt as if things were clicking into place. Hannah, always hesitant, wanted to be sure before she allowed her heart to be trampled on. She needed to know more about Alice.
“So, have you ever dated a parent before?” she blurted out, wincing even as the words left her mouth.
Alice looked at her over the top of the newspaper. “Oh, we’re doing the inquisition now?” she asked playfully.
Hannah chuckled. “Not an inquisition, just inquisitive. I want to know more about you.”
Alice folded up the paper and returned it to the shelf under the coffee table.
“No, I’ve never dated a parent before,” she replied.
“But you’ve dated women before?” Hannah fished, sensing that Alice was open to and maybe even expecting to be quizzed.
“I have. I’ve only ever dated women,” Alice confessed. “I’ve had two relatively long-term relationships, but they were nothing too serious.”
“Playing the field?” Hannah asked through a cheeky grin.
“Yes, I’m a traditional player,” Alice answered sarcastically. “No, just never found the right person. You know how it goes.”
“I do,” Hannah agreed. “Any brothers or sisters?”
“A brother. He’s a dentist, married with two children. All the things my parents think I should have done by now.”
Hannah wanted to ask how old Alice was, but as cheeky as she was being with her questioning, she felt that was a step too far. She imagined early to mid-thirties. Not that it mattered to Hannah, but she wondered if it mattered to Alice. Would she think Hannah was too young? Yes, it was best to keep away from the subject altogether.
The pause while she considered the matter was enough for Alice to pick up the baton and head into the conversation with her own question.
“What about Rosie’s father?”
Hannah took a deep breath. It was an obvious question. One she wasn’t prepared to talk about just yet.
“He’s out of the picture. And I don’t want to go there right now, if that’s okay?”
Alice held up her hand apologetically. “Of course, I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry, it’s a natural enough question. I just don’t want to do that yet.”
“It’s quite all right. I know I’ve said it before, but I have to say it again: you do a wonderful job with Rosie. I can’t imagine how hard it must be just being the two of you.”
Hannah couldn’t help but smile. “Rosie makes it easy. She’s a great kid.”
“She is,” Alice agreed.
“She tells me that you said something about going up a year, or going to a different school?” Hannah tried to sound calm, but she was a little concerned that Alice had had that kind of conversation with Rosie without her knowledge.
“I wanted to prepare her for the possibility. In all likelihood, she won’t be with me for the entire year. You may agree to allow her to take official exams early, or it may be better for her to be taught at a higher grade. Whatever happens, I know it’s hard for first-year students to adjust to change in a normal way. Most hate the idea of moving to the second year, a new teacher, new form room, et cetera. I wanted to put the idea in Rosie’s head so she had at the back of her mind that it might happen. To lessen the shock. It didn’t worry her too much did it? I’m sorry if it did. I was trying to help.”
“It’s fine,” Hannah reassured her. The explanation made sense. No decisions had been made, but she needed to prepare Rosie for the possibility. “I get where you were coming from, and I know we need to talk about Rosie’s education at some point.” She’d really hoped that point would be further in the future, but it seemed as if they were cruising to talk about it right then.
“I spoke to Hardaker,” Alice confessed. “I informed him of…” She trailed off.
Hannah frowned.
“Can she hear us?” Alice whispered.
Hannah’s eyes widened. It hadn’t occurred to her that Rosie could overhear the conversation they were having about her, simply because she’d never been in a situation where she’d been entertaining someone in the living room while Rosie was trying to get to sleep.
She walked over to the old stereo system she had picked up from the local charity shop. She’d always wanted one when she was a child, but it had never happened. She decided she could splurge twenty pounds on a childhood dream as an adult. She selected one of her homemade CD mixes and
turned it to a volume that would interrupt any eavesdropping but not interfere with their conversation.
“There. Now we can talk about the midnight bombing raid without the spies hearing.”
Alice chuckled. “As I was saying, I informed Hardaker of Rosie’s gifted status.”
“Okay?”
“And he couldn’t care less.”
Hannah snorted. “Sounds about right. He never liked me.”
Alice looked scandalised. “That should make absolutely no difference.”
“It does in Fairlight. He won’t lift a finger to help me. Besides, what does it matter? Rosie is fine. You’ve given her other work, so she’s not so bored. She said she’s making friends. Everything is fine.” Hannah was pleased that Hardaker was the bigoted, useless article she’d always known him to be. Surely it meant that Rosie wouldn’t be progressed through the years?
She wanted the best for Rosie, and she couldn’t see how sending a tiny child to a higher year would be good for her.
Alice didn’t seem convinced but remained silent as she took a sip from her glass.
“So,” she said, “you’ve quizzed me about exes, what about you? Rosie’s father aside.”
“No one serious, certainly not in the last six years,” Hannah explained. “Being a single mother is a bit of a turn-off. So is being pregnant. I dated a little, but it didn’t last. I decided I was better off single.” Hannah took a sip of wine.
“Then I’m very grateful you’ve given me a chance,” Alice said.
Hannah shook her head. “You’re crazy.”
Alice put her glass on the table and slid a little closer. “Why am I crazy? Rosie is adorable, all cheeks and big eyes. And I think we’re only about six months away from seeing her hands grow out of her sleeves.”
Hannah snickered.
“And, yes, she’s got an incredible brain, but she’s also got an incredible heart. She is caring, sensitive, funny. And you’re okay, I suppose.” Alice grinned.
Hannah laughed. “Oh, good, I rate somewhere?”
“You do.” Alice suddenly turned serious. She slid closer still. Hannah’s heart thudded against her rib cage. “You fascinate me, Hannah Hall.”
“I do?”
“You do.” Alice nodded. “I don’t understand how I can miss you so much after just a couple of days apart. I hardly know you, but I can’t stop thinking about you.”
Hannah dampened her dry lips, certain they would shortly have company.
“I can’t stop thinking about you either,” she confessed.
Alice leaned forward, tilting her head to the side as their faces drew closer and closer.
A beep sounded, and they both jumped back.
“Sorry,” Hannah apologised. She pulled her phone out of her pocket and cursed the text from Adrian informing her about a schedule change for the next day. She couldn’t believe that their kiss, their first kiss, had been ruined. She wondered how long it would take for either of them to build up the courage to try for it again.
She put her phone on silent and dropped it onto the coffee table. She’d barely turned around when Alice took her face in her hands and pressed warm lips against hers. Alice clearly didn’t want to let the opportunity go to waste, and Hannah couldn’t agree more. She placed one hand on Alice’s knee and used to other to cup her face, returning the soft and passionate kiss.
Her head spun. She hadn’t been expecting a kiss that evening. Maybe she would have gotten her courage up to kiss Alice on the cheek again, but she had prepared for nothing like this. She’d forgotten what it felt like to be kissed. The soft give and take was hypnotic. It had only just started, and she already never wanted it to end. Any chance of taking things slowly to try to protect her feelings had evaporated.
A distant thud caused them to pull apart. Hannah turned around and looked towards the hallway and Rosie’s room. She’d forgotten that Rosie had insisted on putting herself to bed, which no doubt meant that she was reading.
“Back in a second,” she said to Alice.
She scurried into Rosie’s room and caught her daughter reaching for the torch which had fallen out of the bed fort she had created.
“Busted,” Hannah said.
“One more page?” Rosie asked, gesturing to her book.
“No more pages. Bed.” Hannah swiped the torch off the floor, turned it off, and put in on the desktop. “Should never have bought a torch for a five-year-old. Bed, Rosie, right now.”
Rosie didn’t hear the tone often and knew it meant business. She closed the book and put it on her bedside table.
“Night, Mummy.”
Hannah left the room and closed the door behind her. She rushed back to Alice, feeling guilty at leaving her alone after the kiss they shared.
Alice stood by the sofa looking nervous and wringing her hands.
“I’m sorry, I overstepped, it’s too soon—”
Hannah swiftly cupped Alice’s head in both her hands and kissed her, silencing any apologies. Maybe it was too soon, but she didn’t care. She wanted this, Alice wanted this. Whatever happened, happened.
She gently backed Alice up until the backs of her legs collided with the sofa. She wrapped an arm around her and softly lowered her down. It had been a long time since she’d acted like an oversexed teenager, and she wasn’t going to let the chance pass her by.
Alice returned the kiss in between giggles as she fell onto the sofa, Hannah straddling her.
“Not too soon,” Hannah breathed.
“I’m glad,” Alice said, running her hand up Hannah’s back.
“Less talking,” Hannah commanded. “More kissing.”
“Agreed.”
Hannah didn’t know how long they kissed. It felt simultaneously like forever and like half a second. It was one of those glorious moments when your brain can’t cope with the input, so boring things like time management get put on the back burner.
All she knew was that she’d never felt so thoroughly kissed. But things were starting to get too heated. She pulled away and pressed her forehead to Alice’s, staring into her eyes. “Wow.”
“I don’t usually do this on a second date,” Alice reassured.
“Third?” Hannah joked.
Alice chuckled. “No, it’s… this isn’t like me.”
Hannah hesitated. “Any regrets?”
Alice shook her head. “No, none. I just didn’t want you to think… I mean, I’m happy that we… I just…”
“I think I understand,” Hannah said.
This behaviour wasn’t like her either. Something had drawn them together with its unseen magnetic force that they were unable to ignore. Maybe it was something as quaint as fate, but whatever it was, it pulled with the power of the moon orbiting the Earth.
She sat up and glanced at the clock. “It’s ten-thirty.”
Alice’s eyes widened. “Oh, I have to get home. I have to do some lesson prep for tomorrow.”
Hannah winced, feeling sorry for her having to work so late and guilty for being the reason she’d have to.
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be.” Alice stood up. “I wouldn’t change things. Would you?”
There was a vulnerability in the question that belied her confident smile.
“Wouldn’t change a thing,” Hannah admitted. “But we should put the brakes on a little…”
“Agreed, we’re not sixteen,” Alice said.
They walked over to the front door, Hannah not wanting to say goodnight. The thought of it was making her feel familiar feelings of missing Alice already. It was ridiculous. She’d never felt this way about anyone before.
Is this love? she wondered. Or am I just that starved for company?
“I had a lovely time. Obviously.” Alice blushed.
“Me, too.” Hannah kissed her on the cheek, knowing she wouldn’t be able to stop if they kissed properly again. “I’ll call you soon.”
“Please do.”
She opened the door, and they sai
d a quiet good night to each other. Hannah watched her walk down the stairwell and out onto the street. She let out a breath. She had no idea what Alice saw in her, but she was thankful for whatever it was.
A thought niggled at the back of her head that they were moving too quickly. Since Rosie was born, Hannah had prided herself on evaluating situations and not jumping in with both feet. Now she didn’t recognise herself.
She’d never been in love. She wondered if this was love, this all-encompassing urge to be with someone else. Even if she hardly knew that other person.
She closed the front door and leaned against it.
“Don’t overthink it,” she mumbled. “Just see what happens. No doom and gloom. No dire predictions. Stop panicking.”
She focused on controlling her breathing.
A smile grew on her lips. She couldn’t wait to see Alice Spencer again.
22 HOW OLD ARE YOU, MISS SPENCER?
Alice drove a little faster than the speed limit. It was the first time in her entire work career that she had slept through her alarm and been awoken by her second emergency one.
She’d flown around the house as she got dressed and threw her things into her bag, constantly looking at her watch and cursing under her breath.
The other teachers at Willows were extremely lax about timekeeping, but she had never been that way. She was trying to lead by example, so turning up late wasn’t on the cards. Even if it meant pressing her foot down a little too heavily on the accelerator on her way into Fairlight.
Of course, she slowed to a reasonable speed as she approached the school. You never knew when a student would forget everything about traffic safety and rush out into the road.
As she cruised along, her mind drifted to the night before. She couldn’t believe she’d been horizontal on Hannah Hall’s sofa for half the evening, kissing the woman as if she might disappear at any moment. She’d never been like that before now either. Fairlight was having an unexpected effect on her.
Not that she’d change a second of the evening. It may not have been her plan, but she was happy with how things ended up. Deliriously happy. There was something about Hannah Hall, something she was thoroughly enjoying.