‘Tea would be great,’ said Adam.
‘Tea is good for me too,’ added Georgina.
‘Can I have a glass of water? asked Sasha meekly.
‘Tammy, would you like to take Sasha up to the spare room and show her where she will be sleeping? Adam can take the case up later.’
‘Come on,’ said Tammy, leading the way. Sasha rolled her eyes to her mother which Georgina recognised as, ‘Do I have to?’ Georgina’s eyes narrowed in response, meaning, ‘Yes’. Sasha stomped up the stairs behind Tammy.
‘How are you, Liz?’ said Georgina presently.
‘I’m good,’ said Liz.
‘Adam tells me you’re sorting out the garden,’ she continued.
‘I was intending just to sort it,’ said Liz, ‘but now I’ve decided to redesign it instead. I’d like a summer house and maybe a pond.’
‘Oh,’ said Georgina, ‘that will be nice.’
Adam looked surprised. ‘You can’t change the garden. Dad loved it the way it is.’
‘I know,’ said Liz, ‘but dad’s not here and I am so I have decided to give it a makeover.’ She softened her voice. ‘Tammy is helping me, and now Sasha’s, here I’ll have two helpers, it will be fine. Don’t worry, just have a great holiday. We won’t be gardening all the time, I promise. I do intend to take them out. We’re going bowling tomorrow and the girls can go to the park with Tammy’s friends on some days.’
‘I’m not sure I’m comfortable with Sasha being in the local park.’ Liz knew exactly what Georgina meant by that. She didn’t want her privately educated daughter mixing with the local poor people.
‘Tammy is a lovely girl,’ Liz reassured them. ‘She will look after Sasha. They will be fine. How’s work?’ she said to Adam, changing the subject.
‘Oh, really busy as usual.’
‘Thank you for the flowers,’ Liz added, ‘they were lovely.’
‘Oh,’ Adam looked blank.
‘For Mothers’ Day.’
‘Oh, that, yes, glad you liked them.’ Conversation was strained. Liz asked after Georgina’s parents. Georgina seemed to take great pleasure in informing Liz that they had just moved into a gorgeous little apartment just up the road from their house which was so much easier for them since her dad had stopped driving. Adam looked embarrassed.
Liz thought again about explaining to Adam and Georgina about Tammy’s mum but she was worried that Tammy would hear and so she said nothing. She would leave it to Tammy to tell Sasha if and when she wanted to.
Adam let Georgina do all the talking about the holiday and the house and the children.
‘You look really well, Liz,’ said Georgina eventually. ‘You look happier.’
‘I am,’ said Liz. ‘Monica and Tammy are wonderful friends and neighbours and I’m really looking forward to getting to know Sasha.’
‘Thanks again, mum, for stepping in at the last minute,’ said Adam, with real sincerity in his voice. ‘I’d really like Sasha to get to know you too.’
‘You’re welcome, darling.’ Georgina looked a little put out as Adam gave his mum another hug.
* * *
Meanwhile Tammy was upstairs with Sasha who was unpacking her backpack. She took out her iPhone followed by an iPad and put them on the bed. Tammy sat down on the bed next to the iPad.
‘Don’t touch that,’ said Sasha harshly.
‘I wasn’t going to,’ said Tammy. ‘I was only looking.’
‘Don’t you have one?’
‘Not yet,’ said Tammy. ‘Might get one for my birthday but that’s not until August. Did you get yours for your birthday?’
‘Don’t be silly,’ said Sasha. ‘I’m planning on Disneyland for my birthday. This is for school and recreation. Don’t you use them at school?’
‘No,’ replied Tammy, ‘We have computers but not iPads or laptops yet. We have a PC at home.’
‘How about a phone, a mobile?’ said Sasha, as if she was talking to someone of inferior intelligence.
‘I have an old phone, a basic one,’ said Tammy.
‘What about Facebook?’ said Sasha.
‘What about it?’ said Tammy. ‘I’m not allowed on Facebook yet.’
‘Well, how do you stay in contact with your friends?’
‘I talk to them,’ said Tammy, ‘face to face. You should try it sometimes,’ and she laughed.
‘Who do you think you’re laughing at?’ said Sasha
‘Well, you’re the only one in the room,’ replied Tammy.
Sasha put her hands on her hips. ‘Let’s get one thing straight. This is my grandma’s house and she will believe anything I say, so you had better not cross me.’
Tammy just laughed again. ‘You’ve been watching too many movies,’ as she turned to go out of the room.
‘I warned you,’ said Sasha.
Tammy turned back to see Sasha breathing heavily, her face distorting and getting redder and redder before bursting into tears which quickly turned to full blown hysterics. She hopped up and down on the spot before running down the stairs shouting that Tammy had hit her. Liz was bewildered.
Adam seriously doubted it and although Georgina wasn’t sure of Sasha her natural suspicion of anyone she considered inferior convinced her that Sasha was telling the truth and the motive was probably jealousy. She tried to comfort Sasha.
‘Liar,’ shouted Tammy.
‘I knew this was a mistake,’ Georgina hissed at Adam.
‘I want to go home,’ Sasha sobbed.
Liz was about to say something when Adam, his face contorted with anger shouted, ‘Oh, for God’s sake Georgina. We are going on holiday and mum is going to look after Sasha and that is the end of it.’
Georgina and Sasha were both shocked into silence. Georgina looked like she’d been slapped in the face and Sasha stopped crying immediately. Tammy came and stood behind Liz, who put her arm around her shoulder for reassurance. Adam smiled at his mum while Georgina glared at Tammy, then at Adam, but she said nothing.
Tammy moved to sit beside Liz. She hadn’t encountered anyone like Sasha before. ‘I think you two should start again,’ said, Liz looking at Sasha. Tammy stood up with her hand outstretched. Sasha remained steadfastly at Georgina’s side. ‘This is going to be fun,’ thought Liz. Adam and Georgina said their good-byes. Georgina was holding on to Sasha as if her life depended on it and promising to call her every day.
Once they had left Liz took out the gardening gloves and tools that she had bought for Sasha. She asked her if she would like to come out and help in the garden. Sasha declined and went upstairs to get her iPad.
Liz had called a couple of landscape gardening companies and had made appointments for them both to come to the house to give her an estimate. Now she had made up her mind to change the garden she couldn’t wait to get some ideas.
She imagined herself sitting on the porch of her summer house, reading a book from the comfort of a soft armchair as she caught the last rays of the afternoon sun.
Jim had often talked about installing a pond but it was a ‘someday’ topic. Like someday we’ll go on a cruise, or someday we’ll learn a language or move to France. She was sorry that they had waited but imagined Jim looking down on the garden, not sure if he would approve.
Tammy had inspected the borders for Lavender and was pointing out all the places where it had been planted. It was easy to walk on the lawn now. It didn’t look much like a lawn but Liz was happy in the knowledge that it would soon be gone anyway.
‘I don’t think Sasha likes me,’ said Tammy.
‘What’s not to like?’ said Liz smiling. ‘She will.’
‘I didn’t hit her’ Tammy continued.
‘I know, said Liz, I think she is just used to getting her own way so it might take a while for her to come round. When she gets bored with her own company she’ll come outside, you’ll see.’
Liz asked Tammy to put her gloves on and get her tools as they were about to tackle the weeds in the flower beds. Both of the
m knelt beside the soil and Liz pointed out the plants that could be removed.
After sulking for an hour or so Sasha came outside. ‘I’m going to watch’, she announced, as she flounced onto one of the chairs on the patio.
‘Fine,’ said Liz. Tammy got a bit carried away and started on the Forget-me-nots. ‘Hold up,’ said Liz, ‘those aren’t weeds.’
‘They are Forget-me-nots,’ said Sasha, who had been watching everything and couldn’t resist giving them the benefit of her knowledge.
‘How do you know?’ asked Tammy.
‘We have a gardener,’ said Sasha, with her nose in the air, and the emphasis on gardener as if everyone had one. ‘He tells me the names of all the plants,’ she continued.
‘Then we could definitely use your help,’ said Liz, winking at Tammy.
Sasha stood up slowly. ‘Oh, all right. I’ll advise you,’ she said as she came over to kneel next to Tammy as if she was doing them both a big favour. ‘This is a weed,’ she said, pointing to the plantain, ‘and this,’ pointing at Lamb’s Ear.
‘I don’t get it,’ said Tammy. ‘They are all just plants. What makes them weeds?’
‘I don’t know,’ said Sasha. ‘Some of them are nice. Our gardener pulls up the Forget-me-nots. He says they crowd the Lilies but I like them.’
‘I like them too,’ said Liz, ‘so we’ll leave them in.’
‘These definitely have to come out,’ Sasha continued with authority, pointing to the stinging nettles gathering at the back. Tammy leant forward and pulled at a clump as she was wearing her gloves but as she did so she managed to brush the leaves against Sasha’s hands and knees.
‘Ouch, that hurt. You did that on purpose,’ said Sasha, about to cry again as the bumps started to appear and throb.
‘I did not,’ said Tammy, ‘but if I had I wouldn’t lie about it. It was an accident and I am sorry but you don’t need to make such a fuss.’
‘You need a Dock leaf,’ said Liz.
‘I know where they are,’ said Tammy, jumping up and rushing to the spot where she’d seen them. She quickly picked off some leaves and tore them into smaller strips before rubbing them between her hands to squeeze out the juice.
She came over to Sasha. ‘You need to rub this on the sting.’ She offered the leaves.
‘That looks disgusting,’ said Sasha.
‘Suit yourself,’ said Tammy, ‘but it definitely helps.’ Tammy put the leaves down next to Sasha who grudgingly picked them up and rubbed them onto the stings. After a few minutes the stinging subsided. Sasha thought about saying thank you but that went against all her natural instincts so instead she asked how Tammy knew what to do.
‘Mum told me,’ was the reply.
Sasha seemed to settle quickly after that. It must have been obvious to her that Tammy would not be indulging her tantrums the way her mother and grandparents did and therefore they were redundant. It was a great help having Tammy around. Liz wasn’t sure how she would have coped with Sasha on her own. Tammy was easy going and completely able to handle Sasha who warmed to her eventually. With no one she could manipulate Sasha gave up trying and just enjoyed being a ten year old girl having fun in the garden.
It was a warm day and Liz kept the girls well stocked with lemonade, ice lollies and toasted cheese and tomato sandwiches. It would all work out.
Bob from Living Landscapes, one of the garden design companies that Liz had rung earlier, turned up at three o’clock to look around. He had a young boy with him that Liz assumed was his son. The boy, who could only have been about twelve, held the end of the tape measure as his dad took measurements and wrote them down in a book. After the measurements had been taken Bob accepted Liz’s offer of tea and sat with her at the table to discuss her ideas.
The boy sat next to his dad, self-consciously sipping his Coke and avoiding eye contact with either of the girls, who had decided between them that he resembled Harry from One Direction. They stared and giggled making him feel really uncomfortable and self-conscious which was, of course, their intention.
Liz explained what she wanted to keep and what was going. The shed was going. She would put all the useful power tools in the garage and keep the other garden tools in the new summer house. It was time to let go of the past. Liz explained that she might like a pond or at least the sound of water in the garden.
She would also like some exotic plants, palms or bamboo. Bob asked her what she wanted to do with the grass and Liz was quite specific on this point. It had to go. She felt that she was betraying Jim by replacing the grass but if she was to move on it had to go. Besides, it was Jim who loved the grass. She thought that some kind of statue or other garden feature could occupy a bit of the space. She wanted the garden to look completely different.
Finally, she wanted lights, lighting up the pergola and the trees. She wanted to be able to turn on a switch from inside the house that would illuminate the garden and banish the unhappy memories. The next time she went to the cemetery she would explain it all to Jim.
Bob from Living Landscapes informed her that he would come up with a design and get back to her, adding that she may be looking at around ten thousand pounds for the work, but Liz had been frugal for the last five years and she could certainly afford it. She wasn’t hard up for money. Jim had a fantastic insurance policy and pension and it was about time that she spent some of the money. She was looking forward to getting started. They would have Wednesday off to go bowling and on Thursday Finn from Fantasy Gardens would be coming round to give her a quote.
By the time Monica arrived at six o’clock Tammy and Sasha were well on their way to being friends. Sasha assumed that Monica was Tammy’s mum and Tammy said nothing to make her think otherwise. She came in and had a cup of tea with Liz while Sasha and Tammy watched TV in the living room.
‘How’s the diet going?’
‘I think I’ve lost a few pounds,’ said Monica, ‘but I haven’t got any scales so I can’t be sure.’
‘I have got some in the bathroom upstairs,’ said Liz. ‘You could make this your weekly weigh in station.’
‘I’m definitely feeling fitter,’ said Monica. ‘I don’t think I could have made the stairs a few months ago.’ She came down a few minutes later, smiling.
‘Well?’ said Liz, curious to know how she’d got on.
‘I used to weigh almost eighty kilos.’
‘What’s that in old money,’ said Liz.
‘Twelve and a half stone,’ said Monica
‘And now?’ said Liz, excitedly.
‘Seventy three kilos.’
‘Well done. Have you told Tammy?’
‘Not yet,’ Monica replied.
‘What are you aiming for?’ said Liz.
‘I’m trying not to be too ambitious. At my height I should be around fifty eight to sixty kilos, which is a size ten to twelve, so I still have a way to go. At the moment I’m a size sixteen going on eighteen. Tammy is very keen on me losing weight. We are going for a walk this evening. She is trying to get me to go running but until I lose some weight I don’t think there’s a sports bra strong enough to prevent me knocking myself out with my boobs.’ Liz laughed. ‘Why don’t you come with Sasha?’ Monica added.
‘I could do,’ said Liz. ‘The girls have already eaten.’
‘I am now the queen of organisation,’ said Monica. ‘Poached salmon and three bean salad await me in the fridge next door. I’ll nip back and eat it, get changed and come back. You can tell me all about the garden.’
* * *
Adam and Georgina had arrived at their hotel, which was stunning. Georgina had booked a suite which was big enough to accommodate a family of ten although furnished for only two. She was never, ever frugal with Adam’s money. Besides, the views were amazing. They approached the room via a huge marble hallway. The double doors opened to reveal a sitting room, fully furnished in various shades of cream and ivory.
A bowl of fruit sat on the ultra-modern chrome and glass coffee table. A low
white cupboard on one wall housed the fridge, which was well stocked with drinks, and a flat screen TV reflected the room on the wall above it.
A door from the living area led to the equally luxurious bedroom. A king sized bed dominated the room which was sparsely decorated apart from the bedside tables and a smaller sofa. Doors led from the bedroom to the bathroom and dressing room. Cool beige and white flecked tiles covered the floors, which were occasionally obscured by coffee coloured shag-pile rugs dotted like islands in a white speckled sea.
Folding glass doors in the living room opened to a wide terrace where a table, chairs and sun loungers were neatly arranged. Folds of voile curtains gathered each side of the glass doors which could be drawn to cover the pale beige blinds waiting, coiled and ready to block out the morning sun. The terrace was completely private, not overlooked by anything other than the sea birds. Opaque glass partitions gave complete privacy from the suites either side.
Georgina stood on the terrace and imagined herself sipping champagne in her evening gown with the cool sea breeze wafting over her tanned body. She had sulked for most of the journey but now she was here she decided that it was time to forgive Adam. Despite the fact that he had been willing to leave their darling daughter in the care of his demented mother in the cheaper end of Enfield with only a rough comprehensive school pupil as a companion. After all, she had survived it.
‘Thank you darling, it’s wonderful,’ she said sincerely.
‘You found it,’ said Adam
‘But you work so hard to pay for it,’ Georgina pouted. ‘What would I do without you?’
Adam had left the cases by the door and taken his shoes off to lie on the white sofa. Georgina decided to demonstrate her gratitude in a much more physical way so while Adam closed his eyes and rested Georgina jumped into the shower and came out of the bathroom wearing nothing but a smile.
‘Aren’t you going to ring Sasha?’ he said sarcastically, as she undid his shirt buttons.
‘I’ll ring her tomorrow,’ she replied.
Chapter 11
Lavender Girl Page 11