Freddy nodded sympathetically. 'You want to say—"Hey, can we take a break now, I'm not sure I'm ready!'" Marion groaned a laugh, for that was exactly right.
'You have no phone,' Joe stated, his eyes assessing the cottage. 'And there's no help to be had from the people either side?'
Colin shook his head, shrugging on his coat. 'One's a holiday place, and the other's owned by an elderly couple who have gone to their daughter's for Christmas. I was going to take Marion to her mother's tomorrow...' His voice trailed remorsefully.
'You couldn't have anticipated this would happen,' soothed Freddy, taking off her parka and throwing it across a chair. 'First babies are unpredictable.'
'I shall go for the midwife--' Colin began.
Joe broke in, 'Can't I go for you? Although I'm afraid I'm not familiar with the district.'
Colin considered this and shook his head. 'I'd better go, you might get lost, but if you'll stay with Marion I shall feel a lot happier.'
'Of course we'll stay,' assured Freddy, smiling, and wiping Marion's face with a flannel she found in a bowl on the table.
'You'd better go now,' Joe said, 'before it gets totally dark. Is it far?'
'The next village but one.' Colin took Marion's hand and bent to kiss her.
'Marion, darling, I'll be back as soon as I can.' Then he hurried from the room, Joe following him.
'How often are the contractions?' Freddy asked.
Marion murmured, 'Every four minutes.'
Freddy's heart sank, but she asked calmly, 'What do you know about having babies?'
'I thought I knew quite a lot, but now I'm not so sure.' Marion blew out a breath. 'It's awful to say it, but I'm glad Colin's gone. He's so worried, poor darling, he's better out of the way.' A contraction began and she rode it out, and when it was finished, sank back on the pillows, gasping, 'I don't think help is going to arrive in time, do you?'
'I'm afraid I don't think so either, so we'll have to manage by ourselves, won't we?' Freddy replied cheerfully.
'Do you know anything about having babies?' Marion asked.
'Well, I've had one, although she's five now,' admitted Freddy, 'but it's a bit different being on the receiving end rather than the producing one.' She checked her watch as Marion began another contraction and observed calmly, 'That was pretty strong, wasn't it?' Marion nodded and closed her eyes wearily. Freddy went in search of the kitchen and filled a kettle as Joe arrived in the doorway. She glanced at him and remarked quietly, 'I don't believe this, Joe, I just don't believe this is happening to us! Will you pinch me so I can wake up?'
'We're sharing the same nightmare,' Joe answered drily. 'Is she going to have the child now?'
'She's certainly going to have the child now, and the nearest I've been to something like this is watching Gone With The Wind. I have, suddenly, the greatest sympathy with Scarlett O'Hara!' She indicated the kettle. 'Hot water always seems to be top priority in such cases and I hope I'll get full marks from the midwife. How long will Colin be?'
'He wasn't saying much, and what came out wasn't particularly sensible. He was in a pretty bad state.'
'Most husbands are with their first.' Freddy washed her hands at the sink and stood, dripping, looking for a towel.
'Was yours?'
Above their heads was an indoor clothes line. She pulled down a clean towel and dried herself. 'He was dining an important client at the time,' she said matter-of-factly, and walked through into the living-room without looking at him. 'Marion, can we find clean sheets or towels?' she asked. 'Anything will do.'
'In the airing cupboard, bathroom,' instructed Marion. 'Baby's things are in the case in the bedroom.' She grimaced and bit her bottom lip, perspiration standing out on her forehead. 'I'm so sorry... I know how awful this must be for you both.' She waited and blew out a breath, squinting at her watch. 'It's every two minutes now.'
'Get cracking, Joe,' ordered Freddy calmly, keeping her expression free of anxiety. So much could go wrong, but now wasn't the time to be thinking negatively. 'Women are having babies every minute of the day. It's called natural reproduction.'
Marion gave a sob of a laugh and held out her hand. 'How nice you are,' she said.
Freddy took the hand and held it in a strong grip. 'Thank you. So is Joe. Do you want him to be here, or not? He's no Doctor Kildare, but he holds hands really well.'
'Among other things,' added Joe whimsically, appearing at her elbow. He gave Marion one of his devastating smiles. 'How about me understudying Colin?'
'You can't possibly want to,' protested Marion, and then, 'here comes another... please stay, Joe.'
'Then I shall,' he promised, dragging up a stool and taking her hands in his. He waited until the contraction passed and asked, 'What brings you and Colin to live here? Do you like it?' He glanced at the shelves of books in the corner. 'Psychology, secondary education—is Colin a teacher?'
'We both are, at a school near Ilkley. Not me now, of course... And yes, we like it here.' Her voice sharpened and she said, 'I want to push!'
Freddy replied cheerfully, 'Then push. Who are we to argue with Mother Nature?'
So far as Freddy could tell, Marion's labour seemed to be following a normal pattern. The next few minutes were fraught, with Marion working hard, encouraged by Freddy and Joe, and when the baby at last arrived into the outside world, Freddy cried triumphantly, 'Marion, you marvellous girl, you've done it!'
Marion asked tiredly, 'Is it all right?' and Joe said, 'Shouldn't it cry?' Then there was a splutter and a strangled croak, and finally a gloriously indignant yell!
Freddy and Joe laughed out loud and Freddy, her hands full of warm, wet baby, cried, 'You have a daughter, Marion, and she's beautiful.' Freddy felt the adjective allowable. This funny bundle of humanity, red and wrinkled and squashed and far from clean, was incredibly beautiful, despite everything. Tears were rolling down Marion's cheeks and she was too full up to speak. Joe handed Freddy a sheet and she wrapped the baby carefully in it, first wiping the still screaming indignant face, and then put her into her mother's arms. The screaming stopped miraculously as Marion cooed love words and kissed her.
Freddy covered Marion with a blanket and murmured to Joe, 'I'm leaving the cord. I read somewhere it's best not to do anything.' She straightened and pushed the hair from her face. 'Thank God that's over!' She heaved a sigh and grinned weakly at Joe who said quietly, 'Well done, Fred. You excelled yourself.'
Freddy replied simply, 'So did you,' and they exchanged a shared-experience smile across the couch.
'I can't thank you both enough,' said Marion emotionally, gazing adoringly down at her daughter. 'What would I have done without you?' She turned her eyes to Freddy. 'Do you mind if I call the baby after your husband? I've always liked the name Josephine.'
'I told you he could hold hands good, didn't I?' quipped Freddy. 'And Joe will be thrilled, won't you, Joe?' She refused to catch his eye and bent to touch the baby's soft cheek with the back of a finger, smiling as she murmured gently, 'Hello, Josephine,' adding as though an afterthought, 'But he's not my husband, Marion,' primly, 'we're just good friends.'
Marion laughed, as she was expected to, and exclaimed, 'Oh, dear, I thought...' and Joe let her off the hook and said, 'She sounds just like a wife, I agree. Do this, do that. A typical bossy Aries female. She'd have me if she could, of course.'
'Of course,' agreed Marion, smiling.
'... but I'm too clever for her!' Joe assumed a revoltingly smug expression. Before Freddy could suitably reply there came a hard rapping on the front door which Joe went to answer.
Freddy crossed to the window, pulled back the curtain and peered out into the darkness. Snow was still falling. 'The cavalry's arrived, Marion,' she announced, a tremendous feeling of relief sweeping over her. 'A Land Rover-type ambulance. Colin's here too.'
From then on everything was out of their hands. The ambulance men took over, and when Marion was comfortable she was carried out, wrapped up in blankets,
the baby cocooned inside. She called out her thanks again, echoed by Colin, who was barely conscious of their existence and had eyes only for his wife and daughter. Finally the ambulance drove off and the front door was shut. Everywhere seemed abnormally quiet.
Freddy looked round the room as if she had never seen it before. She said flatly, 'That's that, then,' and gave a laugh. 'So much for getting Dad's book at Skipton.' She glanced at Joe. 'I didn't see the Renault outside.'
'No, I've put it round the back in a kind of lean-to. We're not attempting to drive back in this tonight. You needn't scowl like that,' he ordered firmly. 'If you use your head you'll see I'm talking sense.'
'I'm not scowling, I'm thinking.'
'It looks painful. I've asked Colin to ring the hotel and let them know we're all right and what's happened.' Joe stared at her, eyes narrowed. 'What's the matter? Is the idea of being holed up here with me too obnoxious? Don't worry, you're quite safe.'
'Oh, don't be ridiculous!' flared Freddy and turned away, beginning to strip the sheets from the couch with more force than was necessary, her body taut as she fought for control.
Two hands grasped her shoulders and forced her round, and Joe pulled her on to his chest, his voice calm as he suggested, 'Why don't you have a good bawl and get it over with?'
She allowed herself to let go and be comforted and when the bout of crying was over accepted the offer of his handkerchief, blew her nose and said, 'I'm sorry. I've done.'
'Be my guest. Can I have my turn now? A gently nurtured sensitive type like myself, why, the whole thing's sent me all of a tremble!'
Freddy laughed weakly. She felt utterly drained and was glad to lean against Joe's chest for a moment. How marvellous he was! She could never have coped without him; he had given her such confidence, and how wonderful he had been with Marion, so gentle and sweet. Her cheek rested against the wool of his sweater and one of Joe's hands was pressed lightly, palm outspread, on her back, the other cupped her neck and that particular area of flesh was coming awake, as if drawing life from the contact. The tempo of her body changed and her senses sharpened.
Perhaps she gave an involuntary movement, a tensing up, for Joe put her unhurriedly away from him, saying, 'I wonder if the worthy Colin has any liquor on the premises? He told us to make ourselves at home, so we'll take him at his word.'
'I think I'm hungry,' announced Freddy in some surprise. 'I'll clear up here and then raid the larder.' Upstairs she found there was a tiny bathroom and two bedrooms, the smaller one made ready for the new baby, the main one with a double bed. All the ceilings and floors sloped and the temperature was quite low, despite the portable stove at the top of the stairs. In the larder she found home-made bread, cheese, eggs and milk and there was a coffee grinder and beans. Joe made up the fire with logs he found in a store outside, and unearthed a bottle of red wine from a cupboard. They ate hungrily from plates on their knees in front of the fire.
Replete, Freddy groaned a sigh. 'My bones ache,' she announced in surprise.
'Why should they ache? I didn't have the baby!' She lay back in the chair and looked round the room. 'No television,' she observed, 'but a radio... they're really opting for the simple life, aren't they? No good expecting to be recognised for our artistic talents—except, I do see a copy of Wandering Man up there on the shelf, Joe. Isn't that nice?' She fell silent, thinking about Colin and Marion and their baby, her thoughts going to her own family. She asked pensively, 'Are your parents still alive, Joe?'
'No. They died a few years back.' He was lying in the other armchair, relaxed, a glass of wine in one hand, eyes closed.
'Do your sisters still live in Devon?'
'One does, she married a farmer. The other lives in Belgium.'
'Are you close?'
'Yes. I take my role of favourite uncle very seriously. I like their husbands. I visit when I can.' He took a drink of wine, eyes half-hooded as he looked across at her. 'And yours?'
'Both still alive,' she replied thoughtfully. 'I can't imagine a time when they won't be there, but I know it will have to come. They're wonderful with Megan. She adores them.'
Joe leaned across and refilled her glass. He regarded her for a moment, put down the bottle and leaned back again. 'What went wrong with your marriage, Frederica?'
She didn't answer for a long moment, staring into the fire. 'We were neither of us what the other hoped for,' she said at last. 'As simple as that. I look back on that period of my life with amazement and dismay. We were a great disappointment to each other.' She sipped the wine. Her body felt heavy; it seemed a great effort to lift the glass to her lips. There was a small table lamp lit in the corner, casting a subdued area of light, the rest came from the flickering flames of the fire. 'Do you think we shall be able to leave tomorrow? Silly question. I want to ask what we shall do if we can't, but that's just as silly.' Her eyes wandered the room, taking in the crocheted covers, the patchwork cushions, the home-made rugs on the floor. The cottage was very appealing. A corn dolly hanging from the chimney breast made her think of Megan and she said ruefully, 'I have to get to Boston for Christmas Eve even if it means taking to skis, pulling a sledge myself!
Imagine all the awkward questions from Megan if her presents aren't there Christmas morning! She still believes in the good St Nicholas, Santa Claus, whoever.' A yawn escaped her before she could control it.
Joe had taken a book from the shelf and was turning the pages. He said, without looking up, 'I should get off to bed.'
Freddy stayed where she was. The clock seemed to be ticking with unnatural loudness. She watched Joe who was now deeply into the book and finally rose to her feet, saying, 'Goodnight, then, Joe,' and received a glance and a relaxed, 'Goodnight, Fred,' in return.
The bedroom was not inviting. It was too cold to strip off completely, so she went as far as long-sleeved thermal T-shirt and pants, keeping on the warm woollen socks, and wrapped herself in the eiderdown and waited for sleep. Which didn't come. She heard Joe come upstairs, tensing, relaxing as his footsteps made their way into the bathroom and subsequently down the stairs once more.
Although she felt physically tired, her brain was having a field-day. It seemed hours later and she still hadn't slept. She peered at her watch face and found she had forgotten to wind it, then lay for a few minutes analysing her sleeplessness. She sat up, pulling the eiderdown round her shoulders before padding quietly down the stairs.
Opening the door into the living-room, Freddy saw Joe standing by the window, one curtain pulled back. He made a movement as if to turn and then
- stopped. She crossed, trailing the eiderdown, to peer at the clock on the mantel, groaning, 'Two o'clock! Is that all?' and soft-footed over and stood by his shoulder. 'What's the weather doing?' she asked, and stared through the glass, her eyes adjusting to the dark.
'Still snowing, but not so thickly,' Joe answered quietly. Freddy studied his back. It was not conducive to conversation. 'How about us changing places for the rest of the night?' she suggested. 'I don't suppose you've slept much, have you?'
'I'm fine.'
The tone was dismissive. 'Ah, come on, Joe, I want you to. It'll make me feel better.' She walked back to the couch, threw down the eiderdown and sat, possession being nine-tenths of the law. 'You need your sleep. Stop being stubborn.'
'Frederica,' warned Joe pleasantly, his back still to her, 'if you don't get your butt off that couch in one minute..
Freddy felt delicious tinglings sneaking their way through her body, wonderful remembered sensations of living dangerously. She said with reasonable curiosity, 'If I don't, what shall you do?'
The words dropped provocatively into the silence, and after a moment Joe let go of the curtain and slowly turned to contemplate her thoughtfully. His face was only partly lit by the flames from the fire and it was difficult to read his expression, while Freddy, on the other hand, was illuminated quite well. She made her own expression one of interested questioning. When he made no reply, she went on, a
llowing an amused mocking note to creep into her voice, 'I'm not a fragile little woman who needs cosseting, you know. I must say you've learned some manners since the old days—you'd have taken me up on the offer eight years ago.'
'Don't be so damn silly.' His voice was level. 'I would have been up there with you eight years ago. Shut up and go to bed.'
Freddy considered this. 'You'd have been there only at my invitation,' she said at last and fell silent. She had captured his attention fully now and held his gaze pensively. Finally, she said, 'You didn't answer my question, Joe.'
'Which one?'
'How you're going to get my butt off this couch.' She gave a deprecating smile.
'I'd give you a fireman's lift upstairs and dump you on the bed,' offered Joe, still repressed in tone, but Freddy thought she caught the slightest crease in the corners of his mouth.
'Ah... I see. It would be a bit difficult, with the eiderdown as well. And I'd come down again. The thing is, it's darned cold up there, cold and lonely, and my feet are frozen.' She paused. 'I wondered if you'd like to warm them up for me.'
For what seemed an incredibly long time Joe just stood and regarded her, and she thought it wasn't going to work. Her heart began to thump, a wave of embarrassment sweeping over her. Then he moved slowly to her and knelt, pulling off the woollen socks and taking her feet into his lap, his hands massaging them with a regular rhythm, his eyes holding hers all the time. Freddy swallowed hard, shivering as his hands made inroads along her calves. 'You see,' she said huskily, 'this warm room was very tempting...' Joe rose to his feet and brought her with him. He lifted her arms in the air and pulled off the T-shirt. '... and I thought, if you didn't mind...' She gave a gasp of pleasure as his hands moved over her bare flesh. '... just for tonight...'
Joe's mouth covered hers, stopping her breath. She sagged weakly against him and when his head lifted, he said with grim amusement, 'Shut up, woman, no need to underline everything. I understand the rules perfectly.'
He was now shrugging off his own clothes, without haste, his eyes holding hers relentlessly.
Sweet Pretence Page 7