by Jill Mansell
Lainey clutched his arm with delight. ‘You’ve got yourself a boyfriend? Yay, that’s brilliant! Isn’t it brilliant?’ She beamed at Kit, but Wyatt was already shaking his head, looking pleased with himself.
‘No, not that. I won’t say it’s better than that, but it’s still good.’ He paused, then said, ‘Mom and Dad have just bought the Chateau de Rafale.’
‘Oh my God! Are you serious?’ Lainey’s mouth fell open. ‘That’s amazing . . . Biddy and Bill will be so relieved.’
‘They are. And they’re going to be staying on to run it as a business.’
‘Wow . . .’
‘Pop needs a project to keep him occupied. He put in the research, and it’s a sound financial investment. Biddy and Bill love the place, so why would they need to leave? It works out well for everyone and they’re planning to turn it into a really high-end destination. I didn’t tell you before, in case the deal fell through, but they completed on the sale yesterday. It’s a done deal and everyone’s delighted.’
‘This is the best news.’ Lainey threw her arms around Wyatt and wondered what it must be like to belong to a family capable of just buying a French chateau outright because retirement was a bit boring and you fancied opening a hotel. Imagine if she’d been a completely different kind of person, the ruthlessly gold-digging kind who couldn’t be bothered to save up their own money in order to start up a business; never mind that he was gay, she could have married Wyatt Hilstanton herself.
‘And of course we’ll be doing weddings there,’ Wyatt whispered into her ear as Seth made his way across the lawn towards them. ‘So if things carry on going as well as Kit tells me they’re going . . . you know where to find us.’
Lainey said, ‘Very funny.’ It was far too soon, of course, but deep down, the thought that it could conceivably happen one day made her heart flutter.
An hour later, they heard the roar of a powerful sports car pulling up outside, and Christina made her late but show-stopping entrance in a full-length slinky white dress and more silver necklaces than Harrods. Spyros, the Lamborghini-owning boyfriend, was dressed all in black and kept casting covert glances in the direction of the other attractive female guests, which didn’t bode well.
Once Christina had finished greeting Richard, his ex-wives and several of his more famous actor friends, she collected a fresh glass of champagne and sauntered across the lawn to join Seth and Lainey.
‘Here we go,’ Seth murmured as she approached. ‘Mum, hi, you’re looking great.’
‘I should hope so, darling, after all those weeks of detox in a no-fun retreat! Still, no pain no gain, and at least my liver’s had a rest. Now it’s as good as new and ready to rock and roll again. Cheers!’ She clanked her glass against both theirs, then turned to Lainey. ‘And this is a turn-up for the books, isn’t it? Seth tells me you two are a couple now! Which is wonderful, obviously, but you’ll have to keep an eye on him – my son’s almost as bad as I am when it comes to settling down.’
‘Actually, I’m not,’ said Seth.
‘Only joking, my darling. And this one’s lovely, so I definitely approve. So tell me how it happened, how you two got together.’ Christina fixed her heavily mascaraed gaze on Lainey, bright with expectation. ‘I want to hear everything, all the details!’
Since there was no way that was going to happen, Lainey said lightly, ‘Well, I was visiting my Granny Ivy in the Cotswolds and Seth gave me a lift up there, then at the end of the day he came to pick me up from Goosebrook, and that was when we discovered—’
‘Goosebrook? That name rings a distant bell. Now why does it sound familiar?’
‘Yes, it was the most brilliant coincidence, because that was when we realised it was—’
‘Oh, was this the day you came up to the retreat to tell me about Matteo?’ Christina turned to Seth and clapped her hands in delight. ‘So really it’s all thanks to me!’
It was the suddenness of the movement that caught Lainey’s eye. India, sitting alone on a bench beneath a pergola overhung with honeysuckle, had dropped her phone on the grass and her head had jerked up. Now she was staring at Christina like a mongoose hypnotised by a snake.
‘Yes, it was that day.’ As if sensing that Lainey was distracted, Seth took over the story about their first meeting, twenty years earlier, up a tree in a back garden in Goosebrook.
‘Well isn’t that just wonderful?’ Christina’s many bangles jangled as she clapped her hands. ‘Bravo! And I’m going to take all the credit!’
‘I did tell you about it at the time,’ Seth reminded her.
‘Did you, darling? I don’t remember. Oh, now look at that. Empty.’ She regarded her glass with dismay. ‘I’d better go and find Spyros, and pick up a refill.’
The moment she’d tottered off, India was on her feet.
‘What was Christina talking about just then?’ She was looking at Seth, her jaw visibly tense.
He laughed. ‘When Lainey got stuck in the tree, you mean?’
‘Not that. When she said you went to see her to tell her about Matteo.’ India’s ribcage was rising and falling as if she’d run a marathon. ‘Who’s Matteo?’
Seth hesitated. ‘He was a friend of hers from years ago. Why?’
‘But who was he? Did you know him too? Have you . . . met him?’
Lainey checked to make sure no one else was within earshot. No, all clear. What was going on here? The colour had drained from India’s face and she was practically hyperventilating with the need to know about Matteo.
Seth clearly understood that something significant was happening too. Taking care not to say the wrong thing, he shook his head. ‘I . . . didn’t meet Matteo, no.’
They were staring at each other now. As far as the two of them were concerned, the party no longer existed.
‘Why are you asking?’ Seth went on. ‘What does the name mean to you?’
India’s gaze slid to Lainey, then back again. In an unsteady voice she said, ‘Seth, tell me who Matteo is. If you know more than you’re saying . . . please just say it. I need to know.’
‘First,’ Seth replied slowly, ‘you have to tell me where you heard his name.’
Chapter 46
Lainey held her breath; it was like those cycling races in a velodrome where neither rider wants to make the first move.
At last India said, ‘I saw a message on Facebook.’
‘From?’
‘Your mum.’
Seth closed his eyes briefly. ‘Of course.’
‘Don’t get her back over here. It was an accident.’ India shook her head. ‘I was never meant to see it. She was replying to something from one of her old girlfriends and typed it into my inbox by mistake. Then ten seconds later it vanished. She’d deleted it.’ India tilted her head back, her eyes swimming with tears. ‘If I hadn’t been on my account at that moment I’d never have seen it, never known what it said.’ She swallowed with difficulty. ‘But I was on there, so I did.’
‘It’s OK,’ said Seth. ‘I know what it was.’ He also knew that this was unconnected with the medical diagnosis; it only concerned the other Matteo.
‘I want you to already know, more than anything. But what if you only think you do?’
‘Fine, I’ll say it. My mother slept with some guy called Matteo, and he might be my biological father. But it doesn’t matter one bit,’ Seth’s voice was low and reassuring, ‘and it doesn’t change anything, because my dad was your dad and you and Violet are my sisters and . . . Oh don’t cry, please don’t, you mustn’t. I love you . . .’
‘I can’t believe it, I can’t believe you already knew.’ India fell into his arms, sobbing in earnest now with relief. ‘When did you find out?’
‘When I was about your age.’
‘What?’ She did a horrified double take. ‘Oh God, how awful for you.’
‘Not awful at all.’ Seth rocked her like a baby as she continued to drip tears and mascara down the front of his white shirt. ‘Like I said, it make
s no difference. Thanks.’ He took the tissues Lainey passed him and began mopping at India’s cheeks. ‘When did you see the message on Facebook?’
‘F-five weeks ago. It was so awful, because I thought you didn’t know, so there was no one I could tell, and I was just bottling it all up inside me and wishing I’d never seen it, and then I couldn’t stop worrying and panicking because we all know what Christina’s like, and if she could let it slip once, sooner or later it was bound to happen again, only the next time you’d be the one who found out . . .’
Beyond them, the party was in full swing, carrying on without them.
‘Everything just seemed to be happening at once,’ India went on, her voice cracking. ‘And then Nerys turned up, which just made it a hundred times worse, because if Grandad found out you weren’t related to him, would he even bother with you any more now he’d got a new daughter instead?’
Lainey’s heart went out to her. India had been conjuring up worst-case scenarios for weeks, spiralling into panic and despair. And now Violet was on her way over, clearly having spotted that something was going on. She took one look at her sister’s wet, make-up-streaked face and said, ‘Oh God, what’s happened? Tell me.’
India looked at Seth, who nodded. So between much sniffing and eye-wiping, India did.
By the time she’d finished, Violet was in tears too. She hugged her twin fiercely. ‘I can’t believe you kept it to yourself. You didn’t even tell me.’
Lainey passed over a second handful of tissues.
‘You were the last person I’d tell. I wanted to so much,’ India hiccuped ‘but then you’d have been as miserable as me, and I couldn’t bear to do that to you.’
Taking the long way round, the four of them slipped back to the house so Seth could change his mascara-stained shirt and the girls could repair their make-up.
On the landing, India turned suddenly to Lainey. ‘I’m so sorry about the nail polish and the chewing gum. And there was a fridge magnet too, but it only cost a pound. I’m going to go back to all the shops and apologise and pay them back. I just felt so helpless, not knowing what to do about the Matteo thing, but I can stop worrying now. And I feel so much better already.’ She heaved a happy sigh. ‘I promise I’m never, ever going to do it again.’
‘I know you won’t.’ Lainey smiled as she found herself wrapped in her first ever embrace from India.
‘Thanks. I’m glad you’re here and I’m glad you and Seth are together. Promise me you’ll never break up.’
Seth appeared at the top of the stairs. He raised his dark brows a fraction and waited.
‘We’ll do our best,’ said Lainey.
As the sun sank lower in the sky, flooding the horizon with shades of gold, the music was turned right down and Richard tapped a fork against the side of his glass to gain everyone’s attention.
‘Right, so if you lot thought you were going to get away without having to listen to a speech, I’m afraid you’re sadly mistaken.’
Cries of mock horror went up, and he continued, ‘Luckily for you, this isn’t the Oscars, and I’ll be brief.’
Lainey, standing beside Seth, caught her breath as she felt their fingers slotting together as if they were a perfect fit. Would this simple gesture always have such an effect on her? Oh, she hoped so.
‘So, thank you all for coming. After a lifetime of debauchery, it’s a miracle I’m still here, but there you go. I’m eighty today, and the Grim Reaper hasn’t caught up with me yet.’ Richard chuckled and paused in an actorly way. ‘Life’s had its ups and downs, but overall I’ve been a lucky bugger. I have the most wonderful family anyone could wish for, and I love every last one of them.’ His gaze swept around the lawn, encompassing each member in turn, and Lainey’s heart gave a squeeze of affection as she saw him include Nerys with a discreet nod and a wink. ‘I’ve also had more than my fair share of friends—’
‘And wives,’ called out the husband of an elegant actress called Evelyn who’d been briefly married to Richard in the 1980s.
‘Some of them were even my own,’ Richard riposted, provoking more laughter. ‘And I could still add to the total. So, Evelyn, if you ever get tired of him, you know where I am.’
‘Eurgh,’ India whispered in Lainey’s left ear. ‘He’d better not be talking about sex. That’s gross.’
Serious now, Richard continued. ‘The greatest sadness in my life, of course, was losing Tony, and when that happened, I wondered how on earth we’d all get through it. But somehow we did, and I’m lucky enough to have the best daughter-in-law in the world, as well as four wonderful grandchildren.’ He paused to blow them a kiss. ‘I love you all, and I’m so very glad to still be here, sharing my life with you. So here’s to family.’ He raised his glass, and everyone followed suit. ‘And here’s to all of us, and the absolute miracle of me reaching eighty.’
Seth had discussed it with the girls, and they’d decided between them that the time for keeping secrets was over. Well, maybe not every secret, but as many as possible. Once the party had wound down and Harry had gone up to bed, he gathered the family for a nightcap in the living room. It was unfair to expect India and Violet to keep what they’d learned to themselves, which meant Majella needed to hear the story too; it was the only way.
The clock struck eleven out in the hall, and from the kitchen came the distant clink and clatter of Lainey and Kit washing glasses, loading the dishwasher and generally clearing up. The cats were curled up on the rug in front of the purple sofa, whilst Ernie lay stretched out on his side over by the window, paws scrabbling furiously as he chased imaginary seagulls along the beach. Glenda was ensconced like a small queen on India’s lap, and Richard was pouring himself another cognac, because his capacity for one last drink was limitless.
Holding Majella’s hand in his as she sat beside him on the sofa, Seth relayed the story of the secret Christina had let slip about his possible parentage.
‘That mother of yours,’ said Richard. ‘Sorry to say this, but she’s been a liability since day one.’ He stopped, frowned a bit. ‘Actually, I’m not sorry to say it at all. She just is.’
‘Grandad,’ Violet chided, fair-minded to the last. ‘Pot, kettle.’
Seth shook his head. ‘She might never win Mother of the Year, but it doesn’t matter.’ He turned to Majella. ‘It never did matter, because I had you. Dad was brilliant, and you were the best stepmum in the world. Always.’
‘Oh darling, I tried my best.’ Majella’s eyes swam. ‘I loved you from the first time I met you.’
‘I knew that, and I knew you weren’t just putting it on, either.’ Seth’s arm was around her shoulders now. ‘It meant everything to me. You’re my family, and that’s never going to change.’ He nodded at Violet, who reached behind her for a tattered grey shoebox and passed it over to him.
‘Oh God, what’s this? I’m not sure I can cope with any more surprises.’ Majella blew her nose and looked worried.
Seth smiled down at her. ‘It isn’t a surprise. You’re the one who wrote them.’
She lifted the lid of the shoebox, saw the piles of envelopes bearing old stamps and familiar handwriting. ‘My goodness, these are the letters I sent you when you were at school. I had no idea you’d even kept them. I can’t believe there are so many . . .’
‘Christina sent me a letter once. Well, it was a postcard.’ Seth no longer had it, but he could still remember every hastily scrawled word. ‘It said: “Sorry, baby, won’t be able to see you this summer, off to Bali! Exciting!”’ He paused, then took out a handful of the letters carefully addressed to him at the boarding school in Kent that Christina had insisted he attend. ‘But you wrote to me twice a week, every week. And they were the best letters . . .’ For a moment his throat tightened with emotion, because no one who hadn’t been in his position could ever really understand how much they’d meant to him. They had been long, chatty letters interspersed with jokes and funny little drawings, brimming with love and updates about everything that
had been going on in the family’s lives.
They shared them out now, reading snippets aloud and remembering stories from the past. Then India asked if she could look at the photo on Seth’s phone again, and he passed it to her so she could study the Mancini family. There was no need to exclaim over the similarity of their features; it was there for all to see.
‘Do you really not want to meet them?’ Violet was curious.
He shook his head. ‘You’re my family. I don’t need another one.’
‘Not even if they’re nicer than us?’ India grinned, resting her head on Majella’s shoulder, and Seth’s spirits lifted still further because he could see that the old, sparky, mischief-making India was well and truly back.
He knew that maybe one day he might change his mind. At some stage in the future, ten or twenty years from now, his interest could be piqued and the temptation might be there to learn more about the Mancinis, but for now, he felt no inclination to do so. He looked from his sisters to Majella. ‘I’ll stick with what I know.’
From his position by the mantelpiece, Richard caught his eye, raised his glass and mouthed, ‘Love you.’
And at his side, with the shoebox still resting on her lap, Majella reached for Seth’s hand and held it in hers.
Chapter 47
The people on the ground were looking up, having evidently heard the helicopter’s approach before it came into view over the tops of the trees. The powerful juddering thud-thud-thud of the rotor blades was even more thrilling from up here as they hovered above the Chateau de Rafale, surrounded by acres of manicured grounds in the depths of the French countryside.
Beside herself with excitement, Lainey shielded her eyes from the bright sun and exclaimed, ‘There they are, I can see Biddy and Bill on the steps! Can you believe how beautiful it all looks? And there’s Wyatt . . . Oh, this is just out of this world. I never dreamt I’d get the chance to ride in one of these things, and now it’s happening!’ She strained forward against the seat belt, waving madly with both hands at Wyatt.