‘Oh. Ganging up on me now?’ Matt couldn’t help a chuckle. Mariska had tried that one a few times but Mum had never quite been able to get on her wavelength, however hard she tried. ‘Anyway, Dad has requested the pleasure of Beth’s company.
He wants to show you some roof tiles, so you can choose what you want.’
She flushed a little more and jumped to her feet. ‘Oh. Does he? Yes, thank you, I’d like to help choose them.’
Matt steered Beth firmly out of the back door. By the time they reached the shed, his father had cleared away the cobwebs from around the tiles, and held one up to the light for Beth to see.
‘What do you think, pet? Will that match all right?’
Beth nodded uncertainly. ‘I think so.’ She shot a questioning look at Matt and he shrugged. He knew his father well enough to stay out of this particular debate. ‘Yes, it does. Will it be the right size, do you think?’
‘Where do you live?’ His father was rubbing his chin ruminatively.
‘Just on the edge of Easington. It’s the row of five cottages on the little road that runs behind the post office. Mine’s the one on the end.’
‘I know them. Very nice little places, solidly built. Yes, these will be just right.’ His father nodded his approval. ‘Take it outside now and just prop it up against the wall. We’ll see if we can sort out which of this lot are the best.’ He gave the tile to Beth and she didn’t move.
‘I can carry more than one.’
His father chuckled and reached for another couple of tiles. Matt leaned against an old door, his arms crossed. If she kept this up, his parents were going to try and adopt her. Jack seemed to have noticed that there was something going on and bounced into the shed, receiving a tile from his grandfather and following Beth outside.
‘Right.’ His father straightened up and Matt noticed that there was a slight stiffness in the movement. He would have to enquire into that later. ‘We’ll take the rest, then.’
It took an inordinate amount of discussion to decide which tiles were best and Beth seemed determined to listen to everyone’s opinion. A decision was made, though, and as Matt carried the tiles through to his car, he saw Beth helping his father stack the rejects back in the shed, gently chiding him when he tried to carry too many.
When they were finished, they all gathered in the kitchen, Jack tugging on Matt’s sleeve to remind him that he had something to ask. ‘Is it okay for Jack to stay tonight, Mum? Apparently he and Dad have something they want to finish.’
‘Of course, dear, you know we love having him. Are you two staying for supper?’
‘I think we need to get going.’ Matt shot a querying look at Beth and she nodded. The intimacy of their silent interaction always sent warm shivers through his body. ‘If that’s okay with you and Dad.’
‘Yes, of course.’ His mother moved over to Beth and took her hands between hers. ‘It was lovely to meet you. I hope that I’ll see you again very soon.’
It took them another ten minutes to reach the car, because Matt’s father had to engage Beth in a conversation about plumbing and then Jack had to say goodbye again. Finally Matt managed to wrest her from the grip of his family, and they started the drive back towards her cottage.
‘Your mum’s lovely.’ Beth was still suffused in the warmth of his parents’ welcome, and the way they had accepted her presence without question. ‘And your dad’s such a sweetheart.’
‘Hmm? Yeah, I’m very lucky to have them.’
‘Jack obviously likes being with your parents. It must be difficult for you when he wants to stay there instead of coming home.’ Matt had seemed a little preoccupied since they had left.
‘Sometimes. But Mum and I talked about it, and we both think it’s important that he’s not just ferried from one place to another like a parcel, to fit in with my life. He and Dad have been working on a model plane together for weeks now and I can’t drag him away from that just because it happens to fit in with my timetable. Jack knows how much I love him and that he always comes first.’
‘And that you’re there for the things that really matter. Jack was telling me about his school carol concert and how you and your mum and dad were clapping louder than any of the other parents.’
‘Of course we were. He was better than any of the other kids.’ Matt became suddenly tight-lipped. ‘And there are no excuses to miss things like that.’
‘No. And you only get one chance at it.’ One chance was all that Beth would have asked. Just the one, to dress up in her best clothes and watch her own child on stage. She wouldn’t have cared if it sang or signed the carols, she would have clapped until her hands were raw. ‘It’s great that your mum and dad are so involved.’
‘It’s a lot to ask of them at the moment, but when his usual childcare lady is better we’ll review it. Mum’s telling me that they want to fill in on a regular basis, and if that works for them it’d be great for Jack. I don’t want them to take on too much, though.’ He swung the car into Beth’s lane and it bumped along the uneven road surface. ‘We’ll see.’
It was going to be dark in an hour, and even though Beth had been asleep for most of the morning it had already been a full day. Matt seemed to have accepted Jack’s decision to stay with his grandparents for the evening, and turned his mind to lesser but more immediate matters, carefully lifting the roof slates out of the boot of his car and stacking them in the front porch.
‘Never does any harm to have a few spares.’ He regarded the half-dozen slates with satisfaction and Beth noted that they were certainly a good match for the ones that were up there already.
‘No, it doesn’t. Are you coming in for a cup of tea?’ She didn’t want to kee
p him from anything important, and she had already had enough tea this afternoon, but the prospect of having him leave now was like leaving a film halfway through the action. After all the emotion, she wanted to sit quietly with him, talking about nothing for a while, let things come to some kind of conclusion.