“Listen to me,” I said, leaning back just a little so I could see her face. “I know you don’t want to go away, but Daddy isn’t doing it to be mean. He loves you very much, you know that don’t you?”
She shrugged. “I suppose so.”
Chapter 6
The second half of my week with Tilly was equally as challenging as the first. She was happy when we did things to keep her mind off moving, but the moment we stopped, she became withdrawn and moody again. There were many more tantrums, and she still wouldn’t eat properly. On Wednesday night, I heard her crying in her room. It broke my heart, but I let her be. On Thursday night, she was so upset that she came into my room and slept beside me, snuggling as close as she could until she drifted off to sleep.
When Friday came around, Tilly woke in a slightly more chipper mood. She was spending the night at her best friend’s house, which gave her something to look forward to. Dominic had asked me to arrange for Tilly to be out because some people were coming over to value the flat. Frankly, I wished I could have been out too because the idea of someone else living in our home made me feel sick. Lucy, was the first friend Tilly made at school, and when I asked her mum if Tilly could spend the afternoon with her, she offered to keep her for the whole night. I knew there was a strong chance I’d have to pick her up at some point, but after explaining the situation to Mrs Cook, she promised to take good care of her.
The apartment was spotless when the estate agents came over. I’d worked my arse off to make sure every surface sparkled, every speck of dust was removed from the carpets and there wasn’t a single item out of place. I even managed to be polite – a challenge when what I wanted to do was tell them to bugger off.
Once they’d gone, all I had left to do was wait for Dominic to get home. He was due back around six, so when the phone rang at five-thirty, I figured it would be him, asking me
to order a pizza. He’d emphatically told me not to cook after rushing around to get the house tidy.
“Hello,” I said. “What topping would you like?”
Instead of Dominic’s familiar laugh, there was an awkward cough that somehow managed to make me feel like an idiot.
“Hello. I don’t know if this is the right number, I’m looking for Dominic Hartley?”
The voice was female, American. And she’d never called the flat before.
“Yeah, this is the right number,” I said. “Sorry about that, I was expecting him to call.”
“It’s no problem. You must be the maid, right?”
Cheeky bitch.
“Actually, I’m the child minder. Can I take a message?”
“Sure, can you tell him he left some paperwork behind today, and that I’ll take it to the office tomorrow so he doesn’t have to worry. I’d hate if he had work on his mind while he’s with his family next week.”
Something about the way she spoke set off alarm bells in my head. She was way too familiar to just be a work colleague. And she’d take the paperwork to the office? Presumably that meant he’d left it at her house.
“Sorry,” I said, again, “Who are you?”
“Serena Morton. I work with Dominic, and he came over to my place last night to … well … anyway, he left some work in my home office and I just want you to tell him I’ll take care of it.”
Sounded to me like she’d been taking care of more than his paperwork. The realisation made my pulse race, and not in a good way.
He had a woman in New York. A snooty sounding one with a pretentious name, who he knew well enough to talk about his family with. Was she the real reason for the move?
“I’ll tell him,” I said. “Is there anything else?”
She giggled. “Tell him I said thanks for a wonderful three days.”
Three days? Three sodding days? Aside from this ‘paperwork,’ had he even been near the office?
“I’ll let him know,” I answered, through gritted teeth, as I heard his key turning in the door. Without another word, I slammed the phone down and practised deep breathing so I didn’t fly into the hallway and choke the crap out of him. When I’d centred myself enough, I stood up, just as Dominic entered the living room, loosening his tie.
“Hi,” he said. “I’m knackered, so what do you say we order some food and watch a crap movie? I don’t have … what’s wrong?”
Two thoughts entered my head simultaneously. Firstly, Christ, he looks sexy in a crumpled business suit with a tie hanging around his neck. Secondly, he just spent three days shacked up with some floozy, no wonder he’s knackered.
I had about three seconds to decide whether to yell, or make a speedy exit.
“You had a call,” I said. “Serena. She said you left some paperwork behind but she’ll take it to the office for you, and … oh … thanks for a wonderful three days. Glad you’re back safely, I’m going out.”