‘What’s happening in there?’ As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Maddy regretted them.
‘It’s Donna’s family. Donna was a hit and run yesterday.’ Juliet kept her voice under control.
‘She’s eighteen. The doctors have just told them she’s brain-dead.’
Maddy closed her eyes.
‘Anyway,’ Juliet went on, ‘how are things with you? Are you still missing Kerr?’
Maddy instantly felt smaller than she’d ever felt before.
‘Don’t worry about me.’ Giving Juliet another hug, choking back tears at the thought of Tiff lying helplessly in his hospital bed, she said, ‘Ring me if there’s anything else you need. And give my love to Tiff. We’re all praying for him.’
She actually was, too. Despite never having prayed before.
‘Thanks.’ Juliet wiped her own brimming eyes. ‘Me too.’
Maddy returned to the hospital at twelve thirty after finishing her deliveries. Marcella, waiting for her outside the main entrance, thought how pale and drawn she looked. Supermodels might aim for stick-thin limbs and hollowed cheeks but Maddy looked better with a bit more weight on her. There was an air of defeat about her too. She hadn’t said anything, but Marcella knew why this was.
Well, there was nothing she could do about that. But she could certainly do her best, as a mother, to cheer Maddy up.
‘Lunch,’ Marcella declared as she climbed into the passenger seat of the Saab. ‘My treat.’
‘I’m fine.’ Maddy shook her head. ‘You don’t have to do that.’
‘Rubbish. Look at you, skinny as a broomstick! You need feeding up, and Nuala can manage without you for another hour. We’ll go to Quincey’s,’ Marcella announced, because this was one of Maddy’s favourite places to eat. ‘And sit outside like proper sophisticated ladies wot lunch.’
When Marcella was in this kind of mood, Maddy knew there was no point trying to argue with her. Within ten minutes the car had been parked and she and Marcella were sitting at a table for two on the broad pavement outside Quincey’s wine bar with two orange juices, two giant menus and — for ever-ravenous Marcella — a vast bowl of olives. The moment they’d finished ordering, Marcella reached down and began delving into the pink raffia basket at her feet.
This was when Maddy, her attention wandering, gazed across the road and saw who was seated in the window of the restaurant opposite.
The sensation was akin to a giant syringe shooting a gallon of adrenaline into her bottom. Sitting bolt upright as if she’d been electrocuted, Maddy stared first at Kerr, in profile to her, then at the glossy brunette sharing his table.
Oh Lord, this was too much.
‘Here we are,’ Marcella gaily announced, waving a small, curling piece of paper.
For a moment Maddy wondered if she’d hired a private detective and was now presenting her with evidence that Kerr had found himself another woman.
‘Take it,’ Marcella urged, ‘it won’t bite you. Can’t bite you,’ she added with a grin. ‘It hasn’t got any teeth yet.’
Kerr was sitting less than twenty feet away and Maddy was having to behave as if everything was normal. She wasn’t even sure she could remember how to breathe.
‘Are you OK?’ said Marcella.
‘Sorry, sorry.’ Guiltily Maddy grabbed the photograph and gazed at the funny little broad-bean-with-legs that was destined to become her stepsister or -brother.
‘That’s his heart,’ Marcella proudly pointed out, ‘and look, that’s his bladder!’
‘Wow, his bladder.’ Willing herself to concentrate, Maddy did her best to keep her hands steady.
Without much success.
‘You’re trembling.’ Marcella looked concerned. ‘Darling, are you sure you’re all right?’
‘I’m fine.’ Glancing over the road, Maddy saw that Kerr and the brunette had finished their meal and were preparing to leave the restaurant. ‘Um, you said he. Is it a boy?’
‘They always call them he,’ Marcella explained. ‘I don’t want to know whether it’s going to be a boy or a girl. It’s because you haven’t been eating properly,’ she scolded, taking hold of Maddy’s hand and giving it an admonitory squeeze. ‘That’s why you’ve gone all shaky. When our food gets here, you’re going to eat everything on your plate.’
The door of the restaurant opened, and Kerr and his female companion stepped out into the street.
Terrified that Marcella might turn round and spot him, Maddy hastily pointed in the opposite direction and said, ‘Ooh look, there’s that actor you like, the one from
Peering in vain through the crowd of tourists dawdling along, Marcella leaped to her feet for a better look. The sudden movement, coupled with the brightness of her acid-yellow shift dress, captured Kerr’s attention. Turning his head, he focused first on Marcella before his gaze shifted to Maddy.
‘Where?’ demanded Marcella, desperate to get a glimpse of her favourite actor. ‘I can’t see him!’
Maddy was unable to speak; she couldn’t stop staring at Kerr.
‘What’s he wearing?’ Marcella called out, by now hopping up and down.
What was he wearing? Dark blue suit. Bottle-green shirt. Polished black shoes. Probably his usual aftershave, but from this distance it was impossible to tell. And still he hadn’t moved. What must the brunette be thinking?
