There’s a screech of brakes from outside and they all freeze, looking at each other. Matt is the first to move towards the front door, throwing it open and leaving it swinging on its hinges.
‘Be careful,’ says Kate, going after him.
‘Where’s my wife?’ Simon shouts, as he gets out of the car and strides up to Matt, their noses just inches apart.
Kate puts a hand on Matt’s arm for reassurance, but her insides have turned to jelly.
‘How about we all calm down and sort this out?’ says Matt.
‘Calm down?’ shouts Simon. ‘My wife’s been sleeping around and you want me to calm down?’
Kate can see the children in the car and inches her way towards them, closely followed by Lauren, whose breath she can feel on her neck. She admires her sister’s restraint. If it were her kids, she’d be like a screaming banshee, but Lauren obviously knows the best way to handle her husband. It pains Kate that she’s clearly had years of practice.
‘Come inside,’ says Matt, taking hold of Simon’s arm. ‘Let’s talk about this.’
Simon shakes him off and moves towards Lauren, his eyes blazing. Kate pulls herself up and stands tall between them, blocking his way.
‘How long’s it been going on?’ he shouts. ‘Did you honestly think you were going to get away with it? That I wouldn’t find out?’
He takes a step closer and Kate instinctively puts a hand across her stomach.
‘Who is he?’ Simon yells. ‘Tell me who he is, because I’ll fucking kill him.’
He raises his right arm and Kate can feel, in slow motion, the rush of air as he swings it down. She ducks, pushing Lauren away, and flinches as she waits for contact to be made. With her eyes squeezed shut, the split second feels like an eternity, not knowing who he’s going to strike or where. Another whoosh and a slap of skin, but it’s not hers, it’s Matt’s, as he takes hold of Simon’s forearm just before it crashes down on top of her.
‘I’m gonna kill him, then you,’ shouts Simon, as Matt pulls his arm behind his back and frogmarches him into the house.
‘Mummy,’ cries Noah from inside the car.
Lauren pulls open the door and holds the little boy to her. ‘It’s okay,’ she says with tears rolling down her face. ‘Everything’s going to be okay.’
Kate looks across the back seat to see Jude and Emmy sleeping, blissfully unaware that their parents’ marriage has just ended. Though if the truth be told, it sounds like it was over long ago.
‘You can’t stay here,’ says Kate, rubbing her hand up and down Lauren’s back.
‘I know . . . I’ll go to Mum’s for a bit – wait for the dust to settle.’
‘I’ll come with you,’ says Kate.
‘No, I’ll be fine, you need to get to work.’
‘I’m sure the front line of showbusiness can wait.’ Kate smiles.
‘Here,’ says Matt, throwing a bunch of keys at her.
‘I’m going to take everyone to Mum’s,’ says Kate, catching them. ‘Will you be all right?’
He nods. ‘Just make sure Lauren and the kids are okay.’
A warmth runs through Kate as Matt’s selflessness hits home. That’s the kind of man he is. That’s why she fell in love with him. She silently apologizes for suspecting he was anything else.
‘Be careful,’ she says to him.
‘Call me once you’re at your mum’s,’ he says.
And she would have done if Rose hadn’t answered the door to them and said, ‘What the hell have you done?’
43
Kate
The Echo is laid out on Rose’s kitchen table, with Jess’s photo peering up at them.
The similarities between her and Lauren, who sits down beside it, are striking. The blonde hair that rests on their shoulders, their perfect noses, their wide-set eyes, making them look vulnerable and aggressive all at the same time.
‘I can’t believe you’d do this,’ says Rose. ‘I mean, what were you thinking?’
Lauren swivels the paper around to face her. ‘Wow,’ she says, her voice hoarse from crying. ‘When did Jess agree to do this?’
‘A couple of days ago,’ says Kate.
Lauren looks at her with a perplexed expression.
‘It turns out she works at the Echo,’ says Kate, by way of explanation. ‘With Matt.’
Kate watches as Lauren’s eyes move frantically back and forth, trying to make sense of what she’s hearing. ‘But . . .’ she starts, before her mouth drops open.
‘She was with him in Birmingham,’ says Kate.
Lauren’s hand flies to her mouth and her eyes search Kate’s.
‘I know,’ says Kate, reading her mind. ‘But it’s not what you think.’
‘B-but she was there with her boss,’ says Lauren. ‘There’s something going on between them.’
‘She’s seeing Matt’s deputy,’ says Kate, thankful that they’d had that conversation as they’d lain in bed last night. ‘His name’s Ryan and apparently she was all over him like a cheap suit.’ She offers a weak smile, keen for the comment to come across as light-hearted.
Lauren exhales. ‘Oh my God, why didn’t you say something? When I said . . . you must have thought . . .’
‘I did,’ admits Kate. ‘But it’s okay. I jumped to conclusions and it wasn’t what I thought. Thankfully.’
‘I’m so sorry, I had no idea. If I’d have known they worked together, I would never have . . .’
‘I know,’ says Kate, instinctively touching her sister’s shoulder. She’d forgotten how good it felt to be close to her, both physically and emotionally.
‘Does she know?’ asks Lauren. ‘That Matt is your husband.’
‘We don’t think so. She’s certainly never broached the subject with him and although I’ve suspected her motives behind her being there, they’re yet to be proven. I’d like to think it’s all just a happy coincidence.’
‘What else would it be?’ asks Lauren flippantly, as if there’s no other option. Kate wishes she shared her sister’s naivety.
‘Why would you let her do something like this?’ cries Rose, coming between them. ‘What purpose can it possibly serve?’
‘We now know she’s Dad’s child,’ says Kate, each word slicing through her very being. ‘But he’s not here. So let
