Wandering about in his empty house, he flicked through TV channels and started unsuccessful maintenance projects on the Matchless. At work, he kept his head down to avoid the attention of his boss.
One day, missing Kitty, he rang Gloria ‘I’m round the corner,’ he said, ignoring her displeased tone. ‘I want to see Kitty.’
‘Well, er, she’s not here at the moment.’ Gloria hesitated then blurted, ‘She’s havin’ tea with a friend.’
If he had not known how very Christian Gloria was, Paul might have thought she was lying. ‘OK,’ he said, ‘tell me where and when and I’ll pick her up.’
Gloria let out a great breath that whistled down the line. ‘Paul, you’d better come round; I’ve got somethin’ to tell you.’
~~~
She made him sit on the sofa in the lounge, the very same sofa where he and Twitch… he veered from the thought. Gloria sat opposite him and put her hands together on her knees. In a gentle voice, she said, ‘Kitty’s in Mauritius. She’s with Fee and Will.’
He frowned in confusion, thinking not the Lake District then. ‘Did they take Kitty with them, then?’
‘No,’ Gloria shook her head and looked at her hands, ‘I drove her to the airport and put her on a plane. The thing is, it’s not Fee’s fault.’ Gloria made to stand up. ‘Let me make you a drink and I’ll tell you what I can.’
‘No. Tell me now.’
She subsided and concentrated on her fidgeting fingers. ‘They’re gettin’ married - Fee and Will. It’s a surprise. Fee knows nothing about it - Will arranged it with me on the telephone. Kitty and I kept it a secret, and Kitty left this mornin’ to be their bridesmaid.’
Behind Gloria, ‘family’ photographs smiled out from their frames on the sideboard. In one, Fee, Millie and Twitch sat round a table outside Fee’s beach hut. The wind was tossing Twitch’s long and wild hair across her face, and the others were holding theirs in place with their hands, laughing into the camera. Who had taken that? Another shot showed the five children, all grinning, squeezed together along a park bench, Josh with a finger up his nose. As Paul stared at the photos, he was processing Gloria’s startling revelation, trying to make sense of his thoughts and feelings. He had been semi-prepared for a new relationship, but this…
Gloria stood up. ‘I’ll make that tea.’
With a mug in her hand, she told Paul that Will had rung her some weeks ago - around the time Fee had broken the news of his existence to Paul. He asked Gloria to get Kitty ready to come out to Mauritius - made them part of his conspiracy.
‘She was so excited Paul, and she looked such a sweetheart in her outfit. I’ve been waitin’ to hear from Fee. When you called, I thought you might be her.’
‘So, you’re not sure if she went through with it?’
Gloria was silent.
He gave his tea a blow. ‘What’s he like?’
‘I’m not sure. I haven’t met him. He seemed nice enough on the phone. Well spoken, and he smiled a lot.’
‘You said you hadn’t met him.’
‘I haven’t but you can hear someone smilin’ in their voice, can’t you?’
In his pocket, Paul’s mobile phone vibrated and rang. Mick was calling in after a business trip on the continent. Paul glanced at his watch. He must have landed and be driving towards home. Paul forced a light voice. ‘Mate! Couldn’t wait to talk to me?’
Mick snorted. ‘Don’t flatter yourself. No. I called to tell you something.’ Gloria beamed at the faint sound of her son’s voice.
‘Yeah?’ Paul said.
‘Yeah. You remember that guy we saw in the deli years ago? Your neighbour?’
They had been shopping one day and encountered Max in a shop. Not wishing to share details of his counselling, Paul had told Mick and Maurice that Max was a neighbour.
‘Vaguely,’ Paul lied.
‘I saw him on my way to the airport, the day before yesterday. I didn’t remember who he was for a while… Anyway, I thought you’d want to know. He was with Fee - heading for Terminal B. Well, they weren’t moving at the time. They were repairing a puncture on the slip road.’
Paul swallowed, his brain searching for an explanation.
Mick said, ‘You still there?’
‘Yeah. You sure it was them?’
‘Pretty much. It was pissing down with rain, so we were going slowly. Listen. Where are you?’
‘I’m at Crispin Road with Gloria. You won’t believe what’s happening.’
‘I’m coming over. I was planning to drop in on Mum, anyway. See you in about an hour.’
‘Cheers.’ Paul put down the phone, thinking fast. ‘Gloria, is Fee’s mobile at home?’
‘Yes. It’s in her room. She was going to buy a cheap local one to use over there.’
He took the stairs two at a time, not sure which room was Fee’s, but it was obvious. The compulsive tidiness and the faint smell of her favourite perfume. He found her mobile in the bedside drawer, a fancy thing; better than anything he could afford. With the remaining fraction of battery, he managed to search her calling record. One number leapt out. A number he recognised straight away. A number that he had called many times. A number that would reach his counsellor, Max.
Max and Fee. He struggled to process the information. Max - his counsellor, in whom he had confided his most intimate secrets, and Fee his disdainful ex-wife.
Deep hurt made his knees shaky, and he dropped onto the bed and threw the phone back into the drawer. He had trusted Max. He had trusted Fee. He’d bet they were
