Life Or Something Like It (30 page)

‘It was great thanks, Andrew,’ replied Finn, shaking his hand in greeting. Daisy disappeared down the corridor in search of her friend.

‘Good, that’s really good,’ said Andrew, turning away quickly and gathering up his work bag and coat. ‘Well I should probably get going. Ellie and Charlie are just finishing breakfast. See you later!’ He hurried out of the door, leaving Finn and Cat standing in the hallway staring at one another.

‘Maybe he doesn’t like the thought of me defiling his sister,’ joked Finn. Cat laughed.

Ellie and Daisy appeared in the hallway. ‘Come on, we’ve got a game we want you to play.’

Cat and Finn grinned at one another before following the girls into the dining room. Charlie smiled up from his toast as they entered. Ellie and Daisy were standing at the far end of the room. Rows and rows of dolls and bears had been carefully placed on either side with a passageway down the middle.

Ellie cleared her throat. ‘Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today for the wedding of Cat Nightingale and Finn Thomas.’ Cat and Finn laughed.

Ellie frowned at Daisy and gestured for her to move but Daisy was staring back at Cat and Finn, a dreamy smile on her face. ‘Daisy!’ hissed Ellie. ‘You’re the bridesmaid. Go and get the happy couple!’

‘Oh, okay,’ sighed Daisy. She skipped back down the room and stood behind Finn and Cat before giving them a shove. ‘You have to walk to the front,’ she whispered loudly.

Charlie watched amused as Finn and Cat made their way towards Ellie. The small girl pursed her lips seriously. ‘Do you, Cat Nightingale, take this man to be your awful wedded husband?’ She and Daisy dissolved into giggles.

Cat laughed and glanced at Finn. ‘I do,’ she said.

‘And do you, Finn Thomas, take this woman to be your awful wedded wife?’ More giggling.

‘Absolutely,’ replied Finn.

Ellie scowled at him. ‘You have to say “I do”!’

‘Oh. Sorry. I do,’ declared Finn.

‘Yay!’ squealed Daisy.

Ellie silenced her with a fierce stare. She turned back to the soft-toy congregation. ‘By the power of Jedi knights and sweet Jesus, I now pronounce you husband and wife.’

‘You can kiss the bride,’ whispered Daisy, shoving her uncle in the back.

‘That’s my line,’ said Ellie sternly. ‘You may now kiss the bride,’ she cried.

Finn smiled at Cat and planted a chaste kiss on her cheek.

‘Euw,’ said Charlie.

‘It’s so romantic,’ breathed Daisy.

Cat grinned at Finn and shook her head. ‘Kids eh?’

He shrugged. ‘They see things as they’re meant to be.’ He smiled.

Cat felt a little unnerved by the inference but quickly dismissed it with a smile. She was determined to enjoy this new shot at happiness and take life as it came for a change.

The children had two more days of holiday left and their mood started to shift from one of post-holiday euphoria to impending school-day doom. Finn and Cat did their best to make the activities as fun and distracting as possible but soon Tuesday evening was upon them. Finn took Daisy home, kissing Cat goodbye. She had promised to stay at Andrew’s that night and take the children to school the next morning.

‘I’m going to miss you, wife,’ joked Finn as he kissed her goodbye.

Cat smiled but there was something about this comment that made Cat’s shoulders tighten. ‘See you tomorrow,’ she replied.

Cat went upstairs and helped Ellie with her shower whilst Andrew sorted out the uniforms and PE kits. Once Ellie was tucked up, she went say goodnight to Charlie. He was sitting up reading in bed.

‘Are you okay?’ she asked, perching next to him. He gave a small shrugging nod. Cat put a hand on his arm. ‘Do you want me to come and see your teacher tomorrow, like we talked about?’

‘Yes, please,’ said Charlie in a little boy voice that made Cat want to pull him into her arms. She resisted though, knowing he would hate it.

‘Okay. Well, sleep well,’ she said, standing up and reaching the door as Andrew entered.

She went downstairs and began to tidy the kitchen, loading the dishwasher and filling the sink with water.

‘Thanks for doing that,’ said Andrew appearing in the doorway.

‘No worries.’

‘So,’ he ventured.

‘Yes?’

‘Obviously I don’t want the details but I just need to know if you’re happy?’

Cat laughed. ‘I think I am,’ she said. ‘Very happy.’

‘I’m really glad,’ he replied. ‘Oh by the way, Melissa’s coming back on Thursday so you’ll be off the hook and able to return to the heady world of PR soon.’

‘Right,’ said Cat, feeling her insides sink. ‘That’s great.’

‘Well, we’ve kept you from your life for too long. It means you can sort out your job and get back to your old life.’ Andrew put an arm around her shoulder and planted a kiss on the top of her head. ‘For the record though, you’re a Grade A aunt and I couldn’t have managed the past few weeks without you.’

‘I’ve had a great time,’ she admitted. She could feel an ache in her chest at the realisation that she was going to miss the children.

‘See? I knew you’d grow to enjoy it. Maybe you and Finn could produce your own little band of monsters. Right, I need to send a quick e-mail.’ He disappeared out of the kitchen, leaving Cat feeling floored and slightly terrified. The thought of going back to whatever was left of her old life coupled with her family’s insistence that she marry and reproduce with Finn was making her head spin.

Her phone buzzed. She pulled off the washing-up gloves and swiped it into life. She had become lax about checking her phone lately and realised with a sense of dread that there were three missed calls from Jesse. She was about to listen to them when a text message appeared on the screen. It was Finn.

‘I miss you and think I might love you. I hope that doesn’t scare you.’

She felt a surge of adrenaline as she replied as diplomatically as she could.
‘Only a little. And I miss you too.’
Really, she wanted to reply.
‘Whoa there, boy! Slow it down! I need more time!’

She pressed a button to listen to her messages. It unnerved her hearing Jesse’s voice after so long. ‘Hey, Kit Kat. Hope you’re okay. Could you call me, please?’

The other messages were variations on a theme but she could tell that Jesse’s tone was becoming more jumpy. In the third message, he was doing his best to keep his tone light but Cat sensed he was getting desperate.

‘Kit Kat, I’m worried about you. I hope you’re all right. Call me. Please?’ The Cat of old would have phoned him straight away, full of concern, ready to help, but this new version was still licking her wounds after Ava’s revelation. She sent him a text instead.

‘Hi Jesse, I’ve been away. Will call you tomorrow. Cx’

She didn’t sign with her usual ‘KK’ and when he replied.
‘Can’t wait,’
she threw her phone to one side in annoyance and took herself off to bed.

Chapter Twenty

The next day Cat took the children to school with a heavy heart. She had underestimated how much she was going to miss them but seeing Ellie in a new skirt and school shoes that were a tad too big for her and watching as Charlie tugged nervously at his fringe, she was painfully aware that something significant was coming to an end. She always felt a little like this when the lazy heat of summer gave way to the crisp underlying chill of autumn. It was a sunny morning but the sky had a golden quality as though the brightness of the summer months were fading. She walked the children through the school gate and spotted Finn chatting to Claire. It felt like an age since she’d met her at the park, a different life really, when this baffling world of children had seemed, well baffling. She strode over feeling the reassuring warmth of Ellie’s hand in hers.

‘Hi!’ she said, joining them alongside a queue of shiny new Year Two children. Finn smiled when he saw her and Claire beamed with delight, reaching over to give her a hug.

‘Cat! I thought Mel might be back. It’s good to see you though,’ she said, giving her a nudge. ‘I hear you’ve had an eventful summer,’ she added with a raised eyebrow.

Cat felt ruffled and stole a glance in Finn’s direction. He shrugged in reply but she was perturbed that he was already broadcasting their business around the school playground. Ellie, Daisy and Izzy were chatting like a group of old women.

Cat felt Charlie tap her on the arm and turned to see him gazing up at her hopefully. ‘Right, let’s go and see your teacher, shall we?’

He gave an uncertain nod. ‘Do you think it will be okay?’

‘It will be fine,’ she reassured. ‘Finn, could you see Ellie in for me, please? Ellie, will you be okay?’

‘’Course,’ said Ellie with a dismissive wave. ‘See you later, Auntie Cat.’

Finn caught her arm as she walked past. ‘I’ll wait for you at the gates, okay?’ She nodded before following Charlie to where his class was lining up. She spotted Tom and Ben at the front of the queue and watched them nudge one another as they approached. Charlie ignored them and stayed close to his aunt.

A woman, who Cat recognised as Tom’s mother, was holding court over a gaggle of other parents. ‘So I said to Phil, if they don’t upgrade us immediately, I am going straight to the chief exec.’

‘I don’t blame you,’ clucked a beak-nosed woman.

Cat didn’t want to make eye contact with Tom’s mother in case she remembered her from the park and was relieved when a teacher who looked only slightly older than Ellie appeared. Cat needn’t have worried about this woman’s youth. ‘Okay, 6B, can we have a straight line? Ben, tuck in your shirt; Tansi, sort out your tie, please.’ The children followed her instructions without question.

Cat approached her. ‘Excuse me, could I have a quick word?’

The woman glanced at her watch. ‘I’m afraid I need to get them into school. Could we meet after pick-up?’

‘Erm yes, okay.’

‘Sorry. I’m not being dismissive. It’s just that the bell’s gone and we need to start the school day.’

‘Of course.’

‘Can I ask what it’s about?’

‘It’s about my nephew, Charlie, and some messages he’s been receiving on social media.’

The teacher nodded. ‘If you and Charlie could come and see me after school, we can discuss it then.’

‘Thank you,’ said Cat. ‘Okay, Charlie, I’ll see you later.’

Charlie nodded but remained silent. She watched them disappear into the school and part of her longed to run after him and make sure he was okay. She turned to see Finn waiting for her at the school gate. As she approached, he went to put his arm around her but she pulled away.

‘What’s wrong?’ he asked.

Cat looked around at the other adults. ‘I just don’t want everyone knowing our business.’

Finn looked perplexed. ‘You don’t know anyone here.’

She sighed. ‘I know Claire.’

‘But she’s a friend and she’s happy for us. What’s wrong with that?’

It was a reasonable question for which unfortunately Cat didn’t have a reasonable answer. They were walking out of the school gates now. Finn slowed down to greet some of the parents he knew so Cat continued without him. She kept her head down and walked quickly in the direction of Andrew’s house. She heard Finn jogging after her and felt his hand on her arm. ‘Cat, stop. Please.’ She turned to face him. She didn’t know what to say. ‘What is it? Please, tell me.’

‘I don’t want to do this here.’

‘Okay. Let’s go back to mine.’

‘I need to go back to Andrew’s. We left the kitchen in a state.’

‘Cat Nightingale, domestic slave,’ joked Finn. Cat didn’t laugh. He reached for her hand as they walked back to the house and she let him. She was annoyed but more with herself. She could tell that she was on the verge of sabotaging her newfound happiness but the worst thing was, she didn’t know how to stop.

Back at Andrew’s she set about making coffee and tidying the kitchen, refusing Finn’s offer of help. He stood and watched her.

‘Why are you angry?’ he asked after a while.

She turned to look at him, her face furrowed into a frown. ‘I don’t know,’ she answered truthfully.

‘Are you scared?’

She considered this for a moment. ‘It’s all happening so fast. It feels out of control.’

Finn approached her, took the coffee mug from her grasp and held her face in his hands. ‘You’ve got to stop trying to control the universe. You can’t prevent certain things from happening and you have to accept that, Cat.’

She nodded. ‘I’m trying.’

He stroked her hair and bent down to kiss her. ‘The thing is, I know that I love you. I’ve pretty much known that from the first moment I met you when that dog weed on your handbag.’ Cat smiled. ‘But I don’t mind if you can’t tell me that you love me or if you need time to get used to the idea. I’m cool with that. And I’m sorry that I told Claire but to be honest, you make me happy and I want to share that with the world.’ Cat stared at him. It was such a sweet and wonderful declaration; most women would fling their arms around this beautiful man and skip off into their happy ever after. Cat wished she could do that. She wished it with all her heart.

‘Thank you,’ was all she could think to say.

Her phone rang and they both glanced over to where it sat on the side. Cat could see that it was Jesse calling and she could tell from Finn’s pinched expression that he had too. She felt her heart sink. ‘I need to answer this,’ she said, picking up her phone. Finn nodded and walked out of the kitchen.

‘Hi, Jesse,’ she answered.

‘Kit Kat, how are you? I’ve missed you!’

‘Have you? Last thing I heard was that Caroline Henderson was doing my job.’ She surprised herself with the outburst. She never usually gave Jesse a hard time but she was angry and hurt. Jesse was surprised too.

‘Oh Kit Kat, I’m sorry. It was only ever a temporary thing and to be honest, she’s been a nightmare.’ He lowered his voice. ‘She drinks too much and is very indiscreet with clients. We parted company last week.’

‘Oh,’ said Cat. ‘Well anyway, did you need to speak to me about something specific?’ She wasn’t going to let him off the hook that easily.

‘Well actually I have good news.’

‘Oh really?’

‘Yes, really. How would you like your old job back?’