Wednesday, 6 July
As the bus came to a stop outside the junior school, Lauren checked her watch, wondering if she had enough time to pop home and change her outfit. After-school club finished at four-thirty, and it was now twenty past, so no, there wasn’t enough time. She’d just have to deflect questions about why she was wearing one of Auntie Charlie’s fancy suits. Even her hair was neat, twisted into an updo. All part of her efforts to improve her financial situation.
The doors on the bus hissed open. Clinging hold of the handrail, she tried to negotiate the gap between the step and the pavement in a too-tight skirt and heeled courts.
It’d been a pointless exercise. There was no way the building society would offer her the position of cashier. Apart from the fact that she didn’t have any banking qualifications or office experience, company policy dictated that anyone with debts was automatically excluded from handling customer finances. Funny that.
She crossed the street and headed for the school gates, ignoring the surprised look on the caretaker’s face when he spotted her hobbling down the road in shoes that were too big for her.
Lauren didn’t know whether Glenda had formally registered the debt with any of the credit-reference agencies, but she wouldn’t put it past her. So, when the interviewer had asked whether she had any unsecured debt, she’d answered honestly. Shame had burned in her cheeks as he’d noted down her response. It’d been almost as humiliating as when she’d approached her dad last week and asked him for a loan. She hadn’t divulged why she’d needed the money, but his response had been crushing, if not unexpected. She’d received the usual lecture about needing to ‘stand on her own two feet’ and how she needed to ‘budget better’ and not succumb to the ‘buy-now-pay-later culture’ he felt was ‘ruining the country’. She wished she’d never asked, but desperation had forced her hand.
Ahead, she could see the lollipop lady guiding children across the road. She didn’t need to see the woman’s face to know it was Glenda Graham. Her shock of silver hair gave her away.
She didn’t want to deal with Glenda today, she was feeling fragile enough as it was, but at least it would enable her to give her this week’s twenty-five quid and get the transaction over and done with.
The idea of being indebted to Glenda for months to come had been the driving force behind applying for the cashier’s job. Maybe Charlotte had been right. Perhaps putting fun and quality time with her kids ahead of earning a decent salary was irresponsible. But getting a ‘proper’ job, as Charlotte encouraged, was easier said than done. She was a single parent, with no decent qualifications, who worked part-time in a café. Her CV wasn’t exactly impressive. Something that had become apparent during the excruciating thirty-minute interview with the recruitment agency.
As she waited by the crossing, her plan was to slide the money into Glenda’s pocket and keep walking, but Glenda wasn’t about to make life easy for her.
‘Hello there, my lovely. How are you on this glorious, sunny afternoon?’ The lollipop swivelled around to the STOP side.
Unable to pass, Lauren forced a smile. ‘I’m well, thank you, Glenda.’
‘You’re looking very fancy today.’ Glenda reached out and felt the quality of the designer fabric. ‘Expensive clobber. Come into some money, have you?’
Lauren didn’t like the inference. Her finances were none of Glenda’s business. ‘Here’s your money.’ She handed over the folded notes.
‘Cheers, my dear.’ Glenda pocketed the money but, instead of allowing Lauren to cross, stood firm. ‘You’re a good girl. Reliable. I like that. It makes my life easier. Enables me to help others. Know what I mean?’
Lauren sidestepped, trying to move past Glenda, but the woman wasn’t budging.
‘So, I’m going to do you a favour. Help you out, so to speak.’
Maybe Glenda was about to relent on the amount of interest she was charging?
‘As from this week, I’m increasing your weekly payments to fifty quid.’
For a moment, Lauren wondered if she’d heard correctly. ‘Fifty …? But why? I … I can’t afford that much.’
Glenda tried for a consoling look. ‘It makes sense when you think about it. This way, you’ll be able to clear the debt quicker so you can spoil those lovely kids of yours and buy more fancy clothes.’ Her hand gripped the jacket material. ‘Wouldn’t that be nice, eh?”
Lauren shook her head. ‘There’s no way I can afford fifty pounds a week, Glenda. So, thanks for the offer, but I’ll stick with the current amount.’ She needed to stand firm.
Glenda sighed. ‘Well, now that’s not going to work for me.’ She leant closer. ‘See Amanda over there?’
Lauren looked over to where another mother was greeting her young child at the school gates, using a walking stick to balance her weight.
‘Amanda has multiple sclerosis. Her loser husband left her when she got the diagnosis. Ran off with a younger woman.’
‘That’s terrible.’
‘Isn’t it?’ Glenda’s grip tightened. ‘Amanda’s kid needs a new school uniform and shoes – the old ones let in water. But she’s got no spare cash.’
Lauren swallowed.
‘Like I told you before, I’m no high-street bank. I can’t lend money if I don’t have money. So, if you won’t increase your payments, then I can’t lend anything to poor Amanda. And you wouldn’t want that, would you?’
Lauren shook her head, a sense of numbness creeping into her limbs. She was already struggling to pay twenty-five pounds a week; how on earth would she cope with an increase? She couldn’t. It was as simple as that. ‘It’s not reasonable to expect me to find fifty pounds a week, Glenda.’
The woman’s expression narrowed. ‘Our contract states that I can vary the terms as I see fit. Remember?’
How could she forget? Charlotte’s suit suddenly became very constricting. The waistband seemed to shrink, cutting off the blood supply to her lungs.
Glenda hadn’t let go of her arm, which was starting to ache. ‘You don’t want to end up like poor Amanda, do you? Trying to convince Social Services you’re not an unfit mother.’
Lauren’s skin began to burn. What was Glenda implying?
Glenda nodded to where Amanda was hobbling down the road. ‘Someone reported her to the local authority. Told them they were worried about her kids not being properly looked after.’
Lauren might be struggling financially, but she wasn’t about to let Glenda accuse her of being a bad mother. ‘I look after my kids.’
‘I know you do, lovey. You do a fine job.’ Glenda paused. ‘Most of the time.’
‘What’s that supposed to mean?’
‘Hey, don’t shoot the messenger.’ Glenda’s nails dug into her arm. ‘I’m not judging. But the other mothers talk. You hear stuff when you do this job.’
‘What stuff?’
‘Like today for instance. Class 4B have been on an excursion down at the beach. But so far no one’s picked up your kids and it finished an hour ago.’
Lauren froze, her head trying to compute what Glenda was saying. Oh, God. She’d forgotten Freddie and Flo’s school trip. How had that happened?
She tried to move, but Glenda wasn’t letting go of her arm. ‘Some might say that was irresponsible. You’ve put your kids at risk. I’m not saying anyone would report you for that, but you need to think about how it all adds up. Before you know it, your kids are in foster care and you’re battling with the courts. You don’t want that, do you?’ Glenda pulled her closer. ‘You’re a smart girl, you know what I’m saying.’
Lauren did. But she had more pressing things to worry about. ‘I’m sorry, Glenda. I’ve got to go.’
‘So, we have an agreement, yes?’ Glenda wasn’t relenting. ‘Don’t worry about settling up today. I’m not unreasonable. Bring me another twenty-five quid by Friday and we’ll be straight for this week.’ Finally, she let go of her arm. ‘Good girl.’
Lauren stumbled backwards, rubbing her sore
arm.
Glenda marched into the road and held up the STOP sign. ‘Let me know if I can be of any help,’ she called out, waving her across.
The irony wasn’t lost on Lauren, even in her heightened state of panic. Glenda could bloody well help by not screwing her over and threatening to report her for being an unfit mother – which, right at that moment, she was. Oh, God. She’d screwed up.
Fighting off the tightness in her chest, she ran down the road towards the beach. Well, she tried to run, but Charlotte’s skirt was too tight. When she reached the quayside, she raced down the stone steps. The sand sank beneath her feet, making progress hard, so she kicked off her shoes. The rocks loomed in the distance, jutting up from the sea, their grey shapes a contrast to the blue sky behind. The sun was out. Bodies filled the beach, making it hard for her to pick out her kids. Where were they?
And then she spotted them, dancing about in the sand, their red hair a contrast to their green uniforms. They were with Nate. He was tossing a Frisbee into the air for them to catch. She stopped running and tried to catch her breath. Nothing bad had happened. Her kids were safe. She could stop panicking.
Shrugging off Charlotte’s suit jacket, she headed over to where they were currently fighting over the Frisbee. Nate was distracting them from their squabble by holding the toy out of arm’s reach. Her kids jumped up like playful puppies, squealing with laughter. She wasn’t sure whether she should be grateful that her kids had Nate to look out for them, or concerned they were becoming too attached. It was probably too late to be worrying about that.
When her kids spotted her, they ran over, talking animatedly about their day.
‘We collected seashells and hermit crabs and seaweed.’ Freddie’s words came out in a tumble.
‘And a broken oar from a fishing boat swept out to sea,’ Flo added, excitedly.
Lauren smiled. They weren’t exactly traumatised by her absence, were they? ‘It sounds like you had a fun day. Sorry I wasn’t here to collect you. I was running an errand and got delayed.’ Feeble. Pathetic. Definitely an unfit mother.
‘That’s okay. Nate looked after us. Did you know he rescued a cow?’ Freddie’s face glowed with wonder. ‘How cool is that?’
‘Very cool.’ It was like her kids hadn’t even noticed she’d messed up … unlike Glenda.
As they continued regaling her with their exciting day, Nate ambled over, a smile on his tanned face. The sleeves of his white T-shirt were rolled up to show off his tattoos, and his cut-off jeans hugged his thighs. ‘Hey, Lauren. I’ve been trying to call you.’ His eyes travelled over her unusual attire and flustered appearance. ‘Everything okay?’
‘I switched my phone off temporarily and forgot to switch it back on.’ She wasn’t about to admit that she had no credit. ‘I’m so sorry.’
He smiled. ‘No harm done. I was on the beach anyway. Figured you’d be here soon enough.’ If he thought she was a bad mother, he was too polite to say so.
‘Thank you for looking after them.’ And thank God she had him listed as a childminder with the school.
‘No worries.’ The kindness in his eyes made her skin tingle.
She looked away, focusing on her children. ‘Say thank you to Nate, please.’
Freddie gave him a high five. Flo hugged him. ‘Love you, Nate!’
Nate laughed. ‘Love you too, munchkin.’
So much for them not getting too attached.
Her kids ran off, eager to continue their game. ‘Don’t go far,’ she yelled after them.
When she looked back at Nate, he was watching her, his head tilted to one side. ‘What’s with the suit?’
She didn’t want to see his expression, so ambled down the beach. ‘I went for a job interview.’
He fell into step beside her. ‘I didn’t know you were job hunting. I thought you liked working at the café?’ It was too much to hope he wouldn’t question her.
‘I do, but there’s no harm in seeing what else is out there, is there?’ It sounded feeble, even to her own ears. But how else was she supposed to improve her finances?
He nodded slowly. ‘Guess not. It’s just, you always struck me as having the right balance between working and looking after your kids. You do an amazing job.’
If only he knew. What with Charlotte pushing her to ‘better herself’ and Glenda accusing her of being an unfit mother, she fell woefully short of ‘amazing’.
Her sigh must have been audible, because he touched her arm. ‘You can talk to me, you know. About anything.’
She looked at his concerned expression, full of warmth and affection. It would be so easy to fall into his arms and rest her head on his shoulder. Maybe then she wouldn’t have to worry so much about balancing everything. But that would just play into Glenda’s hands and confirm she wasn’t up to looking after her kids by herself. ‘I’m fine,’ she said, looking away. She didn’t want to see the pity in his eyes.
‘I’m here for you. You know that, right? If you need anything, like help with the kids, or chores around the flat, just say the word.’
‘You do more than enough already. Thanks again for looking after them today.’
‘I like hanging out with them.’ And then he cleared his throat, as if gearing himself up to say something. ‘The offer extends to … um, money … if you need it.’
She stopped walking. ‘Why would you say that? What have you heard?’
‘Nothing.’ He held up his hands. ‘Nothing, I promise. It’s just, I figure it must be tough bringing up two kids on your own.’
‘I don’t need any help, thank you.’ Her face burned with humiliation.
‘Okay, whatever you say. I just wanted to throw it out there. Sorry.’
Any further response was cut off by the sound of Freddie shouting. ‘Mum! Mum!’
She turned quickly to see him sprinting across the sand. He almost fell into her. ‘Okay, calm down. What’s happened?’
‘Flo’s fallen. I tried to pull her out, but she’s stuck.’
Lauren looked over to where he was pointing. A wave crashed against the rock face spraying up whitewash. For the second time that day, she found herself running.
Nate charged ahead, reaching the rocks in seconds. He climbed up, jumping across the gaps in the rocks, calling Flo’s name.
Lauren’s body wouldn’t move fast enough. If felt like forever before she reached the rocks. ‘Wait here, Freddie, I don’t want you falling as well. And don’t run off.’ She kissed his cheek and climbed onto the rocks, the slippery surface making it hard to keep her balance in a tight skirt.
As she reached Nate, she heard him say, ‘It’s okay, sweetheart, Mummy’s here.’ He’d found her. Thank, God.
Lauren knelt down, positioning herself over the gap in the rocks. It took a while for her eyes to adjust to the darkness. And then she saw her daughter’s freckled face looking up at her.
‘I’m a bit stuck,’ Flo said, her bottom lip wobbling.
Lauren frowned. ‘You are, aren’t you, sweetie? How have you managed that?’
‘I was hiding from Freddie.’
She lowered her hand, gesturing for Flo to take hold. ‘Are you hurt?’
Flo shook her head. ‘My welly boot’s stuck under the rock.’
‘Can you pull it out?’ She squeezed her daughter’s hand. ‘Give it a big tug for me?’
Flo squealed in pain. ‘Ow!’
‘Okay, darling. Don’t worry. We’ll try something else.’ She realised her skirt was wet from lying on the rock face. Not that it mattered. She turned towards Nate, hoping he might have an idea, only to discover he’d stripped down to his underpants. The shock of seeing his near-naked body in such close proximity momentarily distracted her from what was happening.
Before she knew it, he was lowering himself into the gap next to her daughter. ‘Hey there, squirt,’ he said, as he eased himself down. ‘Room for two down here?’
Flo half-smiled, her hand reaching out to him. Lauren’s heart pinched.
‘I’m going to crawl under you and release your boot, okay?’
She nodded.
Lauren reached down and stroked her daughter’s head. ‘Not long now.’
Florence looked distressed. ‘Am I in trouble, Mummy?’
‘No, my darling. You’re not in trouble.’
For the next few minutes, while Nate silently worked out of sight, all she could think of was how this was another black mark against her as a parent. She obviously hadn’t been paying attention. She’d been too busy musing over her feelings for Nate, imagining what it would be like to touch him, to have him in her life …
A wave crashed over the rocks, snapping her from her reverie. Good. There was no time for wishful thinking.
When she heard Nate call out, ‘Okay, she’s free!’ a swell of relief consumed her.
His face reappeared above the rocks, wet and covered in debris. He pulled himself onto the rock face and took hold of Flo’s hands, handling her daughter like she was precious cargo – which she was, of course. He eased her free and then carried her down to where Freddie was waiting.
Nate climbed back onto the rocks to help Lauren down, his expression one of concern. ‘You okay?’
‘Thanks to you, yes.’ She hugged him, which was a bad idea. His skin was warm and smooth and smelt of seawater.
When he whispered, ‘Anything for you,’ she had to force herself to let him go, the impact of his words making her shiver.
Trying desperately to hold it together, she climbed down off the rock face and sunk to her knees, enveloping her daughter in a hug. ‘Well, that was a bit of an adventure, wasn’t it?’
Freddie patted his sister on the head and then turned to Nate. ‘Is that how you rescued the cow?’ he asked, as only an eight-year-old could.
Nate laughed, causing another swell inside Lauren’s chest. ‘Similar. Lucky for me, Flo’s only got two legs.’ He jumped back onto the rock face to retrieve his clothing.
Lauren tried very hard not to stare at his body.
Instead, she looked at her daughter, checking for signs of injury. She appeared to be okay, although her expression was troubled. ‘What’s wrong, sweetie? Are you okay?’
The Summer Theatre by the Sea Page 12
