She sighed.
‘Yes, I will be home.’
‘It’s very hard to storm out properly when there are children,’ she said, hanging up the phone.
Ramsay smiled.
‘It’s very hard to do anything when there are children,’ he said. ‘You sound like a good aunt though.’
‘Yeah, yeah,’ said Carmen, getting up. ‘Well. At least there’s that.’
She didn’t speak to Sofia when she got in, just went and saw the children in their rooms. Pippa was looking disapproving.
‘You made Mummy sad,’ she said.
Carmen screwed up her face.
‘I know,’ she said. ‘Sometimes sisters fall out.’
Pippa nodded sadly.
‘You got cross like Phoebe does.’
Carmen bit her lip.
‘Well, I’m sure we’ll get over it.’
‘You should probably say sorry,’ said Pippa.
‘Everyone should,’ said Carmen, beating a hasty retreat.
She popped in to see Phoebe.
‘Pippa says I should say sorry,’ she whispered.
‘I NEVER SAY SORRY,’ came the figure under the blankets. Carmen smiled for the first time that evening. Then: ‘I’m glad you came back. Are you going to stay with us for ever?’
Carmen blinked, kissed her, but could not answer.
Sofia was waiting in the hallway, feeling awful, but Carmen kept her distance unhappily.
‘I finish at Mr McCredie’s after Christmas,’ she said shortly. ‘Mum says they’re opening up a new bunch of cafés and stuff in the old buildings. Farmers’ markets, that kind of thing. I’ll go try my luck there.’
Sofia nodded numbly.
‘I … Okay,’ she said. ‘But you know I didn’t mean it.’
‘No, I know you did,’ said Carmen. ‘And that’s far, far worse.’
Carmen threw herself into work the following Monday, both with the huge line of customers, and getting things ready for the party. Mr McCredie did not appear until late morning but proved rather good at getting glasses and wine out and inviting customers willy-nilly. Carmen was surprised at him.
‘What are you doing?’ he said when he saw her still wrapping for people in the middle of the day. ‘I thought you took that thing called a “lunch break” these days.’
‘We’re busy!’ said Carmen. ‘I have a lot on!’
‘Well, I was going to ask you if you wanted to come with me.’
‘Where?’
‘There’s a lunchtime lecture series I thought you might like. Mrs Marsh told me all about it. Ramsay said he’d mind the shop.’
Carmen eyed him carefully.
‘Is it about the Antarctic?’
He shook his head.
‘It’s about the Ormiston Yew.’
‘The what?’
‘ … a very famous tree.’
‘Oh. Oh no. No.’
‘I’m your boss,’ said Mr McCredie.
‘Oh my God, you have been speaking to Mrs Marsh.’
‘She’s formidable,’ he said.