Page 80 of Loving Netta Wilde

Frank noticed how they held each other’s gaze for a heartbeat too long. Long enough for him to feel like he was on the outside of something looking in. Something special that he’d never be a part of. He was reminded of something Colin had said about them: ‘They were in their own orbit. I don’t think it was deliberate. They just didn’t notice anyone else.’ At last he got what Colin had been trying to tell him, and he understood that there would always be moments like these, there would always be looks. And with that fresh insight he also realised that if he wanted Netta in his life, then he had to make room for Doogie too because their feelings for each other weren’t ever going to diminish. Frank just had to decide whether he could accept that. Because if he couldn’t, he would almost certainly lose her.

45

AND SO DECREED OVERLORD CLAIRE

The door to Frank’s breakfast room was open. Doogie wasn’t sure whether to knock or just step in, so he stood outside on the paving, looking in. He could see a load of paintings in there. Some on easels and some stacked up against the wall. It looked cramped. He wouldn’t be able to work in a room like that.

He noticed the wallpaper was coming away in one of the top corners. The paper itself was tasteful, obviously expensive, but dated. The woodwork was badly in need of attention as well. Grace’s house had been like that when he first got to know her. Parts of it still were. He’d managed to persuade her to let him sort out some of the rooms, but she’d absolutely refused to let him touch her office and the little sitting room at the back of the house. The office had been her dad’s once, and the sitting room had been her mum’s favourite place for working and relaxing. Both had died before Doogie arrived on the scene. Grace said she felt connected to them in those rooms and there was no way she was going to let him take that away from her just because he had a need for clean lines and open spaces. It wasn’t really a need, but it was fair to say he felt more comfortable without the previous generation’s clutter in his face.

Frank appeared in the doorway between the breakfast room and the kitchen. ‘Morning. Come in.’

Doogie stepped in and walked around the edge of the room, wary of knocking a canvas over. He hadn’t really been looking at the paintings, art wasn’t his thing, but then he saw one of Colin and he stopped. It was… How would he describe it? Raw. Exposed. Shocking. His main work was marketing, so he knew an arresting image when he saw one. This was an arresting image.

Frank stood behind him. ‘It’s good, isn’t it? Liza painted it.’

‘She’s talented.’

‘It’s her best yet.’

‘You and Liza are pretty tight, yeah?’

‘I guess. She’s a great girl. I have a daughter of my own though. She lives up your way.’

‘Yeah, Netta mentioned it. She said you practically brought her up on your own. How d’you do that?’

Frank frowned. ‘I didn’t really have a choice. My late wife wasn’t very present. Then she wasn’t here at all. You just get on with it and hope it turns out well in the end.’

‘And did it? Turn out well, I mean.’

‘Yeah, it did. How’s it going with your daughter?’

‘All right, I think. Hard to tell. I wasn’t very present either for most of her life.’

Frank probably knew that, but he didn’t say. ‘You’re making up for it now though, yeah?’

‘Trying to.’

‘That’s all you can do, try your best and hope it turns out well in the end.’

‘I suppose so. I’m going to do my shift at Colin’s house now. Net’s already left for her market stall. Liza’s on her own with him until Geraldine and Arthur get here.’

‘I’ll go over and keep her company.’

‘Cheers. I’ll be back late afternoon. I’m meeting my daughter when I’m done spying.’

‘Good luck.’

‘Well I might see Claire, so I’ll probably need it.’

Doogie parked up outside Claire’s mum’s house. It was in Kings Heath, not far from Geraldine and Arthur’s. The morning had been uneventful. Neither Arianne nor the guy, Byron, had left the house. It had been boring, but it had given Doogie time to do some thinking about life and love, and families. They were curious things, families. They didn’t always look like one from the outside. When he was a kid, his family had been small. Just him, his mum and Mary from next door. He didn’t see his Scottish family enough to feel part of them and he’d never been allowed to feel part of his dad’s family. Monique saw to that. At uni, his friends had been a sort of family. In truth though, he’d always been a loner. Netta saw that in him. No one ever really got him like she did. Not even Claire. And no family ever made him feel he belonged as much as Netta’s had. Maybe it was because she was part of it. Or maybe it was because Arthur and Geraldine got him too.

Merrie was on her way down the path. ‘Mum’s on the phone. Quick, let’s get outta here before she finishes talking.’

‘Is she still really mad at me then?’

Merrie stuck her head to one side and closed one eye, like she was thinking really hard. She looked really sweet when she did that. ‘Not sure. Probably. She’s always a bit mad at you, isn’t she? Even when there’s nothing to be mad about.’

He laughed. ‘I guess.’ Claire was another one he could have been happy with, if only he’d given them the chance. ‘Let’s walk.’

---