Page 116 of Our Secrets and Lies

‘Sure boys can turn anything into a weapon,’ Lucy said. ‘I remember Dylan stabbing Billy in the leg with a fork when he was five.’

‘Theywere so cute when they were that age,’ Jenny said. ‘I used to love buying them little outfits and doing Kelly’s hair.’

Lucy smiled. ‘They were great fun. I used to love going into their bedrooms at night and kissing their warm sleepy faces. They were so adorable.’

Sarah took a big sip of wine and tried to keep her voice even. ‘I’d say if Tom knew how wonderful they are, he’d really regret leaving.They were, and still are, so lovable.’ She shot a look at Jenny, who nodded slightly.

‘Anyone would be proud to be their parent,’ Jenny said. ‘I’ve always hated Tom for leaving but you’d have to feel a bit sorry for him that he missed out on so much.’

Lucy’s eyes narrowed. ‘Feel sorry for Tom? Are you mad? He chose to abandon us.’

‘But did he really, though?’ Sarah said. ‘I mean, do you thinkthere’s any chance he truly believed you’d had the abortion and had no idea he was a dad?’

‘No,’ Lucy said quickly. ‘And even if he wasn’t sure, if he’d bothered to contact me to see if I was okay, he’d have soon found out. But he didn’t even do that much. Not even a lousy letter or email. He’s an unfeeling bastard, as far as I’m concerned.’

‘It’s an interesting point, though,’ Jenny said. ‘Ihadn’t thought about that before. What if Tom didn’t know the twins existed? It’s possible, isn’t it?’

Lucy stared at her in disbelief. ‘Why the hell are you two suddenly talking about Tom?’ she said, looking from her sister to Sarah. ‘Where’s all this coming from?’

‘I’m just wondering if –’ Jenny turned mid-sentence as the doorbell interrupted them. ‘Who’s that?’ she asked, as she went to answerthe intercom.

‘Hello?’

‘Hey, babe, it’s me.’

‘Frank?’

‘Yeah.’

Jenny buzzed him in. ‘What’s he doing here? I wasn’t expecting him.’

‘We’ll leave.’ Lucy got up and Sarah did the same.

‘No, stay and finish your wine. I want you to meet him.’

There was a knock on the door. Jenny went to answer it. She came back into the lounge followed by a man carrying a large suitcase.

Lucy and Sarah twirledaround on their kitchen counter stools to look at him. He was tall, fit, tanned, had thick brown hair with flecks of grey, and was impeccably dressed.

‘So, this is Frank. Frank, this is my sister Lucy and our friend Sarah.’

Frank shook their hands.

‘Are you moving in?’ Sarah laughed, pointing to his suitcase.

Jenny grinned. ‘No, he’s just back from Shanghai.’

‘Well, yes, I am, but actually,babe, Barbara kicked me out. She’s changed the locks and the gate code and … Well, she seems serious this time. So, it looks like I am moving in.’

Jenny’s face fell. ‘What do you mean?’

Frank put his arms around her. ‘I’ll be staying here until I get this sorted out. We can get a bigger place when I find out how much Barbara wants in maintenance.’

Jenny frowned. ‘How long will that take?’

Frank laughed. ‘Knowing Barbara, she’ll try to take me to the cleaners, but I’m not having that so it could be a while.’ Frank threw his jacket onto the couch. He picked up a cracker and put a huge chunk of cheese on top. ‘Right, what’s for dinner?’

Jenny pointed to his cracker. ‘That’s dinner.’

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