Page 100 of The In-Laws

The twins glared at her. ‘Doreen saw you coming in at the very end. We knew you wouldn’t make it. You never do.’ Joni’s voice shook with emotion. ‘I was really good tonight and you missed it.’

‘I’m sorry, but I’ll watch the video the minute we get home.’

Janis put her arm protectively around her sister. ‘We always come second.’

Melanie had to try to salvage this. Their hurt and anger were raw. ‘I was only late because I was with Xina. Maybe you’ve heard of her.’

The twins stared at her. ‘Xina, like, Xina from TikTok?’ Joni asked.

‘Xina the social-media icon?’ Janis looked shocked.

‘Yes, that Xina, and she made a video – look.’ Melanie shoved her phone in front of their faces and played Xina’s video message.

‘OH, MY ACTUAL GOD!’ Janis screeched.

‘Xina sent us a video, like, to us, personally.’

Grabbing her phone, they raced off to show the video to their friends. Ross might be overbearing, but he had done her a good turn tonight by coming up with that idea.

Melanie smiled at Frank. ‘It looks like I’ve been forgiven.’

He looked at her sadly. ‘Oh, Melanie, don’t you get it? A video is not going to make up for being an absent mother.’

He turned and walked away, leaving her standing there in shock. How could he be so cruel? She wasn’t absent now. The girls were thrilled with their Xina message – more thrilled than they would have been with their mother sitting in the hall, watching the play. It felt like they all wanted too much from her – to be the breadwinner, the high-achiever, but also to be at home and a hands-on mother.It wasn’t possible to be an ambitious career woman, a perfect mother and a great wife. She couldn’t have it all and neither could they. More and more, Melanie was realizing this, and she resented the constant pull on her in all directions. It was exhausting … and something was going to have to give.

34. Amanda

Katie sat in her pyjama bottoms and an oversized sweatshirt, crying. Her hair was sticking up in different directions like Theo’s used to when he was small. She looked like a little girl.

Amanda glanced at Melanie, who shrugged her shoulders. She was obviously as much in the dark as Amanda was.

Katie’s hands were sweaty. ‘Thanks so much for coming. I didn’t know who to call. I couldn’t tell the girls in the salon and, well, you both have big, forgiving hearts, even though what I’ve done is a bit like what Ross did and I feel sick.’

What did she mean ‘a bit like what Ross did’? What the hell had she done?

‘How could I have been so stupid? How did I let myself get so drunk?’

Melanie handed Katie a tissue. ‘What’s going on, Katie? You’re talking in riddles.’

Amanda was glad Melanie was there to cut across Katie’s ramblings.

Katie told them about her night at the gig and waking up in a hotel bed with another man. ‘But I had my tights and pants on, so we didn’t have sex, like I didn’t do that, and he told me we didn’t do it … but … but it’s really bad, I know it is.’

Amanda’s mouth dropped. How could she do that? How could she risk her lovely marriage? She and Jamie were perfect for each other. They disagreed at times andJamie got cross with her, but they adored each other. How could she have been so stupid? She had everything, a loving husband and two gorgeous kids. Amanda knew Katie was looking for empathy and support, but she was having a hard time processing this. Itwaslike what Ross had done, the same careless neglect and betrayal, and it made her feel so angry.

‘Jesus, Katie, that’s really bad.’ Melanie didn’t sugar-coat it. ‘Does Jamie know?’

Katie shook her head. ‘I snuck back in while he was still asleep.’

‘Does Frank know?’

‘No, he left at midnight and he tried to get me to go home with him, but I was in “party Katie” mode and I wanted more fun. I’m pathetic, I know I am.’ She covered her face with her hands. ‘I have no one to blame but my thick self. I ordered the shots. Why didn’t I go home with Frank? I’m such an idiot. I put my marriage at risk. I love Jamie. I love him more than anything and my kids too. I’m so lucky, how could I risk all that?’

‘Do you remember anything about the night?’ Melanie asked.

‘I’m getting little flashbacks – I remember thinking the drummer was cute and he was being very flirty and I have to admit I enjoyed the attention. I felt young again, not like a thirty-five-year-old mum of two. I got high on the attention and drank more. What an idiot. Who does that? Who gets so out of it that they end up in bed with a stranger? I have such a good life. I made a very conscious decision in my early twenties to move away from my wild friends. I knew what I wanted, and I didn’t want chaos. I wanted a solid and stable life. How could I do something so terrible?’

Amanda felt sorry for her sister-in-law because she was so upset, but a part of her judged Katie harshly. It was as if she had a self-destruct button. Here was Amanda, trying so hard to make her marriage work despite being cheated on and humiliated, and Katie, who had everything, was risking it all for ‘fun’. Why couldn’t people see when they had a good thing going on? A good partner, a lovely family? Why all this running about looking for something else? Did they even know what they were looking for? Amanda was digging deep to find empathy, but it was hard. She stayed quiet while she sorted through her feelings.

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