Page 7 of Teacakes & Tangos
‘Hey, you did exactly the right thing, selling the car.’ I got up to hug him, desperate to reassure him that he didn’t have to feel bad about it. ‘Neither of us have been very good at moving on with our lives after Mum... but maybe now we’ve faced our fears about what to do with her car, things will be better?’
He nodded but didn’t say anything.
‘And once I’ve landed the job I interviewed sobrilliantlyfor this morning, I’ll be able to start paying my way again.’
His mouth lifted at one corner. ‘I’m sure youwerebrilliant.’
‘Er, I don’t think so. But fingers crossed, eh?’
He nodded. ‘And I’m planning to start up the business again.’
He saw my alarmed look and smiled. ‘It’s okay. My back is so much better. My physio says there’s no reason why I can’t start back again, as long as I don’t climb trees or do anything too risky.’
‘Oh, so you did go to the physio? I was thinking that might have been an excuse because you were planning to deal with the car sale?’
‘No, after dropping you at your interview, I drove straight back here to meet the buyer as planned. He’d brought a trailer to take the car away. Then I drove straight to my physio appointment. But I was in such a hurry, I obviously didn’t close the garage properly.’
‘I’d never have known the car was gone if you hadn’t left the door slightly ajar.’
He nodded sheepishly. ‘I was going to tell you... when the time was right. But it was all done in such a rush.’
‘Who did you sell to?’ I asked gently, sitting back down.
‘A local classic car dealer.’
‘The one on Barminster Road?’
He nodded, looking surprised I should know about it.
‘I went in there with Mum a couple of times, remember? She could never resist taking a peek if we were passing.’
‘That sounds about right.’ He smiled. ‘Her dad – your grandad Jim – was a classic car enthusiast. She got the bug from him.’
Looking at his chalk-white face, I gave him a feeble smile. ‘It’s going to be okay, you know, Dad. We’ve... well, we might not have the car anymore. But we’ve got each other?’
At that, his face broke into a warm smile and he reached over and squeezed my hand tightly. ‘Of course we have, love. That’s all that matters, really, isn’t it?’
‘Definitely.’ A tear leaked out as I smiled at him.
I couldn’t imagine what life would be like without my lovely dad. It didn’t actually bear thinking about.
But thankfully, that wasn’t something I needed to worry about. His back was improving all the time. And getting back to work was sure to revive his spirits.
I’d get the job I’d applied for and our financial worries would be a thing of the past.
Everything would be fine . . .
Clara
CHAPTER FOUR
‘Maddy, for goodness’ sake stop chortling.’
‘I can’t help it, Clara.’ (More snorts of laughter.) ‘It just feels weird doing it in full view of passers-by and dog-walkers in themiddle of the village green.’
‘Well, itwasyour idea,’ I reminded her. ‘So just forget everybody else and concentrate on whatwe’redoing. Think sensual and seductive.’
‘Ooh, you’re quite sexy, aren’t you, when you’re pretending to be a man?’
