‘I was as kind as I could be. We sat down and talked about it. I said that I just didn’t feel the same way any more. I even offered her money to help her out for a few days.’
The answer to her next question suddenly seemed of paramount importance. ‘And did she take it?’
Jack shook his head. ‘No. She was quite upset. It wasn’t… It didn’t go well.’
Rebecca would imagine not. Not only was she losing her boyfriend, it was her home too. ‘So, that was it? She left that night?’
Jack ran a finger around the inside of his collar; he looked uneasy. ‘Almost. About a week later, we ran into each other at the pub. We’d both had a lot to drink, she got upset, I comforted her and…’
How damn predictable. ‘And she ended up coming home and spending the night in your bed.’
Jack winced. She could see how painful this was for him to admit, but right now she didn’t care.
He pushed his rice away. ‘I’m not proud of myself. And you don’t just switch your feelings off. I had missed her.’
The next part was obvious but she had to ask. ‘And this night together. This unexpected night where you couldn’t stop yourselves from falling into bed. Did you use contraception?’
Jack’s face told her all she needed to know, but she waited for him to say it. ‘No. No, we didn’t.’
‘I see.’
‘I know what you’re thinking. It’s crossed my mind too, but Cara wouldn’t have got pregnant on purpose. She just isn’t like that. If you knew her better, you’d know too.’
If Jack wanted her to stay calm, to not lose her temper again, defending Cara was definitely not the way to go. ‘And you knew she’d got pregnant and did nothing?’
‘No. I didn’t know. I was telling the truth about that. It was just an offhand comment down the pub that someone had seen her and she’d looked pregnant. And I’m fully aware that I should have contacted her to check. I spent most of last night asking myself why I didn’t.’
Rebecca was going to spend a lot longer than one night asking herself, and Jack, that question. For now, she’d asked everything she wanted to. Of Jack. ‘We need to go home. I don’t know how long it will take to clear out her flat, but Cara doesn’t have a key to get back into ours.’
A tentative smile hovered on his face. ‘Does that mean you’re okay with them staying just a couple of weeks?’
She moved her hands from the table so that he couldn’t take them. It was too soon for kiss and make up. But she’d spent some time thinking this through while she’d stayed in bed this morning. ‘It means that they can stay. Whether I’m okay about it is another matter. You need to speak to Cara while I am working at Izzy’s tomorrow, and I do not care if you have a meeting scheduled with God himself, you are going to stay home and make a plan as to how this is going to work.’
By the look of relief on Jack’s face, she could have asked him to spend the next day rolling around on broken glass and he would have said yes. At least having Cara in the house would give Rebecca the opportunity to get to the bottom of this mess. Jack might be certain that Cara hadn’t got pregnant on purpose, but Rebecca wasn’t so sure.
11
Cara
Sunday mornings were always quiet on the Bramley Estate and Cara’s footsteps echoed up the concrete staircase as Sophie counted each one. She definitely hadn’t missed the stale smell of the communal hallway: a nauseating mixture of domestic waste and urine. At the top of the stairs they turned left. The peeling red front door of 3b had scuff marks along the bottom, where she had perfected opening it by administering a low kick at the same time as turning the key.
They’d only been in the flat for ten minutes when there was a knock on the door. Lee was about her age, possibly even a couple of years younger. It was his dad who owned her place, along with several other flats in the block. Reg was a builder who’d done well for himself and was now living in Majorca. Lee had been left in charge of the rentals business; his older brother ran the construction side of things.
Lee always looked as if he’d just stepped out of the shower and smelled as if he’d doused himself in expensive aftershave. His clothes were crisply pressed and covered in logos. The rentals business paid well. ‘Cara, babe. You’re killing me. Where’ve you been?’
Not many landlords came out to meet you on a Sunday, but Lee had a soft spot for her. Sometimes you have to work with what God gave you. ‘I’m so sorry, Lee. It’s just been a really tough week. I’ll get the rent, I will. Can you just give us a few more days?’
The wobbly bottom lip – and a gesture in Sophie’s direction – had its desired effect. Lee looked mortified that he’d made her cry. ‘Hey, hey. Don’t get all upset. It’s fine. Look, you’ve always been good for your rent in the past. I’ll give you some time. What do you need? A week? Two weeks?’
It was so easy, she almost felt bad for him. ‘That would be wonderful. I’ll definitely have it by then. Thank you so much.’
Lee actually blushed as he backed out of the room. ‘It’s all right. I’ll come back in a couple of weeks. You take care of yourself and the little’un. See you later.’
As soon as he’d gone, she wiped the crocodile tears from her eyes with the back of her hand and started to stuff the last few items into one of the boxes she’d brought up with her. Another knock on the door made her jump. Had Lee changed his mind?
To her relief, it was Danielle from next door, box-bleached hair piled up on the top of her head in a messy bun, coat over her pyjamas, shopping bags providing ballast either side. ‘Hello, stranger. I thought that was you through the window. Are you back?’
Cara shook her head. ‘Nope. Just getting the rest of my stuff. Once I’ve dropped it off, I’ll bring your car back. Thanks for lending it to me.’
‘No problem. I wasn’t using it this weekend.’ Danielle’s eyes took in the boxes. ‘So, you’re really doing this?’
‘Yep.’ Cara chucked a painted pebble into one of the boxes. ‘Are you missing me yet?’
Danielle shrugged. ‘Can’t wait to see the back of you.’
Cara laughed. ‘Who knows? I might be back here in a week. And even if I’m not, you’ll still see me.’
Danielle pulled a face. ‘The girls are starting school next September. Who’s going to brave the school run with me? I can’t be hanging around that playground on me own.’
It was impossible to look her in the eye. ‘I’m not applying to Hopton Primary.’
Danielle frowned. ‘Why not? It’s only at the end of the road. All the kids from the estate go there. Where are you applying?’
Might as well get it over with. ‘St Catherine’s.’
Danielle laughed. ‘St Catherine’s? Are you mad? You’ll never get in there. It’s got a tiny catchment area and they don’t accept…’ A light dawned in her eyes. ‘Sophie’s dad’s house is in catchment isn’t it? Is that why you’re doing this?’