The last question was directed to Rebecca, who was shaking her head to try and stop him. It was too painful to watch and she needed to know. Right now. She looked at Cara. ‘She’s not just your daughter though, is she?’
Cara took a deep breath and let it out slowly. ‘No,’ she said. ‘She’s not just my daughter.’ She turned in her seat to face Jack. ‘Sophie is your daughter too.’
4
Rebecca
Rebecca’s heart sank to her feet. Jack reeled as if he’d been shot. His face drained of colour and he closed his eyes. When he opened them, his expression was more complex than shock, although Rebecca couldn’t quite put her finger on it.
When he spoke, his voice had dropped to a whisper. ‘Are you sure?’
Cara nodded. ‘One hundred per cent. I know it’s a bombshell. If circumstances were different…’
Rebecca’s initial shock was replaced by confusion. ‘What do you mean? If you hadn’t needed somewhere to stay, you would never have told him? You would have just let him go on in his life ignorant that he had a child?’
Jack placed a restraining hand over Rebecca’s. ‘Hold on. Let’s just take a minute here.’
Rebecca crossed her arms and pressed her lips together. Of the two of them, Jack was the one who always avoided confrontation, always saw the other side of an argument. But even he must be angry right now? Cara’s chin was jutting towards them. She looked harder, tougher than she had in the hall. Then her eyes softened when they resettled on Jack. ‘I didn’t find out that I was pregnant until after you… after we split up. I wasn’t even sure that I was going to keep the baby and then I kind of did and…’
Jack covered his face with his palms and then pulled them down slowly, dragging the skin down with them. He looked… guilty? ‘But five years, Cara? Five years and you’ve never said a word?’
Cara looked down to her lap, where she was picking at her fingernail. Her hands were red and her nails ragged. Rebecca had her nails manicured every two weeks. Nothing flashy. Blunt, neutral, tidy: part of her professional appearance. Although she had to grudgingly admit that Cara was pretty; her short choppy dark hair, angular face and tight jeans made her look so different from Rebecca. Not Jack’s type at all. How had they even met?
Cara looked up but continued to pick at her fingers. ‘I meant to. Before the baby was born, then again when she turned one. I even found you online but… I could never get the courage up to do it.’
Jack sighed and dropped back in his chair. Couldn’t he see that this woman was manipulating him with her big blue eyes and trembling lip? Jack was a sucker for anyone in tears, and Cara obviously knew that of old. Rebecca was trying so hard to bite her tongue, but Jack just sat there, shaking his head. If he wasn’t going to say anything, Rebecca certainly was. ‘And what about Sophie? What does she know? Did she not ask about her dad? Have you told her Jack is her father?’
Cara’s tone was unbearably condescending. ‘Where we live, there are lots of little girls who only have their mum. She hasn’t questioned it up to now.’
She was looking at Rebecca with something approaching contempt, as if she was a naive little girl with no knowledge of the real world. It was enough to drive the last remnants of patience from Rebecca’s chest. ‘And what about now? Why does she think you are here? Who does she think we are?’
Cara narrowed her eyes. ‘She doesn’t think anything about you.’ She turned to Jack. ‘But I’ve told her that you are an old friend of mine. That you might be able to help us. Might—’ she paused and took a deep breath ‘—might give us somewhere to stay until we work out what we are going to do next.’
Rebecca nearly choked. Stay? This complete stranger really did expect them to open their door and let them stay? She looked at Jack and saw her surprise reflected back at her.
The door to the lounge creaked and Sophie appeared in the doorway. ‘Mummy?’
Cara stood and walked the three steps to crouch beside her daughter. She was so slim and petite, if you didn’t look at her face, you might mistake her for a child herself. Just the kind of woman to bring out Jack’s natural protectiveness. ‘What is it, baby? Mummy just needs to speak to her friend for a few more minutes.’
Rebecca noted the use of the singular ‘friend’. Was this woman expecting her to offer to take her daughter back to her office and let them continue their conversation without her? No way that was happening now.
Sophie held out a picture of a roughly drawn triangle with four lines coming out of it and a floating circle. ‘I did a picture of you.’
Cara took the picture. ‘That’s fantastic. Can you draw some more for Mummy?’
Sophie shook her head. ‘The paper is all finished.’
How had she gone through that pile of paper already? Still, at least this was a way to get Cara out of the room for a few moments so that she could speak to Jack alone. ‘There’s more in the printer under the desk if you want to get her some?’
Cara pushed herself back up to standing. Without even glancing at Rebecca, she held out her hand to her daughter. ‘Come on, Soph. Show me where you’ve been drawing and I’ll get some more paper for you. Maybe you can draw me a picture of you that I can keep in my bag.’
As soon as they were out of the room, Rebecca stood and pushed the door closed. Now it was her turn to pace. ‘What the hell are we going to do?’
Jack looked exhausted. ‘I have no idea. No idea at all.’
Rebecca had to keep moving. How could he just sit there? Think. Think! ‘She’s expecting to stay here. What are we going to say to that? Do you know her well enough to allow her to stay in our house?’ There was something unsettling about Cara’s appearance. Her thinness, her hooded eyes, the tight set of her mouth. ‘Can she be trusted?’
Jack blinked several times. ‘I think so. I mean, I haven’t seen her in such a long time. She was quite wild back then, but I guess she must have settled down if she has a kid.’
Rebecca wanted to shake him; it was as if he was in slow motion. Cara would be back any minute and, one thing was certain, they would have to present a united front on this. Much as she’d like to show Cara the door and relegate her to the grey box of Jack’s past, there was a little girl to think about. She still didn’t know why they’d been chucked out of their home. But if she and Jack didn’t let them stay here, where would the two of them go?
As if to underline her thoughts, the wind outside moaned and the beginnings of rain pattered on the front window. ‘So, are you going to invite them to stay in the spare room?’
Jack’s face was almost pleading. He could never say no to anyone in need. ‘What do you think?’
The door opened slowly and Cara put her head into the room. ‘Okay to come back in?’
Rebecca sat down next to Jack. He straightened up and motioned with his hand for Cara to regain her seat. ‘Of course. We were just talking. It’s a lot to get my head around.’
His head around? How did he think Rebecca felt? She waited for Cara to sit back down and then asked, ‘Do you not have anyone else you can stay with? Family? Your parents?’