appear to be any need for Abi to have left work to rush over here to rescue a child who didn’t need her she didn’t mind. Summer was delightful and it was nice to have some two-legged company.
But, of course, Abi hadn’t factored in the after-school snack. She had no food in her apartment other than an apple that was more than likely past its use-by date and a box of breakfast cereal. She couldn’t recall the last time she’d done a proper grocery shop. She was not all that conscious about food as she didn’t have a big appetite. Growing up, there had never been enough to eat in her house and therefore food had never been a focus. Before she’d joined the army she couldn’t ever recall eating three meals a day.
She decided the best course of action would be to take Summer over to her landlords. Irma always had something sweet to eat, usually fresh from her oven, and today was no exception. Abi let Irma fuss over them and feed them both, and once Summer’s hunger pains had been satisfied the little girl asked, with her mouth full of one of Irma’s cookies, ‘Can we take Jonty for a walk?’
‘Just a short one,’ Abi told her, ‘before it gets dark.’
Irma pressed a couple of extra cookies into Summer’s hand to take with her as Abi clipped Jonty’s lead on.
‘I’d like a dog,’ Summer announced, as they hit the footpath. ‘Or a little brother.’
‘A dog might be better,’ Abi replied. ‘Little brothers can be annoying.’
‘Do you have a brother?’ Summer asked.
Abi shook her head. ‘No, nor a sister.’
‘How do you know they’re annoying, then?’
Abi laughed. Summer made a fair point. ‘Good question. I’m just guessing, I suppose.’
‘It’ll have to be a dog. Mum doesn’t want any more children. She says she didn’t even want me.’
Abi had no idea what the right response to this statement was. Her experience with children was limited at best. Should she make a big deal of Summer’s comment? Tell her she must be mistaken? But she couldn’t do that, she didn’t know the facts. For all she knew, Summer could be speaking the truth. Why would she make something like that up? What child would think like that unless they’d heard those words uttered? Abi felt as though her heart was breaking. No one deserved to hear that from their mother. Abi’s mother had loved her, she just hadn’t been able to care for her properly. Her addictions and her circumstances had made that impossible, but what was Summer’s mother’s excuse? And what was Damien’s role in all this?
Abi could feel herself getting angry but she couldn’t lose her temper. That wasn’t going to help Summer.
She was completely out of her depth, maybe a change of topic would work best she thought as she launched into a discussion about what breed of dog would suit Summer best. Abi had no idea what Damien’s thoughts were on dog ownership but right now she didn’t care. If he got asked a few curly questions about getting a puppy, that wasn’t her problem. The way she saw it, he owed her a favour or two after today.
* * *
Summer was lying on the floor, playing with Jonty, when Abi heard Damien’s car pull into her driveway. She went out onto the first-floor deck to direct him upstairs. The moment she heard his voice Summer jumped up from the floor and threw herself into her father’s arms, and narrowly avoided crushing a bunch of irises that Damien clutched in his hands.
‘Daddy, Daddy, Abi has a dog. Come and see.’
‘Hang on one second, gorgeous girl, I need to put these down first.’
He lowered Summer to the floor and handed the irises to Abi. ‘These are for you,’ he said.
‘What for?’ Abi asked.
‘To say thank you.’
‘You didn’t need to do that.’
‘Yes, I did,’ he insisted. ‘You saved my bacon and I didn’t want you to think I didn’t appreciate it.’
Her apartment was small and Damien was standing awfully close to her. He smelt fresh and clean—he must have showered quickly after surgery—and his proximity was making her flustered. She was far too aware of him.
‘I’ll just put these into a vase,’ she said, inventing a reason to move away from him. She stepped backwards into her narrow galley kitchen that ran along the back wall of the living space and separated her bedroom from the rest of the apartment. She opened a couple of cupboards hopefully. She didn’t think she actually owned a vase. She’d never needed one, no one had ever given her flowers before. Her ex-boyfriend, Mark, had showered her with expensive jewellery that had never really suited her—she’d always felt it had been too sophisticated or mature for her—and looking now at this simple bunch of irises she knew which gift she preferred.
At the back of one of the cupboards she found an old china jug that she assumed belonged to Irma. That would do. She filled it with water, arranged the flowers in it and displayed them on the kitchen counter. The irises were a rich, deep blue with yellow centres and looked surprisingly cheery on the bench. She’d never put much store in the power of a bunch of beautiful flowers but that was because she’d never received any. Being given flowers was so much nicer than picking up a bunch at the weekend market for herself. It shouldn’t make any difference, especially given the circumstances, but Abi was touched by Damien’s gesture.
She swallowed hard to dislodge the lump that had formed in her throat as Damien pulled out one of the stools at her kitchen counter and took a seat. Abi stayed on the opposite side of the bench, a safe distance away.
‘Dad, can we have pizza for dinner?’ Summer climbed up onto the stool next to Damien and Abi was struck again by the strong family resemblance now that they were side by side.
‘I’ll pick one up on the way home.’
‘I want to go out for pizza and I want Abi and Jonty to come.’
‘Would you like to come with us?’ Damien asked her. ‘My shout.’
Abi shook her head. ‘No, thank you.’ She really wasn’t up to going out. She’d had enough stressful situations to cope with today and, while sharing a pizza with Damien and Summer sounded appealing, tackling another unknown and unsecured location didn’t.
‘Please come, Abi, please.’ Summer was begging but Abi couldn’t do it.
‘Sorry, you’ve probably already got plans,’ Damien said, misunderstanding her refusal of his invitation. ‘We’ve taken up enough of your time, we’ll get going. Summer, get your things and say goodbye, please.’
‘No, it’s not that,’ Abi said. She didn’t want to be alone. She knew the house was going to feel quiet and empty when they left. ‘I don’t want to leave Jonty,’ she told him. ‘What about if we got pizza delivered?’
‘Are you sure?’ Damien asked, as Summer jumped about excitedly, happy to have had her wish granted.
Abi nodded. ‘Positive.’
‘It’s still my shout,’ he said, as Summer returned to Jonty’s side and Abi pulled a delivery menu off the fridge.
