A Model Mother

Chapter 13

Miles didn’t quite know why, but his nerves had mostly settled down by the time he was dressed and ready to go to Delma’s flat. He reflected that because he knew he was in such deep shit where Rose was concerned that there was no point getting uptight about the situation any more.

He had always intended that this meeting would focus on Lloyd to the exclusion of everything else and he decided that that was exactly what would happen. He was getting really excited at the thought of meeting his son for the first time.

 The only thing that gave him slight butterflies was being in close proximity to Rose again. Now that it seemed she might not have cheated on him after all, he had found himself starting to drift off thinking about her in a way that he had denied himself ever since seeing those damned photographs.

He had dressed casually but carefully and had spent an hour in the gym when he woke up, followed by a long hot shower. He was aware that he wanted to look good for her.  A limo from Setons was picking him at 10 and would drop him off at Delma’s flat. He had not wanted to be snarled up in traffic or have to waste time looking for parking when he had such precious little time with his son.

Hearing a sharp toot from outside he grabbed his briefcase and the Hamleys bag with the toys for LLoyd and walked to the car.

Rose had been up since 5am and her stomach was in knots. She had woken before Lloyd and had spent half an hour just staring at her beautiful son in his cot as he gurgled and sighed in his sleep. She had felt her eyes fill up; she was still so scared of Miles taking Lloyd away from her. She had got him dressed and waited for Delma to turn up. They were all at Delma's flat by 10am.

Helen had arrived at 10.30am and had given her an extra close hug. Rose appreciated how torn she must feel today and was determined that she would not, at any cost, damage her relationship with Helen.

Even Nathalie had come to look forward to Helen’s visits and Rose had realised that much as she and her Father had done their best to make sure Nathalie had felt part of a loving and secure family ever since their Mother had died, that there was still a gap where a Mother would have known exactly the right things to say and do.

Helen had helped fill that gap and had formed a close bond with her little sister, patiently listening to Nathalie’s stories about what had happened at college and who had said what to whom, discussing latest fashions and advising her on clothes and make-up in a way that Nathalie might have bristled at if it had come from her big sister.

Delma had stomped out of her flat, at just after 10.45. Happy to be of service to Rose by offering up her flat, she was nevertheless suspicious about Miles’s motives but she tried to hide it as best she could, which was not very well. She took herself down to the basement to the residents’ business rooms and immersed herself in her work, scowling every time she heard the front entrance buzz.

“Here, let me take him,” offered Helen, holding her arms out for Lloyd. He had started to grizzle just a little and Rose knew it must be because he could feel her tension.

Lloyd happily went off with his Grandma and Nathalie into the large bright kitchen.

“Oh God”, Rose whispered through gritted teeth. She stood as close to the window as she could without being seen from outside.

She saw a black limo slow down outside, park and then Miles stepped out.

“Miles is here,” she called out, trying to sound nonchalant. She saw Miles stare up at the building. He was holding a bag from Hamleys and his face was almost completely expressionless. Strangely, this reassured Rose. She well knew that actually he was feeling anxious too, as this was his “business” face, designed to hide all clues to his real feelings.