A Family Concern Read Online Free PDF

not prevent them going to bed together during the day.
    In the meantime, though, there were hurdles to overcome – his retirement week and having to field questions about Avril, and Christmas, which he was privately dreading. He wished uselessly that he could fast forward the next two years to a time when Catherine would be his wife, Avril comfortably settled, and the girls accepting of the status quo.
    Catherine, watching his face, saw the muscles of his jaw tighten, and slipped on to the rug in front of him, taking hold of his hands. ‘It’ll be all right, my love,’ she said, ‘I promise.’
    For the first time since he’d hurt his paw, Gus was waiting in the hall to greet Rona on her return from Lindsey’s, proof that the basement stairs were less of a problem. She bent to hug him under the stiff collar.
    â€˜Good boy!’ she said softly. ‘With luck, Bob will take this nasty thing off tomorrow.’ Used to his accompanying her everywhere, she’d missed his company during the last week or two.
    He lopped down the stairs ahead of her, still favouring the injured paw, though perhaps now from habit. The answerphone was blinking and Rona switched it on as she made a mug of coffee; the wine at Lindsey’s had left her with a thirst.
    â€˜Hello,’ said a voice she didn’t recognize. ‘You don’t know me, but my name’s Coralie Davis, and I’ve just seen your bit about birth parents in the
Gazette
. If I’m not too late, my story might interest you.’ She gave a number which Rona automatically jotted down. This series, she thought, could run and run, until either Barnie or the readership of
Chiltern Life
grew tired of it.
    Well, she’d give this Ms Davis a call tomorrow. Though she now had several case histories, she hadn’t decided which she’d finally use, and if a later one proved more interesting, or noticeably different from the others, it would take precedence.
    She picked up her mug of coffee, switched off the light, and went up to bed.
    When Tom reached the kitchen the next morning, an aroma of grilling bacon greeted him. Avril, an apron tied over what was surely a new skirt, stood at the cooker and didn’t turn as he came in.
    â€˜That smells good,’ he said, trying to remember when she had last made him a cooked breakfast. Whenever it was, he was pretty sure the bacon had been fried: was the grilling out of consideration for his heart scare? He felt a sudden warmth for her, and said spontaneously, ‘You’re looking very smart.’
    The retort,
For a change, you mean?
came automatically to Avril’s lips, but she bit it back, saying instead, ‘Thank you.’
    She put the plate on the table in front of him; the bacon was accompanied by a couple of sausages and a tomato, and there was fresh toast in the rack. She poured them both a cup of coffee and sat down opposite him.
    Tom eyed her apprehensively. Was the breakfast after all only an attempt to soften him up before making some demand? Yet he’d begged her for weeks to discuss their situation, and until now she had steadfastly refused. Perhaps she was at last ready to do so.
    â€˜I wanted to ask about the house,’ Avril began, confirming his suspicions.
    â€˜I’ll be making it over to you,’ he said at once. ‘I thought you knew that.’
    â€˜It – won’t be sold then, and the proceeds divided between us?’ This possibility, unconsidered before, had come to her in the early hours, filling her with cold panic. There she was, planning alterations, and for all she knew she might have to move out.
    â€˜Oh, Avril, of course not. Have you been worrying about it? You should have asked before – I could have set your mind at rest.’
    â€˜It’s only just occurred to me,’ she admitted. ‘But the point is, I’ve been thinking of making a few alterations. Improvements, you might