Free Boy Trouble by Sarah Webb Page A

little. “At least he’s left his secretary at home.” She means Shelly. I smile a little.
    “Hey, Art,” Clover says brightly to my dad, stepping out of her Mini. “I’m just popping inside to say hi to Sylvie. See you in a mo’. Oh, and Amy has something to say to you.”
    “Clover!” I hiss at her, but she’s at the front door by the time I climb out of the car.
    Dad looks at me expectantly. I gulp and take a deep breath.
    “I’m sorry,” I say. “About yesterday. And about dashing off this morning. I just got a bit of a shock. Now I’ve had time to think about it, I’m thrilled about the baby, really I am. Congratulations.” I throw my arms round him and give him a tight hug. He smells like a pine forest: it’s the expensive Italian aftershave he started wearing a few years ago. Mum hates it. “Eau de loo cleaner,” she calls it.
    “I’m so relieved,” he says into my hair. “And I’m sorry too. For not telling you about the wedding. But Shelly—”
    Something occurs to me and I pull away. “Does Mum know about the wedding?”
    He shakes his head. Is it my imagination or does he suddenly look pale?
    Jeepers, I think, I wonder if Clover’s—
    “ART GREEN!” Mum is standing at the front door, her hands on her hips. She has a scowl on her face that would frighten a grizzly bear.
    Clover is standing behind her and she looks at Dad and draws a finger slowly across her throat. I put my hand over my mouth to hide a nervous giggle. Dad is so dead.
    His face drops. “Too late,” he mutters, walking towards the house.
    “What the hell do you think you’re playing at?” Mum screams as soon as he’s in the hall. I walk in after him. She slams the door behind us. Her face looks like thunder.
    Clover grabs my arms and pulls me up the stairs. “You’d better stay out of the way, Beanie.”
    “But—” I begin.
    “Please,” Clover says, a serious look on her face. “Let me deal with this, all right?”
    I nod and step into my room, but as soon as she’s gone back downstairs, I creep down the corridor so I can hear what’s going on. Mum and Dad are in the kitchen now, but they’re shouting so I can still hear them.
    “Have you no respect?” Mum’s on a roll. “When were you going to tell me about the baby? At the christening? And I can’t believe you got married without telling me.”
    I wince. Ah, so Mum knows everything. Quick work, Clover.
    “Sylvie, just calm down for a second,” Dad says.
    “Calm down?” Mum shrieks. “Calm down? Are you
serious
?”
    “God, you’re impossible,” he says. “I don’t know how Dave puts up with it.”
    “Can I just say something here?” Clover interrupts.
    “No!” Mum yells.
    Dad says, “Let her speak, Sylvie.”
    “Look,” Clover says, “Amy’s upstairs and she can probably hear every word. Will you please stop shouting at each other? I know you’ve had a shock, Sylvie, and I’m sorry I told you like that, out of the blue. I only did it for Amy’s sake, so you could help her through it. Not so you could rip chunks out of Art in front of her. The pair of you should grow up. You can’t behave like this in front of Amy. You’ll damage her for life.
    “Now, I’m going home and I’m taking her with me. After we’ve gone you can fight all you like. But you know something? It’s not fair. She’s had a hard enough time of it already. Can’t you both just get over your differences and learn to get on? For her sake?”
    Silence. Then Mum starts to sob. “I’m so sorry. But it’s not me, it’s
him
. He’s the one who went and married his dolly bird in secret.”
    “Just don’t, Sylvie,” Dad says. “I know you’re jealous—”
    “Jealous? Yeah, right, Art. I’m just dying to run off to some stupid tourist resort and get married in a straw hula hula skirt.”
    “Enough!” Clover says. “I give up.” I hear her march out of the kitchen. I close my door just before she whips it open.
    “We’re getting out of