Free Suzy P and the Trouble with Three by Karen Saunders Page A

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    “I’ll miss you, Markymoo,” Amber says, tears streaming down her cheeks. “I love you. So much.”
    “I’ll miss you too, Ambypamby,” Mark says, equally tear-sodden . “And I love you too. And Crystal. And our precious babies. Look after Wolf and Rainbow for me.”
    “Wolf and Rainbow?” Danny says, incredulously.
    “You’re not calling the babies that, are you?” Jamie asks.
    “Just trying them out,” Mark says, pulling a tissue out of his pocket and loudly blowing his nose.
    “Look, you two, nobody’s dying,” Dad says. “Turn off the waterworks, hey? Mark, man up, for God’s sake.”
    “But I’m not going to see my wife for such a long time,” Mark replies. “Her, or the bump, or the dog. I’m going to be without my entire family.”
    “Lucky bugger,” Dad mutters. “It’s ten days. Ten! It’s not long. And those babies aren’t going anywhere. Now where’s Jen? Jen? Jen! Come on!”
    Mum rushes outside. “All fine,” she says, then immediately looks worried. “I did shut the bathroom window, didn’t I?”
    “Yes!” we all shout.
    “Maybe I should double-check,” Mum says, but Dad grabs her arm.
    “Get in the car. The house will be fine. Everyone got everything?”
    Dad slams the boot shut, but not before I get a glimpse of Isabella’s designer bags nestled next to our battered cases. They look very out of place. In fact, they’re probably worth more than the car.
    “You won’t work too hard, will you, Marky?” Amber says. “And you’ll ring me, every day?”
    Mark nods. “And you’ll ring me too?”
    He grabs Amber in another hug and leans his head onto her shoulder. He looks hilarious, leaning over with his bum sticking out to avoid her bump. The two of them stand like that, swaying softly, lost in their own dream world as Dad shakes his head in despair.
    “Stop it, Chris, it’s sweet,” Mum says, swatting at him. “You’ve forgotten what it’s like to be young and in love.”
    “Hmmm,” Dad says. “More like I want to get going. We’re going to hit the traffic now.”
    “Bye, then,” Jamie says, pulling Millie close for a cuddle. He gives her a kiss before whispering something that makes her giggle. “Love you. See you soon,” he says. “Text me later, yeah?”
    “Bye,” Danny says. “Have a good time. I’ll speak to you later.”
    “Is that all I get?” I say, teasingly.
    Danny clears his throat. “Um, no.” He leans forward and gives me the quickest kiss possible, turning scarlet again.
    From the car, Harry wolf-whistles, and Danny goes even redder as Dad frowns out of the car window.
    Sometimes I can’t believe he actually gatecrashed my sister’s wedding to dedicate a song to me in front of my entire family.
    “For the love of God, we’re going on a short break, notmoving to flipping Siberia,” Dad says. “Break it up, you lot. Now.”
    Danny leans in close. “Love you. I’ll miss you heaps,” he whispers in my ear, sending shivers down my back.
    “I’ll miss you too,” I tell him softly, as he drops a kiss onto my forehead.
    Dad hoots the horn impatiently, making us jump.
    “Harry, get out of the front seat. Amber’s going to sit there,” Mum says.
    “Aw, that’s not fair. I called shotgun,” Harry whines.
    “Shotgun or not, that bump of Amber’s will never fit in the back. She needs all the space she can get.”
    Harry reluctantly surrenders her front seat, muttering darkly while she transfers to the back, and Clare wanders over.
    “How are you feeling about the towing?” Clare asks Dad.
    “Absolutely fine. It’s going to be a breeze,” Dad says, not sounding entirely convinced. He glances nervously at the caravan attached to the back of our aging Volvo, which seems tiny in comparison.
    “Fantastic,” Clare says. “Right, who’s going in front? Have you got satnav?”
    “Satnav?” Dad scoffs. “Who needs satnav? I’ve got an excellent sense of direction. I’ve studied the maps andknow exactly where