Free Summer Loving by Rachel Ennis Page B

‘Hello?’
    ‘Mum?’
    ‘Rob? What a lovely surprise. Is everything all right?’
    ‘Yes, why?’
    ‘Nothing –’
    ‘I know I haven’t phoned for a while. Sorry about that, but –’
    ‘It’s OK, love. I understand. You work crazy hours and when you get home you either want to sleep or spend time with Fiona and Helen so they remember what you look like.’
    ‘You’ve got it. How are you?’
    About to say busy, Jess hesitated.
    ‘Only I’ve got a day off,’ he continued. ‘It’s sod’s law that Fiona is away on a weekend course and Shelley’s busy with a family thing this morning. I thought if you were free for an hour I’d bring Helen over.’
    Jess looked at her laptop. She was anxious to continue her research, but hadn’t seen her son for weeks. ‘Rob, that would be great. What time will you get here?’
    Knowing his appetite, she quickly mixed up a batch of blueberry muffins. They were cooling on a wire tray when she looked out of the window and saw him carrying Helen down the path. She flicked the switch on the kettle and went to open the door.
    Greetings over, coffee made, Jess tied a bib over Helen’s pink cotton frock then took the baby on her lap and fed her small pieces of muffin. As Rob watched his daughter with a fond smile, Jess had a chance to study him. Though he was pale and looked tired – hardly surprising considering the demands of A&E – he appeared less stressed than the last time she had seen him. When she said as much he nodded.
    ‘You can thank Shelley for that. Helen’s having a tough time teething and Fiona has no patience at all. She’ll rub Helen’s gums and give her Calpol. But if those don’t produce immediate results – as in Helen going straight to sleep – Fiona gets irritated, and Helen reacts to her mother’s tension.’
    ‘Maybe Fiona sees Helen’s crying as criticism.’
    ‘For heaven’s sake, it’s not about her !’
    ‘Easy, Rob,’ Jess murmured as Helen looked up, visibly uncertain.
    ‘Sorry, sweetheart.’ He stroked his daughter’s flushed cheek with a gentle forefinger.
    Jess smiled at her granddaughter. ‘Ready for some more?’ she asked quietly.
    Helen’s mouth opened like a little bird’s and she grabbed Jess’s finger.
    ‘Sorry, Ma. I wasn’t having a go at you.’
    ‘I know that.’
    ‘Fiona leaves as soon as Shelley arrives.’ Rob shoved a hand through his dark hair, and Jess saw threads of silver at his temples. When had that happened? He wasn’t yet thirty. ‘You’d think that being away from Helen all day she’d want to spend time with her, comfort her. But she’s more worried about not getting enough sleep.’
    ‘I think teething is as difficult for the parents as for the child.’
    ‘You managed,’ he retorted. ‘There were two of us and Dad was away for weeks at a time.’
    ‘Yes, but it was only your back teeth that caused trouble. Nan would come and stay for a couple of nights so I could sleep through.’ She laughed. ‘That was the plan. But the moment one of you wailed I woke up anyway. Still, it was a lot easier with two of us.’
    ‘Fiona can’t even handle one.’ The bitterness in his tone shocked her. ‘Last night I got in at ten. I should have been off at six. But we were already running late when word came in that a car had tried to overtake a lorry on the bypass, crashed through the barrier, and hit two cars on the opposite carriageway.’
    ‘Oh my God. Was anyone killed?’
    He shook his head. ‘No, but it took the fire brigade an hour to free one man. He lost a leg. I’m a doctor, for God’s sake. Overtime is an occupational hazard. In a situation like that you can’t say, “OK it’s the end of my shift, I’m off.”’
    He rubbed his face with both hands. ‘If I could have had a shower and something to eat ... But Helen was sobbing and Fiona was marching up and down with a face like thunder. All I said was that her being so uptight was making the baby more upset. She dumped