Chapter 1
Jake stirred and opened his eyes to see Faye gently lifting her daughter.
Half-asleep, Natty clung to Jake’s neck. ‘No, I want Daddy,’ she protested.
‘It’s alright, Faye – I’ll take her up to bed.’ They’d fallen asleep on the sofa downstairs. Jake awkwardly hoisted himself up from the settee with the child still clinging to his neck.
‘I don’t wanna go upstairs,’ a sleepy voice said, muffled against Jake’s neck.
‘Sorry, kiddo. The boss has spoken.’ He winked at Faye.
She did not return his smile, he noticed. She switched the TV off as he crossed the lounge and headed for the stairs.
Jake tucked Natty into bed. She’d fallen asleep again and didn’t stir. Before he returned downstairs, he made sure there were no chinks of light filtering through the curtains. It wasn’t even five in the morning, but the sun was already up. June had been a very warm, sunny month, and Jake thought they might be in for a lovely summer.
He checked she was still asleep before pulling the door until it was slightly ajar and heading downstairs.
Faye was in the lounge, opening the curtains. Jake was aboutto step into the room when Faye approached. She didn’t say a word as she walked past him and out of the room.
Jake followed her into the small kitchen next door. ‘Faye?’
She switched the strip light on in the kitchen and put the kettle on.
Jake stood in the kitchen doorway. He closed his eyes and rubbed the back of his stiff neck. In his experience – and he reckoned most people would agree – the couch never made for a good night’s sleep.
‘I’m making coffee. Do you want some?’
Jake opened his eyes. There was something in her tone of voice that said she was cheesed off. ‘I heard Natty get up. I know I should have put her straight back to bed, but she’d had a nightmare, and I didn’t want to wake you upstairs,’ Jake explained. ‘So, I brought her down for a glass of milk, and we watched some TV.’ He was getting the distinct impression he had done the wrong thing.
Faye didn’t turn around.
Jake watched her open a cupboard and get out two mugs. He held out his hand in a conciliatory gesture. ‘Look, I get it. I was out of line.’
Faye spooned two teaspoons of coffee into the mugs and filled them with boiling water.
‘Faye?’
She turned to face Jake, holding a mug of coffee in each hand. ‘She called youDaddy.’
Jake sighed and shuffled into the kitchen, still rubbing his sore neck. He pulled out a chair and motioned Faye to sit. He sat down opposite her as she passed him a mug of coffee. Jake smiled and looked at his watch. ‘In a couple of hours, over breakfast, why don’t you ask your daughter who she thinks I am? You know what she’s going to say?’
Faye sipped her coffee in silence.
‘She’s going to say that I’m just Jake, her mum’s friend, who watches over her while her mum is at her evening classes.’ Jake frowned. ‘Words to that effect.’ It was way too early in the morning to think coherently, let alone string a sentence together.
Faye hadn’t been at an evening class this time. She’d been gone the whole day on a course, and had got stuck in a long traffic jam on the way home.
Faye listened.
‘Natty was half-asleep and confused when she woke up. I mean, how often do I crash here, Faye?’
Faye didn’t answer. It was a rhetorical question. Despite the numerous times he’d babysat, it was the first time he hadn’t gone home once she returned. He’d stayed the night on the couch rather than take the tube across London to his own place late at night.
‘How’s the course going?’ he asked.
Faye was on an eighteen-month course, studying for a higher qualification to become a headteacher. Some of her classes were held in the evenings locally, but some were at a college outside London, which meant she didn’t get back until late. Either way, she needed a sitter – Natty was nine; too young to be left on her own.
Faye didn’t have any close relatives living nearby that she could leave Natty with, which meant she relied on babysitters. But lately, this had not worked out. Faye desperately wanted to further her career. Currently a deputy head, she was good at her job and wanted to eventually run her own school.
