And Paul had delivered something lovely and welcoming. The old wooden panelling had been painted a soft blue and with white walls, papered in a faux pressed metal, it gave the old pub a sense of style without being piss-elegant.
Paul had loved that phrase when Christa said it to him.
‘Piss-elegant. I know a few celebrities who adhere to that style. Namely one ex-president’s wife who has a penchant for white and gold. Only the Pope is allowed to wear white and gold, although he teams it with red shoes, which is a lot, you know, even for the head of the Church.’
The kitchen was completely fitted out with the largest space for the lunch preparation and then a smaller kitchen with ovens for the cooking classes. It was Selene who came and consulted on the kitchen design after working on the smash hitBlind Baking.
Selene was the star of the show and her French candour, mixed with her natural warmth and kindness, shone through in every episode.
Avian had suggested they do an episode at Hartley House and show it to the rest of the world. They would be arriving to shoot next week and the twins would be coming with her to stay at Pudding Hall for the summer.
Christa saw Marc come through the back door and speak to some of the staff, and he waved with his free hand.
She waved back.
She walked the class through the rest of the instructions for the soup.
‘Now you can take a break but set a timer. I don’t want the stink of burned potato and leek soup lingering in here for days on end.’
Christa undid her apron and left the kitchen, saying hello to a few of the social workers who were talking to clients and the dentist who had just finished packing up after some check-ups.
‘Hi.’ She beamed at Marc and she leaned over and kissed him and then kissed the soft downy head in the crook of his arm.
‘How is she?’
‘Terrible. All she does is sleep, eat and poop,’ he said and he passed Christa their daughter.
Juniper Beatrice was born on a warm summer evening with little to no trouble, while Marc cried and Christa swore like a kitchen hand. Juniper delivered herself and promptly suckled at Christa’s breast and sighed as though she had been waiting for her moment.
Christa rocked her now and touched her little cheeks. ‘She looks like Seth at times and then Ethan at other times,’ she said, completely smitten.
‘They’re identical twins,’ he reminded her.
‘But they’re so different,’ she said looking up. ‘Ethan’s hair sticks up at the back and Seth’s at the front. When Seth frowns he squints but when Ethan frowns he almost sneers. Not to mention the freckle – that was the first way I could tell them apart.’
‘The freckle?’ Marc asked.
‘Yes, the one on Seth’s cheekbone. Ethan doesn’t have one.’
Marc groaned and then slammed his hand on the arm of the chair but Juniper didn’t stir.
‘Are you telling me for twelve years I’ve struggled telling them apart and all I had to do was notice the freckle on a cheek.’
Christa shrugged. ‘This is why you’re a terrible parent,’ she teased.
‘I know I am,’ he said. ‘Lucky I have you to show me the way to salvation.’
But in truth, both Marc and Avian had stepped up as parents. They shared custody comfortably and easily and the boys were going to finish high school in America but were hoping to attend university in England in the years to come. And they were back and forth all the time, both adoring their baby sister.
Juniper woke and stared at her mother and then smiled a gummy smile but Christa could see a hint of a tooth.
‘She has a bottom tooth coming through,’ she said to Marc.
‘No wonder she’s been grumpy,’ he said, leaning over and rubbing his finger over her gum and nodding.
Christa sat her up on her lap and Juniper grabbed the Christmas pudding on her mother’s necklace and tried to suck it and scrape her tooth on the jewels.
‘No pudding for you, missy,’ said Christa and she tucked the necklace away from the little hands.
