‘I’m so glad,’ Lily said. ‘When Nick mentioned that she should join I thought he was mad, but now I see it was all a projection of what she wanted for herself onto me. I don’t think I’ve ever seen her happier.’
‘She does seem to love being the centre of attention,’ David said, not unkindly.
‘I think, because she didn’t work, she never had a real passion or purpose. Between this and her coming to help with Daisy now I’m back at work two days a week, she’s in her element.’
Andrew, the pianist for the society, played the first few bars of the song ‘It’s Today’ from the show as if he had been given a cue, and people started to sing along, Lily included. She had missed this but Denise could have the limelight this year; Lily would be back next year. It was a reminder of the joy and mayhem that comes with living in the theatre that the familiar music filled the hall. Denise’s voice sang out, crystal clear and full of vitality as Lily smiled at her proudly.
During the time that Lily was rocking Daisy back and forth, she was standing behind the pram and swaying slightly and then she felt Nick’s arms slip around her waist from behind.
He came up to her and said, ‘Hello, you,’ as his breath warmed against her neck.
As she stared down at their daughter, she sank back into his arms and her heart grew larger. As she responded, her tone was gentle and filled with affection. ‘Hello, yourself,’ she said.
Nick cast a quick glance over to the stage, where Denise was performing, and he watched her as she sang and danced with an infectious enthusiasm. ‘My parents are meeting us at the pub for dinner. Are yours going to join us?’
‘I think so. I’ll send Dad a text,’ she said. ‘But let’s not rush. I want to watch Mum a little longer.’
‘You love her being in this society, don’t you?’ Nick asked with a smile.
Lily gave a small laugh. ‘Up there, Mum is having the time of her life, and to tell you the truth, while she’s busy living out her West End fantasies, she’s not bothering me, so I’m happy.’ She laughed as she said this.
He leaned down to give her a gentle kiss on the top of the head. He teased: ‘How happy are you right now?’
Lily muttered, ‘Happier than I ever imagined possible,’ she said as she leaned back into him.
There was a brief moment when they stood there, encircled by each other’s arms, and the world around them seemed to recede into the background. The previous year had been a whirlwind; it had been a journey of rediscovery, of finding her voice once more, and of learning to strike a balance between her old goals and the new life she was constructing. There had been times when she had questioned her own abilities, situations in which the burden of children, career, and her own aspirations had appeared to be too much for her to bear. On the other hand, when she stood here with Nick and Daisy, surrounded by the theatre society that had become her second family, she experienced a sense of serenity that she had never experienced before.
As Lily watched her mother perform on stage, she felt as if the last piece of a jigsaw had been put into place.
It all made sense now, she thought, and she wondered if Gran would have seen this plot twist coming.
Her phone buzzed in her pocket and she took it and saw it was a video call from Nigel.
‘Break, everyone,’ called out Jasper.
‘Hello, you,’ she said to Nigel.
‘Oh I thought Daisy would answer the phone,’ he complained.
‘She would but I said no phones till she’s six months, and she’s only four months,’ she joked.
‘Show me the baby,’ he said in a kingly tone and she laughed as she flipped the screen and showed Nigel her daughter.
‘Hello, darling, I have bought you so many fun things in Japan. I can’t wait to see you, sweetie.’
‘Stop buying her presents,’ she said to him as she flipped the camera back to her. ‘She won’t fit into anything by the time you get to meet her.’
‘About that,’ he said, ‘I’m coming back. I’m doing a new show, so we’re coming back to the UK. I’m tired of being on the yellow brick road. I need to be on London’s chaotic streets.’
‘Oh yay, amazing, I cannot wait.’
‘Yes, this show is terrible now. They have a new Dorothy and she’s such a diva with no chops to back it up. I’ve no idea where they found her, but she’s got a voice of an unoiled door and is so awful to everyone. People are leaving their contracts early just to get away from her.’
‘Oh no, who is she. Do we know her?’
Nigel rustled some papers and then picked up a programme from the show and turned the page and showed Lily on the screen.
‘Her, Jessica Wilcox. Do you know her?’
