‘Sam is coming around,’ she said. ‘You know what he’s like, he’s a puppy. So full of love, he can’t stay angry. But Thomas, I don’t know. There’s this distance, and I’m really trying, but he’s a fifteen-year-old boy, so the last thing he wants to be doing is spending time with me, even if I hadn’t taken a sledgehammer to his family unit.’
Nia tilted her head to one side. ‘Don’t be hard on yourself,’ she said. ‘It can be a nightmare with teenagers at the best of times. You’ll never know how much of it is about the split and how much is just hormonal.’
Anna nodded. She knew it was true, but it was hard to make herself remember it.
‘What about Edward?’
What about Edward? When she’d told him, he had been shocked, claimed he’d had no idea it was coming, that he thought everything was absolutely fine between them. For days, he’d tried to talk her around. And then, when she’d made it clear he wasn’t going to be able to, he’d said some awful, spiteful things. Things you couldn’t just forget.
‘He’s seeing someone,’ Anna said.
The words felt strange in her mouth. The boys had told her, and she’d made a point of not reacting, in case that was what they had wanted.
‘Wow, that’s pretty fast,’ Nia said.
Anna had known that Edward wouldn’t stay single for long. He was attractive and he had a good job, a nice house. There was nothing really wrong with him. And he didn’t like to be alone, so it had been obvious that he would find someone. And he had. Anna knew nothing about her, not her name, not what she looked like. And she felt no jealousy or resentment. Not when it came to Edward, anyway. The thought of this stranger spending time in that house with Anna’s boys was a different matter.
‘I guess it’s fast, but good luck to him,’ Anna said.
‘Have you given any thought to putting yourself out there again?’ Nia asked.
Nia wanted Anna to go on dating apps. She’d offered to help her create her profile, find some good photos, all of that. But Anna didn’t feel ready. She believed she would be, one day, so she wasn’t worried about it. But for now, she was enjoying getting to know herself again. Finding out what she liked to watch on TV when she didn’t have to agree with anyone else. Buying herself new clothes without a thought of what Edward, or anyone else, might think.
‘You’ll be the first to know, when I’m ready,’ Anna said.
Nia nodded. She didn’t push, and Anna appreciated that. She was pushing Theo on a swing, but just then he started kicking his legs and when Anna asked if he was ready to get out, he said yes. She slowed the swing down and helped him out, and he ran over to the roundabout. Anna folded her arms and watched him spin around, in his own world. He seemed to be good at playing by himself, which was good because Nia had said they weren’t going to have any more.
‘God, he’s so lovely,’ Anna said.
Nia followed her gaze. ‘Isn’t he? I feel so lucky to have him, after meeting Aidan so late in the day.’
‘We’re both lucky,’ Anna said.
And it was true, in so many ways. They had safe, warm places to live, enough to eat. They had their boys. They had their friendship.
‘There’s still time to get luckier,’ Nia said, her eyes creased with smiling.
‘What do you mean?’
‘Well, you’re single now, right? So there’s still time to meet the man Magda saw for you all those years ago.’
Anna shook her head. ‘I’ll be sure to be on the lookout.’
She’d never told Nia, but that evening when they were twenty-two had haunted Anna. It wasn’t that she was a believer, but it was a strange thing to have hanging over you as you navigated through your life. Your best friend sure you’d committed yourself to the wrong man, because he didn’t have the right name or the right job according to a backstreet psychic. She didn’t mind Nia joking about it, but she did wish they’d never gone to see Magda at all. That she’d never had half an eye on a different future.
‘I’m going to make a move,’ Anna said.
‘Okay. Thanks so much for coming with us. Oh, and Anna?’
‘Yes?’
‘Aidan and I have this wedding to go to in September. They’ve invited Theo too but, let’s face it, we’ll have a much better time without him. I was wondering whether you might have him for us.’
‘Sure, I’d love to, if I can. Whose wedding is it?’
‘My friend Chloe.’
‘And Steve?’ Anna asked. She felt a little like she’d been slapped, tried to keep her voice level.
