The Babysitter(11)

‘Exactly.’ Jade smiled. ‘She’s a wise woman, your teacher. And you’re a sensible girl for listening to her. It’s not nice being bullied, Poppy, trust me.’

Poppy scanned her face. ‘Are you being bullied?’ she asked her, her eyes clouding with concern.

‘No,’ Jade assured her. ‘I was once, though, when I was little. It made me cry.’

Poppy looked alarmed at that. ‘I won’t let anyone bully you, Jade,’ she said, sticking her chin up determinedly.

‘Nor I you.’ Jade reached out to brush her hair from her eyes. ‘We’ll look out for each other. Okay?’

‘Deal,’ Poppy said delightedly. ‘Would you like to see my room?’

Jade extended her hand. ‘I’d love to.’

Poppy slid her own small hand trustingly into Jade’s. ‘It’s a bit messy. Nemo’s water needs to be changed,’ she said, as they headed to the hall. ‘And Baby Annabell was supposed to tidy up her toys, but she forgot. You won’t tell Mummy, will you?’

‘My lips are sealed.’ Jade mimed zipping her lips.

‘And mine are sealed about your secret chocolate supply.’ Poppy smiled up at her, doing likewise.

Jade smiled conspiratorially back. ‘I think we have an understanding.’ Win the child over, win the parents over, she thought, satisfied that she’d got the child on side. She’d felt a sliver of guilt for stuffing a whole chocolate bar down in front of Poppy while Melissa had been in the baby changing room.





Four





MELISSA





With Poppy and Evie fed and settled, Melissa gave Jade the guided tour of the house, before the poor woman was driven mad by Poppy’s constant chatter and tea parties with an assortment of Peppa Pigs and scarily lifelike baby dolls. Poppy, it seemed, had taken to their guest, declaring Jade her ‘bestest friend ever’. Jade had been wonderful with her, and Melissa could see why she’d chosen childcare as a vocation. She was obviously a natural.

‘And this,’ she said, leading the way into the detached brick garage at the bottom of the back garden, ‘is what I grandly refer to as my studio. It still needs some work. The roof leaks when it rains and the window’s rattling in the frame, but it’s my sanctuary… when I can find time.’

‘Gosh, you have your own kiln?’ Jade said, obviously feeling the blast of warm air as they went in.

‘It is a bit stifling, isn’t it?’ Melissa said, as Jade fanned her face with her hand. ‘I normally have the air con on when I’m working.’ Reaching to flick the freestanding unit on, she bent to lift Poppy into her arms, lest she wander in the direction of the kiln. ‘I used to take my pieces to the art university to be fired, but they’re extremely fragile once the clay’s dried out. I did worry about the safety aspect of having my own kiln with little ones around, but at least it’s away from the house. And, as Mark said, if I’m going to be a serious sculptor…’

‘Impressive,’ Jade said, gazing around. ‘You even have a potter’s wheel.’

‘And a husband who understands my artistic temperament.’ Melissa smiled, recalling how she’d caught Mark watching her from the doorway one night, before he’d wandered in and done a fair imitation of Patrick Swayze. It had been messy – gloriously messy – but hugely satisfying.

‘Fortunately,’ Jade said, her gaze flitting over her, making Melissa immediately aware of the staple workwear she usually wore – leggings or jeans and tops that wouldn’t be ruined by clay or baby sick spatter. Was Jade being the tiniest bit facetious?

But then, seeing Jade’s warm smile, Melissa despaired of herself. It was her, feeding her own paranoia. She had wondered sometimes how Mark had stuck with her through the dark times. He’d never stopped reassuring her he loved her – down days, artistic temperament and all – but she couldn’t help thinking he might wish he was with someone more glamorous, someone who preferred to wear something slightly more alluring to bed than one of her husband’s old shirts. She was just someone who ‘scrubbed up well’ – at least according to Detective Sergeant Cummings, who’d voiced such an observation at the last social function they’d been to together.

But then, Mark had been quite into her shirt last night. Melissa smiled quietly, recalling the wicked glint in his chocolate-brown eyes as he told her that imagining her naked beneath it was a serious turn-on, how he’d pinned her to the bed, with not much protestation from her, and worked excruciatingly slowly through each button, finally asking her to keep it on while he made deliciously slow love to her.

Phew. Stop. She’d be dragging him upstairs for a repeat performance as soon as he walked through the door at this rate. Dismissing her errant thoughts – which she absolutely shouldn’t be having in company – she turned to her workbench to seat Poppy, who was growing heavy in her arms, at the end of it.

‘And this is my latest masterpiece,’ she said, indicating the sculpture on the bench. It was ceramic dipped in bronze, a kneeling, naked couple embracing, and Melissa was particularly proud of it. Still, she felt a flutter of trepidation in her tummy at showing it to Jade, which was mad considering her work was already stocking the shelves of the local craft centres and Garden & Homes store. Hopefully, the latter would stock her nationwide at some point, depending on whether she could fill the orders.