The Babysitter(49)

‘I’ll bring her in.’ Mark smiled and stepped towards the house.

Mel nodded tightly, but moved aside, allowing him to carry Evie through. ‘Shall I take her up?’ he asked, as Mel followed him into the hall.

‘No.’ Mel returned his smile, but still she seemed miles away. ‘I thought I’d have her with me in the kitchen for a while. I’ve missed her company.’

Mark hesitated, thinking that Evie might be tired after all the excitement, which would probably make her fractious later.

‘I’ll take her up in a little bit,’ Mel said, pulling off her coat.

Mark nodded and carried Evie through to the kitchen, heading for the island in the middle of the room, where he hesitated again. Would she be all right parked up there? Of course she would, he chastised himself. Mel wasn’t likely to accidentally knock baby plus sizeable car carrier onto the floor. Still, though, he pushed the seat well into the centre of the work surface.

‘Have the assessors been yet?’ Mel asked, coming in after him as Mark eased Evie out of her coat.

‘Sorry?’

‘The fire assessors. I wondered if Jade had managed to get the go-ahead on the work to her house?’

Mark tried to think. He’d noticed that Jade didn’t seem to show much interest in the house. She’d barely been near the place. But then, it couldn’t be easy sifting through the burned-out remnants of your life, future plans turned to ashes. ‘A couple of weeks ago, I think. She said she was getting some estimates together. Why?’

‘No reason. I just wondered.’ Mel shrugged, looking preoccupied as she walked across to the kettle. ‘Do you like it?’ she asked out of the blue, leaving Mark struggling to keep up.

‘Like what?’ Checking Evie didn’t need changing, he headed for the fridge for her water.

‘My hair.’ Mel turned to him, her pretty green eyes awash with worries Mark had no clue about and felt powerless to help her with.

He looked her over, noting her pale complexion, which the hair colour did nothing to improve. ‘Truthfully,’ he said, hoping he wasn’t about to put his foot in it, ‘I prefer your natural colour.’

Seeming unperturbed, Mel nodded. ‘Coffee?’ she asked, turning away.

‘No. Thanks.’ Concerned at the seemingly random conversational leaps, Mark watched her carefully. ‘I have to get to work.’

‘Sorry. Yes, of course you do.’ Mel paused. ‘I’m thinking of changing it back.’

The hair, Mark assumed. ‘Good idea,’ he said, going back to Evie, who Mel hadn’t so much as glanced at since she’d come in.

‘Would you lie to me, Mark?’ Mel asked, completely out of left field.

‘Never,’ Mark answered straight off. In actual fact, he felt he was lying, right there, going along with her insistence in ignoring the elephant in the room. He wanted to talk to her about what was happening, not skirt around the issue, having this stilted, staccato conversation. How could he hope to help her if she wouldn’t confide in him? ‘Where did that come from?’

Mel ignored that, too. Or maybe she hadn’t heard him. From the impassive expression on her face, Mark wasn’t sure. Making her coffee in silence, she wandered to the back door, opened it and went out to sit at the patio table.

Minus coffee. Mark noticed it still sitting on the work surface. ‘Back in a minute, sweetpops.’ Evie seeming to have satisfied her thirst, he grabbed a paper towel to mop up the drips, and then followed Mel out with her drink.

‘I have to go soon, Mel,’ he reminded her, placing the coffee on the table and checking his watch, debating whether he should ring in and claim some emergency. But how many times could he do that? Perhaps he should keep it up his sleeve, in case there was another day when Mel needed him more. He shook off the thought. ‘Will you be all right?’

She didn’t respond.

‘Mel?’

‘Yes, fine,’ Mel said, looking up at him but not seeming to see him.

‘Evie’s had some water,’ he tried, wishing she would talk to him; wishing that by some miracle this would all go away.

Mel smiled. ‘Good,’ she said.

Exasperated, Mark glanced back to the kitchen, where Evie was on her own, content for the moment, though he doubted she would be for long. He wasn’t happy about leaving her there and Mel out here. ‘Will Jade be back soon?’

‘Should be,’ Mel said. ‘She went to the dentist with a tooth. She’s picking Poppy up on the way.’

A toothache, Mark presumed. And she must be picking Poppy up from school on the way home, not the way there. Growing more concerned at Mel’s emotionless responses, Mark pulled out a chair to sit opposite her. ‘Are you okay with the medication, Mel? The antidepressants?’

Mel answered with an indifferent shrug.

‘Have you taken any? Your first dose, I mean.’

Mel’s answer this time was a shake of her head.

And yet, she seemed more out of it than ever. Frustrated, Mark pressed on. ‘Do you think it’s a good idea to drive on them, Mel?’ He had to broach the subject of her driving, whether she might think he was being controlling or not. His only other option was to take the car keys, and he really did not want to do that.

Mel looked at him at last, guardedly. ‘If I felt I couldn’t drive, I wouldn’t.’