The Silent Wife(103)
I shouted over. ‘Dawn!’
I hugged her. She squeezed me back, the honesty and intensity of our phone conversations translated into physical form. When Maggie tracked her down through the swimming club Facebook page and Dawn offered to talk to me, I’d been horrified. ‘I’m not ready for that. It’s bad enough you knowing what a fool I was.’ But over time, Maggie convinced me it might help me process it all, the only other person who truly understood how Massimo had managed to control two sane, smart women like us.
And it had helped. So much so that we’d agreed to meet. It had sounded so easy on the phone, but my heart was hammering as I prepared to introduce Sandro to his half-brother. I’d tried to talk him through all the eventualities. ‘Ben might be a bit shy at first. And that might make him seem unfriendly.’ But I needn’t have worried.
Dawn gestured to her son. ‘This, obviously, is Ben.’
Sandro could no longer hold in his excitement. ‘You’re my brother!’
The knot of fear that Ben would rebuff Sandro dissipated immediately as Ben stepped forward and gave Sandro a solemn handshake, saying, ‘You look a bit like me.’
In reality, Ben looked far more like Massimo than Sandro did. The same dark curly hair, the squarish chin, the thick eyelashes. But he didn’t have Massimo’s hard edge: Ben’s features were rounded and softer. I could see Dawn’s cheeriness in him.
‘Are you both ready?’ I asked, picking up Dawn’s suitcase. ‘Maggie can’t wait to see you again.’
I drove towards Maggie and Nico’s cottage, filling them in on the family, telling them not to mind Anna if she was a bit off at first, that actually she’d turned out to be a great support to me. Ben chatted about sport and school, answering Sandro’s tentative questions without sounding dismissive.
As we pulled up outside, Dawn touched my arm and said, ‘I’m a bit nervous.’
‘You really don’t need to be. I’ll look after you.’ And as I said it, I realised I was so robust, so confident in my opinions and sense of self for the first time in years, that I had enough resources left over to bolster up someone else.
Clearly what doesn’t quite kill you makes you stronger.
51
MAGGIE
As soon as I heard the bell, I ran to the door. I waved them in. ‘Lovely to see you again. Was the train okay?’
Ben stood back a bit, shyer than I remembered, but then last time, we hadn’t been about to spring the whole Farinelli family on him. Dawn had jumped at the chance when I’d suggested it to her. ‘Ben’s asked loads of questions about his dad’s side of the family, but over the years, I just kept sticking my head in the sand. But I’m afraid he’ll get chatting to Francesca on the swimming circuit and put two and two together. Even though I gave Ben my surname, he knows his dad’s name and that he was from Brighton. As long as Massimo isn’t there, I’ll give it a go. I’d love to see Nico and Francesca again.’ She’d laughed as she added, ‘Not so sure about Anna.’
I gestured for them to stay in the hallway.
I marched into the sitting room and clapped my hands. ‘Right. Got a little birthday surprise. A couple of people who are really looking forward to meeting you all.’ Nico, who was in on the plan, might as well have had ‘I bloody hope you know what you’re doing’ tattooed on his forehead. Sam’s cake consumption slowed long enough for him to raise an eyebrow but not long enough for him to stop arguing with Francesca about who really needed the orange Smartie. But Anna must have picked up on something in my voice. She straightened up like a dog expecting his owner’s key in the door at any time.
I shouted through to the hall. ‘Come on in!’
Lara led the way.
I kept my eyes on Anna to see if she realised who it was without me introducing them. Her gasp told me she did.
‘You brought me Beniamino!’
She was straight out of her seat. I did have a little moment of panic when I imagined her having a heart attack from the excitement and crumpling onto my lovely slate floor, but my overactive imagination had to be content with her walking up to Ben, putting her hands on his shoulders and saying, ‘My grandson. Thank you. Thank you so much for coming.’
Ben was surprisingly tactile for a fifteen-year-old boy, kissing Anna on both cheeks before giving her a heartfelt hug.
Lara put her arm round Dawn as she fought back tears. ‘I didn’t come here to cry.’
Mum broke the tension by blurting out, ‘Lordy, I keep expecting Noel Edmonds to pop through the door in his Christmas outfit! Mags, I think we all need a drink!’
Anna wasn’t to be outdone. ‘Nico, bubbles!’
I shot Mum a grateful look as she clamped her lips together to stop herself imitating Anna.
And then everyone was talking at once, shaking hands, kissing cheeks, commenting on family resemblances.
Nico handed a glass of champagne to Dawn, asking, ‘So you were already pregnant when Caitlin was expecting Francesca?’
I deliberately wandered off, wanting to give Nico space to talk honestly, to reminisce for a moment without ‘what came next’ spoiling every single memory he had. Despite Anna’s wheedling, he refused to have any contact with Massimo. Lara had almost certainly told Dawn about the affair, but I was sure Nico wouldn’t rush to discuss it. He must have alluded to it though because I overheard Dawn say, ‘Your brother was very difficult to resist once he’d set his mind to something.’