Early evening and Tina was at her desk about to finish work for the day before taking a shower and spending a couple of hours with Maisie and her parents.
Moira and Bruce, Maisie’s parents, had arrived yesterday for a long weekend break and Maisie had asked if she could cook them supper at the flat this evening.
‘For you too,’ she’d said. ‘I so want them to meet you and I can’t afford to take them out to a restaurant.’
Tina had been happy to agree and had offered to provide the dessert. ‘Just strawberries and cream, nothing difficult or fancy, if that’s OK.’
Tina took one last look at her email inbox hoping to see an email from Luc in reply to the one she’d sent him earlier. Nothing. Luc had told her he was busy with his day job for the next couple of days so she wasn’t really surprised at his lack of response.
Before she closed down the computer she tried to Skype Jodie, but the call went unanswered.
She’d heard Maisie rush in earlier from work and now she could hear her clattering around in the kitchen preparing supper.
‘Need any help before I jump in the shower?’ she asked, going into the kitchen.
Maisie shook her head. ‘No, thanks. I think I’ve got everything under control. Oh, apart from setting the table.’ She looked at Tina hopefully.
‘OK. I’ll shower and get ready, then I’ll do it with as much matching crockery as I can find. We’ve still got half an hour before your parents arrive,’ Tina said.
Moira and Bruce arrived full of grateful thanks towards Tina and clutching a gift for her.
‘We were that worried when Maisie told us about her “guardian angel” taking her in for free,’ Moira said. ‘You hear such dreadful tales these days about youngsters being duped into things against their will, don’t you? We still can’t believe how John treated her. But you really have been a guardian angel for our Maisie, so this is to say thank you from the three of us.’
A bottle of her favourite perfume appeared as Tina peeled away the gift-wrapping. Maisie had clearly seen her current bottle was almost empty.
‘Thank you. It really wasn’t necessary but I’m truly touched,’ she said.
‘Right, supper is ready,’ Maisie said, placing a fish pie and a plate of vegetables on the table. ‘Dive in.’
The evening was going well, and Maisie had just removed the empty fish pie dish and put the strawberries and cream on the table when there was a knock on the door. Tina went to open it.
‘Hi. You must be Tina. I’m John. Nice to meet you at last. So sorry to be late.’ And he breezed past her into the flat, leaving Tina staring after him in astonishment.
‘Moira. Bruce. It’s great to see you again. I’d have been here earlier but you know the London traffic.’
‘Well, this is a surprise,’ Bruce said. ‘We certainly didn’t expect to see you this visit.’ The hard edge to his voice was evident to everyone in the room apart from John, it seemed, who simply turned to Maisie. ‘How’s my favourite girl then?’
Judging from the look on Maisie’s face as she avoided John’s kiss on the cheek, she hadn’t been expecting him either, Tina noted.
‘Any food left?’ John asked, looking hopefully at Maisie. ‘I’m starving.’
‘Sorry. All gone,’ Maisie said. ‘If you’d said you intended coming…’ Her voice trailed off and she glared at him.
‘I wanted it to be a surprise,’ John said.
‘I could make you a cheese sandwich,’ Tina said, her natural politeness coming to the fore even though she’d disliked John from the moment he’d arrogantly walked into her flat. ‘And there are some strawberries left.’
As John ate the sandwich Tina gave him, followed by a bowl of strawberries, Tina listened to Moira and Bruce as they told her about their plans for the next day, pleased to see they paid little attention to John, who seemed impervious to the cold shoulder they were giving him.
She could tell that Bruce in particular was struggling to remain silent and not have a go at John over his treatment of his daughter. Maisie just sat there staring at John and not joining in. The evening quickly turned from being a happy, laughter-filled one into one with an undercurrent of tension.
An hour later, when Moira and Bruce stood up to leave and thanked Tina effusively, to her relief John also left, but not before telling Maisie he’d see her as usual tomorrow. As the flat door closed behind them, Maisie collapsed on the sofa.
‘I can’t believe John turned up like that and made out he’d been invited,’ she said. ‘My fault, I suppose, for telling him about tonight. I’ve never told him where I live, though – he must have followed me home one day.’
‘Don’t blame yourself for his behaviour,’ Tina said. ‘I was going to ask how being “just friends” with him was going but I think he already feels you’re a couple again.’ She frowned as she looked at Maisie. ‘John does seem very controlling. Stalking you to discover where you live isn’t good either.’
Maisie nodded miserably. ‘He is controlling. Us being a couple again is all he talks about. Even though we’re not properly. But the way he turned up here this evening, Mum and Dad are going to think everything’s back to normal between us. I’m so cross. He spoilt the evening for me.’
‘Your dad particularly didn’t seem very happy to see him. Before they go home make sure you tell them how things really are between you and John.’ Tina hesitated before continuing. ‘Getting back together as just friends is clearly not working for you.’
Maisie rubbed her eyes. ‘We definitely don’t seem to want the same things any more. I love my life down here and John keeps on about wanting to go back to Scotland. You’re right – it’s never going to work between us again. Hell, I don’t even like him anymore.’
Tina sighed. ‘It’s not my place to say this really but you need to spell it out to John that it’s over. Whatever the two of you had in the past is no more. It’s time for both of you to move on with your lives.’
‘I know you’re right. I’m going to have to tell him, make him understand, that it’s over full stop. Problem is, he doesn’t listen to me these days.’