Love Me Till Wednesday (Sapphire Stars #1)

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Lisa had just finished clearing away lunch when the doorbell rang. It must be Nick, punctual as usual.

Lisa looked through the spy hole in her front door. An odd-looking man with floppy dark hair and large black-rimmed glasses was standing on the doorstep holding a brown paper carrier bag.

‘Is it Grandpa?’ Sophie called from the kitchen, where Lisa had left her colouring in a picture of a parrot.

‘No,’ Lisa said. Please don’t let it be a journalist when Nick was due to arrive any minute. She put the chain on the door before she opened it. ‘Can I help you?’

‘Probably,’ the man said, pulling his glasses down to the end of his nose and grinning at her.

‘Nick! What the hell?’ Lisa opened the door to let him in.

‘I can’t wander around the zoo looking like me, can I?’ he laughed.

Sophie stared at him as he walked into the kitchen. ‘Why do you look like that?’

‘Because a lot of people know who I am, so if we don’t want to be bothered while we’re out today, I have to wear a disguise.’

‘But how did you make your hair grow like that?’

‘It’s a wig.’ Nick pulled it off with a flourish .

‘Can I try it?’ Sophie asked.

‘I’m not sure it will fit over all your lovely curly hair,’ Nick said.

‘Can we see if it does?’

‘You haven’t got nits have you?’ he teased.

‘No!’ She sounded most put out at the suggestion.

‘I suppose I can let you try it on then.’ He grinned at Lisa.

Lisa watched with amusement as Nick lifted Sophie up so she could stand on one of the dining chairs and look in the mirror while he attempted to put his wig on her.

He gave up with half her hair hanging out the back

‘Even your best friend wouldn’t recognise you now,’ he said.

Sophie folded her arms. ‘I think she would. She’s not blind.’

He chuckled. ‘Shall we see what Nanny looks like in hers?’

‘Mine?’ Lisa said.

‘You’re almost as infamous as me now! Come on, tired housewife, 56, time for your transformation,’ he grinned, pulling a long straight blonde wig out of the bag he’d brought.

‘Blonde is an interesting choice.’ Lisa wasn’t sure how she felt about that, given Nick had exclusively dated blondes since they’d split up.

‘Dark brown would be too close to yours. And red will make you look more like you did years ago, so that’s no good either. See what you think.’

She took the wig off him. ‘Do you have to do this whenever you do something normal?’

‘Not usually. But as we’ve been in the news this weekend, it’s the safest way to make sure we have an uneventful day out. You might need this as well.’ He handed her a hairnet.

After some messing around to get her real hair under control, Lisa managed to get the wig on. It looked pretty convincing. ‘The dark roots are a nice touch, but it feels weird looking so different. What do you think?’

Nick nodded appreciatively. ‘Even I wouldn’t recognise you.’

‘Do I have to stop calling you Nanny and Grandpa now?’ Sophie asked as she gave Nick his wig back.

‘No. We’re just a different Nanny and Grandpa for the day.’ Nick said. ‘It would be better if you didn’t call me Nick, though,’ he said to Lisa.

‘What shall I call you then? You look like a Charlie to me,’ she said cheekily.

‘Oh, do I?’ he grinned. ‘Alright then, Norma.’

‘Norma? How old do I look? That’s a grandma name.’

‘But you are my grandma,’ Sophie said.

‘I meant the sort of name someone my grandma’s age would have,’ Lisa explained.

Nick looked uncomfortable. ‘I don’t know where that came from. Probably Norma Jean Baker. There’s something of the Marilyn Monroe about you now you’re blonde.’

Lisa wasn’t sure how to take that.

‘Are we ready?’ he said, changing the subject.

‘What do you say?’ Lisa said, looking pointedly at the giant giraffe Sophie was enthusiastically cuddling.

‘Thank you very much, Grandpa.’

Nick looked thrilled.

Lisa had been impressed with his parenting skills. He’d chased Sophie along the paths when she’d wanted to play and carried her on his shoulders when he’d noticed she was tired. He also managed to make them crack up laughing by making up surprisingly good stories about what the animals were thinking as they watched the tourists from their enclosures. But it was when he scooped up Sophie and offered to kiss her knee better after she banged it on the climbing frame that Lisa finally admitted to herself that she was willing to risk taking him back. Sod all the negative publicity. That article had really got to her yesterday, but Nick was right. The press didn’t know either of them. Now, all she had to do was to convince him it was a good idea again.

They headed out of the zoo shop and back to the car park, Sophie skipping between them with Brad following at a discrete distance, like he’d done all day.

‘I shall be glad when we get home,’ Lisa said.

‘Why?’ Nick asked. ‘You looked like you were enjoying yourself.’

‘I have enjoyed it, thank you,’ Lisa said. ‘But I can’t wait to get this thing off,’ she said, tapping her head. ‘It’s so itchy.’

‘Good job I prefer brunettes.’

‘You used to prefer redheads.’

‘Just one particular redhead.’

He was giving her that look again. That was a good sign, surely.

‘When are you going back to LA?’ she asked.

‘I’ve got an early flight in the morning.’

If she was going to make a move, it would have to be tonight. ‘Have you got time to come back to mine for tea?’

Lisa put a plate of fish fingers, chips and peas in front of Nick as they sat at her kitchen table. ‘Yummy,’ he said. ‘You don’t get these in Hollywood, Sophie.’

‘Then I will never go there,’ she replied solemnly.

Nick grinned at Lisa. He seemed happy to be here.

They all tucked into their food while discussing their favourite animals in the zoo.

Sophie finished chewing her last mouthful of fish finger, put down her cutlery and yawned .

‘Time for bed, sweetheart,’ Lisa said.

But Sophie had other ideas. ‘It’s too early. I’m not tired!’

‘It’s nearly seven, and I’ve just seen you yawn,’ Lisa said.

Sophie tried to stifle another yawn. ‘Ok then. I’ll go to bed but only if Grandpa reads me a story. Please, Grandpa?’

Nick seemed happy to be asked. ‘What shall we read?’

‘You can choose between “The Gruffalo” or “Fay the Farty Fairy”.’

‘I’ve not heard of Fay.’

‘Sam wrote it for her,’ Lisa said.

‘It would make a very funny film.’ Sophie said. ‘So we should read that, then your film company can make it in America.’

‘Grandpa’s an actor. He stars in films. He doesn’t make them.’

Nick cleared his throat. ‘Actually, Sophie’s right. I do have a production company.’

‘See,’ Sophie said. ‘Daddy told me. So will you turn Fay’s story into a film?’

Nick appeared to be giving Sophie’s idea serious consideration. ‘Fay does sound fun, but I can’t promise anything until I’ve read it. And I’m not sure how that would fit with our usual sci-fi offerings.’

Sophie looked offended. ‘She has a spaceship!’

‘Well, in that case, let’s give it a try.’

Lisa laughed. ‘You’re honoured. You normally only let Daddy read that one to you, don’t you, Soph.’

‘But he’s Daddy’s daddy, so that’s allowed,’ Sophie said as she grabbed her new giraffe and headed out into the hallway.

‘I’ll give you a shout when she’s in bed,’ Lisa said as she followed Sophie out of the kitchen .

Lisa finished loading the dishwasher. Nick had been reading to Sophie for ages. She better rescue him. Sophie would keep him reading all night otherwise.

As she walked up the stairs, she could hear the murmur of Nick’s voice coming from the bedroom. Lisa hung back on the landing for a moment, taking in the scene. Sophie was tucked up in bed with the enormous giraffe while Nick was sitting on the floor next to her bed, his face illuminated in the glow of the bedside lamp. Both of them were engrossed in Farty Fay’s story. Sophie was giving him detailed instructions on how to voice one of the characters. Lisa felt a pang of regret. This was how it should’ve been with Jim.

They noticed her watching.

‘She’s the toughest director I’ve ever worked with,’ Nick said.

‘But we have to get it right.’ Sophie held out her arms to Lisa for a hug.

Lisa obliged. ‘I think Grandpa needs a break now. And you need to get to sleep.’

‘Just ten minutes more,’ Sophie pleaded.

Nick didn’t look keen to stop reading either.

‘Alright, but no more than that.’ She left them discussing whether farts were a reliable means of jet propulsion in space.

Lisa headed back to the kitchen to wait for Nick. She sat on the sofa, running over what she was planning to say to him. Five minutes later, she heard his footsteps as he descended the stairs. By the time she’d stood up, he was leaning on the kitchen doorway, looking thoughtful, his thumbs hooked through the belt loops on his jeans.

‘We’ve left it with Fay landing on the moon. It’s a good story. Sam should do something with that,’ Nick said.

Lisa was glad he liked it, but she didn’t want to discuss Sam’s potential writing career now. ‘I really enjoyed today.’

‘So did I. I’d forgotten how to have fun. ’

‘Stopping for a cuppa? Or something stronger?’ Lisa asked hopefully.

‘No. I need to go. I’ve got to pack and get an early night.’

Now or never, Lisa. ‘That’s a shame because I’ve been thinking about what you said yesterday. About us being old friends getting to know one another again. I’d like us to be more than that. I think you’re right about us being soulmates.’

He looked uncomfortable. ‘I know I said that, but today’s made me realise how much I’ve missed in Jim’s life. I don’t think I can forgive you for that.’ He grabbed his coat from the coat rack in the hall. ‘I guess I’ll see you when I visit at Christmas.’

‘Nick!’ she called after him as he headed for the door. ‘What do you mean “forgive me”?’

He wouldn’t look her in the eye. ‘You could have told me Jim existed instead of leaving me in the dark about it for so long. It’s not as if I’d disappeared into obscurity. You knew exactly where I was.’

‘Remember I was under the impression you didn’t want anything to do with me.’

‘But you didn’t know how I’d feel about Jim.’

‘He didn’t want me to find you.’

‘He was a child! You should’ve known better,’ Nick opened the front door and stormed out, slamming it shut behind him.

Nick’s Range Rover drew up alongside him on Camden High Street.

‘Where’s Lisa?’ Brad asked.

‘At home with Sophie,’ Nick said as he got into the passenger seat and put his seatbelt on.

‘You’ve fucked up, haven’t you? ’

Nick stared at him. In the twenty years Brad had been his driver and bodyguard, he’d never commented on Nick’s relationships.

‘What makes you say that?’

‘Because I’m picking you up three blocks from Lisa’s house, and she’s not waving you a loving goodbye. So am I driving you back to Lisa’s or the hotel?’

‘The hotel.’

‘Are you sure?’

Nick wanted to be as far away from Lisa as possible. The sooner he was on the plane to LA, the better. ‘Yes. If I want dating advice, I’ll talk to my couple’s therapist.’

‘Because that’s worked out well so far,’ Brad said as he pulled back into the Monday evening traffic.

‘What’s that meant to mean?’

‘Despite spending a fortune on the best therapists in LA, you still pick women who use you. Lisa’s different.’

‘She’s different, alright. She’s worse. None of the others have kept a child secret from me.’

‘Because she’s a good mother. When Jim was young and impressionable, you were a terrible role model. Why would she want you anywhere near him?’

‘I wasn’t that bad.’

‘If you say so.’

Nick stared out the car window. Brad had been at his side through thick and thin. Their relationship was the most stable one Nick had ever had. He knew all Nick’s secrets, and he’d never let him down. ’So she did the right thing?’

‘Yes.’

They drove on in silence. Brad had a point. After all, it was exactly what Nick had thought the night he discovered Jim existed. If he was completely honest with himself, his behaviour in his personal life had been less than exemplary for most of his twenties and thirties. And she’d told him that Jim wasn’t interested in who his father was when he was old enough to make a decision.

Nick didn’t want to leave things with Lisa like this. You bloody idiot, Nixon. Fix it now before it’s too late. ‘Can we go back to Lisa’s, please?’

Brad silently made a U-turn and headed back towards Paradise Crescent.