The Lie by Hilary Boyd

Author:Hilary Boyd [Boyd, Hilary]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781405934848
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Published: 2020-02-18T00:00:00+00:00

27

Finch was sweating by the time he’d finished washing the kitchen floor. He’d been on a mission since early morning: scrubbing the toilet and shower, polishing the chrome on the taps until it shone, twitching the freshly washed duvet on Grace’s bed until there wasn’t a single crease, opening all the windows so that the mustiness of a man living alone was completely banished. Finch had been in the army too long to tolerate mess – the house was always in good order – but now he took it to another level. A jug of pink roses from the garden in her bedroom, an enticing pile of fruit in the bowl in the kitchen, surfaces wiped, cooker gleaming, cushions plumped – he wanted it to be perfect.

Grace had rung first thing to say that Sam wouldn’t be able to make it till tomorrow. Finch was secretly pleased. He liked Sam – a mild-mannered surveyor with a neat auburn beard whom she’d been with for nearly four years now, married for two – but it was a treat, these days, to have time alone with his stepdaughter. It would give him a chance to tell her about Romy in private, gauge her reaction without an audience. And if it turned out Grace wasn’t ready to meet Romy yet, then so be it.

She was due at six, but knowing Grace’s slightly chaotic modus vivendi – and the Friday-night traffic – she might be much later. It was nearly six now, but he decided he had time to give Romy a quick ring and check she was still coming down.

‘Definitely. I should be there by twelve at the latest.’ She sounded, Finch thought, the most cheerful she had been since Michael’s stroke. ‘I’ve just been talking to Daniel. He says he’s quite happy now to manage without me. Isn’t that great?’

Finch laughed with pleasure. ‘It certainly is.’

‘Michael’s really not going to like me deserting him, but still … this means I can pop in once a week or something, line somebody up for when Daniel has his days off and Leo can’t make it … and I’m free.’

He felt his heart lift. ‘That’s brilliant news, Romy. I’m so happy for you.’ And for me too.

She laughed, sounding almost drunk. ‘OK. I’ll text when I’m home.’

The lights of a car flashed through the sitting-room window. ‘Better go,’ Finch said, getting up. ‘I think that’s Grace.’ As he closed his phone and went to greet his stepdaughter, he felt a glow of optimism.

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