Maddie loved Jemima. She was a chubby, delightfully energetic baby, full of smiles and laughter. Quite a different child to Ben, although much younger. Who knew though? Perhaps Ben had been a bubbly, gurgling baby too.
But the familiar ache in her chest was back after seeing Ben this morning, as though she’d held the world in her arms but someone had come along and snatched it away. Again. Self-preservation dictated that having to say goodbye to Jemima later would make things worse rather than help to fill the void. Not to mention watching Greg and Gemma as they lived out their domestic bliss in front of her.
She began to type a reply to say she wouldn’t be coming, but instead found herself typing:
I’d love to. What time should I come and what can I bring? Pudding? M x
When it came to Greg, she couldn’t say no. Force of habit.
He replied straight away, putting in a request for what Maddie knew was his favourite: sticky toffee pudding.
She had another shower, washed her hair and spent time styling it to look as though it wasn’t styled at all. Her outfit was planned so that it looked like she had made just the right amount of effort. Then she started making the sticky toffee pudding, ensuring there was extra toffee sauce and a homemade custard to go with it. Greg had always loved her cooking and she got the feeling that Gemma wasn’t quite as accomplished, which secretly filled her with joy. There was still something Maddie could do for him that Gemma couldn’t.
She turned on the radio while she worked and sang along to some eighties’ classics. She couldn’t help looking forward to seeing Greg and Jemima. Gemma not so much, with her perfect smile and tiny waist. She was all creamy, sickly loveliness with her blonde waves and immaculate highlights.
There was no denying that Maddie’s life would be so much better if Gemma wasn’t around. She could move back in, look after Jemima, look after Greg… maybe she should suggest that Jade get rid of Gemma for her instead of Greg. She giggled at the thought.
The timer on the oven pinged and she pulled out the steaming pudding, breathing in the heady smell of dates and toffee.
She packed everything into Tupperware and foil trays, ready to transport it over to Greg’s. The house wasn’t far – easily walkable in fifteen minutes – but she decided to drive instead. As well as the pudding, she had a bottle of prosecco, a bag of chocolate buttons to give to Jemima, along with a little outfit she saw the other day that she had to buy for her. She would never be able to carry all of it.
She bundled everything into her car, then closed the passenger door and went around to the driver’s side. As she did, she noticed Jade above her, staring down from her bedroom window. Maddie smiled and waved, and Jade smiled back vaguely, but carried on watching as she drove away.
*
Jade watched Maddie drive away, her mind still working through what had happened in the park earlier. The woman coming up to them, her pointing finger, the fury in her words making her whole body shake.
What the hell had Maddie done to her? The whole thing had been weird.
There was clearly more to Maddie than Jade had initially realised. A bit of a dark horse.
But the most concerning part was what the woman had said about keeping Ben away from Maddie. What was that all about?
Was Maddie dangerous? She didn’t want Ben to get hurt.
Jade could just see Maddie’s tiny car sitting at the junction waiting to turn onto the busy road, the indicator ticking away. Jade stared at it, as though it would give her some answers. She couldn’t believe cardigan-wearing Maddie was a danger to Ben. She’d seen how Maddie was with him – almost painfully desperate for him to like her and respond to her. Ben rarely responded to anyone though – he was a complex kid – but Maddie was going out of her way to bond with him. That didn’t strike Jade as a dangerous person.
Unless she had an ulterior motive?
She must’ve done something to that woman. In fact, Maddie hadn’t denied that something had happened between them. She could’ve said it was mistaken identity, but instead she’d just clammed up.
Why?
Now Jade was more curious than ever about the woman living downstairs, a woman who on the surface seemed so… vanilla. There had been no hint of a temper or volatility in the few encounters they’d had so far. In fact, she’d been the epitome of good manners and politeness, not even challenging Jade when she had pocketed her change earlier. That had been a little test in itself, to see if she could get a rise out of her, but even then good manners had prevailed.
But they said they quiet ones were the most dangerous, didn’t they?
Jade would need to keep an eye on her.
For Ben’s sake.
*
Maddie parked up on the gravel driveway of her old house and sat for a moment. The front looked like it always had. A double-fronted, detached house with lovely bay windows and a dark green front door framed by miniature bay trees. That shade of green had taken ages to choose.
The only difference now was the presence of a large, silver Range Rover looming in the driveway alongside Greg’s Porsche Panamera. He’d traded in Maddie’s BMW X5 then. Her tiny Fiat 500 sat in the shadows between the two larger cars, completely dwarfed. She climbed out and began to unpack everything from the passenger seat as she heard the front door open behind her.
‘There you are!’ Greg said and came to greet her, a wide smile on his face. Maddie tried not to hope he might’ve been watching for her car.
He looked different, not least because he had grown a beard in the last week that was flecked more with grey than anything else. It made him look like he was trying too hard.
‘Hi, how are you?’ Maddie said. ‘This is new.’ She gesticulated at the facial hair.
‘Oh, yes, thought I’d try something new,’ he said and there was a hint of a blush in what she could see of his cheeks. ‘Do you like it?’
‘Sure. Very distinguished,’ she replied, wondering why he cared what she thought.
He was wearing a light grey sweater over navy chinos that had a crisp pleat down the front of the leg. He looked relaxed and happy, and for a second, she wished she could see something else, a sense of exhaustion, a tightening of the lips maybe or shadows beneath his eyes, something to make her think he was struggling just a little bit.
But there was none of that. He looked happy.
He leant in to kiss her on each cheek while saying, ‘You look well.’ She breathed him in. He smelled of an unfamiliar sandalwood aftershave. Maddie wondered if he had noticed she was wearing the perfume he had bought her for their last anniversary together.
He took the pudding from her. ‘You angel! You made your famous sticky toffee pud!’
‘Well, you asked so nicely,’ she replied, resting her hand lightly on his arm.
He smiled at her warmly and she could feel her stomach flip. Like an addict, no matter how much he had hurt her, she still couldn’t stop herself from reacting to him.
A chillier voice over her shoulder interrupted the moment. ‘Maddie, how nice to see you.’
She dropped her hand. ‘Hi, Gemma. Thank you so much for having me.’
Gemma’s face was pinched, like she could smell something bad in the air. ‘A pudding. You shouldn’t have. Did Greg not mention our diet? He’s on a healthy eating plan to try and get rid of that lovely little muffin top.’ Greg blushed again. ‘But you weren’t to know, of course. I’m sure you’ve not spoken much this week, have you? Anyway, let’s not stand out here in the cold.’ She turned with a swish of her long hair and stalked away on thin-heeled boots.