‘We were talking about nutrition today at school.’
‘Oh yeah?’
‘Yes. So, the children were talking, and I'm shocked at how many don't eat at home, or have such poor food when they return and the only meal they have during the day is the one that they get at lunchtime. And some of them are so young, they don't know what they’re doing because the meals are almost self-service. They have no idea that the three chicken nuggets and six chips on their plate is no nutrition at all and it’s not enough to sustain them throughout the day.’
Fliss’s cheeks flushed with passion enough to make Jenna wonder if her sister’s attitude towards junk food was about to take a complete U-turn and they would be health-food fanatics in no time at all. Jenna smiled. It suited her.
Fliss grabbed a spoon and scooped chicken casserole onto the three white plates. Bright, vibrant colours spilled across them with chicken, tomatoes, sweetcorn and red peppers in one dish.
She waggled the serving spoon at Jenna. ‘They need so much more.’ She took a slotted spoon and flipped roast vegetables – parsnips, potatoes and carrots – from the roasting tin.
Jenna’s stomach gave in and shouted out another loud grumble, but this time in excitement as she drew out a chair at the dining room table. A mouth-watering waft of steam came up from the plate Fliss placed in front of her as she took her own seat at the small kitchen table.
Within a millisecond, Domino came to rest his chin on Jenna’s thigh and Fleur sang in high-pitched tones until Jenna scooped her up and let her circle around on her lap until she flopped down oblivious to the large black nose she pushed up against. Jenna automatically placed her hand on the top of Domino’s head and smiled up at her sister. ‘Thanks.’
Fliss served her own dish of food up and the spare plate for Mason, slipping his back into the oven out of temptation’s way of the Dalmatian. She took her seat opposite Jenna and waved her hand over their plates. ‘This, this is what they don’t get. And then I thought how can you criticise? You’re really bad at nutrition. We eat such crap.’
Exactly what Jenna had tried to tell her sister for the entire length of time they’d lived together. Jenna raised an eyebrow and kept her expression mellow. ‘I know.’ When it was her turn to cook, it was a different matter. She always tried to serve them nutritious meals with interesting ingredients. She loved the spiciness of Indian cookery, the deep richness of Italian food.
Jenna picked up her knife and fork and barely had to cut into the chicken as it fell apart. She scooped a mouthful of it up and took a bite. This was so much more like their mum’s good old-fashioned traditional satisfying British food.
The only thing missing that their mum might have added was dumplings. And the only addition to the casserole was the mange tout that Fliss had stirred through at the last minute so they still had a bite to them. But then Mum wouldn’t have even known what mange tout was.
‘So, what are you going to do about it?’ Jenna knew Fliss would have already started to devise a plan.
‘Something. Definitely something. I’m going to see if we can introduce a better system than trestle tables. Do something that makes their experience less of a chore and more of an opportunity to interact. Mix up the age groups.’ She snapped out a sharp smile. ‘It’s not fully formulated yet, but I’ll involve the PTA, knock around with some ideas and see what we can do to improve matters.’
Fliss chewed on her own mouthful of food and then poked her fork towards Jenna. ‘So, did you have a good day at work today?’
Jenna knew her time to speak was coming. She laid down her fork and picked up her wine, took a sip and let the flavour mingle with the savoury casserole. ‘This is delicious. Thank you.’ A divine pleasure. She leaned back in her chair, lowered her glass and smiled at Fliss. ‘I had an… interesting day.’
‘Oh, okay.’ Turning the subject Jenna was about to bring up on its head, Fliss interrupted her. ‘Do you think Domino is so much calmer today?’
Jenna almost snorted her wine out of her nose, but Fliss never even noticed in her enthusiasm.
‘I think it’s starting to make a difference having a dog walker when we need one.’
Jenna clamped down on hysterical laughter and gulped to rid herself of the wine stuck at the back of her throat. She let out a delicate cough as she hid a smile behind the glass. She took another sip to soothe her throat.
‘Is this the first time you’ve noticed the difference?’
‘It is. I thought it wasn’t going to work. He still seemed so energetic after she’d taken him out that I’ve been supplementing it by running him out as soon as I get home as well, just to calm his energy levels down.’
Jenna’s lips twitched and she rolled them in on themselves to stop the laugher bursting out. ‘That’s not surprising.’
With overexaggerated casualness she placed her glass on the table and picked up her fork again. She popped a little more food in her mouth and chewed.
‘What do you mean?’ Fliss’s smooth brow wrinkled.
‘I mean, I don’t think Domino has been properly walked by Lena.’ She trapped Fliss’s gaze across the table and cocked her head to one side in a little tease her sister was soon to acknowledge.
Fliss’s confusion grew. ‘I don’t understand. If he’s not been getting a proper walk, why is he so content tonight?’
Jenna dropped her chin down to stare at the semi-comatose dog, contentment in every line of his body as he pressed the heavy weight of it onto her thigh.
Her sister flicked a hand over the table at her dog. ‘I thought he was so much more relaxed.’
‘Well, he certainly is, because if nothing else he's had mental stimulation today.’ Jenna pointed her finger at her sister. ‘You would not believe what has gone on. Do you want to know?’ She narrowed her eyes at her sister as Fliss placed her fork down by the side of her plate with a sharp snap and swiped up the wine again.
She didn’t know whether to laugh or… Oh, what the hell? She laughed.
She scratched the top of Domino’s head and he moaned his contentment. ‘Did you know Domino is a drug pusher in his spare time?’
Fliss’s mouth dropped open, jaw slack. ‘What?’
‘Yes, Domino spent the better part of today at the police station with me. After which I took him for an extra walk in my precious refs time to make up for the fact that he probably hadn’t been very far on his trek with your dog walker. The lovely Lena. Together with the three other dogs that he was with.’
Fliss jerked upright.
‘It’s supposed to be a one to one. I’m bloody well paying her for that. What the hell?’ Was she more concerned that her dog had been used to push drugs, or that she’d been overpaying for a non-exclusive service?
‘Well,’ Jenna grinned, warming to the subject and her sister’s shock. ‘I wouldn’t pay her this time because he’s been earning her more than enough money.’
Eyes wide, Fliss gawped at her. ‘What the hell?’
Jenna chuckled, thrilled by her sister’s response. ‘Your dog walker comes highly recommended.’ She whipped her hand in a circular motion and pointed her finger. ‘And your friend who made that recommendation is currently being questioned about her contacts.’ Jenna raised her hand to stop Fliss from exploding. ‘Oh no, she’s not involved.’