Page 12 of All Yours

‘What colour are you then?’ she asked, scanning the month ahead.

‘Mostly the boys’ plans are my plans too. Although there are a few, like this.’ He pointed to four letters in black: BFAM. ‘Brothers from Another Mother,’ he explained. ‘The four of us get together for beers whenever we can. But it’s normally here so I don’t have to get a babysitter.’

‘And this one?’ Robyn pointed to the next acronym: MMU.

‘Meatball meet-up,’ he explained. ‘It’s at Tutto Mio. We all go, the whole group. Wren and Rosie too. Other than that, I don’t have time for anything else. This is the only thing on my mind,’ he said, pointing at the word DEADLINE.

Robyn smiled and nodded. This was all going to work out fine. She was going to be run off her feet keeping up with that calendar, and Fox was going to be so busy she’d hardly see him. Plus, the boys were gorgeous. It was the perfect business arrangement, and that was how it would stay.

‘I’ll WhatsApp you all the addresses for the various clubs, and anything else I think you might need to know . . .’ he said, before stopping and tapping a finger thoughtfully to his lip. ‘I probably should have asked before, but do you drive?’

‘I do, but I don’t have a car.’

‘I’ll get you insured on mine,’ he said easily.

Robyn nodded and then glanced down at Willow.

‘And I don’t have a car seat,’ she said. ‘Didn’t need one in Bali.’

‘I have one somewhere – in the loft probably. I’ll dig it out for you tomorrow if I get five minutes.’ He tilted his head to look at her. ‘You don’t have a pram, you don’t have a car seat! How do you manage?’

She looked down at Willow, whose eyelashes were starting to flutter against her cheek.

‘She doesn’t seem to need much. Apart from me.’ She lifted her eyes to see that Fox was appraising her, though she could not read his expression or what he was thinking. He shook his head lightly.

‘Well, you’ll need a car seat here for the River Rats club on Wednesday anyway. Everything else is walkable.’ He ran his eyes one last time over the calendar, checking he hadn’t missed anything. ‘And believe me, a walk helps with the boys’ energy levels. I heard someone say once that little boys are like dogs. As long as they are fed and exercised, they’re lovely to have around.’

‘From what I’ve seen of your two so far, they’re good boys,’ she said. ‘A credit to you.’

A wave of emotion crossed Fox’s face as his eyes darted towards the corkboard on the wall covered by strips of photobooth pictures, before he seemed to gather himself.

‘Thanks,’ he said. ‘It’s hard work sometimes, on my own, but I have to agree with you. They are great kids.’ He chuckled quietly to himself. ‘Let’s hope you still think so in eight weeks’ time.’

Eight weeks. That’s all this was. A couple of months for her to do a job and then move on, like she always did.

Reggie shouted down the stairs that they were ready and Fox pushed back his chair.

‘Story time,’ he explained. ‘I’d better go and get them to bed. Otherwise they’ll be hell for you tomorrow.’

Robyn stood carefully, conscious of Willow already asleep in her arms.

‘See you at seven thirty?’ he said as he opened the back door for her. ‘My first meeting starts at eight.’

‘See you in the morning,’ she said but he’d already turned, pulling the door with him.

‘Coming,’ she heard him shout towards the stairs as he hurried to tuck his boys in. She held the loose sling over Willow like a blanket against the night air as she crossed the patio to her new base. The pool house.

She closed the door quietly behind her and switched on a lamp. Willow made happy, contented noises as Robyn laid her in the moses basket she’d placed beside her own bed. Robyn watched for a moment to make sure she would stay asleep and then padded back into the living room.

She stretched and rolled her shoulders, stiff from carrying the baby all day. It wasn’t late but she was tired. Maybe it was the newness of the house. Or the anticipation of a new job. But probably it was the shock of seeing Fox again in the flesh instead of in her dreams. She moved to the window to pull the curtains shut against the dark, only to see Fox lowering the blind upstairs in what was, she presumed, one of the boys’ bedrooms. He was talking, and then he laughed as he disappeared from view.

Chapter Six

Fox

Robyn was thankfully on time in the morning. He watched her cross the patio, long hair, still damp from the shower, tied in a braid that hung down her back and was topped with a brightly coloured scarf. She wore her baby in the sling.

Maybe the boys were overexcited this morning, because his usual routine was not going to plan. Reggie was dressed, George was not. Breakfast cereal had been poured in bowls but most of the necessary milk had ended up on the table, thanks to an overenthusiastic Reggie. Fox held the door open for Robyn, and she ducked under his arm. She smelled soft and sweet, unusual in a house of boys.