Josephine Cox Sunday Times Bestsellers Collection

‘ ’Fraid so.’

With time marching on, Susie was considering how she could rectify the situation. ‘Have you by any chance got a pair of scissors?’

‘Nope.’

‘A sharp knife then?’

‘Nope.’

‘What do you use to cut your cheese?’

‘I don’t. I just take a bite whenever I feel the urge.’

‘That’s disgusting!’

‘No, it’s not.’ He cocked his head. ‘You should try it,’ he advised. ‘It tastes better when you tear off a chunk with your teeth.’

While he ranted on, teasing and taunting, Susie dug into her handbag. ‘Got it!’ Brandishing a pair of nail scissors, she advanced on him with a determined gleam in her eye.

‘Hey!’ Backing off, Ronnie demanded to know what she was about.

‘Stand still, and stop your moaning!’ Grabbing hold of him, she whipped the belt from his trousers and while he struggled to hold them up, she gouged a couple more holes in the belt. ‘Here, try it now.’

He slid the belt round his waist and was delighted to find that it fitted snugly with the new holes. ‘You’re not just a pretty face, are you, sis?’

Snipping off the tag end of the belt, she stepped back to view her handiwork. ‘There – that looks better.’ Grabbing his jacket from the chair she threw it to him. ‘We’d best get going, or we’ll miss dinner altogether.’

He frowned. ‘Do I have to come?’

Her answer was to drag him out of the door. ‘If anybody needs a good meal inside him, it’s you. So come on, move yourself, and when you get there don’t sulk in a corner, and don’t refuse the drink Leonard is bound to offer you.’

As they went down the fire-escape to the sidewalk she was still giving out her orders. ‘… And don’t drink too much, or you’ll only end up saying the wrong thing.’

‘Gee, Suze, I never knew you were such a nag!’

‘Get in the car.’ In minutes she had him inside with the door shut, and after scrambling into the driver’s seat she went off down the road at such a speed he hung on to his seat for dear life. ‘Slow down, you’re driving like a damned lunatic!’

‘Rubbish! I’m only doing fifty miles an hour.’

‘That’s what I mean. I’m too young to die.’

The banter continued all the way out of town and on towards the big farmstead.

‘If you get us there in one piece I’ll eat my hat!’ Ronnie promised.

‘For God’s sake, shut up and relax. I know what I’m doing.’

By the time they arrived, Vicky was about to serve the first course. Placing the tureen of soup on the table, she ran out to meet them. ‘You decided to come after all. Oh Ronnie, I’m so pleased.’

‘Your bullying daughter dragged me here,’ he moaned. ‘She also made me wash and shave, she cut off a chunk of my belt, and nearly killed us both on the way here.’

‘Take no notice of him, Mom.’ Kissing Vicky on the cheek, Susie explained, ‘It wasn’t my driving that made him a shivering wreck. He was already like that when I found him.’

Leonard was delighted to see Ronnie. ‘Your mother was worried about you,’ he said.

Ronnie never had much to say to Leonard, and tonight was no exception. Without replying, he addressed Vicky. ‘There’s no need for you to worry. I’m quite capable of taking care of myself.’

‘I only wish that were true!’ Vicky knew her children like she knew herself, and she never cared much for the way Ronnie deliberately excluded Leonard from any conversation. ‘But I’m glad you’re here, all the same. We all are, aren’t we, Leonard?’

His stepfather smiled at Ronnie, a smile that said, ‘Even if you don’t accept me, I’ll still be here whenever you need me.’

‘I think Ronnie already knows,’ he replied. ‘I’m always glad to see him.’

Vicky gave Susie a grateful glance, discreetly thanking her for bringing Ronnie home, even if it was only for a short time. He was the stray sheep that had not yet found its way back to the fold.

‘Right,’ she announced, ‘dinner’s ready. There’s pea and ham soup to start, thick and rich, the way you all like it.’ It had been one of Barney’s favourites.

The evening went just as Vicky had planned, with everyone together, all eager to catch up with the latest news and gossip. ‘Now that we’ve managed to secure Baron’s Farm, that will bring our holding up to close on a thousand acres of prime productive land.’

Leonard had been after the 200-acre farm for some long time, and now that he had secured it into the family holding, he was desperate to persuade Ronnie to come back and work with them. It was what he wanted and, more importantly, it would make Vicky a contented woman.

Vicky picked up immediately on his piece of news. Addressing Ronnie, she told him, ‘Leonard has it in mind to renovate the old farmhouse. It’s yours, if you want it.’ Under the table she kept her fingers crossed, hoping he might leap at the chance. ‘You know the place,’ she reminded him. ‘It’s in a lovely spot, and you can be as isolated as you want. Please, Ronnie, we all want you to come home. Say you’ll take it.’

All eyes were on Ronnie as he seemed to be considering the proposition. When at length he gave his answer, it was not the one Vicky wanted to hear, yet it was the one they all expected. ‘Not yet, Mother.’ He gave a determined shake of the head. ‘I’m not ready. It’s not that I don’t want to, you know that.’

‘So, what is it then?’ Thomas was quick to lose his temper where Ronnie was concerned. ‘You don’t seem to know how lucky you are. Leonard is offering you a tidy house, and a chance to come back where you belong. At least give it a try. If it doesn’t work out, then you’ve got choices.’

But Ronnie could not be persuaded. ‘Like I said, I’m not ready. It’s a wonderful offer and I appreciate the thought, but I can’t be shackled. I need the freedom to work when I can and wander when the mood takes me.’ He looked at his stepfather. ‘Sorry, Leonard. Like I say, it’s not that I don’t appreciate the offer.’

While Susie had kept her silence, Sheila was bolder. ‘You must be mad!’ This was the first she’d heard of Baron’s Farm being sold to Leonard. ‘If it’s not wanted, we’ll take it, won’t we, darling?’ Snuggling up to Thomas she made cow eyes. ‘We could really do something with that old place, and like Lenny says, it’s in a lovely spot.’

Like everyone else, Thomas ignored her comment. He, more than most, knew how Sheila was never satisfied with what she had. To her, the grass was always greener on the other side.

‘The house was not offered to us,’ he said coolly, ‘and even if it was, we don’t need two houses. End of discussion.’

‘The farmhouse is yours, whenever you’re ready,’ Leonard assured Ronnie. ‘You’re an important part of the family business, and we all want you with us, like I say … whenever you’re ready. At the moment, the house is being totally renovated. The builders reckon it should be finished in about six months’ time. Take it or leave it, but it’s yours. The deeds will be in your name, and the keys put aside for when you decide to come and collect them. There’s no pressure. It’s entirely up to you.’

Ronnie thanked him sincerely, and now that the discussion was over and the mood had lightened, Susie had a thing or two to say. ‘I wouldn’t give him a choice,’ she teased. ‘I’d lock him up in the house until he came to his senses. Anywhere is better than that hellhole he lives in.’

Grinning, Ronnie shrugged his shoulders. ‘It’s my hellhole,’ he objected. ‘It’s where I want to be … for now.’

Vicky had listened to all of this, and her heart ached for Barney’s youngest son. Like the rest of them he was still hurting, but instead of getting on with life, he had immersed himself so deeply in the past, he just couldn’t let go. All she could do was wait and pray, and hope that sometime soon, Ronnie would find peace in his heart and the need for his family about him. More than that, she could not do.

She now turned her attention to her daughter. ‘And what’s happening in the world of hats?’

Susie swallowed a forkful of potato. ‘Well, I too have bought property – I acquired the old butcher’s shop, and I’m already having plans drawn up to change it into a fashionable milliner’s. It’s in a good area, on a corner position, with two panoramic windows and huge floorspace. It’s got great potential.’

‘Well done, sis!’ Thomas exclaimed. ‘I’m proud of you.’