Chapter 36
‘What?’ Noah’s tone was incredulous. ‘You’re not serious?’
‘Unfortunately, yes.’ Joel took a slug of his drink.
Marc thought he must be fortifying himself for a tricky conversation.
‘It wasn’t something that was in my grand plan, but my contract wasn’t renewed at the end of the year.
The company’s downsizing, and I, unfortunately, was a casualty of that decision. ’
‘So, what are you going to do?’ Marc asked.
Joel shook his head. ‘Not sure yet. I’ve got plenty saved, so I don’t have to get out of my apartment yet.
Got a fair few contacts, too, so it shouldn’t be too hard to find something new.
’ He paused, before glancing at Marc. ‘It does mean that there’s no urgency to get back to Dubai in the new year, though, if you don’t mind a house guest for a few more days? ’
Typical Joel, Marc thought, to just drop that bombshell while he was in company.
He couldn’t exactly say no, not in front of Bella and Noah.
He settled for a smile. ‘Of course not. You’re welcome to stay as long as you like.
’ He had to resist the urge to raise a discreet middle finger to Noah, who was smirking at the revelation.
‘I’d offer you my spare room, mate,’ Noah said, a trace of glee in his voice, ‘but we don’t have one.’
‘Oh, I’m sure Joel could sleep on our sofa for a day or two.
’ Bella shot Noah a firm look. Marc was amused; Bella had worked out the somewhat strange dynamic between the three Hathaway brothers within moments of seeing them all in the same room together.
He wouldn’t put it past her to try to ‘fix’ them, in the time she had.
‘Thanks, Bella, but I wouldn’t want to cramp your style. Besides, this house is big enough for an extra guest.’ Joel leaned back on the sofa, making himself comfortable.
Marc regarded his brother with a combination of admiration and exasperation.
Joel had always had the knack of getting what he wanted through charm and sheer bloody-mindedness.
He was surprised that Joel was taking the loss of his job so well.
And although he felt mildly irritated that Joel was just assuming he could stay for longer than the couple of days he’d flown in for initially, he couldn’t work up the energy to be truly pissed off.
It would give him and his brother the chance to spend some time together.
And the twins seemed to like having him around.
‘I’ve actually got a couple of people to see in London sometime in the next few days,’ Joel continued, visibly relaxing now he’d sorted out his immediate living arrangements, ‘so I might take a drive down there before New Year’s Eve.’
‘Funny you should say that,’ Noah replied.
‘Bella and I were going to head down to London. I need to check in on how Ruby, the manager of my Fulham branch, is doing and we thought we might take the boys off your hands for the night, too, Marc. I’ve been looking into tickets for Minecraft: The Musical and I wondered if they’d like to see it. ’
Marc tensed in his seat again. ‘I don’t know.
They can be a handful together. Are you sure you’re up to it overnight?
’ He didn’t know how he felt about the boys going away without him for the night, even if it was with Noah and Bella whom they liked very much.
He knew he was probably being overprotective, but he hadn’t been without the boys for a single night since Tessa had died.
In truth, he wouldn’t know what to do with himself, if he was all alone.
‘Think it over,’ Bella said gently. ‘We wanted to do something for you that would give you a break, too. You’ve had a busy few months and we thought a night by yourself might be welcome.
We don’t really have the space at home to have the boys for a sleepover, so we thought we would book a family room in a decent hotel near the theatre, go and see the show, maybe see some sights at the same time.
But it’s entirely up to you, Marc. We don’t want to suggest anything that you’re not happy with. ’
‘It’s a lovely offer.’ Marc met Bella’s gaze. ‘Let me sleep on it. But thank you. I do appreciate it.’
‘And I can save you the train fare if you come in the car with me,’ Joel chipped in. ‘It’ll be a bit of a squeeze, but we might as well get some mileage out of it while I’ve got it.’
‘You can’t say you wouldn’t welcome a night to yourself,’ Noah said. ‘If only to spend all of it catching up on some sleep!’
‘Now that does sound good.’ Marc gave a yawn.
Christmas had been great, but it had taken it out of him.
As he was considering the offer, his mind drifted towards Lauren.
With the children spending time in London, perhaps it would be a good opportunity to ask Lauren out on a date.
He wouldn’t have to worry about the boys; they could spend time together without him having to resume ‘Dad Duty’ or rush off.
It might be nice to have another drink with her, or even a meal out.
And if it didn’t go anywhere, he wouldn’t have to explain anything to Liam and Luca.
‘All right,’ he said suddenly, before he could change his mind. ‘You’re on.’ He gave a laugh. ‘I do hope you know what you’re letting yourself in for though.’
‘Oh, come on, Marc, how hard can it be?’ Joel’s tone suggested he was only half joking. ‘There’ll be three of us and two of them… plenty of hands to hold and referees for brotherly disagreements!’
Marc glanced at Noah and rolled his eyes. ‘Please tell me you’ve got a more grown-up assessment of the situation.’
Noah nodded. ‘Don’t worry. If baby brother here goes off-piste or throws a strop about not getting to sleep in the bunk beds, I’ll just sit him on the naughty step.’
‘Ha-ha,’ Joel muttered. ‘Remind me which one of us is the fun uncle?’
‘Now, now, boys,’ Bella interjected. ‘Let’s all remember we’re the adults here.’ She turned back to Marc. ‘I can keep them all out of trouble, Marc. These two will have to toe the line just as much as the twins will, or I’ll confiscate all the Haribo I’ve brought for the journey.’
‘I wouldn’t give them too much,’ Marc replied. ‘They might be sick in the rented car.’
‘Are you talking about your sons or your brothers?’ Bella joked.
Glancing at Joel, who was definitely the worse for wear after a slow but steady day’s Christmas drinking, Marc wasn’t completely sure.