Chapter 21
Nathan had seen Rowan embrace her husband from where he’d been standing waiting with the boys.
It was obvious James had been upset, he’d been gesticulating wildly at one point and had slapped the palm of his hand against his forehead several times, before Rowan had pulled him towards her.
He couldn’t hear what they were saying, but that didn’t stop him creating his own subtitles for the conversation.
James must have been saying what an idiot he’d been, and how he’d do anything to win her back.
Rowan would have told him at first that there were no second chances, but then James would have played his trump card and reminded her that being together was best for the kids.
The children were everything to her, that much was obvious, and it was one of the many reasons why he liked Rowan as much as he did.
She put children at the centre of every single decision she made.
Not just her own children, but all of her pupils too.
That was why, when Will had asked Nathan if he had time to fill in the questionnaire that the inspectors had sent out, three days after the firework party, he’d written down every wonderful thing he could think of about Rowan’s leadership and the ethos she was working so hard to embed.
He couldn’t allow how hurt he’d been, when she’d sent Bex to talk to him, to affect how he felt about the good things she’d done.
None of that changed the fact that Rowan was an excellent headteacher, who had worked tirelessly to make Leo’s transition to using a wheelchair at school as seamless as possible.
When he’d got home on the night of the fireworks party, he’d resisted the urge to text her and ask how her husband was, and he’d refused to allow his thoughts to drift to what Rowan and James might have been doing at that point, or the promises they might be making one another about giving things another try.
His prison sentence had taught him some lessons he wanted to forget, but it had also taught him some useful skills that he was determined to hold on to.
One of them was the ability to shut down his thoughts if he needed to.
When the cell door had first closed behind him, he’d realised that this awful place, filled with desperate screaming voices, would be his home for a minimum of six months.
His breath had quickened and he’d wanted to claw at the door, and at his throat.
He wasn’t sure how he’d lasted that first night, or the next, but over time he’d learned to send his mind somewhere else, back home to Cornwall and the big skies that seemed to stretch on forever.
He’d picture Leo’s laugh, or his mother in the kitchen cooking up a storm, the way she always did when she needed to relieve some stress.
Ever since the fireworks he’d been using that same technique to avoid thinking about Rowan, to stop himself imagining her telling James that she was willing to go back to Membory Grange and give things another try.
Her relationship with Nathan had barely begun, and he didn’t really expect to be able to compete with what she and James had.
He wished there’d been an opportunity to find out where things might have gone, but what he’d regret even more, if she left Port Agnes, was losing her friendship.
Losing Theo would break Leo’s heart too, and he didn’t want to face that possibility until he had to.
Eventually, just before midnight, a text message had finally come through from Rowan.
I’m so sorry I had to run out on you and the boys and I know I’ve been doing a lot of that lately.
James isn’t in a good place and he needs to stay with me for a bit longer.
Can we meet after the inspection is over and James has gone back to Membory Grange to sort things out?
I’m not sure how long that will be, but I’ll explain everything properly then.
Sorry again and thanks for being so understanding xx
He’d stared at the message for a moment, wondering how to respond. In the end he kept it simple.
Don’t worry about me. You’ve got more than enough to think about right now xx
He turned his phone off after that and tried to sleep, but his ability to force the images of Rowan and James out of his head didn’t extend to his dreams and it had been a relief to wake up from another fitful sleep and see sunlight streaming through the window.
The next day he’d worked flat out on the renovation, before starting work at 6 a.m. on Monday on the internal fixings of a holiday cottage that he and Will had been building for one of their clients, so that he could finish in time to pick up Leo from school.
The playground was abuzz with parents talking about the inspection and discussing what they’d put on the questionnaires circulated on behalf of the inspectors.
One woman said she was being interviewed the next day, which seemed to give her minor celebrity status amongst some of the other parents, and Nathan tried to suppress a smile.
This was how life worked in Port Agnes, small things became big news and he’d had his own unwanted brush with infamy as a result.
He was far happier blending into the background these days, but people still remembered what had happened.
‘Ah, Mr Lark, Leo said it was you who’d be picking him up today.’ Lyra Blythe, Leo’s class teacher, looked disappointed to discover that the information he’d given her was spot on.
‘Is there a problem?’ Everyone at the school knew they could share any information about Leo with both Nathan and his mother, even things that would normally be reserved for a child’s parents.
It was in Leo’s care plan, because they did so much to support Will and Heather, and it meant Nathan was finding it hard to imagine a scenario where his presence at pick-up would cause an issue.
‘No, it’s just that one of the Ofsted inspectors asked if they might be able to speak to Leo’s parents about how well they feel the school meets his needs.’
‘My brother was snowed under today, so he asked me to fill in their questionnaire earlier and I sent it back in. But if they still need to speak to someone, I’d be happy to talk to them, if they’re okay with it being me?’
‘I can’t see why not, you’re here at least as much as his parents and Leo is lucky to have such a loving family.
’ Lyra’s smile was genuine and it crossed his mind for the first time how attractive she was, and how often she shot a smile in his direction, or let her hand linger on his arm for just a bit longer than was necessary.
He’d been so closed down to the idea of being involved with anyone again that he hadn’t even noticed, but Rowan had woken him up.
The trouble was now no one else could compare to her and, if she left, he’d be back to closing off that part of himself again.
‘I’ll let the inspectors know you’re happy to have a chat, if you don’t mind waiting?’ Lyra smiled again and he nodded.
‘Of course not, but what about Leo? Can I just take him into the meeting with me?’
‘There are a few other parents meeting with inspectors, so Mr Pengelly is doing an arts and crafts workshop in the Year 6 classroom until the meeting is over. Theo is already in there, so I’m sure Leo will be happy to go along too.’
‘He’s always happy when he’s with his best friend.
’ Nathan smiled, pushing the thought of what it might do to Leo if Theo disappeared out of his mind.
Those were worries for another day. Right now he had one job to do and that was to get Rowan the recognition she deserved.
Maybe if she saw how much her work was appreciated, even after such a short time, it would give her more motivation to stay.
If that happened, neither he nor Leo would have to face up to the prospect of losing Rowan and her son.
* * *
The meeting with the inspector, a warm and friendly man, had gone really well.
He’d been nothing like the kind of inspectors – of the income tax and VAT variety – who Nathan had encountered on far too many occasions in the run up to his prosecution.
He’d talked to him about how Rowan was helping to create a culture of inclusion at the school, securing funding to make the green area accessible immediately after her appointment, and before she was even officially due to start.
He talked about how she’d supported other fundraising initiatives and secured support from the governors and PTA to get more sensory equipment for the playground, including a wooden archway with stained-glass-style plastic panels, wide enough to be wheelchair accessible, and an area for water play.
There were also plans to develop a sensory garden, all of which allowed Leo to play outside and feel included, even though he wasn’t able to join in with many of the more traditional playground games.
Rowan and Lyra had also arranged for a guest speaker, who was part of the UK paralympic swimming team, to come and talk to the whole school about her experiences.
Practical adaptations had been made for Leo too and it was clear, as Nathan had told the inspector, that none of those things were an afterthought that had to be requested by the family, or done just to tick a box.
He and the inspector had been laughing together like old friends by the end, and he’d even given the man some advice on how to deal with the crumbling render on the back wall of his house.
He hadn’t realised quite how long the meeting had gone on for, until he went through to the Year 6 classroom to find Leo and had discovered that the only other child left there with him was Theo.
Mr Pengelly looked delighted to see Nathan, shooting him almost as warm a smile as Leo’s class teacher had done an hour earlier.