Chapter 8
‘Honestly, sometimes, I think I’m the only sane one in that home,’ said Marjorie, finishing off her glass of wine and looking at the bottle in the centre of the table expectantly. Tess duly obliged and topped up her mother’s glass. ‘They’re all mad as hatters!’
‘Grandma!’ said Hannah, suitably outraged. ‘You can’t say that.’
‘Well, it’s true. I know I might have my share of ailments, but I like to think I still have my faculties about me.’
‘Oh definitely, Grandma! You’re one of the smartest people I know.’
They were gathered around the oak table at Hollyhocks Cottage, enjoying a Sunday lunch which was a highlight for all three generations of women.
They didn’t manage it every Sunday, but at least once or twice a month, they came together for a luscious roast, which today consisted of melt-in-the-mouth tender lamb with all their favourite trimmings: crunchy roast potatoes, red cabbage, carrots, peas, cauliflower cheese and Yorkshire puddings, with lashings of gravy.
It was a feast that would serve double their number, but it didn’t matter because any leftovers would be made into a shepherd’s pie and even some rissoles if the lamb would stretch that far.
‘Well, I don’t know about that,’ said Marjorie, pushing her plate to one side with a satisfied look. ‘All I do know is that getting old is not for sissies, as Bette Davis once said. You won’t know her, Hannah, but she was a great and formidable actress in her day who spoke a lot of sense.’
‘But Mum, you’re doing so well at the moment,’ Tess ventured, wondering if there was something more serious going on beneath the grumbling. ‘You are still enjoying being at the home?’
‘Well, it’s not like being in your own place, obviously, but I can’t really complain.
They look after me well, and the food is edible on some days, but it’s all the other residents.
They are just so elderly,’ she said with a weary sigh.
‘Don’t get me wrong. A couple of them are friendly enough.
I’ve got my whist group, and they have regular speakers come along that can be stimulating and entertaining, but sometimes, it does feel like God’s waiting room.
And the boredom, oh my! When it all gets too much for me, I retreat to my bedroom with my book and escape into another world.
In my head, I can imagine, for the briefest moment, that I’m still the young and vibrant woman I once was, with so many plans, hopes and dreams for the future.
Honestly,’ she said chuckling, ‘sometimes, I wonder how I got to this point in my life. Not that I’m complaining.
I’ve had such a wonderful life; I had a husband who adored me and a beautiful family. ’
‘Well, hang on, Mum, you’re talking as though it’s all over. You’ve still got plenty of living to do.’
‘Oh, I know that, but getting old gives you plenty of time to reflect. That’s why I would caution you two to live your lives to the full.
The trouble is, when you’re young, there’s a tendency to take things and people for granted, to believe that you have all the time in the world to do the things you want to do, when really, it passes by in a flash.
Before you know it, you’re an old lady sitting in a care home, wondering where the time went.
So, mark my words, especially you,’ she said with a stern nod in the direction of Tess.
‘You need to make the most of the opportunities you do have.’
‘Well, thank you, Mother,’ said Tess with only a hint of haughtiness. ‘I will bear that in mind. Now,’ she tapped her hands down on the table, ‘should we have some pudding? Hannah has made us a delicious-looking apple and blackberry crumble.’
Marjorie’s eyes lit up. It reassured Tess to know that her mum’s appetite for food and life was still, beneath the occasional complaint, as vibrant as ever.
While Tess went to collect the crumble, she could hear Hannah chatting away to her grandma, their bond and closeness always lovely to witness.
‘I have a whole pile of books I can let you have, Grandma.’
‘Books?’ said Marjorie, sounding puzzled, as Tess re-entered the room.
‘If you’re reading a lot at the moment?’ Hannah clarified. ‘I know how many books I get through, but I can let you have the ones I’ve finished with. They would only go to the charity shop otherwise. I’ve got quite a selection. Crime, romance, historical. Only if you’d like them, of course.’
‘Oh yes, I see what you mean. That would be lovely, darling. And once I’m done with them, I can put them into the lounge for the other residents to read, if that’s okay with you.’
‘Honestly, this isn’t half-bad,’ said Hannah a little later when they were tucking into the gorgeous sweet dessert she’d made, which was served with a dollop of ice cream.
‘It’s absolutely delicious,’ agreed Marjorie, savouring the taste on her lips.
‘You’re a good cook, like your mother, although I’ve never known where she got her homely domestic skills from.
It certainly wasn’t from me,’ she said, chuckling.
‘I was a very functional cook. Your poor grandfather, he never complained and was very long-suffering.’
‘Actually, Mum, on that front, I wanted to ask you… You’re out next Saturday night, right?’
Tess thought for a moment.
‘Oh, you mean with Rob? Well, yes. He’s invited me round for supper.
Now he is a good cook; I always look forward to his meals.
’ And just spending time in his company, she mused, keeping that thought to herself.
Although she was slightly apprehensive about the occasion, wondering if she would notice anything different in their relationship after Rob’s mercy dash to see his ex.
They’d been texting daily ever since, as they always did, and his messages always brightened up her day; even a good morning, sweetheart or a sweet dreams, darling, could lift her spirits.
Everything appeared to be well, but she hated having to second-guess what was going on.
‘Do you mind if I invite a friend round for dinner then?’
‘Not at all.’ Tess was relieved that Hannah had picked up her life and was making an effort to reconnect with her friends. ‘Who’s that then – Sophie?’
‘No, Billy, actually,’ she said breezily. ‘He started his new job at an advertising agency in Soho this week so I thought it would be nice to see him again to catch up on his news. That’s okay with you, isn’t it?’
‘Who’s Billy?’ asked Marjorie, her brow furrowing.
At least it gave Tess a moment to think.
Hannah hadn’t wasted any time in inviting Billy back to Hollyhocks.
Not that she minded Hannah having her friends round, but did Hannah really want to revisit her relationship with Billy after everything that had happened?
Wouldn’t it be better to consign that relationship to a fond memory, rather than be reminded of everything that had gone wrong?
Hannah was trying to move on with her life, making plans and Tess didn’t want anything to upset the newly restored balance.
‘Billy was my friend in Australia. We were travelling together. Do you remember, you spoke to him over video call?’
‘Oh, the one who let you down?’ Marjorie lowered her chin and peered over the top of her glasses at Hannah, a withering look that Tess had been on the receiving end of on far too many occasions. ‘Whatever are you doing speaking to him again?’
‘Grandma, don’t be like that! Billy’s a nice guy.
I would never have got involved with him in the first place if he wasn’t.
And, okay, we had that big falling out, but that was because we were dealing with the shock in our own ways.
It should have brought us closer together, but instead, it pushed us apart.
We needed to sit down and talk things through, but we were both reacting emotionally, in different ways.
We’ve had time to reflect now and have realised that we should have communicated better.
I’m pleased that I’ve been able to talk to Billy and clear the air. ’
‘Well don’t let him break your heart again. You should never give a man the opportunity twice.’
Tess lowered her gaze, clearing the dirty plates to one side of the table, rather glad that Marjorie was voicing her own misgivings about Billy, which, in truth, matched Tess’s own. She knew that Hannah was much more likely to accept her grandmother’s cautionary words than listen to her own mother.
‘I won’t. You don’t need to worry. I’m perfectly capable of looking after myself, you know.’
‘I don’t doubt that for one minute,’ said Marjorie with an indulgent look. ‘You take after your grandmother in that respect.’
‘Besides, Billy and I aren’t in a romantic relationship. We’re good friends. That’s all. I promise you, it will be fine.’
Hannah sounded convincing enough, but Tess wasn’t sure that it would stay that way if Hannah was intending to spend more time with Billy. She quashed down a feeling of apprehension as she cleared the table. She could hardly tell her daughter who she could and couldn’t spend time with.
It was later that same day after Tess had returned to Hollyhocks after driving Marjorie home, and she was pottering in the kitchen, when Hannah reappeared.
‘Are you okay, Mum? You don’t mind me inviting Billy over, do you? If he stays, it means he won’t have to rush to get the last train home. And it’s not as though we’re short for space here.’
That was true. Hannah had clearly given it some thought and had prepared her case convincingly.
‘No, not really. I’ve got nothing against Billy, he seems like a nice guy, but I suppose, like Grandma, I’m a bit worried, that’s all. I would hate for you to get hurt again.’
‘It’s not going to happen. I’ve hardened my heart to his brown-eyed Gaelic charms,’ she said, chuckling, her eyes lighting up all the same. ‘Before we got together romantically, we were really good mates. I’m glad we’re back in touch.’
‘Great,’ said Tess brightly. ‘All I want is for you to be happy. And if seeing Billy is right by you, then that’s fine with me.’
‘Thanks, Mum.’ Hannah walked over to her mum and hugged her tightly. ‘You know, I’m just pleased Dad isn’t around,’ she said, chuckling. ‘Can you imagine his reaction?’
‘I can and I won’t,’ said Tess, shaking her head. ‘Probably best to keep that one to ourselves for the time being.’
‘Yeah…’ Hannah exhaled a sigh. ‘How do you think Grandma is doing at the moment?’
Tess’s gaze caught on Hannah’s worried expression.
‘Why do you ask?’
‘Well, she seemed a bit… I don’t know… a bit distracted today. You don’t think she’s losing her…’
‘…marbles?’ offered Tess with a wry smile.
‘No! Don’t say that! I meant her memory. There were a couple of times when she lost her thread or struggled to recall things that I’d told her. And she wasn’t her normal positive self.’
‘Even Grandma’s allowed to have the occasional off day. And it’s only natural that her memory might be hazy on certain matters, she is heading towards eighty, but as you told her yourself, she’s still as sharp as a tack when she wants to be.’
‘I know. I worry about her, that’s all.’
Tess knew exactly how she felt, because she did the same.
It was hard not to notice any small change or deterioration in her mother’s health and wonder if it wasn’t the start of something more serious.
Tess vowed there and then to increase her visits to her mum, to help her find the mental stimulation she might be missing, and generally keep a closer eye on her, for no other reason than to put everyone’s mind at rest.