too subtle.’
‘He’s not wrong there.’ Now that he was sitting down he realised how manic today had been. His body was tired, the adrenalin had spiked and his exhaustion was creeping up on him. But not so much he didn’t find his manners. ‘Sorry, I haven’t even offered you a drink. Can I get you something? You’ve come all the way to see me, it’s the least I can do.’
She shook her head. ‘No need, I won’t keep you too long, and I haven’t come that far. I’ve been staying with Stu’s family in Colchester, where we’re having Christmas. I was so close I couldn’t miss the chance to come here. I wanted to see all this.’ She looked around the shack and reached across the table to cover his hands with her own. ‘I always knew you’d do great things, I knew you had it in you.’
‘I never could’ve done any of this without you.’ There was rock bottom and then there were the depths he’d reached before she’d come into his life. He honestly believed that if it wasn’t for her, there was a good chance he wouldn’t even be around anymore. Surviving on the streets was more than difficult; there were some days when he’d felt he’d be better off putting himself out of his misery. And then, by chance, he’d crossed paths with Giselle and she’d gone from being a friend, to a counsellor, then a wife – even though both of them would readily admit their heads hadn’t been in the right place when they’d decided to get married. Now, she remained a firm friend and always would, no matter how often they were in touch. And he’d never turn his back on her. Some people in your life came and went; others, like Giselle, were here to stay.
‘Of course you could,’ she said firmly. ‘You dug deep, pulled yourself out of a hole. Now look at you.’ She patted a hand against her chest and pretended to cry happy tears. ‘I’m so proud.’
‘Stop the dramatics,’ he grinned. ‘Now, tell me, how’s Peter? I haven’t spoken to him in a while, we’re due a phone call.’ Daniel sometimes wondered if he should’ve made more of staying in touch but part of him knew Giselle had her own life and he didn’t want to step on another man’s toes when she met someone new. He’d also wondered whether Peter would lose interest in him when someone else became a father figure, so part of him supposed he’d stepped away before he got hurt, just staying in touch enough that he wasn’t abandoning him.
‘Peter’s actually the reason I’m here.’
And this was why he’d tried to distance himself. She was going to ask him to stop writing, stop sending cards. She had someone new now, they were a family and it was too confusing for Peter. ‘Giselle, just tell me what you need to say.’ He could see she was hesitating, worried about hurting him, perhaps, but he was stronger these days and he’d rather she didn’t try to wrap it up in a way that spared him.
‘Stu and I are obviously serious.’ She patted the baby bump.
‘Is he a good man?’ That was all he needed to know. ‘And good to Peter?’
‘He really is. You’d like him.’ Her smile faded. ‘Peter’s not been himself lately. He hasn’t been sleeping properly, he’s lost his appetite – and you know how much he loves his food – even fish fingers can’t tempt him half the time, and he’s been messing about at school. He’s too early for the teenage angst and moods but I’ve seen him this way before, a couple of years ago when his grandma moved up to Scotland. He was convinced he’d never see her again. The way he was looking at it, it may as well have been New Zealand.’
Daniel remembered Peter’s sensitivity as much as his enthusiasm for Meccano – parts and tools strewn across his bedroom floor as he attempted to put models together, already-accomplished pieces standing proud on the shelves against his walls. Peter was a boy who considered his words before he said them, who picked up on emotions in a room before anyone let on there was a problem. Once, when Daniel had sat nursing a beer after his birthday had passed for another year without word from Harvey and he’d been going on and on about how he could’ve done things differently as far as his brother was concerned,