‘I didn’t notice these windows from the outside. They’re the originals?’
‘Yep. They were in pretty good condition under all the layers of paint. I’m not sure how warm they’ll be in the winter, but I don’t want to put in secondary glazing if I can help it.’
‘Thick curtains? I have some with thermal linings in my bedroom and the room’s really cosy in the winter.’
Chloe bit her tongue. She could almost see the kind of thing that would match the red and green in the stained glass and bring those colours out. A cold night, closed curtains and candlelight. And the warmth of Jon’s arms.
But this wasn’t her house. Amy would never sleep soundly in the next bedroom, surrounded by pretty things, and Chloe would never sleep in this one. Amy should be with her mother, and Jon had determinedly left all thoughts of a family behind.
Jon was nodding, looking at the windows. ‘I didn’t think of that. It’s an idea.’
Amy started to struggle in his arms, wanting to explore, and Jon put her down onto her feet, holding both her hands and letting her lead him over to the fireplace. She traced the pattern in the cast iron with her fingers, sitting down suddenly in the hearth.
‘So you have a kitchen and a bedroom...’ It seemed like a countdown. How much more did he need to do here before he wouldn’t need to stay at her place any more?
‘And the bathroom’s going in over the next few weeks. That’s all I really need, and then I can move in and do the rest as I go.’
‘It’s a long job.’
‘I’ve found somewhere that I want to be now. If it takes a while to get everything finished, that’s okay.’ He looked around the room thoughtfully, and then bent to pick Amy up. ‘I guess we should make a move if we’re going to get some shopping.’
That was best. Get away from here before it gave Chloe any more ideas. She turned, almost bolting out of the room and down the stairs.
* * *
It had been right on the tip of his tongue. Jon had almost asked Chloe to come with him to choose curtains.
Calm down! he reasoned with himself as he walked down the stairs, his boots thudding on the bare wood. Choosing curtains isn’t like asking someone to kiss you.
In some ways it was worse. A kiss could be explained away as the momentary wish for some warmth. Curtains were a more cool-headed statement. And the thought that Chloe might just talk him into the perfect set of curtains for the room was terrifying.
He was done with perfect. He didn’t want domestic bliss because he’d seen it crumble into vitriolic chaos. Jon realised he’d left his car keys in the kitchen and left Chloe hovering by the front gate, walking the length of the hallway with Amy in his arms.
‘Bye-bye.’ Amy waved happily as he picked up his keys and closed the kitchen door behind him.
‘That’s right, sweetheart. Bye-bye, house. We’re going to the supermarket now.’
Out of the mouth of babes... Amy’s instinct had divined the truth before he’d had a chance to formulate it in his head.
Helping a friend out was one thing. But he wasn’t going to ask Chloe back here, for fear that he might be tempted to ask her to stay.
CHAPTER SEVEN
EVERYTHING HAD FALLEN into place. Jon’s week off work was long enough to make sure that Amy had fully recovered, and Chloe had secured a place for her at the hospital crèche for the following week. Jon was working days now and their evening routine of cooking, eating, a bath and bedtime for Amy, followed by the precious ‘magic hour’, needed no adjustment. Hannah would be back home with James at the weekend, and Chloe was beginning to allow herself to believe that her return might be a step forward.
Jon had been too busy to take a break on Monday, but she’d bumped into him at the crèche on Tuesday, and they’d eaten their sandwiches together, playing with Amy. Chloe wondered whether he’d be there today, a little thrill of excitement pulsing through her fingers as she checked her phone.
Almost as if he knew she’d been thinking about him, Jon chose that moment to send a text.
Are you going to lunch now?
At some point they’d dispensed with the formalities of Hello and What’s happening? Maybe because it felt that even though they were working at different ends of the hospital, they were still together.
Yes. Join me?
Busy with a patient. Do you have ten minutes? I’d like your opinion.
In A and E?