Be My Baby Read Online Free Page A

the old warning signals. If she had any sense, she would excuse herself and return to London—leave this family to someone who could look at them objectively, help them without getting too emotionally involved. It would be better for Luke and Heather in the long run too.
    â€˜I’d better go and see to my errant daughter.’ He pushed the chair back and stood up.
    He looked so lost, so unsure of what to do, that Gaby put a hand on his arm to stall him. ‘Let me go.’ The least she could do before she left was help defuse the current situation.
    He started to shake his head, but then he said, ‘Okay. Heather’s room is on the left at the top of the stairs.’
    She crept up the stairs, stood outside the door, took a deep breath and knocked gently.
    â€˜Go away! I don’t want to speak to you!’
    â€˜Heather? It’s me—Gaby.’
    â€˜Oh.’
    â€˜Can I come in?’
    The door edged open and Heather poked her nose in the gap. ‘It’s a bit messy.’
    Gaby smiled. ‘I wouldn’t worry about that. You should have seen my room when I was your age. My mum used to have an awful go at me. In the end I just shoved it all in the cupboard and hoped no one opened the door. If they had, they would have been buried in an avalanche of clothes and toys!’
    Heather gasped and her eyes got even bigger and rounder.
    â€˜Believe it, kid, you’ve got nothing on me.’
    The door swung wide and Gaby walked in. She perched on the edge of a bed decked in pink and frilly bed-clothes. Heather grimaced. ‘He thinks I’m still a baby.’
    â€˜I’m sure he doesn’t think you’re a baby. He was probably trying very hard to make things nice for you.’
    Heather made a gagging noise and rolled her eyes, but when her face returned to normal her expression had softened. ‘Are you really going to be my nanny?’
    â€˜Well—’
    â€˜I don’t need looking after, you know. I’m all right on my own.’
    Did no one in this house ever let you finish a sentence?
    She swivelled to face Heather. ‘I know that. But your dad has to have someone in the house while he’s out at work. He’s not allowed to leave you alone, you know.’
    â€˜â€™Spose so.’
    â€˜Why don’t we go downstairs and chat to your dad about it?’
    â€˜ You can talk to him, if you like.’
    It might have sounded as if Heather were reluctant to make peace with her father, but Gaby saw the ache in her eyes. She desperately wanted to be able to open up to him; she just didn’t know how. What had it been like for her while her father had been in prison? How often had she seen him? Had she been carted along in her best dress and told to tell him she was being a good girl?
    No wonder they couldn’t communicate with each other. They’d probably spent years being on their best behaviour, each making sure the other didn’t know how they were suffering.
    When they reached the kitchen, Luke was so surprised his mouth dropped open. Gaby thought it was a shame he recovered quickly. Too quickly. It would have done Heather good to see the look on his face—that same aching expression she’d been wearing just moments before.
    Heather opened the fridge door and stuck her head inside. ‘I’m hungry.’
    Luke looked at Heather and then at Gaby. ‘Would you like to stay for dinner? It would be a good chance to get to know us better. Start afresh.’
    She was going to decline, say she needed to get back to her car, but she saw Heather’s face above the fridge door and stopped short. The girl’s eyes were wide, as if she were waiting for something important, like the results of a spelling test. When Gaby nodded, she glowed.
    â€˜Heather, why don’t you show Gaby the house, while I get the food ready?’
    Heather let the fridge door swing closed and tugged Gaby by the hand.
    â€˜Come