The Unorthodox Arrival of Pumpkin Allan Read Online Free Page A

all of which Lois couldn’t eat, as it was ‘high risk food’ for pregnant women. Pâté, unpasteurised cheeses, prawns, coleslaw… in fact, although she didn’t really believe it, it was as though Irene had purposefully bought everything that Lois couldn’t eat. She knew it was ridiculous, but felt quite upset by this, hormones, no doubt, playing their part in her response. She felt tears welling up in her eyes and as one escaped, she discretely wiped it from her cheek before taking a mouthful of French bread and butter with lashings of lettuce. Her mother didn’t notice, either that Lois wasn’t eating all the lovely treats that she’d provided, or that she was upset. The alcohol Irene had consumed over the years seemed to have taken its toll on her sensitivity, as well as making her ‘quirky’, as Tom called it, in a variety of ways.
    After lunch Geoffrey disappeared into the study. This was the place he spent most of his time when Lois and James, were growing up. He would come home from Chambers, briefly eat supper, and then disappear to his retreat for the remainder of the evening. He appeared to have no interest in his family other than providing for them financially. Both children went to the very best public schools, which Geoffrey seemed to consider ed e proof that he was a good father.
    Emerging from his study on this occasion, Lois expected Geoffrey to hand her a banker’s draft, made out to their solicitor, whose name she had e-mailed to him two weeks previously. But instead he handed over four large envelopes, each containing ten thousand pounds, in cash.
    Lois was stunned. But, her father could be unpredictable, and him suddenly withdrawing his offer this late in the proceedings, would be a catastrophe. So her face flipped into enthusiastic, grateful mode while a large surge of adrenalin sent her heart thumping and her mind racing with the idea of carrying that much money in North London. She thanked him and gave him a hug. He smelled of pâté and cigars. He responded by gently patting her on the back. Then she tried to hug her mother, but felt Irene tense as she got near, so they bilaterally air kissed. Lois then tucked the envelopes as deeply as she could into her (fortunately) large handbag, thanked them both profusely and made tracks.
    Lois thought about cancelling her meeting with Mel for tea and cake and re-arranging it for a day she was lighter on cash. But she hadn’t seen Mel in ages and giving the matter brief consideration, decided that, as she had never been mugged before, the odds of it happening on this particular day were very small.
    Mel was sitting, waiting for her on the pavement terrace outside their favourite North London café. They greeted each other, and then Mel went and ordered a latte for each of them and a large slice of cake. Meanwhile Lois surreptitiously stashed her bag under her seat, out of the way of any potential thieves.
    The two of them had a great time catching up. Lois filled Mel in on the recent happenings. The ‘low calorie’ lunch at her parent’s house, Tom’s accident, and the fact that exchange and completion on the cottage was finally due on Wednesday. “Gosh, poor old Tom. But I bet he was showing off,” said Mel. “Hey, if he can’t make it to pick up the keys on Wednesday, I’d love to come with you!”
    “Really? Oh that would be great. I was thinking of staying the night, so it’ll be a two-day trip. Can you extricate yourself from the boutique for that long?”
    “I’m the boss, I can do what the hell I like!”
    Lois smiled. “Fantastic. Well, provided Tom doesn’t make a miraculous recovery, I’ll pick you up at nine-thirty on Wednesday.”
    Lois was just on her way to the car park, having said goodbye to Mel, when her mobile rang. She managed to yank it out of the depths of her cardigan pocket just in time to stop it flipping to answerphone. It was Tom, thoroughly disgruntled. His operation had been cancelled due to emergencies