‘That’s Joseph. I don’t know how you can do your job if you can’t tell the difference between a boy and a girl.’ Alfie pushed his bowl away and looked at Daniel. ‘Can’t you stay with me tonight?’
‘I have a hot date.’ Glancing at his brother, who was still on the phone, Daniel leaned forward and lowered his voice. ‘So, Agent Alfie, you wouldn’t happen to know where Stella is meeting this mystery man of hers, would you?’
‘Yes.’ Alfie picked up his drink. ‘I would.’
Daniel lifted an eyebrow. ‘And are you going to tell me?’
‘I might. But it’s going to cost you.’
Daniel gave a disbelieving laugh. ‘You think I’d pay you for information?’
‘I suppose it depends how important it is to you.’ Alfie slid off his chair and took his bowl to the kitchen.
Daniel followed. ‘You’re a tough negotiator.’
‘You don’t have to pay if you don’t want to know.’
Out of his depth, Daniel took a deep breath and glanced through the door towards his brother, who was now on the phone again, talking to the hospital. ‘How much is it going to cost me?’
Alfie set the dishwasher to rinse. ‘Two pounds fifty.’
‘That’s daylight robbery.’
‘Fine. Why do you want to know where she’s going, anyway?’ Alfie frowned. ‘You two don’t go out together any more. She thinks you’re too macho and you’re worried because she wants babies. I’m only ten but even I can see that that’s going to be a terrible relationship. Kids are a lot of work. I know, because I am one.’
‘She thinks I’m too macho?’ Daniel ran his hand over the back of his neck, unable to believe that he was having this conversation with a ten-year-old. ‘Where do you hear these things?’
‘Stella talks to me. That’s why I like her. She doesn’t treat me like an idiot.’
‘Alfie, you’re no idiot.’ Daniel dug his hand in his pocket and pulled out his wallet. ‘Five pounds.’
Alfie’s eyes widened. ‘I don’t have any change.’
‘I want to know everything that Stella has told you about this guy.’
‘All right.’ Alfie folded the money carefully and tucked it in his pocket. ‘They’re meeting in the Drunken Fox at eight o’clock.’
‘How are they going to recognise each other?’
‘She’s going to wear red.’ Alfie pulled a face. ‘I hope the guy likes red. She didn’t know whether to wear the red one or the black one, but I said red because I thought she looked nicest in that one. Sort of like a girl from the movies.’
Daniel inhaled sharply. ‘You should have gone with the black.’
‘You don’t want her to look nice?’
‘Red is…’ The colour she’d always worn for him? He’d loved her in red. For a moment his brain tortured him with a mini-clip of Stella in red. The soft red jumper she’d worn the first night he’d kissed her, the silky red dress she’d had on when he’d proposed. ‘You should have told her to wear black.’
‘Why? She looked better in the red.’
Precisely, Daniel thought viciously, searching for an excuse to stride across to the stable, knock on the door and stop her going out.
‘Why are you giving my son money?’ Patrick ended the phone call and walked into the kitchen, Posy in his arms.
‘I’m his uncle.’ Daniel walked across and kissed Posy on the top of her head. ‘I can give him money if I want to.’
Patrick’s eyes narrowed suspiciously but at that moment the doorbell rang. ‘That will be Mrs Thornton. Alfie, make sure you’re in bed by eight-thirty. No messing around. And don’t watch anything unsuitable.’
‘Just go, Dad.’ Alfie lowered the kitten gently to the floor and handed Posy her doll. ‘We’ll be fine. If Mrs Thornton dies of old age, I’ll call you.’