She took another glance at Poppy, who was making patterns in her own maple syrup. ‘Honey, why don’t you go and clean your teeth. After that we’ll head home.’
‘No.’ Thomas’s expression was implacable. ‘You’re not going anywhere.’
She brought her eyes up to his. ‘Yes I am. I’m going home.’
Sensing the tense atmosphere, Poppy didn’t say a word. Instead she ran for the stairs, leaving her breakfast behind. Juliet couldn’t blame her for wanting to escape from the arguments. She’d heard enough to last a lifetime.
‘Don’t leave like this. Think about what I said. I know you have a thing for Sutherland, but you said yourself he’s leaving soon. Don’t turn your back on me for something that can’t last.’ He winced. ‘I made that mistake, and I’ve regretted it ever since.’
Everything about his voice told her he was sincere. Her chest tightened at his words. And for a moment she considered his offer, considered staying here with Poppy, who was clearly delighted about spending the night with both her parents here.
But then the thought of Ryan came back into her mind, and she knew it would never work. ‘I’m not in love with you any more, Thomas,’ she told him, though it hurt to say it. ‘I can’t be with you, not after everything we’ve been through.’
His expression hardened. ‘So you’re taking my daughter home to be near him, even though he’s violent?’
Juliet rolled her eyes. ‘Oh for goodness sake, since when did she become your daughter? She’s ours Thomas, and we’ll decide together what’s best for her. I know you’re angry with Ryan, and I agree he should never have hit you. But maybe you shouldn’t have said what you did either. You should apologise for that.’
Thomas snapped. ‘What the hell should I apologise for? I asked you to come home, I asked you to be a family and you just threw it in my face. You’ve said a lot of things I’ve had to overlook, Juliet, and you’ve done a lot of terrible things, too. I even managed to persuade Nicole not to press charges when you hit her. And after all of this, you still won’t do as I ask you.’
Juliet pushed her chair out, and stood resting her hands on the table. ‘I hit Nicole because I found her in our bed, if you don’t remember. You’re the one who cheated, you’re the one who brought another woman into our relationship, and you’re the one who broke our marriage up. I’ve offered you a fair settlement, and you’ve rejected it.’ She slapped her palms on the wooden surface as if to emphasise her words. ‘And now I’m going to get our daughter and take her home. We’ll see you when you come to pick her up this weekend.’
‘So that’s it? You’re going to ignore my wishes?’
She shook her head. ‘No, Thomas, I hear your wishes loud and clear. But I’ve decided that my needs – and our daughter’s – trump them every time.’
He pulled himself up to standing, his face flushed red. ‘You keep that bastard away from my daughter or I’ll … ’
‘Or what?’ she interrupted. She didn’t need to hear the answer. She didn’t care what it was. Thomas couldn’t hurt her any more, not unless she let him.
He wanted to bribe her by withholding money? Well she could stand on her own two feet.
He wanted to threaten her with taking Poppy away? Well he’d been threatening that for months, and nothing had happened. He was all words and no action, he always had been.
How had she not seen that before?
The knowledge of it felt like a weight lifting off her shoulders. For all this time she’d been walking to his beat, when all she had to do was refuse. She felt like Dorothy, clicking her heels together, and realising she had the power all along. She just didn’t know it.
But she did now. She saw it all too clearly. He’d been trying to control her, even after he’d been the one to mess everything up. Accusing her of not living up to his expectations, blaming her for his cheating, telling her she was a bad mother, when she put Poppy first in everything she did.
‘If you leave, don’t ever expect to come back.’ His voice was low. Threatening. ‘And don’t expect me to make it easy on you.’
She shook her head. ‘I’ve learned to have zero expectations when it comes to you. That way I’m never disappointed when you don’t meet them. Now excuse me, I have a life to go and live. We’ll see you at the weekend.’
By the time they got back home, it was almost lunchtime. Rather than take Poppy to school, she decided the excitement of the past twenty-four hours was enough for them both to have a day off. So with Lily agreeing to run the shop, mother and daughter pulled on their pyjamas and found an old movie on TV, snuggling under the checked blanket as they shared a bowl of popcorn.
The movie had barely been on for twenty minutes before Poppy had fallen asleep. Her hair fell over her rosy cheeks as her breaths became shallow and regular. Carefully sliding her phone from her pocket, Juliet tapped out a message to Ryan.
Are you okay? I’m so sorry I couldn’t talk earlier.
I’ll explain everything later if you can come over?
She couldn’t wait to tell him about finally standing up to Thomas. About her revelation that she held all the cards. And even though she was still angry at Ryan’s hitting her husband, she knew they could work it all out.
I’m fine. Can’t come over. Too much to do.
His words felt like a slap across her face. She blinked a couple of times, reading them over again. Was he angry with her too?
Poppy was snoring softly, her legs curled up against her stomach. Lifting the blanket from her own legs, Juliet tucked it around her daughter and walked out into the kitchen. Looking out of the window, across to Ryan’s house, she scanned the porch and windows to see if she could see him.