“I have your mother on the phone. Would you like to talk to her?”
Richard grimaced slightly before responding. “Sure, put her on.”
A couple of clicks later, and Caroline’s smooth tones came down the wire and out of the speaker.
“Richard, how are you?”
“I’m good, busy as always. How are things with you?”
“I just got back from seeing Daniel. He seems so much better. Whatever they’re doing with him at the new clinic seems to have calmed him down. He asked for you a couple of times, and I told him you might be able to get there at the weekend.”
“I’ve saved some time on Sunday, I should be able to get down then.”
“Are you free for dinner tonight? One of my old friends from Radcliffe is joining us. Her daughter is in her third year at Columbia.”
He couldn’t help but sigh. All year, his mother had been trying to get him to come to dinner with various girls. They were always daughters of her friends, and always extremely eligible. But he didn’t have the time or the inclination to make small talk with yet another society girl.
“Not tonight, I’m afraid. I have to work late.”
“You’re always working late, darling. Why not give yourself a break?”
“I can’t, we’re working on a big deal. Maybe next week. I’ll ask Lisa to check the diary.”
Hanging up the phone, his intercom buzzed again. He pushed the button, wondering if a few uninterrupted minutes were too much to wish for.
“Yes?”
“Richard, I have a young lady out here who claims to be your sister.”
He frowned, wondering what the hell Ruby was doing in New York. Then he scowled as he remembered that it was Claire’s mother’s ninetieth birthday that weekend, and that the whole family had travelled over to celebrate with her. How could he have forgotten that?
“Send her in.”
His door opened and Ruby walked in, a huge grin plastering her face. She’d grown again since he’d last seen her, and he shook his head at the sudden realization that his baby sister was a teenager. Jesus Christ, where had the time gone?
“Richard!” She launched herself at him, throwing her arms around his waist and nuzzling into his chest. “I can’t believe how long it’s been since I’ve seen you. You’ve been neglecting me.” All these words were said with a straight face, but he couldn’t help but curl his mouth up in response.
“Hey, Squirt.” He paused, his eyes searching out the expression on her face. “Am I even allowed to call you that anymore?”
“Not in public.” Her face had turned a brighter shade of pink, and her voice turned into a whisper. “But I don’t mind you saying it in private. In fact, I still kind of like it. Anyway, I have been sent up here on a very important mission.” Ruby’s tone turned serious. “I’m here to ask you to join us for lunch, and then I need to put a pouty expression on my face until you say yes because Mum tells me when I beg I’m irresistible.”
“Where are they all, anyway?” Now that he knew they were here, in his hometown, he was suddenly desperate to see his family.
“Dad has a meeting at the bank and will be joining us at the restaurant, and Mum and Hanna are shopping.”
“Hanna’s here?”
“Yeah, Mum gave her the flight here as a Christmas present. She has to go back to University next week, so this is her final bit of fun.”
“How is she?” They’d exchanged some emails, but ever since her break-up with Josh, he’d found it hard to find the right tone with her.
“She seems much better now. She spent most of last summer crying, and even I noticed that she had lost weight, and I never pay attention to anything like that. But since she’s been home for Christmas, she seems much happier.”
For some reason, that made him smile.
WHEN THEY ARRIVED at La Trattoria, the rest of the family were already seated around the large, circular table. His eyes immediately sought out Hanna. As soon as he looked at her face, he caught her staring back at him, the strangest expression molding her features.
“Hey Son, it’s been too long.” Steven stood up and threw his arms around Richard, hugging him tightly in an embrace. He patted his back in a move perfected by fathers the world over. They’d seen each other a couple of times over the past year, and Richard still found it hard to remember their emotional reunion when Steven flew to New York as soon as he could after 9/11. To see his father cry openly in the middle of the very public airport had made Richard feel uncomfortable, although at that time, everybody was showing their emotions and wearing their hearts on their sleeves.