“Do a video, Mummy, then I can see Trystan.”
“Sorry,” Beth said into the phone. “Do you mind if we switch to video?”
“No. It’s fine.” There was a momentary pause before Ellie’s smiling face appeared on his screen. “Hi!” he said, grinning back at her. “How are you?”
“I’ve got butterflies on my nails.” She twirled around, making her image blur.
“Show me …”
The screen blurred again as she waved a hand in front of the screen. “I can’t see them. Stay still!” Beth’s hand appeared, directing Ellie’s hand so he could finally make out her nails. “I love them,” he said.
“Say thank you,” Beth whispered.
“Thank you!” Ellie shouted, then laughed.
“How was your first week back at school?”
“Good.”
“What did you learn about?”
“I don’t know. But we had chips for dinner today.”
“That’s weird. I thought you always eat healthily when you’re not on holiday.”
Beth’s gentle laughter in the background made every muscle in his body relax. He sank happily into the couch.
“There’s nothing wrong with a Friday treat,” Beth said from somewhere over Ellie’s shoulder.
“Do you want to come to our house one day?” Ellie asked.
He smiled into the phone, unsure how to answer. He’d get in the car immediately if Beth gave him the green light.
“Give me the phone for a second,” Beth said, before her face filled the screen. “Hi.”
“Hi.”
“Thank you for Ellie’s nail things. She loves it.”
“She’s very welcome.”
Beth glanced away before looking back at him. “I should have got in touch sooner.” She bit down on her lip. “I wanted to … but …”
“It’s okay,” he said, letting her off the hook. “It’s just nice to hear from you.”
“It’s really nice to see you.” The corners of her mouth pulled to a smile.
“Mummy!” Ellie shouted. “Can I talk to Trystan again?”
“Okay.” She smiled at Trystan. “Have you got time to chat?”
“Yes.”
He had all the time in the world, and for the next hour Ellie kept up a running commentary while proudly giving him a tour of the house and her toys. Beth and he managed a disjointed conversation in between Ellie’s chatter.
“You look tired,” he told Ellie when she yawned for the second time in five minutes.
She rubbed at her eye. “I’m not.”