“Guilty as charged. I teach Year 3,” Laura said. “Well remembered. Looking round a new school can be a little overwhelming. Come on in.”
Star popped her head round the kitchen door, shooting her friendthe look. “Don’t mind Laura. We are having a bit of a shoe dilemma. Skylar has lost one of her favourite shoes and apparently no others will do.”
Walking into the kitchen, Olivia immediately set about helping her friend try to find her shoe.
The shoe hunt had already been going on for half an hour, with Skylar refusing to wear any other pair. So when Andrew, Olivia, and Laura piled into the kitchen, it wasn’t long before the shoe magically appeared behind the sofa in the conservatory with everyone hunting.
Olivia and Skylar were about to disappear upstairs when Star grabbed them both. “Ladies, we will be late for the movie if you don’t get a move on.”
Squeals of delight filled the air and both girls took off towards the door, only to be captured by Andrew. Star smiled at him appreciatively.
“Team work,” he said, grinning.
Star couldn’t help but smile back, finding herself relaxing in his company. The joys of single parenthood, to have someone else around who understood and didn’t need prompting. Star grabbed Skylar’s booster seat and they headed for Andrew’s car. Star took in a deep breath at the brand-new C-Class Cabriolet Mercedes, its top down. Skylar was jumping up and down in excitement, having never ridden in a car with its top off. Andrew smiled at her enthusiasm and showed her how the top went up and down using a button. Olivia was clearly also enjoying the show, happy her dad was able to impress her friend.
Once Andrew had taken the booster seat from Star and attached it, the two girls clambered into the back, and he strapped them in. Then he opened the door for Star. A real gentleman. It was something Damian had always made a point of doing, but, no, thoughts of Damian were not going to invade today.
Star climbed in, thanking Andrew, and allowing him to shut the door behind her. As the girls chatted nonstop, Andrew turned to Star, giving her a dazzling smile that left her breathless. This man could be dangerous, Star thought, as she returned his smile with one of her own. Looking over his shoulder at their two passengers, Andrew asked, “Are you ready to go, ladies?”
“Yes,” both girls squealed, followed by another peal of giggles.
The cinema was packed. Andrew and Star sat either side of the girls, who sat happily in the middle with their large popcorn and drinks. The movie was not as bad as Star had feared. As with many of the new children’s films, there was an underlying story, sarcasm, and innuendos that flew straight over the girls’ heads but had both Andrew and Star laughing together.
The girls chose pizza for dinner. The restaurant itself was clearly set up for parents and their children, with a soft-play area for the children while they waited for their food to arrive. It didn’t take long for the girls to make their choice before disappearing into the balls and tubes, leaving Andrew and Star alone.
“So, what do you do, Star? I take it you work, because Skylar is at after school-club every evening.”
“I do. I work for an advertising agency in the City. How about you?” Star asked as the waitress delivered their drinks.
“I’m a cardiologist, heart surgeon,” Andrew said. “We’ve just moved down from Yorkshire where I was based. I decided Olivia needed to be nearer my parents, and a position came up, so I took it.”
“That makes sense. What about Olivia’s mum?” Star said, and then immediately followed with, “Sorry, that’s none of my business …”
“No, that’s okay. Olivia’s mum isn’t in the picture. She never wanted children and found out too late that she was pregnant. She went ahead with the pregnancy, but when I told her I wanted to keep our child, she gave me an ultimatum. Her or Olivia. I told her it was Olivia, and that’s the last I saw of her,” Andrew said matter-of-factly. “How about you?”
“It’s just me and Skylar,” Star said, before adding, “and Toby and Laura, my housemates. My parents don’t really help out, and Skylar’s dad is out of the picture.”
“I’m sorry, that’s tough. But having met Laura, it looks like you have a great friend there.”
“I do. It would have been much harder without them,” Star admitted, surprised they were being so open with each other. “Skylar may tell Olivia, so I’ll explain. I’m Skylar’s mum, but I’m also her aunt. My sister died not long after Skylar was born, so I adopted her.”
Shock crossed Andrew’s features. “Wow, that’s some commitment. I don’t mean to be rude, but you can’t have been very old to take on that responsibility.”
Star smiled. “I was twenty-one.”
“You are raising a lovely little girl. Olivia adores her,” Andrew said. “I get a run-down of everything they have done, every night.”
“Glad it’s not just me,” Star said with a laugh. “Thank you. Olivia is sweet, too. Skylar has been so excited about today.”
“It’s good to be away from the hospital and doing something normal.”
As they spoke, Star found herself relaxing and enjoying Andrew’s company. It had been a long time since she’d been out with someone new, let alone talked so freely. Andrew was making that possible. He was easy to talk to and a great listener. It was only the arrival of the food that had the girls returning to the table, which caused a pause in their conversation.
Once the food was cleared away, the girls begged for more time, and with neither Star nor Andrew needing to rush home, they let the girls return to the soft-play area for another twenty minutes while they enjoyed a coffee.
“This has been really great, thank you for suggesting it,” Star found herself saying.
“It has. It’s nice to have someone else to share a day like this. If I’m honest, it’s hard being a single dad. Olivia and I tend to be left on the side-lines, which is something I always feel guilty about.”