Chapter 7

I stroked Fluffy whilst he whined softly in concern. His warmth and visible love helped soothe the dull ache in my heart. Shadow darted in, jumped into my lap and purred loudly as if my pain called to him, as if his acceptance of me could somehow eradicate it. Maybe it could.

I stroked his fur, burying my hands in the softest blanket known to man. I wanted to fall apart; indeed, I was poised to do so and it took everything in me not to. That's what Mum would expect of me. Bunny the mess. Bunny the fuck up.

I wiped away my tears and took a minute to centre myself. I wouldn't let her keep hurting me. I was an adult; I had a life of my own. I had my pets, my friends, my job and … I had Connor. I'd keep my focus on those positives. I had so much to be grateful for here.

I went to the bathroom to make sure it didn't look like I'd been crying and grimaced at my reflection. I was splotchy and red. I washed my face and brushed and plaited my hair. I'd promised Mum supper at the diner and I would follow through. Because she'd been a terrible mother didn't mean I had to be a terrible daughter. We were at rock bottom – things could only improve, right? I took another deep breath and went out to face her.

She was sitting at my kitchen table with Arabella on her knee. She looked up as I walked in. ‘I've finished with your phone, darling,' she said, still looking reserved. ‘Thank you,' she tacked on hastily.

‘No problem. Do you still want to go out for supper?' I wasn't ready to tackle the hand grenade of Liv's call yet.

‘Absolutely. Let me get myself suitably attired.'

I didn't ask what Liv had wanted and Mum didn't volunteer the information. We were back to our safe zone: polite, empty small talk.

I took Fluffy out while I waited for her to get ready, refilled the animals' water bowls and then, full of nervous energy, I did some much-needed cleaning. After a while, I checked the time: I'd been waiting thirty minutes already.

Mum swanned in. ‘I'm ready, dear!' she declared.

I stared at her in disbelief. She was wearing a different silk dress, this one in lavender, with heels. Her hair was in a perfect chignon and she was wearing earrings and pearls. She had a full face of makeup. She would stand out at the diner like a unicorn at a rock concert.

‘Aren't you going to change for dinner?' she asked, frowning.

I looked down at myself. I was wearing smart jeans and a nice T-shirt. ‘Trust me. I'm overdressed,' I mumbled. ‘It's a seven-block walk, Mum. Do you want to change your shoes?'

‘I walk everywhere in these, I'll be fine. They have a charm in them to make them feel like flats,' she explained conspiratorially. Now that would have come in handy during my teen years.

Mum shut Arabella in her bedroom so there wasn't a ruckus between the animals whilst we were out. I turned on the TV for Fluffy and flipped it to one of his new favourite shows; a cooking program with the Hairy Bikers. For all I knew, he enjoyed salivating over the food.

We walked slowly to The Garden of Eat'n. Yes, Mum could walk forever in her heels – I'd seen her do it before and now I knew how. The little sneak. ‘Oh,' she said, eyes wide, when we stopped in front of the diner. ‘Is this it?'

I thought it was quaint, quintessentially American, but no doubt she only saw the flaking paint and the tired-looking waitress. The Garden of Eat'n had no airs and graces and no one needed a reservation. We went in, found an empty booth and sat.

‘I see why you dressed like you did.' Mum manoeuvred awkwardly into her seat.

‘I know it doesn't look much but the food is really good.' Not Michelin-star good, but good enough. I winced; it wouldn't be good enough for Mum. What had I been thinking bringing her here?

With pinched lips, she picked up the menu and frowned at the laminated two pages of small print. When she put it down, she rummaged through her designer handbag for a wipe to clean her hands.

‘Is that the only bag you brought?' I asked, looking at the flowered monstrosity.

‘Of course, darling. I wouldn't take a Hermès on an aeroplane!' Her expression was horrified. ‘What do you recommend?' she asked, still sounding dubious that anything here would be edible.

‘The halibut fish and chips, or the chicken fried steak. Unless you want a full breakfast.'

‘What's a chicken fried steak?' she asked.

‘Beefsteak beaten until it's flat and tender, breaded and deep fried. They serve it with mashed potatoes and cover the whole thing in gravy.'

Mum stared at me aghast. ‘Why on earth would you call beefsteak chicken?'

I shrugged. ‘Beats me.'

‘And that counts as cuisine?'

‘It's very tasty.'

‘Even so,' she said faintly, ‘I believe I'll have the fish and chips.'

To be perverse, I ordered the chicken fried steak. When the waitress left, I braced myself and broached the subject of Liv. ‘So what did Liv have to say?'

‘She was talking about the general game plan.' It was hilarious to hear my posh mother say something like ‘game plan'. She continued. ‘I'm the first witch to arrive and she said she'd let me know when the others get here so we can work on the barrier gem issue.'

I seized the bull by the horns. ‘That's why you really came? To help Liv? It wasn't to see me – it was just a happy coincidence that I live in the same town.'

To her credit, she looked like I'd slapped her. ‘Of course not, darling! I came to see you! To be honest, I would have palmed the job off on one of the other fire witches – I'm not a fan of air travel, as you know. But seeing you gave me the impetus to conquer my fears!' She looked like she was expecting me to give her a standing ovation. ‘I couldn't believe that I was being asked to come to the same town in America where you lived. It was like providence herself was smiling upon me.' She beamed at me.

I wanted desperately to believe her and I found myself nodding. ‘And Dad?'

She hesitated. ‘Well, he wanted to come – of course he did! – but work obligations got in the way. Next time, I'm sure.' She was lying, but what was new? Dad had no plans to visit me, now or ever. That made my eyes prickle, so I hastily looked away and took a long drink of Coke until I could pretend that the ache in my throat was from the bubbles.

For all Mum's faults, she was good at reading a room. She reached out and patted my hand awkwardly. ‘Tell me about your young man, Connor. He's a feast for the eyes, that's for sure.'

‘Mum!' I gasped, scandalised.

She chuckled. ‘I'm allowed to window shop, darling.' She frowned. ‘A vampire called Mackenzie… Why is that name so familiar?'

I sighed; I might as well tell her because she'd find out one way or another. ‘Connor is the son of the Vampire King of America.' I braced myself; that would get her going.

Her eyes widened. ‘Why didn't you tell me so when you introduced us? Good Lord, I had him carrying my luggage like a common bellhop!' Her hand fluttered to her forehead. ‘I feel faint.'

‘No you don't,' I snorted. ‘And Connor isn't like that. This is Alaska – he chops down trees for a living. Besides, he and his father aren't on the best of terms.'

‘That doesn't matter! Oh my gosh, he must think I'm awful!' She was literally clutching at her pearl necklace. I needed her to calm down before people started looking at us.

‘I wouldn't worry. He probably wanted to make a good impression on you,' I soothed.

That made perfect sense to her because in her world everyone wanted to make a good impression on her. Her expression cleared. ‘Even so, I'll have to make it up to him. There has to be a better eating establishment in town. Let's invite him to dinner – my treat.' It was gratifying that she knew me well enough not to suggest that I cook.

‘There's the Pizza Kodiak Kitchen, but to be honest it's much the same as this place. You might want to consider coming back here – Connor does love a good chicken fried steak.'

She looked horrified and I smiled inwardly. Rural Alaska was going to be a rude awakening for her and I was looking forward to it.

The waitress arrived with our food. ‘Thank you so much,' Mum said calmly. She waited until we were alone again then hissed, ‘Why is there so much of it?' She was used to the miniscule portions of posh London cuisine.

‘Everything is big in America. Wait until you see the trucks around here.'

‘And your young man, I bet,' she muttered salaciously under her breath.

I wished I could unhear that. Sometimes vampire hearing was the worst.