An Unwanted Inheritance Page 3

  Everyone took their places and Caroline and Ellie ferried the various tureens from the kitchen to the table, juggling things around until there was space for everything. The turkey came last, golden brown with the remnants of the heat rising from the breast and filling the room with its delicious aroma. Caroline saw a proud but slightly bashful smile on Ellie’s lips as the family applauded the bird and then the cooks in turn. She placed the turkey at the head of the table in front of Tony who was brandishing a glinting carving knife and fork. Max lowered his head as if in deference to his father’s position as head of the family. There would come a time, Caroline knew, when those roles would be reversed, but Tony was still a young sixty-five and not yet ready to relinquish his place to his offspring.

  ‘A toast!’ Tony said. ‘To the cooks!’

  There was a general kerfuffle as they all realised the glasses were still standing empty. Ellie tutted, her moment of glory seemingly spoilt through someone else’s failing.

  ‘Oh, James! You haven’t taken the drinks order,’ she said petulantly.

  ‘Mea culpa, mea culpa,’ said James, getting quickly to his feet. ‘Give me two ticks.’

  ‘Why don’t you just carve, Dad,’ suggested Max sensibly. ‘So the rest of the food doesn’t go cold.’

  ‘Actually,’ said Tony, lowering the carving knife and passing it, blade first, to Max. ‘I think it might be time to hand over this particular duty to my firstborn. We old-timers have to step aside before we get trampled down in the rush to take our place,’ he added with a wink at Olivia. ‘What do you reckon, Max? You’re forty now . . .’

  ‘Forty-one actually, Dad,’ said Max quietly.

  ‘Forty-one. Precisely. The perfect age. Do you reckon you’re up to the task?’

  Caroline wasn’t sure if Tony was referring to the task of carving the turkey or something broader, but she hoped it was the latter. Her husband was a good man but he could be over-shadowed by the rest of his family, and James, for that matter. A gesture like this would do wonders for his self-confidence. She looked over at Max and gave him an encouraging smile.

  Max looked a little thrown, but he reached for the knife, awkwardly bending his wrist round so he could take hold of the handle. The tiniest flush of colour passed over his cheeks together with a delighted smile, which he quickly turned into a more neutral expression.

  ‘Thanks, Dad,’ he said. ‘I’m not sure what to say really but, well, thanks.’

  ‘And don’t screw it up,’ added Tony lightly, taking his seat. It was meant as a joke, but Caroline saw Max’s eyes narrow. That was always the way with Tony, she thought. He had a habit of giving with one hand whilst taking away with the other.

  ‘No pressure, Max,’ called Nathan from the other end of the table.

  But Max was fine. He set to, lifting the crispy skin from the glistening white flesh beneath and was soon carving the meat into even slices as if he had been born to do it.

  James appeared moments later with a bottle of red and white wine, one in each hand. Caroline saw him take in the change in status quo but he didn’t comment.

  ‘So, this year,’ James said, ‘we have a mouth-watering, zesty and bone-dry Australian Riesling loaded with zingy lemon and lime notes . . .’ He waved the appropriate bottle. ‘Or this ripe, black-cherry-scented Pinot Noir, which has particularly silky palate.’

  He paused for a moment, as if giving them a moment to pay homage to the wines. Caroline would have been happy with a mid-range Sauvignon from Sainsbury’s, but the wine was always James’s contribution to the meal and it was obvious that he put a lot of care – and cash – into the choosing of it.

  ‘Tony?’ James asked, weighing each bottle in his hands. ‘Which is it to be?’

  ‘Red, please, James,’ said Tony without looking up.

  James, who had been on the verge of reading out the labels, cut himself off abruptly and began to pour.

  ‘I’ll sort the kids, shall I?’ asked Nathan, giving each child a grin that no doubt made them all feel that they were the favourite.

  ‘Thanks, Nath,’ said Ellie. ‘There’s lemonade, Coke or that fizzy grape juice stuff.’

  Each child called out their order and Nath threw his arms up around his head as if defending himself from the onslaught of requests.

  Eventually drinks were poured, the turkey and chefs toasted again and the food served. Quiet descended as they all tucked in, occasionally pausing to make appreciative noises. Caroline cast her eyes around the table. Max had been right; it was okay now that she was here. In fact, it was more than okay, it was lovely.

  The Frosts were that rare beast: a happy family. Yes, they had their sticky moments from time to time – which family didn’t? – but on the whole they were a great bunch and she had always been happy to be a part of it. When she had been invited to their house for Sunday lunch as a girl, such things not being something that happened at home, she had let herself pretend that the Frosts were actually her family, little knowing that that was exactly how things would end up.

  All that was missing, really, was Valerie. Caroline didn’t like to think of her mother-in-law on days like this. She was single now, never having found someone to replace Tony in her life, but always went on a cruise with a girlfriend at Christmas. Caroline assumed this was to avoid the awkward invitations to join them, or to prevent having to take part in a rota. But she knew that Max would have liked to see his mother on Christmas Day, and her absence always cast a slight shadow over the jolliness of the day, or at least it did for Caroline. Her own mother had been gone for over twenty years and it would have been nice to see her substitute one occasionally. Tony didn’t look as if he gave two hoots about his ex-wife as he chatted animatedly to Ellie and Olivia about the worst way to cook sprouts.

  ‘Are we going to play games after dinner?’ asked Theo. ‘We always do that, don’t we, Mum?’ he added, looking to Caroline for confirmation.

  ‘We can if you’d like to,’ she replied. ‘What would you like to play?’

  ‘Sardines!’ said Theo, and Caroline’s heart sank. Sardines was fine for the children to play on their own but she had no desire to be forced into a confined space, no matter how much she loved her family.

  ‘I’m not sure sardines works that well on Christmas Day,’ she said gently. ‘How about a board game? Monopoly or Cluedo, maybe?’

  Theo looked disgruntled. ‘I hate board games. They’re boring. And I never win.’

  Tony laughed, a warm rich sound. ‘Now then Theo, there’s a sure-fire way of winning at any game that works every time. Want to know what it is?’

  Theo nodded enthusiastically.

  ‘Cheat!’ said Tony. ‘And make sure you do it better than everybody else.’

  Theo’s smile fell and his eyebrows knotted together as he looked from his grandfather to Caroline.

  ‘But cheating is wrong, isn’t it, Mum?’ he asked. He looked so confused that Caroline wanted to sweep him up in her arms and reassure him, but she didn’t want to undermine Tony so instead she gave him a huge smile.

  ‘Cheating is very wrong,’ she said. ‘Grandad is only teasing, aren’t you, Grandad?’

  She turned her gaze to Tony, signalling with the raise of an eyebrow and the widening of her eyes exactly what she thought of his suggestion, but Tony didn’t retract what he’d said.

  ‘Isn’t it, Grandad?’ she repeated, more forcefully this time.

  ‘Well, it all depends on the rules of the game,’ said Tony. ‘Sometimes cheating is the only way to play.’

  ‘Like in Cheat!’ chipped in Olivia with a note of triumph in her voice. ‘That’s a game when you’re supposed to cheat, isn’t it, Grandad?’

  Tony turned his attention to her. ‘It is, Olivia,’ he agreed. ‘And there are many others too.’

  Caroline could feel her temper rising. She would not have her authority as a parent undermined in this way. She stood up and started to clear the plates, the china clattering as she stacked them into a pile.
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  ‘Cheating is always wrong, Theo,’ she said firmly without taking her eyes off the plates. ‘The way to win in life is to try your very hardest at everything you do. Wouldn’t you agree, Max?’ She threw her husband a look that she hoped said, ‘Back me up here and stop your father from teaching our son that dishonesty is acceptable.’

  Luckily Max caught the ball and ran with it. ‘It certainly is. Cheating is always wrong. And anyone caught cheating at Cluedo on my watch will be forced to do all the washing-up!’

  Everyone laughed and the tension dissipated at once, but as Caroline, laden down with crockery, pushed open the door to the kitchen with her back, she could feel her heart beating hard in her chest. How dare Tony do that? Her boys loved and respected their grandfather and would take anything he told them seriously. And he had just told them that dishonesty was an acceptable way to get what you wanted.

  She had just opened the dishwasher with some force and started to slam the plates into it when Ellie came in.

  ‘Are you okay, Caro?’ she asked.

  Caroline didn’t reply, not quite trusting her voice or what she might say.

  ‘Take no notice of Dad,’ continued Ellie soothingly. ‘You know what he’s like. He’s just teasing. And the kids know he’s only joking. There’s no harm done.’

  But Caroline knew exactly how much harm could be done by cheating and dishonesty, how the smallest lie could snowball until your whole world came clattering down around you, how lives could be destroyed in the blink of an eye.

  ‘It’s no joking matter,’ she replied under her breath.

  5

  After dinner there was generally a lull in proceedings. The men would make a stab at clearing up and then Caroline and Ellie discreetly swooped in and did the bits they forgot. There was a rhythm to it with each knowing what was expected of them.

  Caroline, feeling calmer now, headed for the dining room, mainly to check for anything that still needed putting away, but also to make sure that Olivia hadn’t swiped all the purple pom-poms.

  She was just about to push open the door when she heard voices inside. It was Tony, she thought, and James maybe? She wasn’t sure and she couldn’t hear what was being said, but something about their hushed tones made her hold back and not go in.

  Instead, she went to the snug to check on the children. They were all sprawled over the furniture watching Elf. Her boys had pooh-poohed the film earlier in the holidays, claiming to be too grown-up for it, but you could never be too old for Elf, could you? Caroline was almost tempted to make them all squish up so she could watch with them, but something about the easy comfort of the four of them together stopped her. She didn’t want to disturb the equilibrium. It would no doubt be relatively short-lived.

  As she headed back towards the kitchen, James emerged from the dining room looking like the cat that got the cream, with Tony following behind.

  ‘Everything okay?’ she asked.

  ‘Absolutely,’ replied James, rubbing his hands together. ‘Now, shall we open some presents? It’s Christmas after all!’

  The exchanging of gifts was Caroline’s least favourite part of the day. She chose presents carefully and with great thought, but within a strict budget. Ellie’s approach was to throw money at the task and, whilst the gifts she gave were never quite as well suited to their recipient as Caroline’s, this was often made up for by the sheer wow factor. It didn’t matter really. Ellie and James simply had more money than she and Max. It was just how things were and neither Caroline nor Max was in the least resentful, but occasionally it might have been nice if some acknowledgement was given as to how clever her gift-buying had been.

  ‘Kids!’ bellowed James down the hall. ‘Presents!’

  The four children emerged seconds later, and Caroline thought wistfully of how content they had been with the simple pleasure of an old film just seconds before. But James was right. It was Christmas Day and to the children, at least, that meant one thing.

  Alex and Theo rushed round her, shoving at one another to get into the sitting room first, with Olivia and Lucy in hot pursuit. Then Tony appeared behind her, the turkey hat now replaced by a full and rather splendid Father Christmas outfit. He had had it, or one like it, for as long as Caroline could remember. She and Ellie had snuck into the loft in the Frosts’ old house as children and peeked in wonder into the box where it lived, Ellie keen to show her friend a little part of what happened on pretty much the only day that Caroline didn’t spend with the family. There were no costumes at Caroline’s house and she relished this glimpse into the kind of Christmases she only saw in films and on television adverts. The outfit pulled a little across Tony’s middle these days, but it still made her smile.

  Nathan followed behind Tony. Unaware that he was being observed, he looked preoccupied, Caroline thought, as if he was running through something in his head, but when he saw her looking, the corners of his mouth turned upwards and the impression was gone.

  ‘Did someone say presents?’ Tony asked as he opened the sitting room door to excited applause.

  Caroline and Ellie had already put their gifts into his sack, including the ones that Ellie had bought for Tony himself to give. The overall effect was very festive and Tony played up to the role beautifully, even though the children were a little too old to not recognise him behind the fluffy white beard.

  Caroline followed in Tony’s wake, slipping quietly to one side and sitting down on the carpet at Max’s feet. She watched as Tony made a great show of pulling each gift from his sack, squinting at the label and then delivering it to its grateful recipient. Everyone opened the presents with much oohing and aahing. Ellie and James had been as generous as ever. Her own gift was a beautiful silk scarf and Caroline didn’t need to look at the label to appreciate how expensive it must have been, although she did give it a sneaky peek when no one was looking. Max’s gift was a butter-soft calfskin wallet, which he was clearly delighted with.

  For Tony there was a bottle of whisky in a special presentation box, clearly designed to be a collector’s item. As he opened it James chipped in with an explanation.

  ‘That’s one to lay down rather than drink, Tony,’ he said. ‘They go for hundreds, sometimes thousands of pounds after a few years.’

  ‘I’ll try to restrain myself,’ replied Tony, holding the box up to the light to admire the bottle. ‘Did you know there’s quite a market for fake whisky?’ he added. ‘This one is kosher, I assume?’

  A look passed between the two men that Caroline didn’t like, like a private joke that the rest of them wouldn’t get. Ellie would have spent a long time choosing this lovely present for her father, and obviously it would be the real deal. Caroline loved Tony, she really did. He was a kind and generous man who was fun to be around; a room was always jollier when he was in it. But there was an edge to him sometimes that made Caroline uneasy, and a comment like that, coming on the back of what he’d said to Theo at dinner, left a nasty taste.

  She would ignore it, though – he was joking, after all. It was just that she didn’t find it funny. She turned her attention back to the children who, with sparkling eyes and huge smiles, were comparing their gifts, and the moment was forgotten.

  6

  The day wore on, becoming more languid as energy levels diminished, and eventually they reached the point in the evening when nothing else of significance was going to happen but no one could be bothered to make the first move to leave. Glasses were sitting empty and had been for some time.

  ‘So, Dad,’ Max said. ‘Anything new at the council? Or should I say, anything you can tell us about?’ He tapped the side of his nose conspiratorially.

  Local politics was Tony’s thing, more so since he had retired early ten years earlier. He had been an elected councillor for decades, starting at town level and then moving up to the district council on which he still sat. He had even had a year as mayor, elected by his peers, in which he barely seemed to have taken his chains of office off. Caroline had joked
to Max that perhaps his father was even sleeping in them, which had gained her a disapproving look. She might be a Frost but she, like James, was only there by marriage and would do well to remember her place.

  Tony, the only one amongst them to still have a drink on the go, cupped his brandy glass and swilled the amber liquid around the bowl.

  ‘Not much new,’ he replied. ‘The wheels just keep on turning. There are a couple of things in the offing’ – he glanced over at James and then back to Max – ‘but it’s a bit early to share the details. Nothing that will be of much interest, though. Housing, that kind of thing. And how about you boys? How are things going for you?’ he asked.

  He had two sons in the group but it was James who leapt in to answer the question.

  ‘Tremendously, Tony,’ he said. ‘Life is as sweet as a nut. Did you see the new car?’ He gestured towards the curtained window.

  They all nodded, although Caroline thought she saw Nathan roll his eyes at Max. It was terribly subtle – she might have got that wrong.

  ‘New last month,’ said James. ‘It’s all about first impressions in my game, making sure that you walk the walk. No one trusts a property developer in a crap car.’

  Caroline actually thought cars were for getting from A to B reliably rather than making a statement. Their Seat was six years old but it was perfectly serviceable and had never let them down. But she understood that James had an image to keep up and he did it with gusto. Ellie and James’s lifestyle far outstripped hers and Max’s, not that these things were of the least interest to them. They had enough for their needs and what they didn’t have they saved for. It suited them.

  ‘Next year is looking promising, very promising indeed,’ James continued. ‘Some big deals in the pipeline and if they come off it’s going to make the bottom line look very healthy.’

  ‘And you, Max?’ Tony asked. ‘How’s life in the heady world of paperclips?’