Page 119 of Barging In

Right on cue, her mum appeared again to top up her own champagne glass. “We were on a tight schedule, Tom!” she scolded. “Left to your timing, that queue of children would still be waiting.”

The corners of his mouth drooped, and his eyes rolled. “Yes, dear.”

Clem grinned at him.

“Lunch is ready. I think it’s best if everyone just helps themselves rather than me dishing it all up,” her mum said, heading out of the room.

They all tucked into a delicious lunch beneath the impressive, lantern-style roof in the conservatory extension, and then settled back into the sitting room. Asher mum took Gram’s chair, stepping fully into her role as the matriarch of the family, Clem decided it was time to share their news.

“I have something to tell you,” she began, only to find Victoria’s hand in hers, giving a reassuring squeeze. “We have some news.”

Clem’s mum put her hands to her face, eyebrows arching, full of hope.

“No, Mum! I’m not pregnant. Jeez.”

Her mum’s expression dropped as quickly as her hands to her lap, much to everyone’s amusement.

As the laughter settled, Clem continued. “Victoria has asked me to move in with her.”

Her dad shot her a wink. “Congrats, you two. I hope you’ll both be very happy together.”

“Thanks, Dad.”

Her mum frowned. “But what about Florence? You’re not going to sell her, are you?”

“Of cour?—”

“What about the business?” her mum interrupted. “I thought you’d reopen in the spring.”

“There’s so much work to do at the wharf, Mum. I need to be there full-time. I enjoyed my time running a business, but it wasn’t really for me.”

Clem looked to Victoria, realising she should have probably run the idea past her first, but she had only just decided. “If that’s okay with you, I mean.”

“Of course it is.” Victoria smiled. “More than okay.”

“Is this her doing?” her mum said, nodding at Victoria.

Clem grimaced, wishing her mum wasn’t quite so blunt.

“This has nothing to do with Vic, Mum, and everything to do with what I want. I’ve been at the wharf full-time leading up to Christmas, and I don’twant to go back to serving coffee and cake out of a hatch. I love working at the wharf, and I love working with Vic.” She gave Victoria’s hand a squeeze and received one in return. “I’m sure I’m going to love living with her, too.”

“Well, as long as you’re happy, that’s all we care about. Isn’t it, Barbara?” her dad affirmed.

“Oh yes,” her mum muttered. “Haven’t I been telling you all along you needed a steady job in marketing?”

Clem rolled her eyes. It was typical of her mum to now make it sound like it had all been her idea and she’d just been waiting for Clem to catch up.

“You’ll keep Florence, won’t you?”

“If you’d let me finish what I was trying to say,” Clem said through a gritted smile, “you would have heard that I’m giving her back to you.”

Her mum blinked. “To me? Really?”

“Yes. I have no use for her now, and I can’t think of anyone else who would look after her as well as I do. Although… maybe if I can persuade this old landlubber to an occasional boat trip” — she nudged Victoria — “we might borrow her occasionally.”

Her mum began to flap her hands, but her dad was already there with the tissues. Clem rarely saw her mum cry; the only times had been when she was moved by Florence. It was nice to see that, buried beneath her fussiness, there was a heart after all.

“I’ll look after her,” her mum said, sniffling into a tissue. “I’ve missed having a boat these past months. We can take her out, Tom, cruise around like we used to.”