Page 33 of Prudence (Balfe Family #1)

Milly

I paced frantically at the entrance to the hotel until Derek’s car pulled up, and he threw open the door, “Get in.”

Sensing he was just as tense as I was, I climbed into the passenger seat and just about managed to get the door closed and my seatbelt on before he sped off.

“I’ve checked with my parents, but they haven’t heard from Deirdre all day. Does Gigi have any other friends whose houses they might’ve gone to?”

“I’ve already called everyone she could possibly be with,” Derek responded flatly. “I’m starting to regret not insisting she install one of those tracking apps on her phone.”

Feeling my stomach twist with unease, and also from the angry vibes simmering off him, I suggested, “Perhaps we should check the beach, just in case.”

He nodded gruffly, and we drove in silence for a few minutes before reaching the beach.

Derek parked, and we both hopped out to check along the strand.

It was completely deserted, and my twisting unease intensified.

I searched my brain for anything I might’ve overheard the girls discussing, perhaps some plans to go somewhere, but drew a blank.

“They’re not here. Let’s get back to the car,” Derek said curtly.

“I’m worried, too, you know. You’re acting like this is my fault somehow.”

“Maybe it’s not your fault, but your daughter’s done this before,” he clipped.

“What are you talking about?”

“You told me how she and her friend snuck off without telling you when you lived in London. This seems like a very similar situation. Deirdre’s convinced Gigi to go off somewhere, and they could be stranded right now. What if they were mugged and don’t have their phones?”

“First of all, that was years ago, and Deirdre’s gotten a lot more responsible since then. And second, I can’t believe you’d throw something like that in my face. The only reason I told you was to console you when Gigi lied to you about the concert.”

His only response was a wordless grunt that incensed me further.

Earlier tonight when we’d stood close in that storage room at the school, I’d felt a connection simmer.

There’d been a warmth between us and a teasing flirtation from him, but now all that was gone.

We were too worried about our daughters, and endless terrifying scenarios wouldn’t stop running through my head.

“Can you try both their numbers again?” Derek requested when we got back to the car. “I’m going to drive us through town and see if we can spot them.”

“Sure,” I replied, still sullen over how he’d spoken to me on the beach.

Pulling out my phone, I tried Deirdre’s number again, but it went straight to voicemail just like it had earlier.

I left another worried message for her to contact me as soon as possible before hanging up and trying Gigi’s phone.

It rang several times, and when someone answered, “Hello?” my heart leapt.

Immediately putting it on speaker, I replied, “Hello, Gigi?”

Derek glanced my way, looking just as hopeful as I felt.

“Sorry, this is Mina. I have Gigi’s phone,” a girl responded. “We met earlier tonight, but she left her mobile behind. I’ve been trying to call Deirdre to let her know, but I think her battery died.”

“Who is this, and how do you know my daughter?” Derek demanded.

The girl on the other end of the call—Mina—sounded nervous when she said, “Me and my friends met Gigi and Deirdre at the Purple Beatrice concert a couple nights ago. We arranged to meet up today at my house in Sutton, but they left over an hour ago.”

“Sutton?” I said, looking to Derek. “They should’ve been home by now if they got the train.”

“They did get the train. Are they not home yet?” Mina asked. “Maybe it was delayed.”

“Yes, maybe. We’ll check the station. Thank you, Mina. We’ll have Gigi contact you to collect her phone.”

Derek looked like he wanted to say more, but I hung up before he had the chance.

Mina sounded around the same age as the girls, and I was certain Derek’s low, grumpy dad voice had her half terrified.

I watched as he made a sharp U-turn then headed back in the direction of the train station.

The drive was silent, and when we got there, the display told us the next train would be arriving in ten minutes.

“If they’re on this train, let’s just be glad they’re okay and not be too hard on them, yeah?” I ventured while Derek stood next to me on the platform, a flat scowl on his face as he quietly fumed.

“I’ll parent my daughter how I see fit,” he replied all surly, and even though I was mad at Deirdre for going off to Sutton without telling me, I didn’t appreciate how testy he was being.

Maybe getting close to him the last few days was a mistake.

I certainly didn’t need to be navigating his unpredictable moods.

We stood in silence until the train arrived, and when I spotted the girls emerge from a carriage, I felt such intense relief I could barely even be mad anymore.

“What the hell were the two of you thinking?” Derek demanded as he stomped forward.

Gigi blinked at her dad’s harsh tone, while Deirdre shot me a questioning look. “We left a note on the dresser in the hotel suite,” she said. “Didn’t you see it?”

Just like that, Derek’s dark, accusing gaze flashed to me. I swallowed thickly. “No, I didn’t see any note.”

“I used the hotel stationary. I thought you’d see it.

We just went to hang out with some girls we met at the concert the other night.

We were supposed to be back earlier than this, but there was a problem with the train signal, and we were stuck between stations for over an hour.

I was going to call you, but my battery died, and Gigi left her phone—”

“We know about the phone. We spoke to your friend, Mina, when we called Gigi’s number. She explained the situation.”

“It’s my fault,” Gigi put in. “Deirdre didn’t want to go because it’s a school night, but I convinced her.”

“It’s okay. You left a note. I should’ve seen it,” I said, silently reprimanding myself.

I got the feeling Derek wanted to reprimand me, too, from the hard look he sent my way.

Still, it was an honest mistake, and I didn’t deserve his attitude.

I mean, surely, he’d made some silly parenting mistakes over the years.

It happened to the best of us, and if he thought he could just act like a dick to me over a simple error, then he had another thing coming.

I’d allow him some grace since the relief of the girls being okay probably hadn’t fully sunk in yet, but it still got my back up, not to mention frustrated me, since there’d been a closeness between us earlier at the school.

“Let’s get home. It’s already late,” he said, ushering Gigi toward his car. “We can discuss this in the morning.”

“You’re not going to cancel my birthday party at Granny and Granddad’s house, are you?” Gigi begged. “Because I’ve been so looking forward to it, and I really didn’t mean to—”

“Relax, no one’s cancelling anyone’s birthday party,” Derek told her, his tone softening a touch.

“Okay, well, I’m prepared to clean my room like you’ve been asking me to, and I’ll do the dishes twice a week.” Derek cast her a cynical glance. “All right, three times a week, plus I’ll vacuum the entire apartment on weekends.”

“Enough,” Derek said, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “I told you we’d discuss it tomorrow.”

Gigi blew out a heavy sigh, exchanging a woe begotten look with Deirdre before we all climbed into Derek’s car.

The drive was tense and silent, and when he dropped us off at the hotel, we said goodnight to one another, but it felt hollow.

I could tell he was fuming over me not seeing that note and thus creating a whole lot of unnecessary drama.

I couldn’t understand how I’d missed it until we got back to the suite, and I saw I’d placed a room service tray directly on top of the hotel stationary pad.

I’d been starving when I’d gotten back from the parent teacher evening and called down for a sandwich, not once glancing at the very clear message my daughter had left for me right there on the desk.

Giving Deirdre a tight hug, we agreed she would always text or call me before going anywhere I might not be able to reach her in future, and then we turned in for the night.

***

The next morning, I dropped Deirdre off at school then headed over to the house to see how the repair work was proceeding.

With the fresh tension between Derek and me, I needed to check out of the hotel and get back under my own roof as soon as possible.

I allowed myself to lean on him far too much, and it was a bad habit I needed to quit.

I introduced myself to one of the workmen, whose name was Davey, and he explained that it would be five or six more days before everything was completed.

I’d been hoping the finish line was a little bit closer, but he showed me everything they’d done so far, and it looked like it was at least coming along nicely.

The water leak had caused a weakening in the structure of the bathroom floor and ceiling, so it all needed to be completely pulled out and replaced.

It gave me a nervous wobble in my stomach to see the gaping hole in the ceiling, but at least it was well on its way to being mended.

After visiting the house, I was due to meet with Tara and Nuala for lunch.

We still kept in touch with Celine online, but she’d moved to Galway a couple years ago with her family, so we didn’t see her in person as much anymore.

As I entered Christine’s, I spotted Nuala sitting by the window with Tara, the two of them already deep in conversation.

“Well, you two look very serious,” I said as I pulled out a seat to join them.

“We’re discussing the cupcakes Tara’s making for Gigi’s birthday party at my parents’ house this weekend,” Nuala replied with a grin. “So, yes, very serious business.”