Page 102 of The Missing Sister

‘Yes, and even if I never feel it again, at least I know I had it once. So your sister’s holding the fort in New Zealand while you and your mum are away?’

‘Not really – we have a very good manager who sorts out the vineyard. My sister’s a budding singer-songwriter, and she’s working on stuff with a guy she met at uni.’

‘Wow. This is a terrible question, but... is she any good?’

‘As you’re never likely to meet her, I can be honest,’ Jack chuckled. ‘And the answer is, I haven’t a clue. She’s obsessed with Joni Mitchell and her type – all angsty lyrics – whereas I was born a decade before her and like a good tune, y’know?’

‘I do know,’ Ally agreed. ‘Something “feel good” that you can bop along to and shout out the lyrics. I was playing that kind of music on the drive down here.’

‘This might be a rude thing to ask a lady, but would you be near my age? I’m thirty-two.’

‘I’m thirty-one.’

‘So, we’re from the same generation and like a good anthem,’ he grinned. The two steak hachés arrived and Jack asked for another beer.

‘You are driving,’ Ally reminded him.

‘Yeah, but there’s a lot of me to soak up the booze. They’re only small bottles, Ally, and I’d never take the risk of being over.’

‘I understand, and the good news is, because you are driving, I can have as much of this as I want,’ she smiled as she poured herself a second glass of rosé.

‘So, tell me about your sister Tiggy. She sounds interesting,’ Jack said as he dug into his steak.

‘Oh, my sisters are all interesting, and we couldn’t be more different from each other.’

‘In what way?

As she ate, Ally regaled Jack with a potted biography of each of them, being careful to use CeCe’s proper name, Celaeno, in case his sister had mentioned her. When she got to Electra, Jack gave the usual response.

‘I can’t believe you’re related to her! Her pic has been everywhere here in the past week. Wow, it makes my family seem so dull,’ sighed Jack. ‘Your dad sounds like he was a real philanthropist to adopt you girls.’

‘He was, and an incredible man too. Like your mum, he was very clever.’

‘What did he do?’

‘Believe it or not, none of us are actually sure. We knew he ran a business of some kind, but what exactly, I’ve no idea. He was away a lot, travelling.’

‘D’you think he was a spy?’

‘Maybe, but I’m not sure spies make as much money as Pa did,’ Ally chuckled. ‘We were brought up in real luxury, although interestingly, he never gave any of us more than a basic allowance. We’ve all had to fend for ourselves financially.’

‘Well, if it’s any comfort, you certainly don’t come across as a spoilt brat.’

‘It is. Thanks.’

‘Apart from that swanky car you arrived in,’ Jack teased her. ‘That’s a cracker, f’sure. Is it yours?’

‘It belonged to Pa, but any of us could use it if we wanted to. Of course, when Pa died, none of us wanted to deal with the nuts and bolts of our finances. Luckily, we’ve had people to run the trust he left for us, but we’re going to organise a meeting with our lawyer in the next few weeks to have it explained to us. It’s time we all grew up and took responsibility.’

‘That all sounds far too complicated to me. At least when you don’t have much, you don’t have a lot to sort out,’ Jack shrugged. ‘When my dad died, the house passed to Mum, and the wine business to the three of us. End of. Coffee?’

‘I think I’d better,’ Ally agreed. ‘Theimmobiliershould be open soon, so after coffee, I’ll go and register.’

‘Okay, and hey, Ally, don’t think I’ve got a problem with you coming from money or anything. It’s completely to your father’s credit and yours that I’d never have guessed it.’

‘Apart from the car,’ they both said at the same time, then laughed.

‘This is my treat,’ Ally said when the waitress arrived, and she slapped some euros on the table.