Page 42 of The Only Way Is Up

‘You did!’ Melanie dissolved into giggles again.

‘What are you two laughing at?’ Ruby called. She was waiting with Will at the top of the hill, both of them equally knackered from the climb.

‘How awful our children are,’ Daisy stated with a grin. ‘So awful that we both stopped after just one in case we got another that was just as bad.’

‘It’s true,’ agreed Melanie. ‘One was enough.’

‘Ha!’ said Will, rolling his eyes at Ruby, although his mouth twitched as if he wanted to laugh.

‘So how are things going?’ Daisy nudged Ruby’s shoulder with hers. They were waiting at the bar to order their food, watching the waiters run in and out of the kitchen with huge trays of pizza and drinks.

‘Really good,’ replied Ruby, tucking her hair behind her ears. ‘I’m really glad that Will could come.’

‘Me too,’ said Daisy. ‘You seem to be getting on well.’ Daisy felt like she was treading on eggshells, not wanting to ask the wrong question or force Ruby to retreat. Teenage relationships were such a minefield, and all she needed to know was that Ruby was OK.

‘Yeah,’ Ruby nodded. ‘I like him.’ She glanced round to check Will and Melanie weren’t listening, but they were both deep in conversation, Will showing his mum something on his phone. ‘He’s nice to hang out with. Not pushy or anything.’

Daisy smiled, having got the answer she wanted. Ruby was fine, and no damage had been done by making enquiries.

‘Seems like you and Will’s mum are getting on well too,’ Ruby teased.

‘We are,’ said Daisy. ‘I really like her. I wasn’t sure we’d have much in common, but she’s a breath of fresh air.’

‘I bet,’ said Ruby, who’d grown up around Daisy’s circle of celebrity friends and called them ‘The Gloss Queens’ because they always looked so immaculate, including the men. She peered at the menu again, her brow furrowed with uncertainty. ‘Should I avoid onions, do you think?’

Daisy registered the unspoken second half of the question – if I’m going to snog Will later – and resisted the urge to laugh. Ruby was asking her a woman-to-woman question, and it deserved a serious woman-to-woman answer. ‘Best avoided, I think,’ she said. ‘Along with anything spicy.’

‘Ham and cheese, then,’ said Ruby thoughtfully.

‘Good idea,’ replied Daisy, as the owner finished taking a customer’s order and turned to them with a huge smile. She was a woman in her seventies who’d run this pizzeria on the mountain for forty years, now helped by her two strapping sons.

‘Hello, Eva,’ said Daisy. ‘Lovely to see you again.’

‘You are always welcome, Daisy,’ said Eva, giving Ruby a huge smile. ‘And Ruby gets more beautiful every year.’

‘We’re celebrating a special occasion,’ said Daisy. ‘Ruby’s sixteenth birthday.’

‘Congratulations,’ said Eva, giving Ruby a maternal smile. ‘So grown up, I remember when you were just a little girl. Perhaps some champagne cocktails? Just small ones, at least for a couple more years.’

Ruby nodded excitedly and asked for four, then placed their pizza order. Daisy watched her happily, feeling the strings of tension she’d been carrying over The Incident and Christian and the recent press coverage slowly loosening. It was all hundreds of miles away, and for the next week all she had to do was relax and enjoy being a mum, a friend and an ordinary woman having a holiday.

At 10.30, Eva finally kicked them out, which meant Daisy was now sitting on the sledge with Melanie tucked behind her, their legs out straight and lifted clear of the snow. She glanced over at Will, who was climbing onto the other sledge behind Ruby, looking entirely terrified.

‘It’s only a blue run,’ said Ruby reassuringly.

‘It looks like a death slide,’ Will muttered darkly. ‘How do you see where you’re going?’

‘The moonlight reflects on the snow,’ said Ruby, like this was the most obvious thing in the world. Daisy laughed, never having really considered how insane this must look to people like Will and Melanie who weren’t used to travelling this way.

‘You ready?’ asked Daisy, twisting round to look at Melanie.

Melanie smiled gamely. ‘I’ve never been less ready for anything in my life.’

‘Oh, thank God it’s not just me,’ mumbled Will.

‘Hold on tight and keep your feet up or you’ll snap an ankle,’ Ruby instructed. ‘There’s a sharp right-hand bend at the bottom by the river so just lean right when I tell you, OK?’

Will nodded, looking mildly nauseous as Ruby turned to Daisy. ‘You go first.’