Page 129 of The Sunrise Sisterhood

‘What do you expect,’ Liz said indignantly. ‘You’ve just informed me that all our hard-earned money this summer was going towards flights to New York for Harriet’s birthday.’

Skye gasped. ‘That’s outrageous. That’s where the twenty thousand is going – on flights?’

‘You’re kidding,’ Clare muttered. ‘You pressurised your oldest friend to repay a debt for that?’

Mike scratched his chin. ‘It was a loan which had become due, that was all. And anyway, it worked out well for everyone. Liz got her mojo for work back. Skye got a job for the summer and a new lesbian girlfriend by the sound of it.’

‘Dad,’ Clare warned. ‘Not appropriate.’

He raised his hands in apology. ‘And you two girls have made friends at last. You don’t know how happy that makes me.’

‘No thanks to you,’ said Skye. ‘Nothing I did was ever good enough for you. All I wanted was to feel like I mattered to you.’

Clare reached out to her sister and held her hand. ‘You are the sweetest, kindest, most thoughtful person I know. And you matter to me.’

Skye looked at her sceptically. ‘Is there a punchline?’

Clare smiled. ‘Only that you’re my favourite sister.’

‘Your only sister.’

Clare nodded at their dad. ‘As far as we know. I wouldn’t put it past him to have another few kids stashed away.’

Mike pushed his chair back with a scrape and stood up. ‘If you’re going to be ridiculous, I shall see myself out.’

‘Bye then.’ Clare didn’t look at him.

‘Bye, Dad,’ said Skye, following suit.

Mike dithered on the spot, clearly not expecting that response. He balled his hands into fists. ‘Of course you matter to me. Both of you. I’m proud of you both. And, Skye, I wouldn’t have offered to pay your wages this summer for Liz if I hadn’t thought you could do the job.’

‘Oh Mike.’ Liz lowered her head into her hands. ‘That was unnecessary.’

Skye froze. ‘Is that true, Liz? Dad’s paying my wages, not you?’

‘It was the only way I could afford you, love,’ she said, her voice no more than a whisper.

‘So you didn’t offer me the job because Dad recommended me, but because I was free labour?’

‘That makes it sound underhand and it wasn’t like that,’ Liz pleaded with her.

‘Does it matter?’ Mike said, exasperated. ‘You’ve had a good time, haven’t you?’

Skye jumped to her feet. ‘Yes! Yes, of course it matters. I thought you really wanted me to work for The Seaside Gourmet Girls, Liz, but instead you were just doing what Dad wanted, like you always have. And, Dad, tell me you weren’t just treating me like you do all your problems, by throwing money at it to make it go away?’

‘Nilla’s left me,’ he blurted out. ‘She left me. I’m single again, I had a chance to live like a bachelor, recapture my youth and I wanted to take it.’

‘With a twenty-four-year-old,’ Clare added, not at all surprised to find out that he and Nilla had parted ways. ‘You cliché.’

‘I’m sixty-three, who knows how long I have left. If I want to flirt with women younger than me and they’re amenable, why not?’ he said crossly. ‘I could hardly do that with Skye in the house.’

‘And to think I was worried about you being lonely.’ Skye looked down at her feet. ‘When the truth was that I was cramping your style.’

‘But I was lonely,’ said Liz. ‘And I have loved having you here.’

‘I wish you’d been honest with me,’ Skye said.

‘I was honest with you when I arrived to find you here,’ Clare said with a mischievous smile, trying to lighten her sister’s mood.