‘Yeah,’ I said, but really I hadn’t.

I put my headphones in as Caitlin went into the foetal position on her yoga mat.

I searched for Jimi Hendrix and a minute later I was loving a track called ‘Fire’. And then Mum got in my head. I wondered if she would come. I started checking the clock on the wall.

At about six thirty, Dad and Caitlin started making some food, and closer to seven Caitlin asked me if I wanted some mixed bean salad and tuna. We all had our eyes on the time.

‘If your mum doesn’t arrive soon, you’re welcome to come for a swim with us as the sun goes down,’ Caitlin said.

‘Mum will be here,’ I said, even though I was getting worried and I would have killed for a swim. Dad and Caitlin probably wanted to go by themselves anyway. Especially if they were going to that nude beach Katie and Jane had teased me about.

I wondered if Caitlin would do nude yoga on the beach. Eeewwww.

I messaged Katie and Jane:

And then I heard Mum pull into the driveway. She was only ten minutes late.

‘I’ll see you on Sunday,’ I said as I stood to race out of the house.

‘Let me get your bag,’ Dad offered.

‘Hope you have a lovely weekend,’ Caitlin said, but the tone in her voice was really implying, I hope you’re okay, like my mum was a risk.

‘Of course I will, I’ll be with my mum,’ I bit back, absolutely pissed off that Caitlin might think my own mum was a threat to me.

Even though I’d tried to take my bag from Dad and bolt to the car by myself, we walked out into the heat together. He was up to something and it wasn’t hard to work out what when his eyes darted along the side of Mum’s car. He raised his eyebrows and shook his head at the scrapes of paint on the sides. And then he handed me my bag before I climbed into the car.

He leaned into Mum’s side of the window and said, ‘So you’ll have Phoebe home before dinner on Sunday night?’

Mum rolled her eyes. ‘Yes, Mark.’

‘Up to much?’

‘We’re having a quiet weekend. I’ll see you later.’ Mum reversed out of the yard and Dad waved at me, looking pissed off.

‘Always wanting to know everything,’ Mum said under her breath. ‘So how’s things?’

‘Good.’

‘I’m glad,’ Mum said and then we were out of The Village and driving through the vineyards.

‘Maybe we should have lunch at one of the wineries one day?’ she suggested.

‘Yeah, awesome,’ I said, but I could just imagine Mum having a glass of wine with lunch or something and Dad smelling it and losing his temper.

‘What do you want to do tonight?’ Mum asked.