‘Gabby can be your bridesmaid, she’d make a gorgeous little attendant!’ Mary’s voice was loud, and she watched her elder daughter carefully; if Celeste decided to settle down with Jonny Parker, and it looked more and more like that was going to be the case, Cynthia needed to accept it as soon as possible. Jonny and Cynthia had a history, not that Celeste knew that, but Mary knew that Cynthia had set her cap at him years ago. He had not been averse at first – no bloke was when she looked at them with her lovely face – but he had realised very quickly that Cynthia was seriously high maintenance and had dropped her so fast it had made her head spin. She was now hoping Cynthia would not feel the urge to enlighten her younger sister of that fact. Not that Celeste would be all that bothered, but Mary suspected from her reaction that Cynthia had never quite got over Jonny. And, as much as her elder daughter aggravated her, she still wouldn’t like to see her hurt. But, more than that, she didn’t want her younger child’s happiness compromised because Cynthia was jealous. And jealous she might be, because Jonny Parker was going places, and that meant that Celeste would be going with him.

Mary Callahan looked at her granddaughter, the light of her life, and wondered, in the glow of her Christmas tree, what the future held for them all.

Knowing her elder child like she did, she knew that her younger daughter’s life could be destroyed in an instant. But, if that ever happened, Mary would retaliate in a heartbeat because, if push came to shove, her younger child would win hands down. Cynthia had been given her chance with Jonny Parker many moons ago, and she had played it all wrong. Now he was fair game, and her Celeste was welcome to him. If Cynthia felt the need to challenge that, then Mary would be only too happy to put the fucker wise. Cynthia needed a wake-up call, and this might just be it.

Mary had two daughters, and she loved them both in her own way, but she wouldn’t let one of them walk all over the other.

Chapter Six

‘He’s so handsome, Cynth!’

Mary wasn’t surprised that her daughter didn’t answer her, it was par for the course, but sometimes, like now, it grated. She looked down her bloody nose at them all, yet she still dumped the children on her parents on a regular basis. ‘He’s the image of Jimmy, but I can see you in him as well.’

Cynthia smiled but it wasn’t a real smile. She was just going through the motions.

‘We love having him over. Little Jimmy Junior!’