Milt looked surprised by the question. “No.” He patted his pocket. “But I haven’t checked my phone tonight. Must have left it in the bedroom.” He too let himself out into the passage.

Laura gave Bree a questioning look.

“What?” Bree said.

“I thought we were going to ask him about Mum,” Laura hissed.

“I was working up to it.”

“Jeepers, keep your hair on.”

Bree took a swallow of her beer. “Anyway, it was Kate’s idea. She can do it.”

Bree folded her arms and looked away from Laura’s baleful expression. Even though the colours were fading it was still hard to take her seriously with that rainbow of hair cascading around her head.

Kate reached her room and took a deep calming breath of cooler air. The warmth of the kitchen combined with the smell of meat cooking had upset her rebellious stomach. It seemed to be just the smell of red meat that troubled her and it had come over her so suddenly. She took a couple more deep breaths then all of a sudden her stomach spasmed and she retched.

“Kate?”

She’d barely pulled the door to behind her in her haste to reach her room. Now her dad pushed it open and looked in.

“Are you all right?” he asked.

Tears filled her eyes again. Why couldn’t her mum be here? She clenched her jaw trying to keep the contents of her stomach from rising.

“What is it, love?” Milt strode into the room and put an arm around her. “Aren’t you well?”

His comforting action was her undoing. She leaned into his chest and sobbed. She’d been crying on and off for days but she’d fought the tears. Now she let them fall. She cried for this little human inside her and the terror of not wanting it. She cried for Sean because she knew how much he would and she cried for her mum because she needed someone to help her understand these feelings that she didn’t understand herself.

Milt didn’t say anything, just held her close against his solid chest and let her cry. Eventually her sobs began to fade. He lowered her to the bed and reached for a box of tissues.

“Here,” he said.

She took several, wiped her face and blew her nose. She felt the pressure on the bed beside her as he sat too.

“Is this something to do with Sean? Have you two had a falling-out?”

“No.” She shook her head then nodded. “Kind of.” Fresh tears rolled down her cheeks.

“Right…well.” He shifted on the bed and put an arm around her again. “I guess you wish your mum was here.”

Kate could hear the discomfort in his voice.

“Would you like me to go and get one of your sisters?”

She shook her head and pressed it into the nook of his shoulder. He was warm and solid. “No.”