Melissa and Leah had been invited for afternoon tea at four. Auntie Kathleen was very much a fan of afternoon tea and Melissa knew, from many other similar occasions, that there would be ham and pickle sandwiches followed by shop-bought cakes. In days gone by, Kathleen used to bake, but the arthritis in her hands was so bad that this was now beyond her. Melissa wasn’t bothered, though. She had never really understood why anyone baked their own cakes when Mr Kipling did such a good job of it.

This wasn’t the first time that Auntie Kathleen had met Leah, but it was the first time that Melissa had dressed her up for the occasion. For Leah’s outings in the early days, a babygro was all that was needed, but now that she was a little bit bigger and a lot more predictable, Melissa could put her in cute dresses or dungarees and be pretty certain that they would last more than five minutes before they were soiled. Today she had selected a pink gingham dress with tiny puffed sleeves paired with little white lace bloomers to cover her nappy. Melissa was delighted with the result. Leah wouldn’t have looked out of place in a baby magazine advert, even if Melissa did say so herself. Her bright blue eyes were showing no sign of turning brown and the downy hair that she had grown so far was blonde with a gentle wave. Melissa topped the outfit off with a little flowery headband but Leah insisted on pulling it off, not really appreciating how adorable it made her look, so Melissa was reluctantly forced to abandon it.

It was quite a walk from her caravan to Auntie Kathleen’s house, but the day was dry and the wind whipping in off the sea wasn’t too cold. As Melissa pushed the pram along she kept an eye open for people to whom she could show Leah off. Granted, at twenty-six she was a bit old to be a first-time mum around here, so it wasn’t much of a novelty. Most of the girls that she’d been at school with were on their second or third baby by now. There was even talk that Suki Shaw was about to be a grandma at the grand old age of twenty-nine. This was just a rumour, but Melissa, who had known Suki since primary school, wouldn’t have been surprised if it were true. Today, though, the streets were clear and there was not a soul around who might be the least bit interested in Leah.