"And I regret it to this day," John said. "That's the
beauty of being a grandparent, you get to do things right the second time around and I'm glad for another opportunity to change my ways.'
What planet were they from? Ken wondered.
Even if they made him laugh, they drove him mad at times, and this was one of those times. He could only imagine how well that suggestion would go down with the cool and rather distant Kylie.
Yes, they made him laugh, because he was doing that now as he pictured her shocked expression as he told her he wanted to film the birth.
"Kylie and I are going to sort things out between us.' Ken told his parents how it would be. "Preferably without lawyers. You guys need to stay back.'
"From our grandchild?' They both asked with a confused expression.
He closed his eyes for a brief moment. He'd never
considered having a baby but now that he was he wanted his parents in his child's life, so he thought long and hard before answering.
"From Kylie and me,' he said. "We've got two months to work things out. You're to stay out of things,'
Anna didn't answer. In fact, Ken was sure she
shook her head.
After his parents had gone to bed, he sat, listening to the trickle from the pool filter and enjoying sitting with his sister outside. It was cool and they had the gas heaters on but after a cold Scottish winter it was blissful.
"I love it here,' Ken said.
"Would Kylie?'
"Oh, we are so far from that, Kelly,' he said, 'It was a one-night stand, a weekend conference...'
"That completely changed your life, Kelly said. "You were all set to move here."
"I was almost all set,' he said.
"Almost?'
"I don't want to talk about it.'
And, he didn't.
He didn't want to tell his sister that, despite the seriousness of his plans, since forever they had started to change. Unable to get that night out of his mind, and furious at how the weekend had ended, he had considered calling Kylie to explain things. And if he was thinking about calling her, it had seemed a bit nonsensical to be
considering moving further away than he was already.
Yes, he hadn't been idly flicking through jobs in
London and other countries either.
He'd been wondering how he could ask her to give them a chance.
"Is there any hope for the two of you?' Kelly asked. "You obviously fancied each other and you said things went well when you saw her again...!
"Kelly, the stakes are a lot higher now. Surely we
should be concentrating on how we're best going to be as parents rather than trying to establish a relationship.
"I guess.' She shrugged.
"What if it doesn't work? What if we give it a go and one of us wants to end it? God, we don't need hurt feelings and resentment added to the mix. I hardly know anything about her.'
"Does she know about your late wife?'
"I told her tonight that I was a widower.'
"Tonight?' Kelly checked.
"Yep.' He simply answered.
"So what were you two talking about that weekend?
Ken rolled his eyes. "We weren't really talking.'
Except that wasn't entirely true.
They had talked, they had shared more than sex. That was the reason he had wanted to look her up.
"I took her to the Park, where I normally love to go to,' Ken said. "We watched the sun come up. You know how Sofia had a thing about sunrise?' he asked, and Kelly nodded. "Not once, when I've been with someone, have I felt guilty. It's always just been sex and I knew Sofia would get
that but that morning, sitting watching the sun come up with someone who wasn't Sofia was the most unfaithful I'd ever felt.'
"It sounds like you two have something to build on...'
"Maybe,' he said. "But it would be foolish at best to rush this. I've had one brilliant marriage, Kelly. I'm not downgrading for the second one. Right now Kylie and I need to sort out how we're going to be for the baby. The two of us as a couple will just have to wait. I'm not going to see her for another three weeks and that's if I even get the job.'
"Won't she see to it that you do?
Ken managed a wry laugh. "You have a far a sweeter mind than I do, or Kylie come to that. I'm quite sure she'll be seeing to it that I don't.'
They said goodnight and as he lay in bed he took out his laptop and plugged in the recording and saw for the first time the life they had made.
She was beautiful, so beautiful that it actually
brought tears to his eyes.
It should feel like a mistake, surely this was something he should have been doing with Sofia and yet, seeing his baby on the screen, thinking of Kylie...
It didn't feel like a mistake.
It felt right
Was there a chance for them?
Could strangers who had shared just a night have it so right that they could spend the rest of their lives together?
Cautious with his emotions, it had taken years to around to getting engaged to Sofia
They had gone out for more than two years before they'd moved in together.
Another three years before they'd got married.
And they hadn't been ready to even start trying for a baby before Sofia had been taken ill.
He flicked on his social media site and saw that Kylie had accepted his friend request and it was Ken snooped.
She had the most boring page ever.
He found out nothing new about her, other than that her star sign was Virgo and that her friends wrote on her wall more than she did.
No mention of Spain, no lovers' names.
Nothing.
He wanted to know more, though, and even if they needed to be concentrating on the baby, somehow they had to make time for them, and that was why he changed his status.
Not single.
Not in a relationship
It's complicated sounded about right, so that for now, would do.