Epilogue
“Welcome, Ruby.” Rich leaned forward to kiss his mother’s cheek but she turned her head as if it was the last thing she wanted. The new house had worked out well and Rosie still cooked for her but Rich had made sure Rosie now owned a place of her own. She was no longer on call twenty-four hours most days, not at his mother’s whim anyway. With a great deal of patience he’d shown his mother how to make drinks with a kettle of the type which boiled one cup at a time. That and an expensive but easy-to-use coffee machine. This protest was her last line of defence—a pretence of being upset though she was happier. This was the first time she’d stepped inside Rich’s new home.
“Shall I take you on the tour?” Saffie took Ruby’s coat as she made the offer. The two siblings had discussed op
