Freya North 3-Book Collection: Secrets, Chances, Rumours

So, Tess phoned him on Thursday evening. Nathalie heard the phone, saw it on the bookcase, but glanced away as if the thing was of no consequence. She increased the volume on the television. She had grown used to these daily calls between Joe and Tess. She took comfort in imagining this house-sitter cum veterinary nurse being square in fashion sense as much as physique. Just some dull, dowdy girl no doubt with a bit of a crush on Joe. He probably barely noticed her. Nathalie told herself to fear nothing – not least because Joe was rampant at the moment, absolutely insatiable.

‘Joe! Your phone!’

He came through, a towel around his waist, little trails of water dinking and darting mercurial paths through the hairs on his legs. It was Tess. If he asked Nathalie to kill the volume, he'd be obliged to take the call right here. If he didn't, he was at liberty to go back to the bedroom, or out onto the balcony – though standing there in just a skimpy towel might be unwise.

‘Chien,’ he said to Nathalie who nodded at the television and didn't touch the remote control.

Joe took the phone back to the bedroom, answering it as he went. ‘Tess?’

‘Joe – it's me! He's coming home – the vet phoned. He's coming home tomorrow. I can go and collect him after surgery hours!’

‘Slow down, woman – say it again?’

So she did, with exactly the same flurry of triumph and relief. ‘What a clever little chappy, hey! Fixing himself in only five days. The vet said he surprised them all. She said she'd write a paper about it! He has to have antibiotics and he'll have to wear one of those flowerpot contraptions around his neck to stop him chewing his stitches. And his dressings will have to be changed – I'm supposed to be doing that last bit, but that's fine with me.’

Joe decided not to interject; he was enjoying absorbing the information and energy.

‘Shall I phone you, Joe – when he's back? When Wolf's home again, safe and sound?’

‘You do that, Tess,’ said Joe. ‘Promise me you'll do just that.’

Tess was enjoying Friday morning very much because later that day she'd be bringing Wolf home and it was a lovely day already, balmy and bright. Spring seemed very last season though the month had only just changed. She and Lisa had met in the playground with plans to feed the children up at the house afterwards. Lisa was extracting the details of Seb's impromptu visit earlier in the week and telling Tess to get herself a bloody mobile phone soon.

‘You can't construct a relationship in the modern age without the power of the text message,’ she said. ‘Most of which I will insist you forward to me, of course.’

‘Who said anything about a relationship!’ said Tess.

‘You need to be contactable at all times,’ Lisa said.

‘Be his beck-and-call girl?’

Lisa laughed. ‘I'll bet he has a great line in dirty texts, love. You must ring him – you will, won't you? He'd be great company while you're dog-sitting.’ Lisa pushed Sam's swing and said, wheee! wheee! before turning to Tess in giggles. ‘You could phone him, Tess. Phone him and say, hey, Seb, fancy coming over to do a little babysitting, doggy style?’ Her raucous glee was infectious.

‘You dreadful woman,’ Tess laughed. ‘The very thought of it.’

‘The thought of it? The thought of a nice buff surfer's bod? The thought of a lad obviously hot for you? Yes – you're quite right, Tess. Dreadful thought – dreadful.’

Tess stuck her tongue out and then returned to pushing Em, thinking about the thought of it. Not so dreadful, really. Perhaps she ought to call him, once Wolf was settled and doing well.

Sam was fidgeting to leave his swing for what Lisa and Tess described as ‘the boingy thing’, but Em objected when Tess tried to coax her out of hers. She didn't mind, she'd always found pushing a swing comforting and meditative.

So when Joe strolled down the hill, under the auspices of filling the fridge but with a private hope of coming across Tess perhaps out for a walk, that's what he saw – Tess pushing the swing, enthralled by some daydream or other if her beatific smile was anything to go by. She'd lifted her face to the sun, she was miles away according to her expression. Joe observed them: Tess and Emmeline, happily lulled by the catharsis of peaceful playground simplicity. He thought, Tess is not wearing a hoody. He thought, her hair has grown longer. He thought, I like the way she's wearing it loose. He thought, shall I back away now and just surprise her at the house – or shall I make myself known, stop and say hello?

His decision was made for him. Tess sensed someone looking at her. When she turned and saw it was Joe her hands fell away from the swing so that when it came back, it knocked her firmly in the stomach. But she didn't seem to notice. She could only stand stock-still, mouth agape as she looked over to him. The swing touched her again, just glancing against her body this time. And then it slowed, as if it was tired, as if that's the end of the ride. And Tess didn't appear to hear Em's protestations. But Lisa did – and Lisa looked at Tess and thought, what's she looking at? And she followed Tess's gaze and alighted on Joe and Lisa thought, who the bloody hell is that?

‘Who the bloody hell is that?’ Lisa asked as Tess walked past her, Em flailing her discontent in her mother's arms. But Tess didn't notice and Tess didn't answer Lisa. She just walked straight over to Joe and they stood there, either side of the railings for a suspended moment. Lisa watched them greet each other – him lowering his head a little as Tess raised hers a little. She saw how Tess smiled, that Em had reached out and Joe had given his finger to the baby, putting his other hand gently, briefly, on Tess's shoulder as they spoke intently to one another.

Lisa thought, Jesus, Tess, I'll get you a bloody mobile phone – if ever there was a time to text you to say you dark horse, you dark dark horse you. You never told me you were in love with this Joe bloke.

‘I was just strolling down to pick up some food.’

‘I was just in the playground.’

‘I know – I saw.’

Tess rolled her eyes at herself but Joe just laughed.

‘Do you want to join me, Tess? You're probably more aware of what we need.’

‘Yes, sure. Oh – I mean no. I can't – I didn't bring the buggy.’

‘I see.’

‘Lisa – my friend over there, with the little boy with the curly hair – we meet here.’ And then Tess stopped. She didn't want to tell Joe about her previous plans for lunch in case he said, carry on, don't mind me. The truth was, much as she had grown so fond of Lisa, Joe was back. Joe was here and Wolf would be coming home and everything else would just have to wait.

‘Lisa,’ said Joe vaguely, looking back to the playground.

‘She's lovely.’

‘Well, what do we need?’

Tess thought about it. I need this, she thought, I've missed this.

‘Oh – just pick up what you fancy.’

‘I'll see you back at the house,’ Joe said, doffing an imaginary cap. ‘Back at home.’ He headed down the hill and Tess and Em walked back up it slowly towards the house. She passed Lisa in the playground, now chatting to another mum. Lisa motioned to Tess the universal gesture for ‘phone me’. Tess's response was an expansive, double thumbs-up. Lisa thought, poor old Seb – you don't stand a chance.

Back at the house, Tess gazed at Em who seemed unaware of her mother's state of heightened excitement. Tess dropped to her knees, though the cold flagstones met her, giving her daughter a gentle prod in her rounded little tummy.

‘Em,’ she said in a whisper, ‘Joe's back. Joe's come home. And Wolfy's coming back too and by tonight, everything will be back to how it should be.’

Em held onto her mother's probing finger. Tess touched Em's nose. ‘Wish us luck,’ she said, ‘wish us lots of luck. All of us.’ Em said the word that only her mother knew was ‘nose’ and Tess took time out from her grown-up ponderings to complete the points of the face with her daughter. Yighs. Years. Mowf.

‘Clever Em,’ said Tess, scooping her up and hugging her close. She stood, silent and still. Please let today be lovely.

‘Quick! We need to tidy!’ and Tess scooted off from room to room, flinging up windows, plumping cushions, straightening furniture, checking for dust, her every move shadowed by Em.

Joe returned, laden with shopping.

‘I thought we'd do a simple lunch,’ he told her, busying himself putting stuff away because Tess was standing peculiarly motionless in the kitchen holding Emmeline's wrists, who was standing barefoot on the table. ‘Then we can have a celebratory dinner to toast the return and the speedy convalescence of the Wolfmeister.’

He laid out cheese and crusty bread, some celery sticks and fresh tomatoes, a jar of chutney. ‘Excuse me, Emmeline,’ he said as if Tess wouldn't know that her daughter was in the way but he ended up having to lay the plates and cutlery at the other end of the table and moved the food accordingly. He looked at Tess. ‘You all right? Hungry?’ He nudged her and broke the trance.

‘I'm starving,’ she said, as if she'd just come into the kitchen.

And there they were once again, eating together and chatting away.

‘I can't believe you're here,’ said Tess. ‘Wolf is going to be thrilled.’