"Dad, if you could come up and help take care of Jack, that would help us a lot."
"I'll put in for the time off and see if Laura can come, too. I'll call you when I know."
"Great! We'd really like that."
As Lewis got off the phone, he headed towards the garden.
"That was our Lyn," he announced happily to Laura. "She's asked me to come up to help take care of Jack. Lyn's got some big certification exam coming up and she'll be taking a refresher class for a week. Jack's nursery school is closed that same week so I can watch Jack while she's out. She said he could stay with Tim's mum, but I said I'd be more than happy to help out."
Laura smiled at Robbie's pleasure at having been asked to spend time with his grandson.
"Lyn would like it you could also come up, too, Laura."
But when Laura looked at her work diary, there were obligations she couldn't get out of. In the end, they decided Robbie would drive up on Saturday, and have time with the family over the weekend, before Lyn's class began. The first day Laura could take off was Thursday, and she would take an early train to Manchester that day. On Saturday afternoon, she and Robbie would return to Oxford.
On the night before Robbie was to leave, they both got home in time for a quiet dinner together. Laura mentioned she'd be house hunting on Saturday. When Robbie looked dismayed to be excluded, she quickly explained a friend from work who has just moved to Oxford was looking for a home for her family, and invited Laura to come along.
"Of course, Gina is looking for a bigger house and one near schools since she and her partner have three children. But this will give me a chance to see what's out there, and what we might like to look at later. It's just research. I promise."
When Robbie nodded, Laura mentioned something else.
"I spoke to Lyn today, and talked her out of having Jack call me "Granny L." I really didn't like it and suggested he call me what my nephews and nieces used when they were little: Lolly."
"Lolly? As in "lollypop?" That's better than Granny L?" Robbie asked skeptically.
"Please don't misunderstand, Robbie. I'm pleased; to be Jack's granny, but "Granny L" sounds too much like granola. Jack already has his Granny, Tim's mum, and besides, Lolly is a special name to me."
"If Lyn's okay with that, okay, but…well." Robbie didn't finish the sentence as he decided he needed to think about that one.
He also wanted to tell Laura about a small change in plans.
"I got a call today from Althea."
"Val's sister?"
"You remember her?"
"She was at Val's service." Laura remembered Althea because she had looked like a younger, taller version of Val.
"Oh, right. Well, Thea - that's what everyone calls her – is visiting a friend near here, and Lyn asked if I'd bring her with me to Manchester."
"Visiting? From where?"
"America. She moved there a long time back. She was a dancer, first in London and then with a group in New York. Sometimes that dance company would come to London. Thea would show up, almost out of the blue and spend a day with us. Then we wouldn't see or hear from her for months, maybe a year. Once Val and Lyn went to London to see one of Thea's shows. Lyn always thought her Aunt-T was the most exciting and beautiful person."
"She must have seemed very exotic."
"Yeah, and by contrast, Val was just Mum."
"But Thea stayed in America?"
"Mm. She got married and they moved to California."
"Was she close to Val?"
"In some ways, but Val was a good many years older, so at times she was more like Thea's second mother. And as Thea grew up, Val thought she became very self-centered. Val got tired of Thea making promises and not keeping them. She'd promise Lyn she'd visit but didn't for a long time. There were other things, and eventually Val and Thea stopped speaking to each other."
"Oh?" Laura prompted, sensing Robbie had more to say.
"Val's mum was ill for a long time, and when she needed help, Val split her time between her home and ours. It was hectic. But our house was too small and Val's mum didn't want to go into some type of care facility."
"Yes, I can understand."
"Thea thought if she sent flowers and called her mum once in a while, well that was enough."
Robbie stopped for a moment, remembering that time.
"A few times, Val asked Thea to bring her son and visit. We thought it would be great for Mum to see Thea and for Val to get a break from running two households. But Thea was selfish, and made all sorts of excuses - she didn't have the time, or Derek was too little, or they didn't have the money. Then Thea and her husband brought a house near San Francisco that Thea bragged about to Val."
"I even tried to talk to Thea and her husband, but it turns out, they ignored me just as easily as they ignored Val."
"About two months before their Mum died, here comes Thea looking like a hero for making the long trip. By that time, we had help from hospice, and Thea was just there for show. Well, her mum was glad to finally see Thea after all those years, but Val and I were very angry. I've hardly spoken to Thea since then."
"When Val died, it was Lyn who called Thea - I wasn't going to. I didn't want to see her. But maybe Lyn was right. And she's still in touch with Thea, and she asked that I give her a ride."
"Are you okay with that?"
"Sure. She's very important to Lyn. When Jack was born, Thea visited Lyn who was really missing her mum then. Thea is Lyn's link to Val, so I'll be civil to her. For Lyn's sake."
"Well, it's only for a few days, and you'll have Jack to focus on. Is Thea staying at Lyn's, too?"
"No, she's staying at a hotel so at least at night I'll have Jack to myself."
And then he looked at Laura. "And tonight I have you all to myself."
"And I you."