Chapter Two

Iris opened the front door before Julie had even killed the engine of her car and practically bounced on the balls of her feet in anticipation of seeing her daughter. Of her three children, Julie was the one most like her father and there was something quite reassuring about that. He'd been a wonderful man, kind and thoughtful as well as intelligent and witty, a man very much ahead of his time given the generation they'd been brought up in. Julie had been blessed with his height and build as well as his traits. As much as he had been a family man he had also been proud of his career in the RAF and often enjoyed extended periods of time alone.

Iris watched as Julie climbed out of her car and was joined by Gill a few seconds later. Iris adored Gill; the younger woman was on the same kind of wavelength as Julie, seemed to understand her little foibles and unique brand of humour as well as being equal in a professional capacity. It was no secret that Julie's work was her life and she needed someone who also understood that. Gill was sensible and professional as well as kind and generous like Julie. She she was also a wonderful mother to young Sammy. Iris gave the girls a little wave as they descended the steps to the front door. She immediately reached for Gill, kissed her on the cheek and wrapped her arms around her by way of greeting while Julie stood there, arms folded in front of her with a look of mock indignation on her face.

"My Darling!" Iris exclaimed as she finally loosened her grip on Gill and allowed her to breathe. Iris held her at arms length as she scanned her with her eyes just to make sure that she was fit, healthy and unmarked by anything untoward. Gill seemed uncharacteristically embarrassed by the overzealous greeting and fought down a blush.

"None taken." Julie muttered aloud sarcastically but grinned as soon as she'd said it. She knew her mother had a soft spot for her best friend, although she'd never been able to fathom why.

"Come here Jules!" Iris let Gill go and proceeded to squeeze the life out of her daughter in gratitude of her visit. She kissed both her cheeks and then shepherded them both into the house. "I'll get a pot of tea on the go and then we can catch up. Caroline's already here and the kids will be popping round for their tea later." Julie and Gill made their way through the house to the living room, closely followed by Iris.

Julie's younger sister Caroline was halfway between Julie and Gill in height and much curvier than either of them. She had dirty blonde hair just like her sister but it fell in messy waves halfway down her back. She'd been a housewife and mother for most of her adult life but now had a part time job as a receptionist in the local GP's surgery. Her husband Marc was an ordinary bloke; he worked in IT for a large employer so he was a little bit clever but had no real ambition so only ever progressed to middle management and appeared to be comfortable there. He played football in a local team with his mates on a Saturday morning, went for the occasional pint on a Friday after work and took pleasure in providing for his family. Fortunately he wasn't one of those men where the testosterone took over and he had never felt the need to 'prove' himself in an overtly macho way. He and Caroline seemed to have an unremarkable relationship, both shared parenting responsibilities and household chores now that Caroline had gone back to work and they did make the effort to spend time with each other both as a couple and as a family unit while they still could.

Julie personally felt that her sister's lifestyle was the epitome of boring and conventional and it wouldn't have suited herself in the slightest. Caroline had left school with very few qualifications but she wasn't unintelligent and Julie hadn't been able to understand her satisfaction at staying at home with her children. Then again, Julie hadn't been overly fussed about having children so she didn't really expect to understand the appeal.

"Hello Julie." Caroline greeted her sister from the comfort of her seat on the armchair but made no move to offer her a hug or a peck on the cheek. Although they did love each other, there had always been some distance between them, a clash of personalities and lack of common interests was probably to blame.

"Caroline. You remember Gill don't you?"

"Yes, nice to see you again." Caroline did get up then, she was nothing if not polite, and stuck her hand out to shake Gill's. It was formal but then again they'd only met a couple of times before.

"Likewise." Gill responded as she shook Caroline's hand. Iris grinned in the background, it was lovely to have her daughters in the same room together for a change. Unfortunately her son Andrew and his family had been unable to make it this weekend but he and Julie seemed to keep in touch outside of big family gatherings anyway. They had always been a bit closer to each other and had a bit more of a natural sibling relationship. They had similar personalities and outlooks on life and the world around them. Iris was sure that Andrew was what Julie would have been like had she chosen to have had a family of her own, a softer, less serious version. People had often thought that Julie had been Andrew's brother when they were very small, before it had become apparent that she was most definitely female. Julie had always been a tomboy, her lanky frame hadn't helped matters, and she'd taken great pride in confusing people while she had been able to. She'd been such a feisty child, always rallying against something or other, and being equal to the boys had never been good enough, she'd always wanted to be better than them.

"Go on, sit down and make yourselves comfortable." Iris instructed her guests and went to put the kettle on. Julie and Gill took up seats next to each other on the sofa as Iris prepared herself for a long catch up before her grandchildren descended upon them.

Iris wouldn't hear of Julie and Gill's offers to help with dinner but instead dragged Caroline out into the kitchen with her and left the girls to keep themselves amused in the living room for a while.

"So, what do you think?" Iris impatiently asked her younger daughter as she started to gather the vegetables together.

"About what?"

"Our Jules and Gill." Iris said it as though Caroline should already have known what she was going to ask.

"You're not still going on about that are you?" It was clearly a subject mother and daughter had spoken about before.

"Well, it makes sense, they do seem awfully close." Especially if you had been looking for it, which Iris had been from the moment they had arrived.

"They're friends, best friends, and have been for a long time. Of course they're close. Besides, I'm sure if Julie had something to tell you she would have done it by now." Caroline wasn't particularly interested anyway. It wasn't that she didn't care but she didn't feel it was really any of her business, they were fully grown adults with lives of their own which were quite different from each other.

"I doubt it, she's always been cagey about her love life. You know, she's never actually told me that she's gay?" When Julie was in her late teens and early twenties it hadn't been a subject Iris was comfortable discussing or even thinking about. As time and attitudes moved on it was something she had been used to hearing on the news, in television programs and even some of her friends had begun to open up about their respective gay children. When it was clear that Julie was never going to have a family of her own, Iris had quietly acknowledged to herself and accepted that what she had long since suspected about her daughter was in all likelihood true. It was just such a shame that neither of them had been able to broach the subject in all these years.

"Have you considered that she might not be? Just because she lives alone and has chosen not to have a family doesn't mean anything. Perhaps she just isn't interested in anyone like that?" Julie had certainly never mentioned anyone to her, even when they had been younger and still living at home.

"Oh I know. Why would they choose to stay at at hotel this weekend instead of here with me?" Iris had long since suspected there was more to Julie and Gill's relationship than simple friendship.

"Perhaps they just want a bit of time and space for themselves and not be cooped up in this house for the entire weekend? Besides, even if Julie is that way inclined, Gill was married until a few years ago wasn't she? And she's got a son. She wouldn't be interested in our Jules like that."

"I suppose you're right." Iris sighed and went back to sorting out the vegetables for dinner.

"You sound disappointed?" Caroline pulled out a chopping board and a knife and took a couple of carrots from her mum's pile.

"I worry about her Caroline, it must be such a lonely life. I just want to see her happy and settled."

"She loves her job and seems to be doing very well for herself. She has her house and other friends besides Gill. She looks well doesn't she? I'm sure she's perfectly fine as she is Mum."

Gill had been on her way to the bathroom when she overheard her name being mention by Iris. It hadn't been her intention to eavesdrop, but she hadn't been able to resist, especially once she'd clued into what she and Caroline had been talking about. It hadn't been the first time she and Julie had been mistaken for a couple. They'd been on holiday together numerous times and had shared a room because it was easier, cheaper and much more fun that way. She couldn't help it if other people assumed to know something about the two of them that wasn't true. Neither of them particularly cared anyway. However, Gill had found it striking that Iris knew very little about her own daughter and was actually quite worried for her. She knew that Julie liked her privacy, craved it in fact, but sometimes Gill wondered if she closed herself off from people to deliberately avoid getting close to them. She appeared to be the only exception for one reason or another.

Gill returned to the living room to find Julie outside the patio doors having a cigarette. Neither of them smoked often, usually only in times of stress or simply because they fancied it. Gill joined her outside and Julie offered her the packet. Gill took a cigarette out of the box and Julie lit it for her.

"Getting a bit too much in there?" Gill enquired gently. Julie blew out a plume of smoke from the corner of her mouth.

"A bit. It's more difficult with Caroline, we don't really have much to talk about. It's a shame Andrew couldn't make it, he'd have balanced things out." Gill inhaled on her cigarette as she thought about how to tell Julie what she had overheard on her way to the loo. Gill exhaled and looked at her best friend closely.

"Julie…?"

"Mmm?" Gill opened her mouth to speak but was interrupted by the doorbell. "That'll be the kids. I should go and let them in, you stay out here here and finish your fag." Julie threw what was left of hers on the patio and stubbed it out with her toe before heading back inside. Gill sighed and thought that perhaps that conversation was better left until they were alone.