The drive to Connie's took longer than expected because of an accident on the main road which meant she had to take the long way around, making her fifteen minutes late.
When she eventually arrived, the sky was already growing dark, despite it only being early afternoon, and she heard Connie before she saw her, a sudden, alarming burst of 'Mrs Beauchamp' through the closed door, demanding that her daughter wear something more appropriate as Rita climbed the steps to the front door and rang the bell.
There was the scrape of a high heel against the hallway floor, as though Connie had momentarily lost her balance, and she saw the hourglass shape of Connie's figure walking towards her through the frosted glass before the door opened.
"I'm sorry I'm late!"
She exclaimed before Connie could utter a word, one arm was held behind her, holding her hair in place whilst the other held a series of hair grips.
"Oh don't worry. We might never get anywhere at all unless Grace decides to put some clothes on."
Connie waved the hand that held the hair grips as she spoke, sending one to the floor by Rita's foot and as she bent to pick it up there was the slam of a door upstairs and the sound of heavy footsteps.
"I AM wearing clothes!"
Grace shouted, stalking to the top of the stairs wearing her skinny jeans and a black crop top. She spied Rita and paused, her hands on her hips, but before Rita could say hello she gave a toss of her long dark hair and ran back to her bedroom where Florence was waiting.
"God, she really is a carbon copy..."
Rita murmured, glancing to Connie who was twisting her hair into a bun at the back of her head, and fighting with a hair grip that she held between her teeth whilst she tryed to prise it open.
"Yes, well. I can't say I would ever wear a top like that, let alone in October."
She huffed, and Rita couldn't help but smile as she closed the door behind herself and followed Connie into the living room, watching her struggle with her hair as it all began to unravel between her fingers, and she muttered something inaudible under her breath.
"Let me..."
She moved behind Connie and placed her hands over the other woman's, waiting to feel her give in before releasing the grips from her hand, and with her other hand she ran her fingers through Connie's hair, loosening it and arranging it about her shoulders before circling her so that she could place the hair grips on the mantle piece and turn to face Connie.
"There."
She said simply.
"There?"
Connie repeated, glancing at herself in the mirror, her hair loose about her face, curling about her shoulders.
"You look beautiful."
Rita said with a nod, and she looked her up and down, taking in the black jumper, tight black jeans and the Louboutins.
"Though you're not wearing that."
She said matter of factly.
Connie glanced down at herself.
"We're going to a circus, not a funeral! And how far across the field are you going to get in those heels?"
She asked, watching Connie's expression change from one of confusion to indignation, and finally to the realisation that Rita was probably right.
"Go and change. We've got time, and I'll go and introduce myself to your daughter."
She concluded, and gestured with her arms for Connie to make her way back into the hallway and to the stairs.
"Good luck..."
Connie murmured, at a loss for what else to say. Rita had come into her home, whipped up all of the tension she felt, packaged it up and sent her back up to her room to change, and somehow she hadn't uttered a word.
She climbed the stairs, glancing back to Rita as she made her way up the second flight to her own room.
Rita tapped on the door beneath the wooden letter 'G' that indicated she had the right room, and from beyond she heard a scramble of limbs and a flurry of giggles, before eventually Grace opened the door, and Rita was amused to see the look of surprise on her face as she looked up at her.
"Hello Grace, I'm Rita."
She said, holding out her hand to the alarmed looking little girl. She glanced to the girl behind her who sat on the bed, her hair a mass of golden curls, her eyes small and close together.
"Aren't you going to introduce me to your friend?"
She asked, looking back to Grace whose cheeks were growing pink and her lips were pursed in a look that was unmistakeably Connie's.
The little girl folded her arms tightly across her chest and gave a toss of her hair, letting her eyes settle on Rita's converse trainers.
"You look like a lesbian."
She said, as airily as she might comment on the weather.
"And you'll look like a Smurf if you go outside wearing that top in this weather. I've told your mother to go and get changed into something more appropriate, now, I suggest you do the same unless you want to risk hypothermia."
Rita said quickly, all too aware that she must not hesitate.
The little girls mouth fell open and from behind her, the girl on the bed let out a snort of laughter through her nose and clamped her hand over her mouth, and Rita couldn't help but feel a pang of sadness for them, they seemed to be teenagers already, before they had even finished just being children.
"You told her to change too?"
Grace repeated, raising her eyes to Rita's, noticing how this woman shared the same dark brown eyes that she did, and finding herself oddly drawn to the kindness that she saw within them.
"Yep."
Rita crossed her own arms, mirroring Grace who without really meaning to found herself stepping out of the doorway, silently granting Rita entrance as she gestured limply with a hand to the girl on the bed.
"This is Florence."
She said, Rita smiled in greeting as she stepped into the room, and without a word Grace made her way over to the wardrobe and opened the door, staring up at the various other tops she had to choose between.
"So, are you glad to be home?"
Rita asked, picking up a soft toy rabbit from the arm chair in the corner before settling down into it herself and resting her hands upon it's arms, imagining as she did so, how many evenings Connie must have spent in this chair, watching over Grace when she was younger.
Grace shrugged.
"I wanted to spend Halloween in New York. Everyone says the parties there are amazing..."
She pulled a black and white striped jumper from a hanger as she spoke and pulled it on over her crop top.
"But Daddy's got to work next week, and I had to come back yesterday otherwise I would have missed Mummy's birthday."
She sighed and looked down at herself, then across to Rita, gesturing to her jumper.
"Better?"
She asked, though Rita was still processing what it was she had just said.
"Lovely..."
Rita said, frowning, and she paused before speaking again.
"I'm sorry? When is her birthday?"
She asked, and Grace looked at her with a glance that Rita couldn't quite determine whether it was suspicion or exasperation.
"Tomorrow..."
She raised that Beauchamp eyebrow again as she spoke, and Rita's eyes widened. How had she known nothing of this?!
"Tomorrow!?"
She repeated, and Grace nodded slowly, before collapsing onto the bed.
"She's going to be 48."
She added, picking at a loose piece of wool that stuck out from her right sleeve.
"Is she now!"
Rita smiled, sucking in her bottom lip as she thought this new information over.
"Daddy says that's nearly fifty, and that is REALLY old...like, really old..."
Grace grinned and even Rita laughed at how amused both Grace and her friend were by Connie's age.
"I wouldn't let your mother hear you say that if I were you..."
She murmured, hearing Connie moving about upstairs. She could hear the wardrobe door creak, and the sound of her bare feet on the floorboards.
"How old are you?"
Grace asked, breaking her train of thought, and she laughed and shook her head.
"I'm not sure I want to tell you!"
She grinned, and to her surprise Grace smiled back at her, her eyes equally wicked with amusement, and with a laugh she rolled over onto her back whilst Florence giggled again and Rita looked between them and narrowed her eyes, an idea forming ever so slowly within her mind.
"Right."
She said, deciding on her plan of action.
"Grace!...this is what we're going to do..."
-1-
: Thank you so much for your review! I have some scenes planned that you will love (hopefully) where Rita will get very protective over Connie, and show her feisty side with the mother of Grace's friend, Grace's Grandmother, and later on in the story, with 'Melissa' :)
And lollyblanc: A night together again? I shall grant your wish within the next couple of chapters :) xxx