“But she doesn’t even know what it is. Do you honey?”
“Mum,” said Kiara exasperated. “Do I need to know what it is?” She’d laid her menu down, confident that she wasn’t having to pick anything else.
“Course you don’t Kiara,” Phil said, reaching down and placing his hand over Sadie’s on his leg. “But I warn you. If it goes too far and we’re doing the washing up, I’m sending you into the kitchen ok?” He was smiling playfully over at her as he said it, no bitterness behind it at all. Sadie squawked along with the joke and poked him in the ribs. Feigning agony, he then made a final check for his own dinner, and stacked the menu away.
Kiara sighed at the idea of Phil playing the silly boyfriend, and also for the first time, felt a slight pang of guilt, that the stark red smile currently on her mum’s lips, would be gone for quite a while after tonight. She mentally shook the thoughts away though. It wasn’t her fault. If her mother knew what hell the man had put her through, she would understand. This way, she would at least only be sad for the loss of her boyfriend, and not because of the defiling of her daughter.
“What are you having darling?” Sadie quizzed Phil, her owlish gaze still running over the menu. She must’ve read through it three times by now cover to cover, and she still hadn’t made a decision.
“The uhh…” he hesitated, then trailed off as he saw a waiter heading straight for their table. “Anyway, Sadie. Make your mind up, here he comes now.” The man clicked his pen and held it ready over his pad.
“Evening guys. Do you know what you’re having?” His vowels were still elongated, but not as forcefully as the first man’s.
“Just about,” said Phil with a smirk. He took the liberty of reading out Kiara’s choice, rendering in his perfect cockney though this time. “Penne chicken for me please and…?” Looking expectantly at Sadie as she still calmly rounded down her final three choices. “Umm… oh I don’t know.”
“Sadie,” Phil chided, wondering if she actually thought this dallying was somehow cute.
“Oh… ok. The vegetable lasagne for me then please.” She dropped the menu down in triumph and Phil clicked his fingers.
“All that time and I could’ve put money on that all along. Ok yes, one of those then too. And a bottle of your finest white if you can.”
The man smiled politely, and behind his eyes was congratulating himself on picking to serve the biggest spenders so far that evening. He certainly hadn’t considered this man to be rich in any way, and just hoped that his baggy suit didn’t mean he had long pockets inside it.
With the order taken, he clicked his pen shut again and thanked them. Then he gathered up the menus and walked away, his tread making no sound hardly at all on the lush carpet underfoot.
“Sorry,” Sadie said sheepishly, and unrolled her serviette to get her cutlery out.
Phil rubbed his chin, feeling a small amount of stubble there already since this morning. “It’s ok baby,” he said cheerily, and even leaned to kiss her. “You can’t help being indecisive.” She grinned at him, apparently instantly calmed by his words.
“It really is very nice here,” commented Sadie again, almost blushing at finding herself in such opulent surroundings. “Thank you Phil for bringing us here.”
Phil just smiled and nodded. “It’s fine,” he said glibly and looked around them at the other diners. “Anything for my two favourite girls in the whole world.”
Sadie blushed and chuckled, her second chin making an appearance as she beamed. “Aww, even so. It’s still only right for us to show our gratitude,” Sadie said, and Phil panicked a little that she might be wanting to show her own gratitude later that night. But she then continued. “Isn’t that right Kiara?”
That was more like it. A subtle lesson of manners for her daughter. Kiara just nodded though wordlessly, and her mother glared at her.
Kiara went to scowl, but then suddenly seemed willing to actually comply with her mum’s wishes. “Thank you Phil,” she said flatly, hardly looking at him at all. “For everything tonight.”
Sadie seemed satisfied with this little display, even if Phil was personally raging inside at the obvious show of defiance to him.
The waiter soon returned though and Phil had something to turn his attention towards. “Ah thanks,” he said as the man topped up the adults’ two glasses, then glanced at Sadie for approval as he poised the neck of the bottle over the rim of the third. Sadie nodded a yes. “We’re celebrating you see,” she said, even though technically she didn’t have to offer any reason why the young girl should be allowed a drink at the table.
Kiara’s eyes seemed a little brighter after the bottle had been thumped down into the middle and they were all alone again. “Thanks mum,” she said excitedly and sipped at the sweet strong liquid.
“Don’t be downing that now,” Phil warned. “We’re only having one bottle. Save it for your meal.”
As she had been doing most of the night, Kiara ignored him and deliberately turned her head to examine the elegant decor of the restaurant. She toyed with the idea of getting her phone out, but thought better of it as Phil would only then have an excuse to legitimately shout at her. Luckily her attention was soon drawn back to the table anyway as her mum called to her. As she turned, she found her mum idly playing with her uneven nails as she contemplated something.
“I was thinking. Don’t you need to be having some new clothes for the summer now the days are warming up?” She’d always been conscientious about her daughter’s appearance, and especially the sartorial part. “I was looking at some of your stuff in the washing the other day and you must’ve grown out of most of it.”
Phil sipped from his wine glass and looked warily over it towards Kiara. This was not the choice of topic he would’ve made himself, and as his groin twitched, he was hoping a swift nod from the girl would end it.
“I guess,” said Kiara quietly. She’d lost most appreciation for her own body of late and it really didn’t matter to her anymore how she looked either in or out of the house.
“Come on, next weekend,” her mum chirruped on, finally finishing with her nails and looking up. “A real girlie day out hmm? We can clothes shop till we drop. Just the two of us, it’ll be fun.”
This seemed to brighten Kiara’s mood even more now though and she nodded eagerly. By then her life would be falling all back into place, and this would help replace another dislodged piece. “Sure. Thanks mum!” she said gleefully and rubbed her hands, then glugged another mouthful of wine. Phil was keeping a firm eye on the level of the drink as it rapidly descended.
There was a brief silence till Kiara mentally flicked her way through racks of clothes she’d seen months before. “Actually. There’s this blue dress I’ve seen in New Look. It’s really cute. I mean I’d have to try it on of course but… I’m sure it’d fit , and that would be so cool for me over summer.”
“Well we’ll have to look at the prices won’t we.” Sadie gestured with her own glass as she talked, the wine nearly being jostled out over the top. “I mean even that dress tonight,” she carried on, “you do look lovely in it darling, but, well, you are rather spilling out of it.” She quickly raised her other hand at her daughter’s obvious hurt expression. “No.. I mean at the top silly.” The swift correction only made Kiara look down at the deep valley formed between her breasts.