'Are you getting excited about Cornwall?' he asked, and both youngsters grinned with delight at the prospect of the school camping trip to come.
But then Cindy said worriedly, 'Will Barker be all right without us?'
'Don't worry, you can leave everything to me,' Garth said easily. He saw Faye's lips twitching and said defensively, 'I can be good at things if I set my mind to it.'
'I know you can,' she admitted.
The meal went slowly, because at every course Cindy insisted on a doggy bag to take some home to Barker.
'What happens if we want to eat something?' Garth enquired in a spirit of curiosity. 'This is supposed to be your mother's birthday treat.'
'But Daddy, poor Barker's all alone at home,' Cindy pointed out.
'Well, at least he didn't try to get into the car with us this time,' Garth said with a grin.
'Yes, it was strange how quiet he was,' Faye mused.
'I think this is the best mummy's birthday ever,' Cindy said blissfully. 'And mine was the best me birthday ever.'
'What about that time I gave you a bike?' Garth asked. 'You were pretty pleased with that.'
'Oh, yes, it was a lovely bike,' Cindy said politely.
Too late he realized he'd put his foot in it. That had been her last birthday before the split, and he'd spent it the other side of the world. Faye had presented the bike. He sought back for a better birthday memory, and was shocked that he couldn't find one. Surely he couldn't have failed her every time?
'All right,' he said, remembering something with relief. 'How about that birthday when we all went to a burger bar. We had a great time, and I got stomachache from eating burgers and ice cream.'
Cindy crowed with laughter. 'Oh, Daddy, you were so funny that night.'
They'd all made silly jokes and laughed madly. It had been a great night out.
'There you are then. Wasn't that your best birthday?'
But Cindy shook her head. 'That was Adrian's birthday,' she said, not complaining but simply stating the fact.
'Oh, yes,' he said awkwardly, 'so it was.'
He had not seen Faye making frantic signals to him. His heart sank. When had he ever been there for Cindy? He hadn't even bothered to keep her photograph, although he had Adrian's, and Faye's too, hidden away in a drawer where nobody could discover it.
Now he remembered the one time he'd had an attack of conscience, buying her some pretty gift in town, only to discover that it was something she already had, without his even knowing. Faye had told him that. Cindy hadn't mentioned it, only rejoiced over her present like someone offered water in the desert.
Under the table he squeezed her hand, and was rewarded by a look of glowing happiness. For her, the past was forgotten, all swept away by the pleasure of his presence now. What must it be like to be able to forgive so easily?
To cover his confusion he raised his glass and said, 'Happy birthday to Mummy!'
Everyone chorused, 'Happy birthday!' and the moment passed.
The rest of the evening went merrily. When it was time to go, the children solemnly took possession of three doggy bags, treasuring them like gold, and carried them out to the car.
'Not on my freshly cleaned upholstery, please,' Garth said faintly.
Nancy had gone to visit her sister. When they drove past the railway station Faye spotted her coming out and they stopped to collect her. As they neared Elm Ridge they were astonished to see two police cars and four men.
'My name's Hallam,' a policeman said as Garth jumped out of the car. 'Your burglar alarm went off in the station. Someone's broken into your house. We're going to investigate.'
Faye and Garth insisted on coming too, leaving the children in Nancy's care. The house was in darkness and looked as always except that the French windows, which opened inward, stood gaping wide.
Quietly they slipped into the dark house and moved up the stairs. A muffled noise came from Cindy's bedroom. 'In there,' Hallam whispered. He took a deep breath and charged into the bedroom. 'OK! Nobody move! You're nicked.'
The silence that followed had a stunned quality. Following quietly, Garth and Faye were aghast to see Barker stretched out on Cindy's bed, regarding them with sleepy surprise.
Hallam spoke through gritted teeth. 'You left your dog out, sir!'
Faye crept tactfully away, pausing in the hall to call Nancy on the car phone, and telling her to bring the children in. She made coffee, which slightly mollified the police. But before they departed, Hallam paused in the doorway to say stiffly, 'Perhaps you'd like to consider having your burglar alarm disconnected from the station, sir? Soonl'
'Who left that wretched animal out?' Garth demanded when they were alone.
'It was you, Mummy,' Cindy claimed reproachfully. 'You called up the stairs, "Barker's in."'
Faye groaned. 'No, I said, "Check that Barker's in." I thought you were going to do it.'
'So nobody did it,' Garth said. 'When he found himself locked out, he simply charged the French windows until they burst open.'
He regarded the miscreant who'd eaten the contents of the doggy bags, and was now making a start on the bags themselves. 'Call yourself a guard dog!' he said accusingly. 'You're supposed to scare intruders away, not open the doors and invite them in.'
'Daddy, are you cross with Barker?' Cindy asked.
'Whatever for?' Garth demanded wildly. 'He's only broken into the house, made a mockery of my alarm system, and turned me into the butt of the local police.' He saw her looking worried and took her into the circle of his arm. 'It's all right, pet. He's forgiven.'
His reward was an eager hug. Even Adrian made a small concession, squeezing his father's shoulder as he went past. Faye followed them upstairs, where Nancy had just finished changing Cindy's bed linen.
'I'm sorry Barker gave you that extra work,' Faye said.
'It's no matter,' Nancy said, casting a benevolent eye on the culprit, who'd trotted up after Cindy. 'The poor dog was lonely.' She scratched Barker's head and he responded with a sigh in which fidelity, forgiveness and noble endurance were perfectly mixed. 'You come with Nancy, darling, and she'll find you a special titbit, to make up for all you've been through.'
CHAPTER FIVE
When Faye had seen the children tucked up she returned downstairs, where Garth was on the sofa drinking brandy. He handed her a glass of sherry that he'd poured for her.
'I thought you might need something to recover,' he said.
'Shall I check that everything's locked up?'
'No, I've just done it. Though it seems a wasted effort,' he observed wryly, 'since we have a dog that's keeping open house. What's so funny?' Faye had given a choke of laughter.
'I'm sorry,' she said. 'I was just trying to recall who said that once we were at Elm Ridge Barker couldn't cause any more trouble.'
Garth grinned. 'He was a short-sighted fool, whoever he was.'
'Oh, dear! That policeman's face!'
He gave a shout of laughter.
'Hush, you'll rouse the house,' she said, but her own mirth was bubbling up. She met his eye and suddenly the joke became hilarious. She leaned back against the sofa and laughed until she nearly cried. To her delight Garth was afflicted the same way. He gripped her hand, and she clasped him back, sharing the moment.
When the attack passed they sat together, giving vent to the occasional chuckle. His glance fell on her hand, still held in his. He grew quite still, then he raised it and brushed it against his cheek.
'What happened?' he asked quietly. 'Once, we were nlways laughing like that. Where did we lose it?'
At first she couldn't answer. His gesture had taken her breath away.
'It disappeared bit by bit,' she said slowly. 'We grew in different directions.'
'But did we have to? Couldn't we have stopped it?'
'I don't know,' she sighed. 'Perhaps we couldn't. We wanted such different things.'
'I never knew that,' he said after a while. 'I thought we wanted the same.'