Hopelessly Devoted to Holden Finn (3 page)

‘Alright?’ Jeanie shouted over the din, her face split into a huge grin. ‘We’ve had such a laugh today.’

‘Have you?’ Bonnie looked slyly at Paige, whose gaze dropped to her feet as she wrestled her hair back into a ponytail.

Jeanie disappeared into the living room and Bonnie followed. She watched as her mum went to the CD player and turned down the volume.

‘Cup of tea, love?’ Jeanie asked Bonnie as she straightened her denim blouse down over skin-tight trousers.

Bonnie’s attention was drawn to her mum’s bottom half. ‘Are those
leather
trousers?’ she asked with an incredulous stare.

‘Gorgeous, aren’t they?’ Jeanie said with obvious pride. ‘Got them off Ebay.’

Bonnie could think of a lot of words to describe the trousers that her mum had poured over her legs, but gorgeous wasn’t one of them. There was no doubt that for someone of her age, Jeanie had a fantastic figure; even so, leather trousers were not, in Bonnie’s humble opinion, entirely appropriate – even she would feel self-conscious in a pair. At times Bonnie was convinced that her mum thought she was twenty-six, not fifty-six.

‘I like them,’ Paige said in a stubborn voice from behind Bonnie.

‘I’ll get you a pair then,’ Bonnie replied sweetly.

‘Ugh!’ Paige turned and swept from the room.

‘I’ll put the kettle on,’ Jeanie said, sharing a wry smile with her daughter.

Bonnie shook her head. ‘I probably should get back,’ she said. ‘Thanks though.’

‘What have you got to hurry back for? I was going to tell you about the lovely shopping trip Paige and I had today. I got her some pink hair colour.’

‘
What
?’

Jeanie nodded as she squeezed past Bonnie to go to the kitchen.

‘She can’t use it, school won’t let her.’ Bonnie followed her mum to the kitchen.

‘It’ll wash out in no time. It’s not permanent.’

‘Did she choose it?’

‘No, I did. I thought it would look lovely with her skin colouring.’

Paige was sitting at the kitchen table texting.

‘You know you can’t use that hair colour, school won’t let you,’ Bonnie said to Paige.

‘Chill, Mum. I’ll just wait until the holidays.’

‘You used to dye your hair all the colours of the rainbow,’ Jeanie said to Bonnie. ‘And permed it too.’

Bonnie sighed and took a seat at the table. ‘I suppose it could be worse,’ she said to Jeanie, ‘you could have tried to get her to have that nose piercing again.’ She looked at Paige, whose attention had returned to her phone. ‘Who are you texting?’

There was no reply.

‘Paige?’

Nothing.

‘Earth to Paige,’ Bonnie called.

Paige looked up at her. ‘What?’

‘Who are you texting?’

‘Does it matter?’

‘No, but I’m interested.’

‘Why?’

‘I just am.’

‘Well, my text is very uninteresting, so maybe you want to find your entertainment elsewhere.’

‘Paige!’

Bonnie heard Jeanie chuckle from across the room where she was putting mugs out.

‘It’s not funny, Mum!’ Bonnie squeaked.

‘You have to admit, if nothing else she’s eloquent,’ Jeanie replied.

‘She’s fifteen.’

‘Yes, and very like her mum was at the same age.’ Jeanie turned and put her hands on her hips as she gazed at her daughter. ‘When did you lose that spark, Bonnie?’

Bonnie pushed a hand through her fringe and glanced at Paige, who had returned to her messaging. ‘Right about the time that Henri left.’

Jeanie sniffed as she squeezed the teabags in the mugs. ‘Him again. I knew he was trouble the minute you brought him home. Your dad said so too.’

‘Dad didn’t like him because he was French.
Bloody Frog
was the exact term he used.’

‘French or not, your dad knew bad news when he saw it; he just wasn’t good at expressing his feelings in a PC sort of way.’

‘He didn’t express anything in a PC way. He thought PC stood for Political Crap.’

‘All I’m saying is that you need to move on. Henri’s not coming back.’

‘I know,’ Bonnie said irritably, ‘everyone keeps telling me, as if I don’t know.’

‘Knowing is not the same as accepting, love.’ Jeanie crossed the room with two mugs and set one down in front of Bonnie.

‘I have accepted it.’

‘Then why aren’t you dating?’

‘Where is the rule that says I have to?’

‘There isn’t one. But it’s normal behaviour.’

‘Who says?’

‘I do.’

‘Ridiculous. Women can manage perfectly well without men these days.’

‘Oh, and when did you turn into Annie Lennox,
doing it for yourself
?’

Bonnie couldn’t help but grin. ‘Be careful, you’ll be showing your age: that song is so before my time.’

‘
That song
is a classic,’ Jeanie retorted, ‘old or not you can’t argue that Annie Lennox is amazeballs. Paige knows it, don’t you?’

Paige glanced up, shrugged, and then went back to her phone.

‘
Amazeballs
?’ Bonnie laughed. ‘You’ve spent too much time listening to your granddaughter. Next you’ll be telling me Freddie Mercury is
epic
.’

‘He is,’ Jeanie said defensively.

‘All I can say to that is LOL!’ Bonnie said.

‘You must have your eye on someone?’ Jeanie insisted, turning back to Bonnie.

Bonnie’s thoughts went to the flowery paper in her bag. ‘Not really.’ She took a sip from her cup. ‘Besides, men only let you down. It’s just not worth it.’

‘Not all of them.’

‘
You’re
still single.’

Jeanie looked into her cup. ‘That’s different.’

‘How?’

‘I’m older for a start. And your dad…’

‘Was the love of your life,’ Bonnie finished, her tone softening. ‘He was, and you were his, but he wouldn’t want you to be alone. Even when you went backstage
flirting like a prossie with Whitesnake, he knew you’d always be going home with him. But he also knew how much you liked company, and he’d hate to think of you living on your own like this, year after year.’

‘I get plenty of company,’ Jeanie said. ‘More mates than I can visit.’

‘It’s not the same, Mum.’

‘We’re talking about you, not me.’

‘Pot… kettle…?’

‘Paige!’ Jeanie said, turning to her granddaughter in an obvious attempt to change the subject. ‘You want a can of coke or anything?’

Paige looked up from her phone. ‘Are we staying for a bit?’ she asked Bonnie.

‘For half an hour, why?’

‘I wanted to FaceTime Annabel.’

‘And you have to do that right now?’

‘Yeah, she’s got something important to tell me.’

‘Aren’t you texting each other as we speak?’

‘Yeah, but…’

Bonnie sighed. ‘At least let me finish this drink and gaze upon your beauty for a while, because once we get home, you’ll be locked in your bedroom with that ipad and I won’t see you for the rest of the night.’

‘You were the one saying we couldn’t afford it so if you did buy one I couldn’t leave it gathering dust under my bed…
like everything else you get a fad for…
’ Paige mimicked Bonnie’s voice as she finished the sentence.

‘Paige, don’t be hard on your mum, she’s been to work all day to pay for those things that are gathering dust under your bed.’

Paige almost fired back a reply, but then clamped her mouth shut and stared at her phone again.

‘Just leave it, Mum,’ Bonnie said wearily.

Jeanie shrugged. ‘You’re not staying for anything to eat, then? I have pork chops that need using up.’

‘Do you mind if we don’t? I’m really tired and I think Paige has important social networking to do.’

Jeanie frowned. ‘If you’re sure you won’t?’

Bonnie nodded.

‘In that case, take the chops with you, even I can’t eat as many as I have in and I need to keep my backside tiny if I’m going to fit into these trousers come The Blood Festival next spring.’

‘The Blood Festival? Sounds charming. I don’t think I want to know.’ Bonnie took another sip of her tea and threw a questioning look at her mum over the rim of her mug.

Jeanie laughed. ‘It’s only a rock festival. I haven’t gone all voodoo on you!’

‘Glad to hear it,’ Bonnie replied. Although, she wondered if a little voodoo in her life wouldn’t necessarily be a bad idea. It might fix a few things, and it couldn’t make things any worse than she was doing on her own.

***

Bonnie lay in the bath, staring up at the ceiling. It needed painting, she thought vaguely, as she gazed at the bubbled plaster and clouds of mould that had gathered in the corner by the window. The walls weren’t much better. If she was completely honest, the whole room needed to be ripped out and started again, but that wasn’t going to happen any time soon on her budget. She had dropped massive hints to her mum that she needed a visit from the
DIY SOS
team, but Jeanie had stubbornly refused to notice. Paint was going to have to do, but even that would have to wait. With a school trip to Belgium to pay for and a list of bills that never seemed to be under control, it was just another promise to herself that would not be delivered.

True to her forecast, Paige had taken herself into her bedroom as soon as they walked back into the flat and had been in there for the two hours they had been home. Bonnie could hear the odd stifled giggle, and the low hum of conversation, but what was being discussed she could only guess at and, despite the fact that Paige would probably be unaware of it, eavesdropping didn’t seem right. With that in mind, she wasn’t rushing to get out of the bath only to sit in front of the TV alone and watch the endless stream of pointless drivel that counted for entertainment. It seemed like a long time ago since Paige had wanted to sit with her and chat in an evening.

Dear Holden,

Please rescue me.

Love, Bonnie.

Bonnie’s thoughts were interrupted by a hammering at the door.

‘Mum!’

‘What?’

‘The internet’s gone down again!’

Bonnie frowned. ‘What do you want me to do about it? I’m in the bath!’

‘I was in the middle of an important conversation with Annabel.’

‘And?’

‘Well, now I don’t know what she wanted to say.’

‘Have you turned off the router and started it up again?’

‘Yeah, that didn’t work.’

‘I don’t know what it is then. I’ll have to phone the cable company or something later.’

‘What about Annabel?’

‘What about her?’

‘I need to speak to her.’

‘Phone...’

Bonnie heard a loud, theatrical sigh and then Paige’s footsteps as she stomped away.

Wine was in order, lots and lots of wine. Tomorrow was Sunday and there wouldn’t be anything better for Bonnie to do than nurse a well-earned hangover.

Reaching for the towel, Bonnie hauled herself out of the bath. She ought to go and look at that router before Paige exploded with rage. Knowing her daughter’s volatile temper these days, it wasn’t completely unimaginable...

That was when she heard the high-pitched squeal.

Wrapping the towel around her dripping body, Bonnie rushed into Paige’s bedroom.

‘Mum!’ Paige shouted as Bonnie burst in the door. ‘What the hell’s the matter with you?’

‘I could ask you the same thing!’ Bonnie thundered as she saw that Paige was lounging on her bed with the phone, just ending a call and clearly not injured or in any sort of peril at all.

‘There’s nothing wrong with me.’

‘I said I would ring the cable company, but you could at least let me get out of the bath.’

‘Who cares about the stupid internet? Annabel phoned me when she couldn’t get through.’

‘What’s with the screaming then?’

Paige sat up, her face now glowing and her eyes suddenly alive with excitement.

‘Annabel’s just told me about an amazing competition.’

‘Competition?’ Bonnie asked with some exasperation, now aware that she was making quite a wet mess on the carpet.

‘Yeah! To meet Holden!’

Bonnie’s mouth fell open. Her gaze travelled to the poster above her daughter’s bed. She didn’t need to ask which Holden. Suddenly, her pulse seemed to run that little bit quicker. ‘Holden?’ she repeated.

‘Yeah, Holden Finn… from
Every Which Way
.’

‘I know who you’re talking about,’ Bonnie said in a dazed voice.

‘I’m going to enter; it’s dead easy; all you have to do is text his middle name.’

‘Gabriel!’ Bonnie squeaked. As soon as she had, she felt the colour rush to her cheeks.

‘OOOH, get the oldie in the know.’

‘I’m not that old,’ Bonnie laughed awkwardly, relieved that her moment of embarrassment had gone unnoticed. But inside she was a whirlwind of emotions. She might be as close as a text message away from meeting Holden Finn. But then she saw something of her own excitement reflected in her daughter’s face and realisation came crashing in on her. Even in the incredibly unlikely event of her winning if she entered this competition, how could she not give her place to Paige? Paige, who would want her best friend, Annabel, to go with her, not her embarrassing, almost grey-haired mum.

‘Anyway, it costs, like, about two quid to text, that’s alright though, yeah?’ Paige rattled off, already tapping away on her phone without waiting for her mum’s reply.

‘I suppose,’ Bonnie said. ‘Maybe I should text too, from my number, double your chances and all that?’

Paige looked up in surprise. ‘Would you, Mum? That’d be epic.’

‘Hmmm,
epic
… I suppose it would be,’ Bonnie murmured to herself as she went to get dry.

Two

Bonnie tossed and turned but sleep wouldn’t come. It was ridiculous to get this worked up over a situation that was statistically unlikely to happen and even if it did, what kind of mother would consider stealing such a wonderful opportunity from her daughter? It was the worst kind of stupidity and Bonnie hated herself for even thinking about it. But one small part of her couldn’t let it go. She had sent her competition text, just as she’d promised, and now she almost dreaded a call to say she had won. At least if it didn’t come, she wouldn’t have to feel guilty about her reluctance to stand by and watch Paige and Annabel take her chance to meet the man of her dreams. Not that she’d register on his potential partner radar, even if she did get to go. A thirty-five-year-old mother of one teenage nemesis getting together with one of the country’s most sought after young bachelors? It was about as likely as finding a real pea in a Pot Noodle.