But time moved on, she was getting back into the swing of things socially, and this evening's mini-party had evolved so naturally that she'd been happy to do it. Lily and Eddie, herself and Patsy, Dan, Declan and Gail. And Gail seemed perfectly pleasant; she worked as a buyer for an upmarket London department store and had already given Coral invaluable advice about replacing the taps in the downstairs cloakroom, and the best place to order specialist light bulbs online.
All in all, what could be nicer and more relaxed?
If you didn't happen to have a stonking crush on Declan and the terrible fear that his girlfriend was able to read you like a book.
Anyway, never mind, she was just being paranoid. Of course Gail couldn't tell. And this was Lily's evening. She was lit up with happiness, even managing to upstage Eddie himself. Everyone was getting on together just fine, Dan was back to his laid-back, wisecracking best and it hadn't even been embarrassing when one of the barmaids from next door had popped in and asked Eddie if she could have a selfie taken with him.
Despite the fact that it had ended up being seven selfies, because the girl's adrenalin-induced blinking had rendered the first six attempts not good enough.
It hadn't mattered at all, though. Eddie had submitted with good grace, and the girl, having proudly uploaded the end result to social media, was now the envy of all her female friends on Facebook.
‘Come on, let's get the rest of this food through.' Lily came into the kitchen, flushed and sparkly-eyed. ‘It all looks fantastic.'
‘Is Eddie all right?'
‘He's great.'
She was twenty-five now, old enough to settle down. In case Lily was wondering, Coral said, ‘I do like him, you know. Very much.'
Lily gave her a quick hug. ‘I know. Me too.'
Together they carried out the bowls of salad and dishes of salmon, curried eggs, baked tomatoes and Caribbean rice. On the terrace, Dan had taken charge of the barbecue and was deftly, one-handedly turning the steaks, sausages and marinated chicken legs. Smoky, spicy cooking smells filled the air as more food was laid out on the long table between plates, wine buckets and glasses.
‘You have a beautiful garden,' Gail told Coral as music was turned on in the living room and Alicia Keys' silky voice drifted out through the propped-open French doors. ‘Just lovely.'
The happy feeling in Coral's stomach mingled uneasily with the sensation that Gail was about to interrogate her in an exam for which she'd forgotten to revise.
‘Thanks. We like it.' Coral gave the potato salad a stir it didn't need. ‘Are you a gardener?'
‘God, no, not me. All those insects and worms.' Gail shuddered. ‘But I don't mind sitting in a deckchair admiring everyone else's hard work.'
She was forty years old, with her hair cut in a geometrically precise bob that emphasised her slender neck. She was beautiful, somewhat intense and clearly had wonderful dress sense.
‘Oh well,' Coral said with a smile, ‘we all like doing that.'
‘My flat has no garden, thank goodness.' Gail began separating the pile of plates as, behind the barbecue, Dan waved his tongs like a conductor and started singing along to the music playing on the sound system.
‘So you won't be helping Declan out with the one at Weaver's Cottage?'
‘Ha, not a chance.' Declan had brought Gail down this afternoon and shown her the work that was being carried out on the property. She grimaced slightly. ‘It still needs an awful lot doing to it.'
‘Ah, but it'll be worth it in the end. And he won't have any trouble selling it on or renting it out,' said Coral. Aware of Gail's cool gaze upon her, she felt the tension ramping up. ‘There's always a market for nicely done-up cottages in a picturesque setting. And people in Stanton Langley are friendly. It's a great village.'
‘So Declan keeps telling me.' Gail paused, her tone measured. ‘To be honest, I wondered what was going on at first. When he received that letter out of the blue from Lily. I thought maybe he was her father and wasn't admitting it.'
Halfway down the garden, with the rays from the setting sun streaming through the high branches, Lily was showing Declan how she used to climb trees as a child. As they watched her, fifteen feet off the ground, she hooked her legs over a swaying horizontal branch and hung upside down like a monkey.
A monkey wearing jeans, silver hoop earrings and flip-flops.
‘Oh Jesus,' cried Declan, shielding his eyes from the sun's glare as he gazed up in horror. ‘Don't do that. Come down!'
‘I spent years telling her that,' Coral said fondly. ‘Never made a blind bit of difference. Nick used to call her half child, half orang-utan. And no,' she went on, ‘Declan isn't her father. But don't they get on well? There's a real connection between them. And it's been fantastic for Lily, meeting someone who meant so much to her mum.'
‘I suppose it must be.' Gail softened slightly.
‘It's so lovely seeing them together. I think it means a lot to Declan too, what with him not having any children of his own.'
‘So far,' said Gail.
‘Oh!' Coral's heart broke into a gallop. Her gaze slid to the glass of iced sparkling water in Gail's manicured hand. The swell of her breasts beneath the crisply cut lilac linen dress. Were they usually smaller than that? And did the fact that Declan hadn't so much as mentioned it mean he didn't yet know?
Then she became aware that Gail's head was tilted like a bird's and she was being observed with a mixture of triumph and amusement.
‘I'm not pregnant, if that's what you're thinking.' The glossy, expertly lowlighted bob swung from side to side and her mouth opened to reveal dazzlingly white teeth. ‘The reason I'm drinking water is because I'm driving us back to London tonight.' Picking up one of the plates, Gail began helping herself to food from the various bowls arranged along the table. ‘Is the dressing on this salad oil-free?'
‘Um … no, I'm afraid not.'
‘Oh. OK.'
‘I could do you some,' Coral offered helplessly, because Gail was clearly disappointed.
‘Thank you, that would be great. Sorry if it's boring, but I like to take care of myself.' Gail followed her into the kitchen.
‘I can see that. You have a fantastic figure.'
‘I know. Well, so do you. Was your husband overweight?'
Coral was already tearing up fresh lettuce, throwing it into a bowl. She turned, surprised. ‘Nick? No.'
‘Oh, I just wondered. What with him dying so young of a heart attack.' Gail shrugged. ‘It generally happens to people who eat too much.'
‘Well not in Nick's case.'
‘Sorry, am I being a bit blunt? I don't mean to be.' Picking up a bottle of balsamic vinegar, Gail coated the torn lettuce leaves.
If Gail could do it, so could she. Feeling terribly brave, Coral said, ‘So are you and Declan trying for a baby?'
Gail added cherry tomatoes, cooked asparagus and discs of cucumber to the salad. ‘I'm considering it. I suspect Declan regrets not having had children before. He'd be a fantastic father, don't you think?'
What was she meant to say to that? Coral nodded. ‘I'm sure he would,' she murmured. ‘And if it's what you want, too … '
‘Ah well, I love Declan.' Gail shrugged elegantly. ‘That's the main reason I'd be doing it. Babies aren't really my cup of tea, but if it's what he wants, I'm happy to give it a go. You never know, it might not be as bad as people make out.'
Coral was taken aback. ‘What if it is?'
Gail shrugged. ‘Lots of women think they don't want children, then when it all starts happening they change their mind. My cousin was the same as me and she's got three now! So it all worked out OK in the end.'
Coral blinked. ‘Right.'
‘Do you find Declan attractive?' said Gail.
OK, hang on, what did she just say? Coral frowned, assuming she'd somehow misheard. ‘Sorry?'
Gail repeated it. ‘Declan. Do you find him attractive?'
Mortified, Coral shook her head. ‘No! Why?'
‘No particular reason. Just interested.' Gail was watching her with a perfectly pleasant smile on her face. ‘The thing is, and I think most people would agree with me, Declan is a very attractive man. So I suppose I'm wondering why you don't think so.'
Which on the surface sounded completely plausible, but Coral was almost sure she wasn't imagining the unspoken subtext. As if Gail were perfectly well aware of Coral's experimental crush on him.