Chapter 5: Mother and Daughter

"Oh mum, you won't believe his house. It's a mansion – it's really huge" Chloe exclaimed to her mother as soon as she was alongside her bed.

"Well good morning to you too, darling" Katherine replied a trifle sarcastically, but with a grin at her only child, before adding with a trace of concern "I take it that you had a good night from your beaming face. Did he treat you properly?"

"For sure, mum, he was not only a real gentleman, but he was so considerate and generous as well. I've got my own bedroom and it's huge with a big bed, lots of wardrobes, not that I need them, and a dressing table with a stool and my own bathroom that's so glamorous. Last night he let me help him cook and we had fillet steak with mushrooms done in red wine; some fancy potatoes with cream, garlic and onion, as well as minted peas, Brussels sprouts with pine nuts and honeyed carrots with almond flakes. Then we had strawberries soaked in some liqueur with dreamy ice cream. After dinner he let me chose a DVD from hundreds he's got and we watched it on his way big TV" she gushed.

"Sounds like you had a lousy time" her mum laughed, before adding more seriously "you realise you're going to have to look after me for a couple of weeks when I get out of here and we get back to our flat."

"No mum, I won't!"

"What do you mean 'no'?" her mother replied, very disappointed with her daughter, trying hard to withhold the tears as she sobbed slowly "I won't be able to walk for a couple of weeks. I don't know how I'll manage the stairs to get up to our flat and once there, you'll have to do the shopping and look after me, darling. I'm sorry to load this on you, but as it is I don't know how we're going to manage."

"I meant 'no I won't help you back in our dingy flat' mum, not 'no, I won't help you at all'. That flat's no place for you, especially in your condition. Stephen and I have plans for you" she smiled at her mum proudly, finally bending to give her a kiss and a cuddle.

"What do you mean plans? And where is Stephen? I thought he'd be here with you"

"He's outside in the waiting room. He wanted to give me some quality time alone with my favourite mum" Chloe whispered affectionately, stoking her mother's hair, while she assured her mum that she loved her and hoped she'd be better soon. She realised how hard her mum's life had been and the sacrifices she had made trying to ensure that her daughter didn't have to suffer like she had.

Katherine gazed with pride at her beautiful daughter, amazed just how gorgeous and unaffected she was despite the trauma and hardships they had suffered. Not for the first time she wondered how she had managed to turn out to be as nice and caring as she was. She was glad she hadn't listened to her parents though, despite the disastrous relationship she'd had with her first boyfriend, Chloe's father, whom her daughter had never seen. If she had listened, she wouldn't have ended up with this wonderful child.

She did regret her next choice in partner though. He had turned out to be some piece of work, a real rotten apple and she was so glad to be finally free from him, scared as she was of being able to support them both, especially now after her accident. Her biggest regret was her parents' lack of support and total withdrawal from her life. Their loss, she reasoned as they have never known what a great granddaughter they have. She just couldn't understand how any parent could dismiss their own flesh and blood like that, notwithstanding their strong, even extreme, religious beliefs.

But now she felt that she was rapidly developing a strong feeling for the man who had not only saved her, but now was extending such a caring, helping hand. The hospital staff had been amazed at his strength and the instinct he had displayed and they made a point of telling her how he had undoubtedly saved her life. If he had gone for help instead of carrying her all the way to his car, she almost certainly would have died by the time she could have got proper treatment.

"Oh darling, I seemed to have picked the right man to rescue me, didn't I? Why don't you ask him to come and join us and then you can both tell me what these 'plans' are?" she suggested, looking forward to seeing him again.

Stephen walked in ahead of Chloe, carrying a beautiful bunch of flowers in one hand and a bag of grapes in the other, handing both to her as he reached her bedside and asked how she was doing.

"Pretty good, thanks to you and thanks so much for everything you've done for us, especially treating Chloe so nicely" she exclaimed gratefully, smiling up at him she reached her arms up to him and asked "do you mind if I give you a kiss?"

"That would be even nicer than you running around topless" he responded as he gave her a light kiss on the lips and then smiled broadly, even fondly at her.

"Are you trying to give my daughter the wrong impression of me?" she pretended to be hurt and screwed her face up.

"Besides," she added as her face broke out into a smile "I was scarcely in any condition to be running around and you know full well that my sports bra covered far more than any bikini top would have. Anyway, you made me take my top off; maybe I should charge you with improper behaviour."

"Think I should have told you I needed the bra straps to tie it all up" he laughed and by now all three were laughing, relaxed and, in the case of the two girls, just for a moment, forgetting their problems.

"Mum, Stephen's home has four bedrooms and three bathrooms upstairs, but there's another bathroom downstairs next to the games room. Stephen said he's going to put a bed in the games room so that you can stay there and you won't have to go upstairs until your legs are both better," so happy with the suggestion he had made to her last night and hoping her mother would accept the generous offer.

"We can't accept all this charity. It's not right, darling" Katherine said softly, looking at her daughter hoping she'd understand, but also hoping that Stephen wouldn't listen to her protests. She realised just how much her immobility was going to affect her and Chloe during the next couple of weeks.

"Nonsense! I've got a huge, empty house and nothing better to do than look after a gorgeous invalid and her beautiful daughter. More to the point, when else am I likely to have a sexy young lady at my mercy, unable to run away from me" he told her, his eyes twinkling with mirth.