Chapter 31

On Friday we had to visit the town hall to complete Pixie’s adoption.

“OK girls, this is important, so I need you to wear something really nice,” Kelly implored as she roused the girls in the morning.

“I understand that,” Naomi said sleepily, “but why are you wearing that fancy dress?”

“Because I want to, ok, this is a special day for us all, now both of you get out of your pit and get in the bathroom.”

Some considerable time later both girls appeared in the kitchen, and it was definitely worth Kelly’s efforts forcing them to dress smartly.

Pixie didn’t have any smart dresses yet, so she’d squeezed herself into one of Naomi’s, and the effect was quite spectacular, Naomi for her part was wearing a very similar dress, so they actually matched, and this pleased Kelly immensely.

“Oh look, Tom’s in a suit as well, this is a proper posh trip to sign some papers,” Naomi said, still grouchy.

“They’re important papers, how important you’ll find when we get there, now let’s get going, we don’t want to be late.”

We had to drive to Trafford, not my favourite place to navigate at rush hour, but we arrived in time and parked up beside Becky’s new Peugeot 108.

“What’s Becky doing here?” Pixie asked, “is she marrying Helen.”

“No, surely not, Helen would have told us, she’d want us as bridesmaids.” Naomi answered.

“Of course, maybe she’s paying her council tax or something.”

At the reception we met George.

“What’s George doing here, and in a suit? Something very fishy is going on here.”

We were directed down a long corridor and into a room towards the end, where Kelly, Pixie and I signed a form with the registrar.

“And now you’re our daughter officially,” Kelly said, “but don’t kiss me yet, we have one more job to do.”

With that the registrar led us into the next room.

“Oh, Helen’s here, and Becky, and George,” Naomi said, “what’s going on mum?”

“They’re getting married!” Pixie said in an almost scandalised whisper.

“You’re shitting me!” Naomi replied, a little too loudly.

As Kelly’s father was no longer around, and wouldn’t have been welcome even if he was, George was there to give away the bride, Helen and Becky were witnesses, Pixie and Naomi were stunned to silence by our audacity.

After the short ceremony we drove to The Royal for a little party, during the buffet lunch Pixie cornered George after I’d finished thanking him for the loan of the venue.

“George, I just have to ask you something, it’s been playing on my mind for days now.”

“Ok sweetheart, ask me anything.”

I knew what she was about to ask, so I hung around for the answer.

“Right, so I know Tom was a bit of a player back in the day.”

“Ok, this isn’t what I expected, but carry on.”

“Now, under intense questioning he admitted that he recognised Jenna, and sometimes he visited your pub.”

“Ahh, are you sure you want to continue along this road?”

“Absolutely, I want the truth.” Pixie said, her face as serious as I’d ever seen it.

George looked at me, I nodded, “you can tell her, I’d like to know myself.”

“Ok, shall we sit down for this?” He said as he stepped behind the bar and grabbed a bottle of Blantons bourbon he kept for special occasions and three glasses.

We took a table down the bottom of the garden, George poured three measures of the bourbon, “I think you’ll like this honey,” he said as he passed Pixie her glass, she took a sip and smiled.

“Ooh, that’s sweet, but it burns, I like it.”

As he poured us each a second shot he started to talk.

“Right, so you know what your mum got up to when you were a baby?”

“Yes, we’ve established she was basically a sex worker, and I’m kind of fine with that, a girl has to do what she can to make ends meet, today she’d have an Only Fans, much safer for all involved.”

“Ok, I’m not sure what you’re talking about, so moving on. Between the rape incident and you being born she was pretty wild, something had snapped inside and she was sleeping with anyone who’d have her, mostly for cigarettes and beer, but she’d not set up with Mel in the flat near my pub, that after you were born.”

“Ok, what does that mean?”

“She wasn’t plying for trade in my pub until after you were born.”

“I see, ok.”

“And to answer the question, there was a time Tom took Jenna back to his flat, in his defense I can’t imagine he thought she was underage.”

“So, you did bed her, but after I was born, but maybe that wasn’t the first time, yes, I’m going to say that you saw Jenna and had a reunion. Thank you George.”

And with that she swallowed the second shot of Blantons and skipped back to the pub, and to Naomi.

“I’m sorry Tom, I wish she hadn’t asked that question.”

“It’s ok, honestly. Something had been playing on my mind since I first saw Jenna, and first saw Pixie in fact, I recognised her even though we’d not met, and now I know why. God, the shit you do when you’re hammered.”

“And to be fair, she did look pretty mature, and she was very good looking until the drugs ruined her completely.”

“Still, I shouldn’t have been picking up hookers in pubs.”

“Well, I’m not going to presume to judge you for that Tom, you’re a good man. Pixie is craving a father, and I just know you can rise to that challenge.”

I finished my shot and clapped George on the shoulder, “thanks George, that’s put my mind at ease.”

“Happy to help, now I think you should join your wife.”

“Ahh yes, I probably should.”

“Will you tell her?”

“Kelly you mean?”

“Yes, will you tell her about Jenna?”

“I will George, we have no secrets, and she knows I was no angel back in the day.”

“Why did it take so long for you two to get together?”

“I’ve no idea, I think we were both too busy with our own lives, it was Naomi, she got fed up of me and Kelly not being together that prompted us, and for that I think we should all be grateful.”