He's Mine

Chapter 9 - Childish tantrums

He's Mine

Chapter 9 – Childish tantrums

"Honey, are you ready yet?" Claire called up the stairs, peeking through the window at the car parked outside. "They're here!"

"I'm ready," Harmony replied and Claire jumped back in surprise to see her daughter in the doorway.

"Oh, so you are," She laughed, running a hand through her straightened hair.

"Are you okay, Mum?" You seem a bit on edge."

"Me? I'm fine. Come on, let's go." Claire placed a hand on her daughter's shoulder and guided her to the door. "You look lovely by the way, darling."

Harmony was wearing a pair of denim shorts with a loose fitting vest which was black with tiny pink flowers. Her hair was in its natural waves and her makeup was flattering but minimal. The summer nights hadn't quite cooled down yet but, knowing it would be cold late, she'd remembered to bring a cardigan too.

"Thanks Mum, so do you." Claire had dressed up slightly more however still kept it casual with her summer dress and sandals.

"Thank you, honey, now let's get going."

They walked out of the door and up the drive just as the driver got out of their car.

A tall man walked up to them. He had brown hair and kind green eyes which quickly raked down Claire's body, causing her to blush.

"Hi Darren," She greeted shyly; her cheeks still tinged red, "This is my daughter, Harmony."

Harmony was shocked to see him standing there, having expected her mother's 'friend' to be a woman. She didn't speak so Claire nudged her in the ribs.

"Harmony, don't be rude; say hello."

"Um, hi," Harmony muttered, still not understanding what was going on.

"It's nice to meet you Harmony, I've heard so much about you." Darren held out his hand to shake hers, but she was still staring between him and her mum in confusion and so ignored the gesture. Darren cleared his throat uncomfortably and retracted his hand. "Well, shall we get going?"

Claire giggled as he held open the passenger door for her to climb him. He also held the back door open for Harmony and she slowly slid into the car. He walked round the other side to get in the driver seat and then swivelled round to face Harmony.

"Okay Harmony this is Ben, my son, and Ben this is Harmony; Claire's daughter."

"Hello!" A young boy greeted, "I'm Ben and I'm five!" Like his father, he held out his small hand to her.

This time, Harmony reached over took his hand into her larger one, shaking them gently. "Hello, it's nice to meet you."

The resemblance between the two were noticeable, Ben had both his brown hair and green eyes. As they started to drive, Harmony briefly noticed the way Claire was constantly laughing at everything Darren said, the way she was twisting a strand of hair in her fingers and his deep chuckle as he kept stealing glances at her.

Suddenly Harmony felt uncomfortable; she wasn't used to this kind of scenario. Her mother had never dated anyone before, at least not to her knowledge. It was clear that Darren was more than just a 'friend' to her, or maybe she hoped he was.

***

"So, Darren, how did you meet my mum?" Harmony asked politely. They were seated in the Italian restaurant and now, having ordered, were waiting for their food.

"Actually, it was a funny story," Claire said, speaking instead of Darren. "You know I went to my friend Mindy's wedding while you were in Spain?" Harmony nodded to show she remembered. "Well, Darren was there too."

"I'm a friend of the groom."

Claire looked at him and smiled as she remembered. "We were at the same table for the meal and I was sat next to little Ben."

She looked over at the small boy who was grinning widely at her.

"I spilt my drink all over her lap!" He exclaimed, bringing his little hand to his mouth in shock.

"Yes you did honey," Claire laughed.

"So of cause I offered to buy her a drink and kept apologising for the ruined dress," Darren explained and he rested his hand over Claire's as he smiled warmly at her.

"And so we got talking from there," Claire continued, "He lent me his jacket when it got cold later...but I stupidly forgot to give it back."

Harmony raised her eyebrow; her mother never forgot stuff like that.

"So I got his number through Mindy and we arranged to meet up for a coffee later that week."

"Then I realised how much I love spending time with her so I kept inviting her out; dinner, films and such."

By the end of their recount, they seemed to be telling the story to each other. Claire was staring happily at Darren, who returned the gaze while softly stroking small circles on her palm.

"So you're dating?" Harmony asked bluntly, ruining the moment and causing Claire to switch her gaze to her daughter.

"Well actually there's a reason why we're having this meal; we've made a decision."

Harmony's throat suddenly felt really dry and she fiddled with her fork nervously as she stared cautiously at her mum.

"We know it's a little rushed..." Darren started.

"But we feel it's right," Claire finished, a wide grin pulling at her lips. Harmony picked up her glass of water and took a sip to quench her thirst. "Darren and Ben are moving in with us."

The water squirted from Harmony's mouth, landing her Claire who was sat opposite her who jumped in surprise. Harmony didn't apologise, instead she stared at her mother incredulously, "Moving in?!"

Claire took the napkin Darren held out to her, who felt cautious and slightly worried. Claire dabbed at the water, wiping it from her face then trying to soak it up from her clothes.

"Yes," She said shortly, "They'll be moving in by the beginning of October."

"That's like two weeks away!" Harmony protested, "You only met this guy four weeks ago!"

"Do not be so rude Harmony, Darren is still here and should not be referred to as 'some guy'." Claire was giving Harmony a stern stare, which only enraged her more.

"I can't believe this! You've only just introduced me to him and you're telling me they're going to be living with us?!" Harmony's raised voice was drawing attention from the others in the restaurant, but the strange looks cast her way were ignored.

"Harmony Barnes if you cannot be respectful or even kind then you can leave right now!" Claire proclaimed.

"Fine, I guess I'll be going then!" Harmony pushed her chair back noisily, slamming her hands heavily on the table before storming out of the restaurant.

As she disappeared outside, Claire sighed sadly. Darren wrapped his arm round her shoulder for comfort and she relaxed in his embrace.

"I'm so sorry," She said, "I thought she'd handle it better than that. She's never been so impolite and inconsiderate before."

"It's fine, she's bound to be upset by it. It has been just you and her for so long," Darren comforted.

"I know, but I've never seen her act so rude to people." Claire leaned up to place a small kiss on Darren's lips, but they were interrupted by a small voice.

"Ew! Daddy's kissing a girl!" Ben exclaimed, putting his hands over his eyes. This caused the adults to laugh, lightening the mood.

"Do you want to go after her?"

Claire shook her head, "No, if she wants to have a tantrum like a child then she can do that all she wants. She knows the way home."

Darren nodded and before they could discuss it further, their food came. They quickly tucked in; leaving Harmony's in her place in the slight hope she would return. She didn't.