Kindly_Meister After Tamsin’s visit to his flat, Alasdair’s online life had relaxed into a lull. Nothing, he knew, could compete with an experience like that. It was a meal to be savoured and, like an anaconda that had gorged on a goat, he was sated. His need for now was to lie low and regroup. He focused on nurturing his body with fresh food, daily walks and a reasonably committed effort to avoid alcohol, and his soul with greater familial connection. The lid of his laptop lay closed for the most part, and, despite the temptations of his unslakeable thirst for whisky and a couple of minor falls off the wagon, he was a genuinely contented man for a month or so. By Hattie’s birthday, even Lorna, with a little help from Lyall and subtle encouragement from her mother, had mellowed her attitude a bit and Alasdair was invited to join them all for Saturday afternoon tea, before five 10-year-old girls descended on their home for a sleepover. Jane was there too, alone this time, having been drafted in to whisk Maidie and Emily away for the night and cut down on the potential for chaos in the household.
