“Nice to meet you, Brendan,” she says, holding out her hand.
I gently shake her hand, feeling awkward.
“I’ve seen a photo of you when you were younger, but you haven’t changed all that much.”
While my brain’s catching up to the fact that Kyle still has a photo of me,andhe’s shown it to Lucinda, his car pulls into the driveway, distracting us both. His long, lean body unfolds from the car, and he walks towards us. I breathe a sigh of relief when I see his eye is only slightly bruised and there’s no swelling.
Lucinda smirks at Kyle. “Hey Dad,Brendanis here to see the renovation.”
Kyle looks back and forth between the two of us. “Thanks Lu, I can see that.” His eyes finally settle on me. “Bren, I didn’t know you were coming.”
“I need to sign off on the work and make sure the boys have done a good job.”
“Okay, let’s go then.”
After I inspect the work, Jeff and the boys leave, and I hover at the front door, stupidly reluctant to leave. Kyle’s eye is fine, and his behaviour seems stable, and that kind of throws me. Why was I expecting the worst?
Kyle follows my every move, his eyes flitting all over my face then sweeping the length of my body. My breath quickens under his approving gaze. I walked right into this, didn’t I? Willingly and deliberately.
“Dad, aren’t you going to invite Brendan to stay for a beer?” Lucinda asks, appearing out of nowhere.
“Lu, how about you pack for your camp. You leave at six in the morning, so you need to get to bed early.” Kyle turns back to me. “Bren,doyou have time for a beer? As a thank you for the bathroom reno.”
“Ah… I’ve only got time for a quick one,” I reply, butterflies fluttering to life in my stomach.
Kyle leads me to the kitchen as Lucinda yells out, “Nice to meet you, Brendan.”
The weather is perfect, so we take the beers outside and sit on the outdoor sofa.
“I take it Lucinda knows somethin’ about me.”
Kyle smiles. “She saw a photo on my phone and asked about you. I didn’t tell her much, just that you were my first love, and that I’d run into you recently.”
“That true?”
“Not really.” Ky’s expression turns serious, his eyes meeting mine. “You weren’t my first love. You’re my only love.”
I don’t know what I’m supposed to do with that, so I treat it as a joke and chuckle. “Seriously, fuck off, Ky.”
The smile returns to his face, and he huffs a laugh.
We fall silent so I down most of the beer. I widen my feet, letting my thigh come to rest against Kyle’s. It’s foolish, I know, but I don’t move away either, just savour the warmth of his body. “Hey, I am sorry about punchin’ that pretty face of yours.”
Kyle’s eyes twinkle with affection. “I deserved it and then some. But I bet you’ve got a bitch of a bruise on your stomach.”
My eyebrows shoot up in mock offense and I try to suppress a smile but fail miserably. “From your pussy punch? I didn’t even feel it, Davies.”
“Whatever helps you sleep at night, Bren.”
We both look away and I gulp down a few more mouthfuls of beer. Why the fuck am I flirting?
“Hey, I recommended your company to a woman in my course—her name is Justine. She’s interested in getting her family bathroom renovated. I gave her your number.”
“Thanks, man. I appreciate it. Are you studying?”
“Yeah, I need to update my qualifications so I can work as a paramedic again. I’m gonna need a job soon. Plus, I really miss doing something purposeful. Being a dad will always be the most important thing in my life, but Lu is getting older, and I wanna be a role model for her.” Kyle rolls his eyes. “Jesus, I sound like such a douche.”
“Nah man, you don’t. I think it’s great. Are you enjoyin’ the course?” I’m proud of Kyle for taking steps to improve his life and I feel like a total asshole for calling him a bored housewife.
