CALLUM
The regular thrumming of light raindrops bounces lightly from the double-glazed window. Abby sleeps peacefully next to me, her blonde hair scattered over her bare shoulders, the covers bunched round her waist.
It’s all too easy to picture her here, surrounded by her friends and family, the night before she was supposed to get married. It must have been horrific, but I can’t bring myself to feel sorry, or I wouldn’t be here now. I’m not sure if she ever did file that restraining order against Fitzpatrick, but I trust she did. There’s been no word since. I’d love to believe that’s the end of it, but I’m not holding my breath. If it were me, I wouldn’t be giving her up so easily. Then again, I wouldn’t have cheated on her, or abandoned her, in the first place.
The noisy hiss of a boiling kettle travels up the narrow stairs from the kitchen below. I decide to brave the prospective out-laws alone and creep out from under the floral duvet, gently kissing Abby on the head. I pull on a pair of jogging bottoms and one of thirty team jerseys that I own.
I automatically assume it’s Cathy making the tea, not Abby’s less than welcoming father, Noel.
‘Good morning.’ I make my presence known as he stands with his back to me, sporting a navy dressing gown and slippers that I’m not awfully comfortable meeting him in.
‘It was.’ Noel grimaces as he pours boiling water into a red teapot.
‘Sorry.’ I back away and raise my hands in retreat. I can’t force the man to warm to me.
‘No, I’m sorry.’ Noel shakes his head, chastising himself. ‘Sorry, son, it’s not you. You, unfortunately, are just bearing the brunt of my anger. It’s not right.’ He nods a sheepish apology in my direction and gestures to a small circular kitchen table with only two chairs at it.
‘I promise you, I’ll treat her well.’ I scrape back the chair and gratefully accept the huge chipped mug he hands over.
Noel nudges the kitchen door shut with his right foot and sits directly opposite me, placing the teapot between us, along with a carton of skimmed milk from the fridge.
‘Cathy and I never thought she would get over what that last bollocks did to her.’
‘She told me,’ I admit.
‘Did she? Because she refuses point-blank to talk to us about it, to even hear his name. We’ve barely seen her the past few years. I suppose this place reminds her of everything that happened.’ He drops two heaped spoons of sugar into his tea and stirs thoughtfully.
‘Hopefully this weekend we’ll make new memories, get a bit of closure. I’m honoured to be here.’ I’m not ass-kissing. It’s the simple truth.
‘You’re the first that we know of, since Sean. She must like you a lot,’ he concedes. ‘I wasn’t sure booking the party at The Landmark was a good idea myself. But Cathy wanted to mark the occasion, and it’s the finest spot in the area.’
‘It’ll be a great night. Abby’s been looking forward to it.’ I sip on the steaming tea, delighted Noel’s addressing me as an equal. Not like one of Alicia’s many conquests, by all accounts.
‘Just don’t break her heart. She might not get over it a second time.’ His voice is low, the warning clear.
‘I won’t,’ I assure him for the second time that morning. ‘Did she mention if she got the restraining order for him?’
Noel’s head wrenches back from where he’d been staring out the window.
‘For who? Sean?’ His voice drops dangerously.
I didn’t mean to put my foot in it, Abby’s going to kill me. ‘I thought you knew.’ I run my fingers through my hair hastily, unsure how to backtrack now.
‘Is he definitely back? I heard the phone call, but he could have made that from anywhere. Last I heard he had a kid in Australia, not that we passed that piece of information onto Abby, mind. Clearly, that doesn’t mean what it should to him.’
‘He turned up at her work two weeks ago.’ Noel obviously didn’t see the pictures I had to trade my soul with the devil to get erased. And I’m relieved to know I’m not the only one that’s keeping Sean’s murky little secrets. No point hurting Abby with the knowledge of it now.
‘Selfish son of a bitch, couldn’t just let her move on. He had an unhealthy hold on her. Her entire life revolved around him; his wants, his needs. Now she’s doing well for herself, she’s finally moved on… I could wring his neck with my bare hands.’ Noel slams his mug down on the table, spilling half the contents in the process. I reach for the kitchen roll and mop up the milky liquid while he fumes.
‘We have more in common than you initially thought.’ I nod firmly in agreement with him.
United in a loathing for a mutual enemy forms the groundwork for what I hope will be the start of a very open and firm friendship. I’m in this for the long game. It’s important to have Abby’s family onside. Today might not be the day I ask for his daughter’s hand in marriage, but who knows, it could be on the cards somewhere down the line.
Before either of us can utter another word, Abby bursts in through the kitchen door in her cream sleep shorts and vest top, clutching my vibrating mobile in her hand. ‘Sorry, Callum, it’s the fourth time it’s rang. I’m not prying, but it’s Linda.’ She hands the phone over with a concerned expression drawn on her sleepy face.
‘Who’s Linda?’ There’s no malice in Noel’s question after our chat.
‘My aunt, she minds my father. He has Alzheimer’s.’ I rise to take the call in the sitting room in relative privacy.
