Twenty-three
Nick chuckled after she finished telling him about her morning, as they sat later that afternoon outside his room on the verandah. ‘I envy the kind of relationship you have with your kids,’ he said.
‘Really? What’s your family like?’
‘I don’t really have one.’ He shrugged, and Jenny saw it as the deflecting gesture it was. ‘My parents died in a car accident when I was serving overseas. There’s only me and Susie now.’
‘That must have been a terrible shock.’
‘Yeah. It was.’
‘So you and your sister aren’t close?’ she probed gently.
‘Not really. She’s older than me and had left home … well, had run away, by the time I came along. They had a pretty big falling out over it all. I didn’t know her at all until I was about ten or eleven years old. That’s when she finally came home. We’ve never had that typical sibling connection.’
‘How old was she when she left home?’
‘Fifteen or so, I think.’
Jenny tried to imagine any of her girls leaving home at that age and couldn’t. They were still just babies. ‘So there’s a pretty big age gap between you.’
‘Mum and Dad had given up on having kids when Susie came along. Then I happened and ruined any hope of retirement plans.’ He chuckled. ‘I think they were worn out by the time I arrived. Susie was a lot to handle as a kid and then they had to start all over again with me when most of their friends were ready to settle down and take things easier. I mean, older parents seem to be the norm now, but back then it wasn’t as common.’ He sent her a half-grin. ‘I didn’t realise we were a little different until I started school and the teachers used to think they were my grandparents.’ He shook his head. ‘As I grew up and came home from friends’ places, I started to notice the difference in age. They didn’t do parks or weekend sports. I don’t think they wanted kids at all, to be honest. They weren’t like you are with your kids,’ he said, his smile softer. ‘Neither of them were close with their own parents and siblings, so I didn’t have much of a relationship with any of my extended family. Guess that’s just the way they were.’
Jenny’s heart broke a little at his words as she imagined the lonely childhood he was describing. ‘And you and Susie never grew closer—as you got older, I mean?’
He shifted his arm slightly, getting comfortable. ‘I wasn’t exactly likeable as a teenager—I got into all kinds of mischief,’ he said with a self-mocking smile. ‘I think my parents were expecting me to end up in prison the way I was going.I remember they tried to get Susie to talk to me at one point. You can imagine how well that went over with a seventeen-year-old smartarse. She moved back after our parents’ accident and things were kinda different. I guess I’d matured a bit by then, but I wouldn’t say we’re close. I mean, we’re all the family we have now.’
‘So if you were a teenage delinquent, how did you end up in the army?’
‘The Police Youth Club started a boxing session and I rocked up, ready to rumble, being the bad arse I thought I was, only to be knocked on my arse by this big, surly copper. He cut through the bullcrap and showed me where I’d end up if I kept heading down the path I was on. Before the police force he’d been in the army and, after a while, I kind of respected him. I joined the army because of him and here I am now.’
‘He must have been a great guy.’
‘He was.’
‘Did you stay in touch with him?’
‘Yeah. I used to drop in and visit him and his wife whenever I was home on leave. He still lives in Penrith. I haven’t seen him for a few years, though.’
Jenny mulled over what he’d told her for a while. His life could have turned out so different if he hadn’t had that positive influence intervening when it did, but she couldn’t quite get past the whole siblings not getting along thing. ‘You mentioned Susie was a silent partner in the pub? You must sort of get on to be business partners?’
Nick gave a short sigh. ‘I had my parents’ inheritance sitting in an account she managed. She was the executor of their willand they had a tight rein on me when it came to when I could access any funds. When I decided to leave the army, I had to go to her to get the money out, and when she realised I didn’t have enough in my share, she offered to go in with me.’
‘Well, that was nice of her,’ Jenny said, feeling a spark of optimism at his words, till she saw the frown creasing between his eyebrows. ‘Wasn’t it?’
‘I knew I was making a deal with the devil, but I didn’t have much choice. The renovation costs went through the roof practically overnight with the whole Covid fiasco. I’d been putting a business plan together for a couple of years, had the thing polished to perfection,’ he said with a sarcastic chuckle, ‘then everything changed and suddenly it looked like it was going to be out of reach. So, I took her offer, even though I knew she’d want to pull rank whenever she felt like it. It wasn’t the dream I had in mind.’
‘It seems to be working out, though. You got it up and running.’
‘Yeah—for the most part, it’s okay.’
‘Can you buy her out of her share down the track or something? If you don’t like working with her?’
‘That’s the plan. It’s just going to take a while to get the business to that point.’
‘I had no idea your sister was Sussanne Angelopoulos until I saw the article in the food magazine the other day.’
For a moment he looked embarrassed. He shifted uncomfortably. ‘Yeah. I don’t really advertise the fact as a rule.’
