Page 4 of Embracing Us

“I’m going for another drink,” she says, then stands and marches towards the bar, calling over her shoulder, “Stay away from me, Marina. You don’t drop your friends in situations like that.” Max and I glare at each other as she leaves.

“You really are unbelievable,” he mutters, shaking his head. “There was me thinking we were finally getting on a bit better.” His tone softens as he pinches his nose, closes his eyes then reopens them and looks directly at me. “Please, Marina, don’t tell your mum. She doesn’t need to know. These past two weeks, she’s finally feeling more herself. I don’t want her upset unnecessarily over something that happened when we weren’t together. Something that meant nothing.”

“I’ll think about it,” I reply, turning and walking back to the group I’m with, who are all scowling at me. Marcy has obviously told them what I did. My heart aches as I think of him, not only with my mum but now I know my friend’s been there. I’m jealous of her too.

***

Max

Jace and I watch Marina walk away. “I’m going to have to tell Linda about this,” I say, almost to myself. “I can’t trust her to keep her mouth shut.” I signal in Marina’s direction with my chin, “She loves having information to hold over me.” My head drops to my hands in frustration. Jace sits silently, assessing the situation. “I know you told me to tell her before, but I didn’t want to upset her.”

“I know, mate. But that one is a loose cannon. I wouldn’t trust her either.” His gaze runs over my face as my eyes rise to his. “I’m going to say something. Now, don’t shoot me down before thinking about it.”

“Get on with it,” I tell him, widening my eyes.

“I think the venomous daughter has a crush on you,” he suggests simply, and I laugh.

“No chance. She hates my guts.”

“She can hate your guts and still want to jump your bones.”

“Marina is a lot of things, but sweet on me isn’t one of them.” He lifts his hands and shrugs. “She’d be more likely to smother me in my sleep and bury me under the patio.”

“Whatever. Let’s get out of here. If we hurry, we can get back to the local for a few before closing time.” He stands. “Come up with an action plan. I think offence could be the best defence.”

“Sounds good,” I agree. We drain our drinks and head for the train station. My night of celebrating the birth of my son has come with added complications. Tomorrow, I need to have a conversation I really don’t want to. I need to tell Linda about my weekend romance when we were apart.

The following morning, I drive back to Hackney as soon as I can. Linda hasn’t been in contact since I left. She was giving me space, her concerns regarding the difference in our ages growing. She mentions it, often. What I’m going to tell her isn’t going to help the issue.

Parking at the kerb, I step out onto the pavement. It’s a pleasant summer morning. There is a slight breeze which causes the trees to sway gently, but the sun warms my skin. I walk up to the front door, my heart lodged in my throat. I know we need to have this talk; Marina can’t be trusted.

My mind strays to Jace’s suggestion of Marina having a notion of me. It’s something that I struggle to comprehend, but the more I think about it, the memories of her strange behaviour come back. The way her cheeks flush when I speak to her, her rapid changes in the direction of the conversation. Perhaps there is a little truth in his idea, but I hope not.

Linda is in the kitchen as usual. She loves to cook. The now familiar smell of freshly baked bread fills the air. “Morning, Beautiful,” I say as I walk up behind her and wrap my arms around her waist, dropping my lips to her neck. Jackson is in his pram, pushed into the corner asleep. After releasing her, I walk over and stare down at my son. Fuck, I missed them both last night. Not being here felt wrong.

“How was your night?” she asks, her focus firmly on kneading the dough in front of her.

“It was nice to catch up, but I still would rather have been here with you.” I stand at her side, a soft smile appearing on her lips. “We bumped into Marina and her friends,” I tell her, and she stills. “There’s something I need to talk to you about.”

“About Marina?” she questions.

“Yes and no,” I reply, dropping my eyes to the floor. I feel her gaze on me evaluating the situation. “Beautiful, can you stop for a moment and come with me, please? I need to tell you something.”

“What is it?” she whispers, anxiety already etched on her voice.

“Just clean up and come through to the living room with me.” I push Jackson’s pram through the door and go to sit on the sofa. A few minutes later, Linda appears, her hands washed. She rolls down her sleeves that were pushed to her elbows. She sits down beside me, and I take her hands in mine.

“You’re worrying me.” I try to smile at her reassuringly, but I know this information is going to hurt her. It’s the last thing I want to do, but not being honest will risk our relationship more. There’s too much at stake; I need to grasp the nettle.

“Beautiful, I love you.” Her face pales. “Last night when we met Marina, she was with a group of friends.” Her eyebrows draw together in confusion. “One of them I knew.”

“Okay.”

“Last autumn after returning from Spain, I met her in the local bar over two weekends.” Her eyes drop from mine as she realises where this conversation is headed. My heart sinks. “We didn’t…” I trail off, struggling with the words.

“Didn’t what?” she prompts, her tone sharp.

“Didn’t sleep together,” I reply, firmly. “I did go back to hers with the intention of sleeping with her. But, I couldn’t go through with it. It was too soon after us, after losing you.” My words which wouldn’t appear now tumble from me. “I didn’t know who she was, and I haven’t seen her since, until last night with Marina.”

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