Page 46 of Some Kind of Love

“Amber!” he shouts across the room. “Look at you all grown up!”

Flushing, I make my way towards him, wrapping him tight in a hug and kissing him on the cheek. Charles looks healthy and younger than I remember. Life seems to be zipping through his veins again. Feeling his fatherly embrace makes a sharp pang of longing for my own dad settle in my chest.

“I hope I get the same reception,” says a familiar voice behind me. Grant.

I offer a simple wave to Freddy’s annoying younger brother, now married to my old friend. Awkwardness turns me to stone as all the Bales evaluate me with their glances.

“Get the girl a drink then,” instructs Charles, linking his arm through mine. “Come on, Amber, let’s go and catch up. I hear you have a son now?”

“Yes, I do.” My tone sounds as awkward as my body language feels, all stiff and unnatural. “Isaac!” I holler loudly. “Come here, don’t be rude!”

I watch the Bale family’s reaction closely as Isaac walks into the room. They can all do maths. If any of them have anything to say, none of them do. Just like Freddy the other night.

“Nice to meet you, Isaac.” Charles leans forward and offers his hand to Isaac to shake, his eyes widening just slightly. Isaac looks at the extended hand in horror, but Bailey comes in and rescues his friend from having to do anything so uncool as shake an adult’s hand.

“Come on, let’s play Xbox,” Bailey shouts. The Asian influence of Bailey’s mother is all over him, thankfully erasing any sign of Henry from his physical looks. I don’t know the boy well enough yet to say whether or not he unfortunately inherited his father’s mannerisms and personality. Let’s hope not.

“Oh, no, no, no.” Charles ruffles Bailey’s inky black hair and then turns a thoughtful face towards Isaac’s sandy locks. “Outside you go. No indoors today. This weather can’t last for much longer.”

Both boys look suitably horrified, and I laugh at their shocked expressions. Freddy comes up and hands me a cold beer. “Come on, Bailey, you can show Isaac the treehouse I made you.” With his words, Freddy smiles at Isaac, his eyes carefully taking in his expression and reaction.

I turn and glance admiringly at Freddy, especially his hands.

“You’ve got a treehouse! Cool!” Isaac practically squeals in excitement, which makes Freddy laugh. He turns to Freddy and the breath catches in my throat as I watch them interact. “Maybe you could build one for me?”

There is a beat of silence that permeates around the kitchen as everyone stops his or her activity to watch the interaction.

“Sure, if your mum doesn’t mind.”

“She doesn’t mind,” Isaac assures him with youthful presumption. “Can we start next weekend?” he asks eagerly and Freddy laughs, nudging him with his fists.

“Sure thing.”

“You can’t,” I butt in. All eyes turn to me. “You’re seeing your dad.” The worddadsticks like a pea caught in my throat. My cheeks burn, although they shouldn’t, not really.

Isaac looks so disappointed, I want to jump in and tell him it doesn’t matter, we will cancel the visit, but I know this is one of those really important parenting moments. “You arranged the visit, Isaac. You have to stick with it.”

He doesn’t look keen, but he accepts my final word with good grace, more than I would normally expect. Before anything else can be said, Bailey thrusts a can of Coke at him. Isaac looks like he may be about to explode with excitement. He’s never allowed Coke. Ever. I pull a tongue out at him, and he laughs in my face as he runs out of the door following his friend.

All the adults in the kitchen are watching me and I shift uncomfortably under their gaze, heat prickling along the back of my neck. “So, Charles,” I throw across the room. “How’s business?” Truth is, I haven’t driven down the winding lane which leads to the Bale garage. I came back to the village with the hope of keeping a clean slate. The clean slate isn’t going too well, or actually at all. But a trip literally down memory lane is not happening any time soon.

“Sold it, honey. Why do you think I’m looking so spruced and lively, and young Freddy over there looks forty not thirty?”

My mouth falls open with a resounding ‘pop’. My attention drifts to Freddy. He doesn’t look tired, he looks hot and of the non-sweaty variety.

“You bought the garage? Why?”

He shrugs and stuffs his hands into his pockets, his typical unobtrusive stance, which I remember so well. “Nothing else to do, I guess, and Dad needed to retire. Simple really.”

Simple?

"I thought you didn’t like simple, or easy?” A sharp pressure pushes down on my chest as I force my voice not to shake. He did like things easy ten years ago when loving me was too hard. Amber French, too difficult to contend with.

“I had a change of heart.”

Our eyes meet across the kitchen table. For a long while neither of us moves. We weigh each other up, assessing the possibilities.

“Excellent, Amber’s back and so is the drama,” Henry drily trills to the room. His wife Mai comes in from the garden and shushes him with her hand.

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