‘You make me feel greedy now,’ she chided.
‘Don’t be daft. I like a girl who eats rather than one who pretends not to and then pinches half of my food.’
Most of the evening had flown by with ease as though they were on their fifth or sixth date rather than their first, but every now and again Evan’s attention caught Maddie off-guard and reminded her of how new this all was. They talked some more about their workplaces, Evan regaling stories of amusing kids, naughty kids and the frustrations he sometimes faced as a teacher. Maddie talked about her awkward experiences as a physiotherapist, careful not to betray patient confidentiality, but at the same time amusing him with tales of body odour issues and excessive hair problems.
‘I can’t imagine you being a physio for rugby players, you don’t look butch enough.’ He seemed surprised when she told him Palmer’s Physiotherapy was the first port of call for a well-known and very successful local team.
She flexed a bicep, spurred on by the alcohol that had been topped up as discreetly as expected. ‘These muscles have a lot of power, you know.’
‘I’m sure they do.’
The arrival of the dessert broke his stare at her across the table.
‘Do you enjoy being a physio?’ Evan asked.
‘I do. I enjoy unravelling the mystery with anything from neck pain to back issues, and putting together a solution certainly keeps me on my toes. But I didn’t realise how much baking excited me until I was at University. It became an escape from the books, away from the rigours of learning about anatomy.’
‘I can understand that.’
‘Baking became the dream and physiotherapy was the reality. When I’m baking I’m in heaven. Looking back I’m glad I chose the physiotherapy path, it’s certainly a varied career. But I do dream sometimes of starting up my own cake business – maybe when my muscles get too tired of working with beefy rugby players I’ll do it.’
He returned her smile. ‘You could start a little side business now. Keep up the physiotherapy work but bake on weekends. That way you’ll know if it’s going to work before you chuck in the day job.’
She nodded, revelling in his support.
‘You could build up your client base – even the biggest businesses had to start from somewhere.’
She looked down at the dessert she had almost forgotten was in front of her. Riley had said something similar to her the night before he died. He had vented about his presentation, she had let loose about how tired she was after an overflow of patients that day, daydreaming about what it would be like to bake all day instead.
‘What’s the sauce?’ Evan’s voice interrupted her reverie.
‘Butterscotch. Here, try some.’ She passed over her spoon filled with the rich, moreish sauce. She didn’t realise the intimacy of the gesture until the spoon had passed between his lips and had been pulled out clean. It took her a moment to realise he was handing the spoon back to her.
She hid behind the pleasure of the sinful brown sugar-based sponge and the richness of the dates as she finished another mouthful of dessert. ‘I’ll definitely need a run tomorrow morning after this, it’s a bit naughty.’
‘You’re a runner?’
‘Don’t I look like one?’ She raised her eyebrows.
‘It’s not that, it’s just that running is my thing too. It’s nice to see we have things in common.’
Her heart skipped a beat because, so far tonight, it was all too good to be true.
He blew across the top of his coffee. ‘Where do you run?’
‘I do the Tan Track or run alongside the Yarra. Sometimes I head all the way down to the beach, up to Port Melbourne and Albert Park, maybe take in the lake.’
‘That’s quite a distance. I do similar routes, but you can’t beat a run around the lake. Running around a big expanse of water never fails to make me happy. You should pop in and see Jem when you’re next running through Albert Park. She doesn’t live too far from the beach.’
Her dessert didn’t quite slide down as smoothly as it could have as his suggestion implied that this had already gone way beyond a single date or a single night of unbridled passion with no strings attached.
‘She likes having visitors. She complains that the only people coming round these days are religious door-knockers or real estate agents waiting for her to cark it!’
Glad that the wine hadn’t yet reached her lips when she giggled, she asked, ‘Were they Jem’s exact words?’
‘More or less.’ He shrugged. ‘But I’d suggest you go and see her after your run or she’ll be feeding you cakes like that one.’ He pointed at the last remnants of sticky date pudding.
‘I’ll try to remember that.’
He sipped his coffee and then said, ‘Question time.’
‘That sounds frighteningly like a challenge to a truth or dare game to me.’
‘Not at all. At least not on our first date anyway.’
The way he looked at her sent ripples of excitement through her.
‘Think of it as a getting-to-know-each-other game,’ he explained. ‘Right, first question: what’s your most hated meal, ever?’
‘Easy. Crappy breadcrumbed fish fillets from the freezer section of Coles supermarket with rank parsley sauce and peas.’
‘That’s pretty specific.’
She moved her hands as the waiter confirmed that they had finished and went to make up the bill. ‘My mum used to serve it up every Friday, and I grew to hate it more and more each week.’ She pulled a face. ‘Okay, your turn.’
‘Tuna and pasta bake – it’s like vomit on a plate.’
‘No it’s not,’ she chuckled. ‘I quite like it.’
‘That and vegemite, which I can’t stand,’ he added.
‘You can’t say that and call yourself an Aussie!’
‘It’s revolting. I reckon tar on the roads tastes better than that stuff. Okay, moving swiftly on … It’s no use asking you about your favourite dessert as I think I know that already.’
‘Actually, as nice as the sticky date was, I’d say chocolate mud cake was my absolute favourite. I didn’t want to be too predictable though.’ She didn’t add that tonight she hoped to finally start down a new path, so the dessert had been in keeping with that theme.
Ignoring her pleas to pay half the bill when it arrived, Evan handed over his credit card. ‘Mine is Jem’s syrup sponge. You’ll have to try it one day.’
She gulped at yet another reminder that he was in this for more than one date. He was so good looking, so sexy; he could have any woman he wanted, surely.
His eyes held hers. ‘Next question: who’s your favourite person?’
‘Oh no, you’re not expecting me to say you are you?’
He laughed. ‘Present company excluded.’
‘It’s a tie between Mum and Dad.’
‘You get on well with your parents?’
‘Always have done. I don’t see them as often as I should, but they’re always in my mind.’ She was lost in thought for a second. ‘I always remember what a friend once said to me. She said she loved coming to our house when we were kids because we could make a mess. We used to cook, get muddy outside, and my parents were always so relaxed. And aside from the discipline they had to have as parents, I guess their attitude has always been relaxed towards me and my sister. They’ve let us make our own way in life and supported our moves, our decisions, but have always been there to pick up the pieces.’
Her parents had certainly been there to pick up the pieces after Riley was killed; she had been a total mess, still was in some ways.
‘Who’s your favourite person?’ She asked before he had a chance to probe any further into her answer.
‘Mum, of course, but equally I would have to say Jem.’
‘Have you always been close?’
‘We have. I suppose in much the same way as your parents, she was always relaxed and fun but certainly knew when to be strict and rein me in. Mum is a wonderful woman too. She ca
n be a bit overprotective, but then what mum isn’t about her kids?’
As Maddie pulled on her thin-weave cardigan, she stole a glance at Evan. His face had a softness sitting beneath the rugged exterior that she doubted many would be able to resist.
As they walked towards the door, his hand fell against the small of her back in the gesture that already felt familiar, surprisingly comfortable.
‘You’d better let me pay next time,’ she said.
‘It’s a deal.’ He playfully nudged her arm. ‘I’m not so chivalrous that I’ll never let you pay, but it’s not right on the first date. I’d never hear the end of it from Jem if she found out I’d taken you on a date and made you pay.’
‘I can imagine.’ Maddie chuckled.
‘Come on, it’s almost ten so if we’re quick we’ll get to see the flames.’ She wasn’t prepared for it, but when his larger, warm hand wrapped around her own as they picked up the pace, much the same as it had encased the packet of flour in the supermarket, she didn’t resist.
A small crowd had gathered a few steps back from the mighty columns that were already whirring up, ready for their hourly performance. With a whoosh, great fireballs leapt into the air in quick succession, lighting up the ground beneath and warming the faces of onlookers, highlighting their smiles against the night sky. The heat between them as Evan stood beside her and his arm brushing against hers felt as intense as the flames themselves, and Maddie didn’t ever want the moment to end.
‘Pretty spectacular don’t you think?’ His voice flickered in her ear when he dipped his head to her height. ‘I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of seeing those.’
‘Me either.’ She gulped.
They stayed there until the columns fell silent once again.
The autumn days were still bathed in sunshine, but come the evening Melburnians were reminded that summer had passed once again. ‘Are you warm enough?’ Evan asked as they continued along the banks of the river, away from the crowds and towards the steps that would take them back up to street level.
Maddie pulled her cardigan tighter around herself. ‘I’m fine, thanks.’
They took the flight of steps leading up to St Kilda Road, and Maddie said, ‘I’ll wait for a tram, shouldn’t be long.’ She indicated the tram stop in the centre of the road where people jostled about checking the timetable against their watches.
‘How about I walk you home tonight? Seeing as it’s our first date.’
She hesitated, and then said, ‘Come on.’ She tilted her head in the direction of home.
As they left the city behind them, Evan said, ‘Tell me a bit more about yourself.’
‘What else would you like to know?’
She wondered whether he was going to say ‘everything’, but instead he said, ‘You mentioned that you have a sister.’
‘That’s right. Jennifer. She lives overseas, in London.’ She felt a jolt of electricity as Evan moved her in front of him to let two elderly gentlemen pass as the pavement thinned. ‘Jennifer loves the London vibe, and her job in events means she’s with a young, energetic crowd.’
‘How long has she been over there?’
‘It’s coming up to two years now.’
‘Do you miss her?’
‘Yes, of course.’ Jennifer had been there alongside Ally when Riley died and had shown such strength for a girl whose sister had fallen apart in front of her. Jennifer and Ally had held Maddie up for long enough so that eventually she took her own steps back into the world.
‘We chat over the iPad when we can, we text, and she visited last April.’
‘Have you been over to London?’
‘I’m busy with work these days, but if she’s stays on much longer then I’ll think about it. Mum and Dad are thinking of going over there soon, now that they’ve both retired.’
‘I bet they miss having their kids around though. I know my mum did when we first left home.’
‘I’m not sure about that. They’ve downsized and moved up to Palm Beach, and I think the beautiful location probably makes it bearable.’ She grinned. ‘They’ve never had so many hobbies since us girls left: hiking, Mum has taken up yoga – Dad refused and got more into his golf – and the latest is pottery classes, which sound amusing. Dad says his creations are an embarrassment, but I bet they’re not. He’s always been good with his hands right from when I was a little girl, and he made me the best doll’s house ever. He was so proud of it, said it was the best thing he’d ever done with his free time.’
‘Do you still have it?’
‘It’s stored at my parents’ place for now. I don’t think I’d ever get rid of it.’
It felt like the right time to mention it. ‘I hope you don’t mind me asking, Evan, but how old were you when your dad died?’
‘Eight.’
‘I’m sorry.’ She looked up at him as he passed beneath a street lamp. She didn’t need to ask how much Evan missed his dad; she could hear it in the catch of his voice, see it in the tension of his jaw.
‘It was a long time ago,’ he said.
‘That doesn’t matter, I bet it still hurts.’
‘Whoever said time is a great healer was right, but the wound never completely heals over. It’s like when you fall down and cut your knee badly – there’s a lot of pain and blood, a decent scab for a while, and when it falls off you’re left with a scar that fades in time but is always there, always remembered.’
Maddie wondered what stage she was at after more than thirteen years had passed since losing Riley.
She waited for a tram to rattle its way past. ‘So to continue the quizzing game from the restaurant, what would you say would be the best thing you’ve ever done?’
‘Ah, we’re back to that again are we?’ His grin tugged at her insides. ‘I don’t think I can come close to the creation of a doll’s house, like your dad.’
‘It doesn’t have to be something you made … it could be something you did.’
‘Well, that’s easier.’ He thought for a moment. ‘I ran a marathon in Copenhagen in 2010 to raise money for leukaemia research.’
‘I’m impressed.’ She looked sideways at him to take in his strong profile and towering presence. ‘I love running, but a marathon is quite something.’
‘It was an awesome experience. We raised almost fifteen thousand dollars.’
‘Good on you!’
‘My mum was a teacher too, and a little girl in her class was diagnosed with leukaemia when she was nine. It was different back then. Thankfully medical science has come a long way since.’
Maddie was sure she hadn’t mistaken a wobble in his voice as he pulled on his jacket when the autumn chill crept in. She wondered if, perhaps, he had known the little girl, or maybe it was his profession that made the situation all the more real.
He nudged her. ‘So come on then, your turn. What’s the best thing you’ve ever done?’
‘This is going to sound unbelievably selfish – and I’m thinking in a different way to you here, which I’m not sure is painting me in the best light – but the best thing I ever did was to do a bungy jump in New Zealand.’
It was Evan’s turn to stand and stare in awe. ‘Now that’s impressive. I’d never dare do that … which makes me sound like a complete wimp and that’s not the impression I want to give you.’
They chanced the next set of lights, running across as the red illuminated man flickered urgently.
‘So was it the big bungy, or the teeny-tiny one on the teeny-tiny little bridge?’ Evan asked when they were safely across.
‘You’ve been reading too many kids books about teeny-tiny things. And would you do the teeny-tiny one?’
‘Ah, you got me there.’
‘For your information, it was the big one, The Nevis.’ Her insides clenched as she remembered being on that platform, ready to shuffle her feet closer to the edge and plunge head first over the magnificent Nevis river.
His hand rubbed across the stubble of his jaw. �
��I’m impressed. No, I’m floored. So was it the absolute thrill that made it the best thing you’ve ever done?’
She thought back to the nausea she felt that day, the tears that pricked at her eyes as she fought the urge to back down at the last minute. ‘I think it was more the fact that I didn’t want to do it and once I did, well, it made me think anything was possible.’
She hadn’t shared the entire bungy story with him of course. The New Zealand holiday had been a getaway a year after Riley died, and it was almost as though she wanted to free fall from that great height, head first, to remind herself that she still had a life to live; she was the lucky one to still be alive with a future ahead of her. The bungy had been the single most defining moment since Riley’s death and the point at which she felt she had at least started to gather up the fragments of herself that had shattered all over the place like a smashed Christmas bauble.
‘Is it much farther?’ Evan’s voice broke into her reverie.
‘One more block.’
She wasn’t sure, but she thought she heard him swallow, nervously, before he said, ‘So, what’s the worst thing that’s ever happened to you?’
When she looked up at him he was staring straight ahead rather than down at her, as she had caught him doing so many times tonight.
She hesitated because she knew the exact answer, but confessing all the details on their first date wouldn’t be right. ‘I had a friend who died suddenly.’ It wasn’t a lie, but it wasn’t the full truth, either, and she felt guilty.
‘I’m sorry,’ said Evan.
‘Thanks.’ Maddie stopped outside her apartment block with lit up square windows dotted about like open doors on an advent calendar. She dug around in her bag for her keys. ‘So what’s the worst thing that’s ever happened to you?’
‘I’m not sure it’s happened yet.’
‘Oh come on, that’s against the rules of the game. You have to share.’ Her hand shot to her mouth just as she found her keys. ‘Oh no, your dad. I’m so sorry, I wasn’t thinking.’
When he remained silent, she said, ‘That was your answer, wasn’t it?’
He leant up against a concrete bollard, unconcerned about the ivy which covered it and more than likely the creepy crawlies that inhabited it. She definitely hadn’t mistaken the nervous gulp this time, and she watched the deep brown of his eyes search the night sky. They darted to her own and then away again.
Handle Me with Care Page 4