“Charlie!” My dad stood up to embrace me and it always felt nice to be hugged by him, to inhale that familiar scent of cologne and the washing powder he had used for years. When he let go he held me back at arm’s length and
looked at me. “You’ve grown,” he said, like he always did.
“I don’t think I have,” I laughed just as the woman stood from her seat and stood beside my father.
“You certainly have kid,” he said affectionately, “I want you to meet someone,” he continued, taking his cue to introduce her by the way she nudged him gently. “This is Joe.”
“Hi,” I smiled at her and we shook hands, all rather formally.
“Nice to meet you Charlie. I have heard so much about you,” she gushed and I looked at my dad with a quizzical expression.
“We have been together a while now,” he said and I couldn’t believe what he was saying to me, he had never mentioned her before. “I know it is a surprise, but I didn’t want to introduce her until I knew that she really was the one.”
“The one. Wow,” I said and looked between them. The age gap was beyond obvious, but the way she looked at my dad seemed like she genuinely did like him. “Well, its really nice to meet you then Joe.”
“Thank you,” she said and I leaned over to kiss her cheek. “Don’t worry I won’t be asking you to call me mum or anything,” she laughed and I laughed back as a polite response.
“No, well, that would be weird,” I said and dad sat back down again and me and Joe did the same.
“Daniel will be meeting us in Suffolk,” dad said and the mention of my brother made me smile.
“He has never liked London has he?” I said fondly and Dad shook his head.
“No. He seems quite settled down in Suffolk now too, seemed a bit silly for him to come here just to meet you off of the train.”
“Have you met Daniel yet, Joe?” I asked her and she nodded.
“Yes. Only once, a few weeks ago.” I felt a bit annoyed at that Daniel hadn’t thought to warn me that dad was going to be bringing a woman into our lives who was more than half his age.
“We asked him not to say anything to you,” dad said as if he was reading my mind, “Joe thought it best to just meet you herself rather than hear about her over the phone or email. Not that you ever answer my emails anyway,” he said and gave me a mock stern look.
“I rather like the fact that you think aunt Hildie has internet in her house,” I grinned at him, “it’s why I don’t have a phone, there is no signal out there. That’s why I always tell you to call the house phone. But you don’t listen.”
“I only remember when my messages go unread for a few days,” he laughed then looked at Joe. “You will have to come and meet my sister soon. She lives in the most beautiful town.”
“He’s right,” I agreed and Joe smiled warmly at me. “She has a lovely house too, really amazing gardens. She has a new gardener actually.”
“Don’t tell me she has let Andre retire?” dad asked, looking shocked.
“No,” I laughed, “I don’t think he actually wants to retire if I’m honest. But she let him get an assistant. The garden is looking better than ever.”
“Good. Poor guy needs a hand,” dad said then looked down at his watch. “Right, we better move or we will miss the train, let me take your bag Charlie.”
“Dad, it’s fine I’ve got it.”
“Let me, I don’t get to do hardly anything for you these days.” I sighed and handed him my bag which I think was heavier than he anticipated but he hauled it over his shoulder and the three of us went to our platform.
It took just over an hour to get to where we lived from London and it gave me a good chance to talk to Joe, as, like usual, my dad fell asleep during the journey. He always said it was because the train would rock him to sleep with his movements, I don’t think he wanted to admit that as he got older he would take a nap whenever he could get it. Joe seemed nice. She had met my dad at the Tate Modern, where she worked as a receptionist. I didn’t ask why on earth my dad was at the Tate as he had always expressed how much he hated art galleries when I had pestered him to take me to one, maybe he was actually a secret art fan. He had asked her on a date after going around the whole gallery - apparently he had told her that’s how long it had taken him to work up the courage to ask her. It was kind of sweet to picture my dad walking through the many rooms, thinking about this stunning woman he had seen the whole time, just willing himself to ask her out. I asked her why she had said yes, and she said that she thought he was handsome. Then I asked a question you should never ask a woman (according to aunt Hildie) and asked her just how old she was. Twenty-four. The number shocked me as I thought she might have been older than she looked, but that was how old Daniel was, so she was literally dating a man who was old enough to be her father.
“I know what you’re thinking,” she said with a knowing smile, “he is a lot older than me.”
“Well. He is,” I stated and she gave a small nod.
“I do really love him. I have never been treated so well by a man. He came into my life at just the right time and made me feel like I actually deserved to be loved.”
“I’m glad he makes you happy. And, if you make him happy then I’m pleased that you found each other.”
“Do you mean that?” she asked and I nodded.
“I do. My dad works hard, he raised both me and my brother on his own after my mother left. He has always done everything he can for us and always put us first. He deserves to have his own happiness too,” I explained, “just, please don’t hurt him.”
“I have no plans to,” she said seriously, “I want to be part of your family. I really am in this for the long haul.”
“You hoping for wedding bells?” I asked with a laugh and she nodded eagerly at me.
“I would love that,” she said and she wasn’t joking. “I know, you might think it sounds soon but we have been together over a year now.”
“Over a year?” I repeated, “so, you were about at Christmas?”
“Yes, but I spent it with my family. We didn’t want to rush into things.”
“I see,” I said and rested my head against the window
and closed my eyes, signifying to her that I didn’t want to talk to her any more about it. I eventually drifted to sleep and only woke when I felt a hand on my shoulder. I opened my eyes to see my dad had moved to sit next to me and Joe was the one who was now asleep.
“So. Do you like her?” he asked and I groaned and rubbed at the back of my neck.
“Yes, dad, she’s nice,” I murmured and stifled a yawn. “She said you’ve been together over a year though.”
“We have,” he confirmed, “after your mother walked out on us, I vowed that I would never let anyone into our lives who would hurt us again. I needed to make sure that this was really something before I moved forward.” Hearing dad explain it made it seem a lot less deceptive and my body language softened.
“It’s okay dad. I just want you to be happy.”
“Thank you Charlie. I don’t think Daniel is quite as understanding, maybe you could talk to him?”
“Sure. But you know Daniel, he takes a while to adjust to things.”
“I know,” dad sighed then clapped his hand onto my thigh. “But, what about you kiddo? Any French beauty caught your eye back at your Aunt’s?”
“Maybe,” I smiled and thought of Ezra. I imagined bringing him back to England with me one day and introducing him to my family, I knew that they would get along.
“Am I just going to get a maybe?” he asked, “not comfortable talking to your old dad about it huh?”
“I will. Just. Not yet.” Luckily he didn’t have time to dig any further as the conductor announced that we would shortly be arriving at the station. Dad gently woke Joe up and we gathered our things just in time for when the train pulled into stop.
TRUTH
When the taxi pulled up outside our home it was starting to get dark
and the sun was setting over the field that was opposite the house. As soon as I stepped out of the car I could smell the lavender in the fields and it was like a warm welcome home hug. Daniel and I had spent whole summers running through those fields when we were younger, the sun beating down on us all afternoon. Everything felt so care-free back then, being surrounded by the gorgeous smell and vibrant colour. It still looked beautiful now, the sun kissing the flowers goodnight before it faded out of view. The house was how it was a few months ago, but a red car was parked on the driveway which could only belong to Daniel because it was absolutely filthy - he wasn’t the type to spend his time cleaning anything, let alone a car. Inside I could hear talking in the kitchen and the smell of pizza cooking, I dumped my bag in the hallway and made my way through, ducking under the low wooden door frames as I went. Daniel had his back to me as he stood at the counter cutting up the pizza and putting it onto plates. Beside him was a large bowl of salad which was odd because I had never seen him eat anything that was green in my whole life. He was talking to someone though and I had to go further into the kitchen to see the dining table and work out who the other voice belonged to. A girl who had bright blonde hair in a pixie cut sat at the table with a glass of white wine in her hand. Her arms were covered in brightly coloured tattoos and fingers adorned with silver jewellery. She raised her glass to me in greeting then cleared her throat in a deliberate way to get Daniel’s attention. He turned and his face lit up when he saw me and he bounded over to where I was standing and enveloped me in a hug that lifted me off of the ground. Daniel had a much more substantial build than me. He had been on the rugby team at school and still enjoyed physical exercise in his spare time. He had cut his hair short into a buzz cut since I had last seen him but it worked, it suited him well.
“Baby bro!” he exclaimed and continued to squeeze me until I had to tell him to stop. “Ah, man, it’s so good to see you,” he beamed and patted me on the shoulder. “Good trip?”
“Yeah wasn’t bad thanks,” I said happily back to him and quickly took in all his new features - mainly being the tattoos that were now dotted over his arms and hands. “Mid life crisis? Bit early for that aren’t you?” I asked and pointed to his arm and he pouted.
“I’ve just decided to stop worrying about what dad might approve of and live my life,” he said and stood proudly. “He’s actually not said anything about them, but who is he to judge now he’s got a little lady on his arm,” he said and lowered his tone, “can you believe how bloody young she is?”
“Oh just let him be happy,” I said flippantly then looked back over to the girl who was sat at the table. “Sorry, I hope you weren’t expecting my brother to introduce you, he is terrible with manners.”
“Oh, I know,” she smirked and took a sip of her wine. “My name is Carrie. You must be Charlie.”
“I am,” I said and went to sit at the table with her. “I like your hair.”
“Thanks darling,” she grinned and her smile was stunning. “I like your hair too.”
“Oh? I call this style, I just got in from France and I’m all windswept.”
“It’s fabulous I love it!” she laughed and Daniel brought over the plates of food, then returned to grab the other two for dad and Joe and set them all at the table.
“Carrie is my boss,” Daniel said as he sat beside me and poured out wine for everyone.
“Boss?” I looked between them, not even knowing what Daniel was doing for a job now.
“Yeah, he’s my apprentice,” she explained, “I opened my own tattoo shop a few months ago and needed to take someone on who I could train. He’s doing a good job so far.”
“You are not serious,” I said and couldn’t help but look a little alarmed. “Daniel can’t draw to save his life, there’s no way he should be putting permanent images onto people.”
“Hey, that hurts man,” Daniel said and placed his hand to his chest like I had struck him. “I can’t draw like you but I’m not bad.”
“Well, you’re not tattooing anything on me.”
“Thanks for your support baby bro. I told you he would think this was a great career for me didn’t I?” he said to Carrie and she gave me a small smile.
“You know I support anything you do,” I laughed, “I’m just surprised by the career choice in this instance.”
“It surprised me too if I’m honest,” Daniel said and started to eat his food even though dad and Joe hadn’t yet joined us at the table. “But I was hardly going to say no to being Carrie’s apprentice.”
“If you hadn’t already guessed we are madly in love,” Carrie said as she too started to eat so I figured I would as well.
“You are?” I looked at Daniel then for him to confirm and he nodded, looking more than pleased of himself. “Wow, you and dad both in love. Kind of feel like the odd one out here.” Of course I thought of Ezra again, but it was far too soon to be thinking of being in love with him…far too soon.
“We are actually moving in together at the end of the month,” Daniel said, “found a nice little apartment that we put an offer on a few weeks ago that got accepted.”
“Cool. I hope you will let me come stay.”
“You will always be welcome baby bro,” he said sincerely, “you can even crash at ours if living with dad and Joe gets too much for you when you move back.”
“I didn’t even think of that. Living with them.” I scrunched up my face as I realised that would be my reality in a few months time. “Hopefully I can find a place in London.”
“I think we were kind of expecting you to stay in France,” Daniel admitted and I gave him a confused look, having given no indication that I had the intention to stay. “Your visits home have become less and less,” he explained, “dad says you always sound like you’re really happy there.”
“I am happy there,” I agreed, “but there’s no work for me there after college, and aunt Hildie will want her house back to herself.” As I spoke I wondered if I was trying to convince myself more than Daniel that I wanted to come home. The truth was I would stay there forever if it meant seeing Ezra every day. We were so new in our relationship that we hadn’t yet had the need or chance to discuss what would happen in the future. I knew that I didn’t want it to just be some fleeting romance though, and I was pretty sure that Ezra felt the same way.
“Ah thanks guys,” dad said as he walked into the room with Joe and saw the food so they both sat down to eat but Joe raised her glass to do a toast.
“I just want to thank you all for being so welcoming to me,” she said sweetly, “it is so good to finally meet you all, even if it is a sad event that has brought us together. But…here’s a toast, to Daniel and Charlie.” She clinked her glass with my dad first then we all reached into the centre of the table with our drinks and said cheers. Once we had settled again and started eating I gave my attention back to Carrie.
“When do you finish college?” Carrie asked.
“I should finish at the beginning of July if I can get all my assignments done on time,” I told her, “dad has set me up an apprenticeship in London that is meant to start in September.”
“You think you will spend the summer out in France then?” she asked as she picked at her salad.
“Yes, absolutely. Oh, dad, I want meant to call aunt Hildie to say I got here safe.”
“Already done,” he said and gave me a thumbs up. “Charlie was saying that Hildie has a new gardener to work with Andre.”
“About time,” Daniel said, “how old is Andre now? Five hundred?”
“Who knows,” I laughed, “I swear he never stops.”
“What’s the new person like? Must be patient to put up
with auntie.”
“His name is Ezra.” It was the first time I had said his name out loud in front of them and it felt really good to talk about him. “He’s really great, he seems to care about what he’s doing just as much as Andre does.”
“Hopefully he is younger than Andre th
ough?” Daniel asked, “or has she been employing more OAP’s?”
“He’s twenty-one, so a lot younger than Andre.”
“Oooh is he French?” Carrie asked excitedly.
“Yes,” I said and looked at her in amusement.
“Is he hot? I would love myself a hot French gardener. Am I right Joe?” Carrie directed her question to the other woman and Joe cleared her throat and smiled with a nod.
“Oh, yeah, absolutely. I adore the French accent on a man,” she chimed in.
“Right, well, dad, looks like we won’t be taking the girls to meet aunt Hildie while she has this new gardener sauntering about,” Daniel said with mock seriousness.
“He doesn’t saunter,” I protested, “and he’s taken anyway, sorry girls.”
“Ah, but he hasn’t met me yet,” Carrie said and she was deliberately winding up Daniel in a playful way.
“No, but he has met me,” I said and the chatter around the table went quiet. I felt my dad’s eyes on me the most but I didn’t look at him to meet his gaze.
“Oh, so you’ve laid claim to the handsome gardener?” Carrie asked, her tone still light and happy and although I barely knew her I was so grateful that she was there.
“Yes. Actually. We made it official before I left.” I knew during my visit I was going to tell them about Ezra, but I wasn’t expecting to do it so soon and over dinner. No one said anything and I could feel my chest start to tighten with panic. “That’s okay isn’t it?”
“Depends,” Daniel said, “does he know you have a very protective older brother who will hunt him down and find him if he does anything to hurt you?”
“He knows I have a brother but I don’t think he knows the rest of it.” As I spoke I felt Daniel place his hand on my shoulder, his way of showing support.
“Well you better tell him when you get home,” he warned but I could tell he was speaking with humour.
Roots Before Branches Page 6