It Takes Two

by Emily Harvale

  Aidan stepped into the room. ‘Hello, Tabitha. May I call you Tabitha? I’m Aidan Rourke. Ali and I were on a date tonight when Jules told us the news. I hope you don’t mind me tagging along. I just wanted to make sure everything was OK. I’m so very pleased you didn’t do any serious damage to yourself.’

  Tabitha shot a look at Simon, then Ali, to Gertie and Tom and finally back to Aidan. ‘On a date, you say? Well, I sincerely apologise for ruining it. It’s good to meet you, Aidan, and no, I don’t mind you tagging along at all. If Ali wants you here, you’re most welcome.’ She smiled down at her daughter, whose face was resting against her shoulder. ‘I’m sorry, darling. I’m fine, as you can see. Why don’t you and Aidan continue where you left off?’

  Ali’s face flushed crimson and she lowered her eyes. ‘No. We’re fine here.’

  ‘There’s no rush,’ Aidan said, with a bright smile. ‘We can continue our date another time.’

  ‘Honestly.’ Tabitha shifted slightly in her bed. ‘I’m fine. It was merely a silly accident. I caught one of the heels of my sandals on the edge of the stair, couldn’t regain my balance, and went head over heels. I was more than halfway down though, so it wasn’t as bad as it could have been.’

  ‘You need carpet on your floors,’ Gertie said, glowering at her.

  ‘Oh heavens!’ Tabitha’s eyes opened wide. ‘My dinner party! My guests. Do they know?’

  ‘I believe Stephanie was dealing with that,’ Tom said, ‘so there’s no need to worry. She is also dealing with organising someone to repair the door. She may have to stay the night, and I told her that she could. I hope that’s all right with you.’

  ‘Door? What door? Did I hit a door?’

  Tom laughed. ‘No. Thank goodness. Just the floor. The emergency services hit the door. They had to break in, in order to get to you.’

  ‘Oh. Yes of course. And yes, if Stephanie wants to stay at the house I don’t have a problem with that. Besides, it’s still half yours.’

  ‘Which brings us nicely to something we need to discuss,’ Gertie said. ‘You can come home tomorrow, but clearly you’ll need looking after. Ali’s offered to move back in, and of course I’ll come and help out, but I can’t leave Bertie and Bonnie. So Tom’s agreed to move back in, too, and before you start one of your tantrums, Tabby-cat, it makes perfect sense. For once in your life, do what’s best for all of us.’

  Tabitha met Tom’s eyes. ‘Are you sure it won’t be too much of an inconvenience?’ For the first time in several months, she made sure there wasn’t a hint of sarcasm in her voice.

  ‘I’m happy to do it. It’s not an inconvenience at all.’ Tom smiled and moved closer to the bed.

  ‘It’ll only be for a day or two, I suppose.’ She was still holding his gaze.

  ‘I expect so. But one can never be too careful with these things. Let’s just play it by ear, shall we?’

  ‘That’s a good idea. Thank you, Tom.’

  ‘There’s no need to thank me. You’re my wife. It’s the very least I can do. I have to tell you, Tabby. I’ve never been so panic-stricken in my life as I was on receiving Stephanie’s call. It’s a good thing I was with Simon. He was able to remain cool and calm, whilst I was quite the contrary.’

  ‘You were?’

  ‘I was.’

  ‘Well,’ Gertie said, getting to her feet. ‘There’s clearly nothing much wrong with you that a little privacy wouldn’t cure.’ She kissed Tabitha on the cheek. ‘I love you, my darling. Don’t go throwing yourself down any more stairs.’

  ‘Oh? You’re leaving? Thanks Mum. I love you too. And I promise I’ll be more careful in future.’

  ‘Ali,’ Gertie added. ‘I think you and your young man, and Simon and I, should leave your mum to rest. Come along.’

  Ali hesitated but Tabitha smiled and nodded. ‘I’m fine, darling. I’ll see you tomorrow.’

  ‘OK. But call me if you need anything. I love you, Mum,’ Ali said, kissing Tabitha and giving her another hug. ‘I’ll see you tomorrow, and I’ll move back in, in the morning. I’ve got a day off tomorrow.’

  ‘I think you should take a few days off,’ Aidan suggested. ‘I’m sure the centre will be able to cope without you for a short time. We’ll discuss it later this evening. Good night, Tabitha. I hope to see you again soon.’

  ‘Thank you,’ Ali said, walking towards the door. ‘See you tomorrow then, Mum.’

  ‘Thank you all for coming.’ Tabitha raised her hand and gave a gentle wave, all the while staring at Tom.

  ‘Are you sure you’re all right?’ Tom asked. ‘Do you need anything? I can stay if you would like me to.’

  ‘Of course you’re going to stay,’ Gertie said, ushering Simon, Aidan and Ali towards the door. ‘We’re the ones who are leaving. Simon, close the door behind us. Private rooms should be just that. Private.’

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Ali linked her arm through Gertie’s. ‘Well, you’re a dark horse. Are you trying to get Mum and Dad back together?’

  Gertie smiled and patted Ali’s hand. ‘I’m not doing anything, my angel. I just think that sometimes people need a shock to remind them of what is important. Your parents have had a shock. What they do with that is entirely up to them. So Simon?’ She glanced in his direction. ‘How do you feel about taking an old woman for a rum and black in The Golden Dragon?’

  ‘I don’t know about taking an old woman,’ he said, with a grin. ‘But I’m more than happy to take you.’

  Gertie chuckled. ‘Your tongue’s as smooth as silk, my boy.’

  ‘May we join you?’ Ali asked, half-laughing, half-blushing. Aidan’s tongue had been as smooth as silk, but not in the way Gertie was referring to Simon’s.

  ‘The more the merrier.’ Gertie threw Aidan a curious look. ‘Have you been to The Golden Dragon, young man?’

  ‘No. But I’m sure it’s delightful.’ He didn’t sound delighted.

  ‘Oh it is,’ Simon said, a coolness in his tone that wasn’t there a moment ago. ‘Quite delightful. And it’s our favourite pub. But then, it is the only pub in the village, so it would have to be.’

  Ali glanced at Aidan. ‘You don’t mind if we postpone our dinner date, do you? I know my mum’s OK, but it’s all been a bit of a shock and I’m not sure I’m …’ Ali let her voice trail off. She could hardly say she wasn’t in the mood for sex, in front of Simon and her gran.

  ‘Not quite in the right mood, you mean.’ Aidan finished the sentence for her. ‘I understand, and it’s really not a problem. I don’t mind at all.’

  His tone belied his words. He sounded as if he minded rather a lot and the smile he gave her was like those given by campaigning politicians, or TV celebrities trying to sell the public something. Ali wasn’t at all convinced – but for some reason, she wasn’t sure she really cared.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  ‘Are you going to sit down?’ Tabitha asked Tom, smiling over at him as he stood in front of the closed door. ‘Unless you want to go, of course. I know my mother put you on the spot. Please don’t feel you have to stay if you don’t want to. I’m fine, Tom. Truly I am. And it was an accident you know. I didn’t throw myself down the stairs or anything.’

  Tom gave her a curious look. ‘I didn’t think for one moment that you had. What on earth made you say that?’ Tabitha shook her head, and Tom continued: ‘As to Gertie putting me on the spot, if I minded, that wouldn’t have mattered. I’m here because I want to be here, not because your mother told me to stay.’ He walked over to the chair beside her bed, and sat, leaning back into the seat.

  Tabitha fiddled with the off-white bedspread. ‘I’m glad you’re here.’

  ‘As am I.’

  ‘Life’s been pretty hellish for the past few months, hasn’t it?’

  Tom shrugged. ‘It’s been a little difficult. For both of us. For all of us. Ali clearly hasn’t been having much fun being stuck in the middle.’

  ‘How did we get to this? When did you stop loving me? Was it
something I did? Or did you just meet her and fall in love?’

  He frowned and shifted in his seat. ‘Firstly, Tabby, I have never stopped loving you. Secondly – and before I say this, let me just remind you that for a moment tonight I thought you might be dead – so I’m telling you the truth. I swear to you on everything I hold dear, there is no other woman. There never has been and there probably never will be. I don’t know why you think there is.’

  Tabitha hung her head and bit her bottom lip. ‘I saw you with her, Tom. More than once. I … I followed you. You were having dinner on one occasion, on another, having lunch.’

  Tom’s mouth fell open. ‘You followed me? When? Where? Why?’

  ‘Because you started drifting away from me. I could tell. And you suddenly seemed to be working late more often. I … I know the signs. I hear about such things on a daily basis. I wanted to know if you were seeing someone else.’

  Tom shook his head. ‘I have lunch and dinner with several women, Tabby. And you know I didn’t mean that in the way it sounded. I have lunch with colleagues, dinner with friends. I’ve even had lunch with Stephanie, on more than one occasion. We were on opposing sides in a rather messy divorce. It doesn’t mean anything. I’m not sleeping with any of them. I don’t want to sleep with any of them.’

  ‘This was different. When I saw you together you seemed so happy. You … you held her hand across the table. She’s gorgeous. About twenty-five and has the reddest hair I’ve ever seen.’

  Tom frowned then suddenly burst out laughing. ‘Oh, Tabby. That’s Alice. My god-daughter, Alice Clarke. I told you she was visiting London from the States and that I’d met her a couple of times. I even asked you if you wanted to join us, but you can’t abide her parents and you didn’t want to come in case you said something out of place, remember?’

  ‘Alice? It can’t be. This woman was absolutely beautiful. Alice is still a girl … isn’t she?’

  ‘She’s a young woman. A very beautiful young woman, I agree – but I’m not in the least bit attracted to my god-daughter, I can assure you. And I can tell you exactly why I was holding her hand. Squeezing it reassuringly, to be precise. She’s fallen head over heels in love with one of the solicitors in my office and she was intending to ask him out, but was nervous about doing so. I squeezed her hand and told her she had absolutely nothing to be nervous about. I then told her the story of how you and I met – and that it was you who had asked me out. That’s why I was so happy. I was talking about you and how we fell in love.’

  ‘It was really, Alice?’

  Tom nodded. ‘Yes. Believe me, Tabby. The only woman I’ve ever wanted to sleep with was you. It still is you. Unfortunately, it seems some time ago, you decided you no longer wanted to sleep with me. You cringed every time I tried to touch you. You sneered every time I paid you a compliment. I think the question should be when did you stop loving me? Not, when did I stop loving you?’

  ‘I … I have never stopped loving you, Tom. Ever. But I knew you didn’t really want to sleep with me. Didn’t want to touch me, or hold me, or kiss me. How could you? I mean look at me. I’m not the pretty young thing you married. I’m almost sixty. I’ve got wrinkles on my wrinkles. Everything’s sagging. How could you possibly want me?’

  Tom reached out his hand and took one of hers in his. ‘Is that what you think? That I don’t find you attractive? That I don’t want to touch you, hold you, kiss you, make mad passionate love to you, like we used to? Because if that IS what you think then you are more mistaken than you could possibly imagine. All I see before me, all I’ve ever seen, is the beautiful, passionate, lovely woman I married. The girl I fell in love with half a lifetime ago. The woman I’m still in love with. You see wrinkles, I see years of laughter, a lifetime of happiness and love. Until the past few months. Then all I saw was that beautiful woman backing away from me. Not wanting me near her. Staying later and later at the office to avoid spending time with me in the evenings. Making plans at the weekends with Ali, or with your mother, or with friends, so that you didn’t have to spend the weekends with me.’

  ‘No, Tom! I … I worked late, because you did. I made alternative plans at the weekends because you did. I looked in the mirror and felt unattractive. I was sure you saw the same.’

  ‘Or perhaps we both saw things the other didn’t. You saw wrinkles. I didn’t. You saw my alleged, other woman. There wasn’t one. Only Alice, and friends or colleagues. You thought you were unattractive and backed away. I saw you back away and thought you didn’t want me. Instead of us both feeling hurt and rejected by each other, we simply should have sat down together and talked it through. Do you realise we have never done that? Not since things started to go downhill. We went from talking to each other and loving one another, to avoiding each other and giving one another a cold shoulder.’

  ‘And from there we progressed to arguing. Never talking. Just hurting each other even more. Can we come back from this? Do we still have a chance? I love you, Tom. I’ve never loved anyone else.’

  Tabitha darted a look towards the door as it opened, and Tom turned his head to see who was there.

  A tall, slim, olive skinned man in his late fifties stood in the doorway. ‘Mi Amor,’ he said, holding out a single red rose and smiling passionately at Tabitha.

  ‘Alejandro!’ Tabitha screeched.

  ‘Alejandro,’ Tom said, through clenched teeth.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Tom’s head was pounding like a steel drum at a Caribbean party and, as he struggled out of bed in his sister’s guest bedroom, he cursed himself for drinking so much. He had had a few beers with Simon at The Golden Dragon before he’d got the call from Stephanie, followed by sharing several bottles of his sister’s best Burgundy, not forgetting almost an entire bottle of his brother-in-law’s 30-year-old single malt whisky. It was a wonder he wasn’t comatose and a miracle that he could stand – albeit somewhat shakily.

  But it wasn’t only the excessive amounts of alcohol still flowing around his system that was making his head hurt. It was also the knowledge that his hopes and dreams had crashed and burnt just moments after it had looked as if his future would be heavenly.

  Why had he lost his temper so badly at the hospital yesterday? Why had Alejandro’s sudden appearance made such a difference? Why hadn’t he let Tabitha explain, as she was clearly trying to, instead of storming out like a teenager having a hissy fit? Did the fact that his wife had had a brief affair really change the way he felt about her? The irony of it all. Tabby had accused him of cheating, yet he was completely innocent. He had never suspected she might be frolicking in bed with some sleazy-looking Spaniard, until Tabby had informed him earlier in the week, that the Spaniard would be moving in the minute he moved out.

  The shock of Tabby’s accident had, absurdly, made him forget that little fact. Until Alejandro had arrived with a red rose in his hand and flowery words in his mouth. And the worst part of all was that Alejandro didn’t look in the least bit sleazy. Unfortunately, he looked a lot like George Clooney.

  Tom wasn’t sure he could compete with that, despite Tabby saying that she had never stopped loving him. She obviously loved them both. Was it simply more convenient to reconcile with him? She could still see Alejandro on the side.

  Perhaps too much water had flowed beneath their bridge. Perhaps reconciliation was just a piece of flotsam in a stormy sea; something to cling to before all hope was lost.

  Someone knocking on the door, sounded like a barrage of cannon fire, and his niece, Sasha bringing an insipid cup of coffee at eight-thirty in the morning, and informing him that she was on her way to pick up Ali and to take her home, was hardly the best start to his day.

  ‘Thank you. Please get out,’ he said.

  ‘Good morning to you too,’ Sasha replied. ‘The headache pills are in the bathroom cabinet. I’ll tell Ali you may be a while.’

  ‘Tell Ali I won’t be coming. No don’t. I’ll go to the house and talk to her myself.’


  ‘Whatever. You look like death you know.’

  ‘Thank you, Sasha. So will you if you remain here very much longer.’

  Sasha laughed, and just to add insult to injury, slammed the door on her way out.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Ali awoke in bed in Jules’ spare room, unable to quite believe how much had happened in a single day. A day spent flirting had led to her almost having sex with a man she hardly knew – and wasn’t completely sure she trusted. Her best friend had caught them just in time. Her mum could easily have died, but thankfully hadn’t. And if last night was anything to go by, Aidan and Simon would clearly never be friends. She was rather grateful when Gertie had insisted on them all getting a cab together, from The Golden Dragon, and dropping Ali off first as both Aidan and Simon seemed to be in competition over who should walk her home. What was it with men and this need to be a protector? She was perfectly capable of walking home, especially, as she had had to remind them both, she was staying at Jules’ just a few doors away. Even the cab driver laughed when they told him the first stop was at the Shimmering Scissors Hair and Beauty salon, but Gertie had insisted, so everyone went along with it.

  Besides, as she had informed Aidan and reminded Simon, Simmering-on-Sea was hardly the sort of place where a person would feel unsafe walking the streets, no matter what time of day or night. The last serious crime here – so bad it made the local paper – was when a juicy piece of roast beef was stolen from Susan Tilliman, the village florist’s kitchen table. She had left her door open and the thief had sneaked in and out, within seconds. Fortunately, the criminal, who was known for such thefts, was apprehended and a photo appeared in the paper, but as the culprit had four legs and a tail and went by the name of Baddog, no formal charges were made. Baddog’s owner, Perriman Day, son of the village butcher, replaced Susan’s joint of beef with a much larger one, and a romance was born. Their wedding photo was front page news beneath the words: ‘Local Couple Meat and Marry’. No one in the village was sure if that was merely a typo, or a feeble attempt at an amusing headline.