Skylar took a sip from her enamel mug before answering. ‘I’m upset. I’m very upset. That a father could have such a casual disregard for his son is beyond anything I can comprehend. I think as far as Pete is concerned, he pays his child maintenance, so that’s him doing his job. I dealt with my anger over that a long time ago. He clearly doesn’t want anything to do with Lucas or he would have contacted me by now.’
Olive shook her head and took a large swig of her own drink. It might have been many years ago, but having lost a child herself, she would never be able to fathom anyone actively choosing to not participate in their child’s life. ‘How he could do that to that gorgeous boy of yours I will never understand. What a blessing he’s missing out on.’
‘The problem is, with him being so close, we’re bound to bump into him. And I have no idea how to deal with that. Lucas wouldn’t be able to pick his father out of a crowd. So if he did come and talk to us, I don’t even know whether I should tell Lucas. I don’t want to do something that would do more harm than good.’
Olive wasn’t sure she had any wise words to offer. She’d experienced being a single mum to a boy in an altogether different set of circumstances. There had never been any chance of her husband making a reappearance, however much she might have wished for that very thing to happen. ‘Is there any chance you can talk to Pete about it? Decide what to do if that situation were to occur?’ The last thing Skylar needed was to make a decision not to tell her son, then go and have the other party choose to tell him he was his father.
‘I’m not sure he’d listen.’ Skylar lowered her head, peering into the depths of her drink.
‘What happened, Skylar? Why aren’t you together?’
There were hundreds of reasons for couples splitting up. It might be a simple case of them drifting apart, but Olive was sure there was more to it than that.
Olive wondered whether she’d pried too much when Skylar didn’t answer at first. ‘Don’t worry if it’s too hard to talk about. I shouldn’t be asking about private matters.’
Skylar swigged her drink again. ‘It’s okay. It’s just I never really talk about it. It’s quite a dark period of my life, one I’d rather forget.’
Olive knew all about dark periods. She had her own she didn’t like to talk about and it was only in the past year that she’d managed to finally discuss things with Richard. It had made her realise that, sometimes, talking about these things was therapeutic, even if it was difficult. And Olive wanted Skylar to realise she had a friend to talk to if she ever needed one. ‘I’m here for you, if you do ever want to chat about it.’ It might be that Richard was a more appropriate person, but she wouldn’t be offended, whatever her friend decided.
‘Pete was, is, a very controlling person. He could be very subtle in the way he did it, but it was constant. It was only when I came out of the situation that I realised how bad it had become. Lucas was an accident. I think that’s why he doesn’t ever see him as part of his life. But having that boy is what saved me.’
‘I hope he didn’t ever hurt you or Lucas?’ If he had violent tendencies it was worth knowing about.
‘Not physically. But emotionally. He manipulated so many aspects of my life I didn’t even notice it happening. If it wasn’t for having Lucas, I might never have seen him for what he truly is.’
Olive wasn’t going to ask for more details. If Skylar ever wanted to elaborate, then she would listen, but it was clearly painful to talk about. ‘Well, I’m glad you did. You and Lucas are one of my greatest delights in life. Watching him grow is a pleasure and you’re a fantastic mum. You’ve given that boy everything you possibly could.’
‘I hope I have.’
‘I don’t doubt you have. And I think you must be aware this is just another subtle manipulation. Him turning up here and buying a business on the beach you frequent often is no accident. He’s doing it to remind you he hasn’t gone away. If I were you, I’d go and talk to him about how you expect him to behave around Lucas. Don’t treat it as a discussion, otherwise he’ll try to get his own way again. Just lay down the law about how things are going to be. I’ll come with you if you’re worried about doing it.’ Olive didn’t want to push Skylar into anything, but given the behaviour of the man, something needed to be said.
‘I’ll think about it,’ Skylar said, before tipping up the last of her drink to enjoy.
Olive wanted to say more, but a group of people were passing and Skylar got up to hand out leaflets.
Skylar did a great job of explaining about the Gin Shack and its weekly menu and how they were currently trying to decide a winner for the cocktail competition. The group appeared to consist of two couples near to retirement age and they tried the samples with pleasure. It was a hopeful exchange and it was clear they might well have generated their first set of new customers already. Well, Skylar had. Olive had sat on her bottom. She was far too worn out from preparing all the mince-pie gin earlier. She really should try and have more periods of rest given her age and the fact she’d retired nearly twenty years ago.
With that set of people off on their merry way, Skylar took a seat again. ‘I’ve thought about it. Yes, I’ll talk to him, and yes, I would like you to come along with me.’
Olive nearly spat out the last of the cranberry Bee’s Knees cocktail she was enjoying. ‘I wasn’t trying to force you. You can take your time to think about it.’ The last thing she wanted was for Skylar to feel like she had to do something because Olive had suggested it. She didn’t want Skylar to feel manipulated by anyone else again in her lifetime.
‘What you said made sense. I can’t be the one to stand quietly by in this situation. That’s what he expects me to do. But I have a duty to Lucas, and to myself, to make sure he knows I won’t let him treat us the way he has in the past. I just need to work out what I do want him to say if Lucas and he were ever to meet. I don’t want to lie to my son, but I also don’t want him to know that the person he gets to call father has never wanted anything to do with him.’
It was a very tough decision when put like that. And Olive wasn’t going to influence it in any way. Skylar would work out what was best for her son. Olive just needed to be there for her when the time came.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
By the end of the week, Skylar still hadn’t had any contact from Pete. Nor had any of the Gin Shack crew seen him, but then none of them had frequented Bottoms Up because none of them were about to switch their loyalties.
When Skylar approached Olive about the visit, she double-checked she was sure it was the right thing to do and that she was the right person to be going with her.
They’d decided going on Sunday during the daytime would be best. That way, hopefully any endeavours to talk to him wouldn’t be interrupted by customers.
Arriving, the bar looked different to when Olive had been there on opening night. It had that sad, unloved, unclean feel shady nightclubs often had. It wouldn’t have surprised Olive if her shoes had adhered to the floor, causing them to be stuck here much longer than they intended.
‘Hello?’ Skylar said, sounding unsure of herself.
Olive was feeling unsure of herself, let alone Skylar. She needed to buck up her ideas, especially when she was supposed to be here as the moral support. She reminded herself that was what she was doing. She wasn’t here on bouncer duties. Good job really, as she’d make a pretty appalling job of it if she was.
There was no response so they had to venture further into the murky depths of the place. Without the crowd that had been here previously, it was possible to see the high tables and ridiculous bar-stools. They looked like podiums for dancing girls more than anything. Maybe that was what they were like that for. If the wine bar idea fails, try a gin festival. If that fails, turn it into a lap-dancing club.
Olive really hoped not. The café that had been there had been a lovely little place, one Olive had often come to. Somehow the seafront seemed a bit lost without the kind of establishment where it was p
ossible to purchase fish and chips and a 99 with a flake.
It was a narrow bar and, even with no one inside, it was hard to navigate or locate exactly where to get through to the back. Not that they should venture that far without invitation. They just had to hope, if they hollered enough, someone would come out and help them locate Pete.
‘Anyone there?’ It was Olive’s turn to give it a try. Maybe Pete would be more likely to show his face if it was some old biddy lost in the place rather than an ex he didn’t seem to want to talk to. ‘Helllllllooooooo?’ Olive went to the highest decibel she was able to reach without shouting.
‘One moment,’ a female voice said from somewhere.
A few seconds later a woman with smoky-grey platinum hair appeared from beyond. ‘We’re not open yet,’ she said, in a very Pat Butcher, sling-yer-hook kind of manner.
‘We know. We were hoping to speak with Pete Robinson. Is he about?’ Skylar was standing taller than she had been. If she’d been a peacock, her tail feathers would have been upright, giving a parade of what for.
‘Who’s asking?’ The young Pat Butcher did a proper top-lip curl, showing some teeth as she sneered.
‘The mother of his child. I’m not leaving till I’ve spoken with him.’
Good on ya, girl, Olive wanted to chant, but realised it would mean losing some serious levels of cool if she did.
‘Pete doesn’t have any kids.’ Pat turned the lip curl into a double-sided affair.
Oh. Well, this was getting awkward. Olive also drew herself up a bit, parading imaginary peacock feathers herself. She wasn’t made of bouncer material, but if push came to shove, she was sure she could pull something out of the bag. She didn’t want to, but judging from the fact the hostility ranking in the room had gone up by about three hundred and eighty-five per cent, anything was possible.
Rather than reacting with handbags at dawn, Olive discreetly made sure she had a hold of her mobile. Veronica had trained her how to make calls in an emergency.
‘Just find Pete, would you?’ Skylar sounded very composed in the face of hostility, but there was at least a bar in the way, preventing Pat from decking her at any given second.
Olive would have placed a bet on Pat being involved with Pete somehow. It would explain why she was being so hostile in the face of such news. Anyone would be majorly pissed off if a partner had kept that kind of thing quiet.
Without saying anything, Pat disappeared into the back and left them waiting.
The wait was so long, Olive contemplated taking a seat, but they all seemed to be those convoluted bar-stool death traps. If she managed to get herself on one, there was no guarantee she would get off there alive. Not without the fire brigade coming along to rescue her.
When five minutes or more had passed, Olive wondered if they’d been abandoned. Pat obviously knew Pete, but whether she was willing to get hold of him, who knew? ‘I’m going to start yelling again if no one comes out.’
‘You go ahead. I’m not leaving until we’ve spoken to him.’
‘Peeeettttttteeeeeeeeeeeee.’ Olive wasn’t one for being mucked about. If being loud was going to help, she was all for it. She’d have gone through to the back of the bar if she weren’t worried about getting in trouble for trespassing. She liked to avoid the police as much as possible these days. One ride in a police car was quite enough for a lifetime.
It was hard to know what else to do, but if they remained here long enough they should get some response. At some point they would have to officially open the bar and serve customers. It would be a shame, though, if they missed their usual Sunday afternoon fun on the beach.
‘Petttttttttttttttttttttttttteeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeerrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr, get out here now.’ Olive guessed he was a Peter and gave her best attempt at a you’re-in-lots-of-trouble-so-respond type of yell.
At long last, Pat came out again. ‘Can you stop yelling? He’s not here. He’ll be here at three. You can come back then.’ Pat crossed her arms like that was final.
‘We’re not leaving until we’ve spoken to him.’ Skylar also sounded very final in what she was saying.
‘You can’t just stand there.’
‘We can.’
‘I’ll call the police.’
‘Go ahead.’
‘They’ll kick you out.’
‘I doubt it when I tell them why I’m here.’
Olive wasn’t sure where to place herself with the two women at loggerheads. She was obviously with Skylar all the way, but that didn’t stop her feeling like a gooseberry, unsure when to join in. And, quite frankly, it was Skylar’s battle to face, so it was good on her that she was sticking up for herself. There was every chance, if they left, that they’d lock up and make it even more difficult for them to get hold of Skylar’s ex.
‘I’m here,’ a male voice said. ‘Why didn’t you say it was Skylar, Hils?’
‘I said it was the mother of your child. I figured that might be enough for you to ascertain who was here.’ Pat, or rather Hils, flounced off into the back, clearly upset. Who wouldn’t be by this obnoxious man?
‘That wasn’t quite what she said, but not to worry. What can I do for you?’
‘We need to talk,’ Skylar said.
‘We most certainly do. I’m really sorry I haven’t been in touch. Things have just been hectic here.’ Pete glanced round the bar like it explained why he hadn’t managed even a simple text.
Olive bit her lip. She was glad she was here. Inviting him to talk made it sound like some kind of negotiation and she needed to tell him what it was she expected. He obviously didn’t regard the feelings of others. If he did, he wouldn’t have turned up on the doorstep of his ex-partner, with whom he had a child, and not even bother to tell the person Olive assumed was his current partner. He would have also had the courtesy to get in touch with Skylar. Obviously good manners weren’t part of his repertoire.
‘Take a seat.’ Pete gestured to one of the few lower tables that Olive hadn’t spotted before.
At least Olive would be able to have a seat and leave here without the help of the emergency services.
‘We need to talk about Lucas.’ Skylar squeezed in by Olive. They were those diner-style seats that weren’t overly generous.
‘Go ahead.’ Pete stood, rather than joining them in sitting.
‘Sit down, would you? You’re making the place look untidy.’ That wasn’t really the reason Olive was telling him to sit down. It was because, by remaining standing, it was like he was trying to exert some authority before anything had even been discussed. Given what she knew about him, he needed to understand he wasn’t the boss of Skylar’s life any more. Pete took a seat.
‘As you’ve not made any contact with me regarding your moving here, you’ve proved you don’t want to have any contact with your son. However, if you do bump into him, I don’t wish to lie about who you are. I want Lucas to know if he meets you, but you’re not to tell him. I’ll tell him if it ever comes to it.’ Skylar took a breath having said her piece. The sentence was very measured and she’d obviously thought long and hard about what she was going to say.
‘Hang on. I never said anything about not wanting anything to do with him. I wouldn’t have moved here if I didn’t want to.’
‘But you’ve never mentioned it. If you wanted contact with him you should have spoken to me first.’
Olive really wanted to say something. To outline exactly how he should have acted given the circumstances. Moving into the same town and opening a business a stone’s throw away from the beach hut his son played in without contacting Skylar was atrocious behaviour. It seemed unnecessarily cruel to shock her in that way.
‘I’m really sorry. This place came up last minute and I got so involved with getting it ready I didn’t have chance to tell you. I didn’t think you’d mind. Me being about again should make things easier for you.’
Olive hated these kinds of sorrys. The ones that were so easy to avoid if just the smallest ou
nce of thought and consideration had been applied in the first place. Saying the right word in the right place, but with no intention of paying any thought or consideration next time round.
‘How is it going to make anything easier? You haven’t seen Lucas since he was a toddler. He wouldn’t be able to identify you in a police line-up. How is coming back into his life without warning going to be in any way beneficial?’
‘I know I haven’t been about, and I’m sorry for that, but I want to be part of his life. And surely it’s better now while he’s still young. If I waited to do this until he was a teenager, he wouldn’t want anything to do with me.’
There was a moment of silence and Olive had to stop herself from telling him off for his empty apologies. That and his making decisions without consulting Skylar were really getting her goat.
‘You should have spoken to me. I should have been given time to think about this.’
‘Absolutely right,’ Olive said, unable to stop herself. ‘And you knew Skylar knew you were here. Not saying anything is just plain rude.’ So biting her tongue wasn’t working. She was here to support her friend. She had to say something.
‘Look, I’ve said sorry. I can’t keep saying it. I can’t change the past. All we can do is work out what we’re going to do moving forward, now I’d like to be part of Lucas’s life again.’
What a big thing to ask. To just waltz in, invest in bricks and mortar with a new business, and expect the other party to just agree. And it was, just as Skylar had explained, Pete showing his manipulative side, because how did she say no?
If Skylar did, she would be depriving a son of his father, and it wasn’t like they would be able to avoid each other based on where he’d set himself up.
‘I just need to have a think. If you’re coming back into his life it’ll be on my terms. I don’t want anything to happen that might upset my son.’
‘Neither do I. But I don’t think having his father back in his life is going to be upsetting on any level.’
‘It will be if you upset his mother.’ Olive’s tongue worked faster than her brain. She wasn’t supposed to be contributing to the conversation, but she couldn’t help but point out the obvious.
Christmas at the Gin Shack Page 17