by Joanne Hill
Jack scratched his chin. “Hardly surprising when she hasn't got a lot of choice.”
“Has she not got any female friends? And you said her mother had been around?”
“Her mother had to leave last week but she's coming back nearer the time to help Em with the baby. As for friends...” Jack shook his head. “Turns out her two closest friends knew Brad was carrying on with Charlotte and didn't say a thing to her. In Em's mind, they’re as much the enemy. She doesn't want to see them.”
Robyn looked from one to the other as understanding dawned.
Ethan nodded. “You've got it.” He jerked his thumb at Jack. “Him and me - right now, we're all she's got.”
Robyn walked alongside the supermarket trolley with Jack. Six times now he’d come close to inflicting damage on the shins of other shoppers. Then they all took one look at him, at his black hair and dark eyes, at the sexy slant of his cheekbones and they accepted his apology.
Did they wonder if she and Jack were a couple? A husband and wife out doing a shop together? One of those couples who spent five minutes deciding which coffee to buy?
He stopped at the cereals, but for a moment he just stood there, not moving.
He suddenly snapped out of it and grabbed a box of granola, some bran flakes and a box of cornflakes.
“Emily must love her cereal,” Robyn observed.
“You’re in the way,” an irate voice behind them said loudly and they both jumped and Robyn stood to the side.
“Rude,” Jack muttered.
“We were blocking the aisle,” Robyn pointed out.
“Even so.” Jack ran his hands roughly through his hair.
They came to canned items and his gaze scanned the shelves.
“Beans,” she suggested. “Good carbohydrates and protein and fiber, perfect for a pregnant woman.”
“You see? This is why Ethan is a genius asking you along. I’d never think of that stuff.”
He looked at her hopefully, as if he could head back to the car and leave her in possession of the trolley.
She shook her head. “You're doing this shop.”
It was on the tip of her tongue to say surely he'd shopped with Charlotte at some time, even if they'd just pulled in to buy a bottle of wine before heading out to dinner.
She thought better of it, and grabbed a box of tissues.
“From what I hear, she still needs these.”
Thirty minutes later they pulled up at a house in rural land north of the city.
Jack killed the ignition and as Robyn undid her seat belt, it crossed her mind she'd agreed to visit a woman she didn't know and a woman who was quite possibly going through the worst time of her life. “Jack.” She hesitated. “I’m really not sure about this. I don’t know her. I never suffered quite the same thing she did.”
Jack's jaw was tight. “She knows she’s going to have this baby on her own and the only people she's got for company are two bachelors. That's not good. For any of us.”
He had a point. “Okay.” Robyn sighed. “Let’s go in.”
Before they got to the porch, the door swung open and Ethan demanded, “What the heck took you so long?”
He looked more frazzled than she'd ever seen him, and he muttered, “She’s in the kitchen. Making tea. I can’t stomach another cup. I need beer.”
They went up the steps to the wide porch of Ethan’s house. It had been beautifully modernized but also, Robyn realized, extended to make it a large home. They stepped inside, went down a long hallway and around the corner to the kitchen. Emily stood at the counter. She was tall, blonde, with her stomach protruding from her slender frame.
Robyn glanced at Jack. He stood in the doorway, eyes tight with concern.
His gaze suddenly locked on hers and her face heated as she was caught blatantly staring. “I’ll just talk to Ethan,” he muttered and he turned and left.
Jack prowled outside to where Ethan was sitting impatiently in the Hummer. Rock played on his stereo and he turned it down as Jack approached and said, “I’ll be back in an hour. Got a business to check up on.” He suddenly narrowed his gaze. “Before I do, there's something I've got to ask.”
“Shoot.”
“I’m only asking because I’m curious.”
Jack frowned.
“Is there anything going on between you and Robyn?”
“What?” Jack shook his head as if to clear the words.
Ethan held up his hands, surrender-style. “That's all it is. Just asking.”
“I'd be no better than Brad if there was, Ethan. Hell.”
“Okay. Just checking.” He gave a salute. “Be back in an hour.”
But as the truck turned on to the main road, a thought crossed Jack's mind. Maybe Ethan was interested in Robyn - for himself?
His body went cold. And maybe she was interested in him. Heaven knows she ogled his body whenever he came over in one of those muscle t-shirts he bought online by the dozen because he loathed shopping.
Ethan and Robyn.
Surely not.
But then - why not? Two single adults who seemed to like each other. Sounded like a pretty good start to a relationship in anyone's book.
He headed back toward the house and try as he might, he couldn't dislodge the idea that there might be something going on between them.
And even more, that he didn't like it, one bit.
On the way back to Takapuna, both were quiet in the car. Jack more so. Robyn had observed the way he behaved around Emily and it struck her repeatedly, clear as water, that inside he felt loaded with guilt. He blamed himself for what had happened.
Which was crazy because Emily hadn't seen it either. She'd been so wrapped up in her pregnancy, coping with morning sickness, needing support, and grasping the titbits her husband gave her, not even suspecting he was showering his attention on another woman.
Emily had unburdened herself, and in the process had revealed more about Jack. Of his solitary nature. Of a distance in his relationship with Charlotte. Yet Emily apportioned no blame to Jack. Her loyalty to him was strong, and it struck Robyn that the women in Jack's life from his housekeeper to his PA were incredibly loyal to him.
“Jack would never have married her,” Emily had told Robyn. “He isn't the marrying type.”
Unlike his family. With the exception of his folks, the Fletcher family was littered with divorce.
Something else had grabbed Robyn's attention as well. Emily was confused about how to deal with Brad's family when the baby was born. She had gotten on well with the Randells, and they were her baby's family - but she wanted nothing to do with Brad and she had no idea how to handle that.
Edwin's family hadn't bothered much with her when they’d split up, although she'd kept some contact with them, and had placed the ball in their court, kept the doors open if they wanted to see their grandchildren.
She sighed warily and Jack commented, “That sounds deep.”
“I guess it was.” She turned to him. “I was thinking about grandparents. How difficult it can be with children when both sides don't get on.”
He slowed the car and a thought struck her. “Have you thought of taking Eric to meet your parents?”
The air around them went still. Ice cold still. Clearly the grandparents suggestion was not a good one.
“That’s not a good idea.”
She understood his reluctance, but even a quick visit would surely be a good thing. “Eric's here for such a short time. Maybe it would be nice for Eric to meet them, to have some sort of connection when he goes back home.”
He met her gaze full on and there was a look in his eyes she'd never seen.
“I appreciate your thoughts.” His voice said he disagreed violently. “But this is nothing to do with you.”
“It's just...You told me he has hardly any family on Val's side, and your folks are the only grandparents he's going to ever know.”
His eyes had turned stony. “You don’t know what you’re saying.�
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They turned into his cul-de-sac and headed down the end and Jack said, “If Edwin's parents wanted to know the twins, would you let them?”
She thought of his parents again. They'd moved to the South Island but her relationship with Edwin had only lasted a few years anyhow. She hadn't got to know his family all that well.
They drove through to his house, and the gates shut behind them.
“Of course I’d let his parents know the twins,” she told him.
“From what you've said, your in-laws are very different to my folks.”
“Jack, I'm not an idiot. I know your parents weren't the greatest but...” She gave a shrug. “They are still your family. Your blood.”
He killed the ignition. “You know nothing.”
He was out of the car in a flash, and she followed him to the paved steps. “Then tell me so I can understand this better.”
He didn't answer.
She met him at the top, folded her arms, dared him him to tell her what she didn’t understand. There'd always been more rumour than fact surrounding Jack Fletcher, and maybe the whole family had been subjected to the same judgement. They were undoubtedly a family who had problems, and were rough around the edges; small towns like Kopane thrived on gossip after all but maybe his family would welcome their new grandson with open arms. “It will be a nice trip, a day trip. You can show Eric around the schools, the park, the bush reserve. There are really nice parts of Kopane, and maybe even the bad parts are different to how you remember. How do you know when you haven't been back for years?”
“I intend it to stay that way.”
Kopane was only a three hour drive away.
“People change,” she tried again. “Maybe your parents have changed...”
Reality suddenly leapt out at her, making her stop in her tracks. Whatever the reasons Jack didn't want to go to Kopane, they would be valid ones. Otherwise he would have taken his son up there already. It was a day trip, a scenic drive.
What on earth was she thinking, telling him what to do? Talking about his parents when things weren't so great with her own.
You've gone too far, Robyn. She shot him an apologetic glance “This is none of my business, I’m sorry. Forget I said anything.”
Yeah, she'd gone way too far.
He unlocked the door and stood back to let her pass. As she did, he murmured, “Apology accepted.”
His tone was blank, and as she glanced up at him, she saw frustration in his face. She didn't believe he meant it for a second.
Jack prowled. He prowled across his office floor and back, and then again, and again, and again.
Robyn did not know what she was talking about. She had no idea, and she had one hell of a nerve suggesting he go back there, that he take his son back when he'd spent years escaping the place.
Was there something in the water that had made both her and Collette suggest it?
And what would happen if he did. His brothers still lived there. Three of them. He knew two were eking out reasonable livings, one was unemployed, but their personal circumstances were a disaster.
Much like his own.
He stopped a minute, his jaw tightening uncomfortably. Not a heck of a lot different at all. Kids to different women. Broken relationships. Personal lives down the toilet. He just did it all with more money.
You're not so different to your family, Fletcher.
The thought paralyzed him. He'd strived to be different. To rid himself of all that being a Fletcher was.
But was he really any different?
He resumed his prowling. Robyn was right of course. There was more to Kopane than number 122 Seddon Road. There were the schools. The park. The river where he'd watched other kids paddle down in their canoes while he'd stood on the banks with envy.
There were also places like the back of the town hall where he’d drunk whiskey and escaped from his reality. The trees at the back of the park where he’d had the shit kicked out of him and then two days later where he’d gone back and did the same to his attacker. There were the shops he’d stolen from, a walking tour of Jack Fletcher's early life. Oh, yeah, it was all good stuff to be showing a kid. His kid.
And his kid at some point might want to see his roots. Wouldn’t it be easier to do it now, in the hope it might satisfy that curiosity while he wasn’t old enough to ask the tough questions?
He glanced at his calendar. What was that saying about pulling plaster off a wound? The quicker it’s done, the better? It had to happen. Eric might not want to ever come back to this part of the world when he was older. Then again, maybe be would.
He buzzed Collette. His stomach clenched as she answered.
“I’ll be away from the office tomorrow. And I need to charter a small plane and a pilot, and a hire car on the ground at the other end.”
“Where on earth are you going?” she asked incredulous.
He ground out the answer. “I'm going to Kopane.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
He told Robyn that night. “I’m having the day off work tomorrow. To spend with Eric.”
“Really?” Approval flashed across her face. He liked that it did and then promptly backtracked. Since when did approval from Robyn matter? She went on, “Where are you going?”
“Kopane.”
Her eyebrows arched. “You’re going to Kopane?” Her tone said she didn’t believe him.
“We’re flying up in the morning. A day trip.”
“Flying? There's no airport up there.”
“I’m chartering a plane. There's a strip just out of town.” He flattened his lips into a smile. “And you're coming with me.”
Her eyes widened in shock. “I’m what?”
“You're coming with me. As Eric's nanny.”
The shock changed to disbelief. “That's crazy. I’ve got the children.”
He folded his arms across his chest. “I know you have children, Robyn, but this was your idea. Shouldn't you see your idea through?”
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
“So who was it that told me I should take my son up to visit my home town?”
“You take your son. I can’t go with you. What about Ruby and James?”
“Bring them too. Have they ever seen Kopane?”
Her eyebrows knit together as she rubbed her fist across her forehead. “When they were babies, yes; just before my parents moved to the Gold Coast.”
“Then it will be good for them to see the town their mother spent the first twenty years of her life in.”
“Why fly? Why don't you drive up?”
He regarded her with total honesty. “Because I want it to be as quick and as painless as possible.”
The flight was ghastly, and Ruby threw up.
Jack smiled at Robyn. An evil smile. He said, “This was your idea, you know.”
“My idea,” she retorted through gritted teeth, “was for you to drive up with Eric and admire scenery, not take me along with you.”
Eric was in the front with the pilot and he seemed to be enjoying the flight which was, she thought, something to be grateful for.
They landed at the local airstrip where the rental car was waiting, and when they were on their way to town he asked, “You said the twins had been here a few years back. Have you been back much yourself?”
“Yes.” She studied a new subdivision of ten acre blocks that had sprung up since she was last here. They were out of town enough to be rural, but close enough to enjoy town life, even if it was only small town life. “It was Miranda Feeney’s wedding. I came on my own and Sage looked after Ruby and James. It was only for one night. Miranda moved up to Kaitaia last year, so there isn't really anyone I keep in contact with.”
She glanced across at Jack as he indicated to leave the main highway and take the road that led straight to Kopane.
The hire car they were in was small, and he looked big and muscled in the front seat. Her breath caught a moment. “What about you?” The children were suddenl
y quiet and she glanced back to check on them. Eric was gazing out the window, Ruby and James had dozed off. She turned back. “What happened last time you saw your parents?”
He looked straight ahead. “They told me to go to hell.”
She jerked back a little, stared at him, stunned. “What?”
He shrugged, didn’t elaborate but from the taut line of his jaw, she knew what he told her was the truth.
She swallowed on a dry throat. “How long ago was that?”
“Five years ago.”
Hope lifted a little in her heart. “But that was such a long time ago. They may have changed.”
“I very much doubt it.”
“You don’t know if you don’t talk to them.”
“I talk to them every birthday.”
He’d never mentioned this before.
“It used to be every Christmas but they seemed to think I was ringing to gloat about the fact I was having a good time over Christmas, even though I don't actually have a good time every Christmas. So I changed it to their birthdays. It now means I have to annoy them by ringing twice a year but it seems the safest way.”
Her eyes narrowed in accusation. “You said you hadn’t seen them in years.”
“That’s true.”
She stared incredulously at him. “You never said anything about talking to them on the phone.”
“You never asked.”
So all this time he had maintained communication with them. But what sort of communication was it?
They sped past bush and fields and the sense of familiarity grew in Robyn. She rarely saw any countryside now she was without a car, and neither did the children.
Next to her, Jack readjusted his grip on the steering wheel. Tighter.
She said cautiously, “What happens when you telephone?”
He'd been glancing through the rear view mirror at the children. “They ask me what I want.”