Winter Beginnings

by Elise K. Ackers

  ‘I’ll do the salads and dessert, then.’ Dean held his arms out and—as if summoned—his children appeared and folded themselves against him. When he lowered his arms they rested on the kids’ backs, a move perfected after years of practice.

  Everyone began to walk outside.

  ‘No, we can do dessert!’ Ben said, affixing himself to Alice’s arm.

  Alice looked down at him. ‘Ben, you can’t just invite yourself to someone’s house.’

  Ben looked up at her, his eyes wide and pleading. ‘But Dean invited everyone, didn’t you, Dean?’

  They were all in the car park now, and everyone was watching. Dean smiled at Ben. ‘Of course you’re invited, buddy. But if you guys have plans—’

  ‘I don’t!’ Ben volunteered quickly.

  ‘Ben …’ Alice was working again tonight. He knew this and still he put her in this position. She understood his evenings must be lonely, even boring, but she couldn’t let this become a habit. The Fosters were not babysitters. She was responsible for Ben and as such, had to say no. How would he get home? When would he wear out his welcome?

  Nevertheless, it sucked to be the bad guy, especially when she was saying no to something that sounded so good. Had she not been going to work, she would have been as keen to be a part of dinner as Ben, but such nights hadn’t been and weren’t going to be a part of her life for a while.

  ‘Dean could drop me off again,’ Ben pleaded. Ben glanced quickly over his shoulder at Dean then back at Alice. ‘Or I could catch a cab!’

  ‘A cab?’ Cal spoke up, his voice confused and incredulous.

  They were making a scene, and this moment wasn’t supposed to be about the Jayes at all. Desperate to end the discussion, Alice threw a wide-eyed look at Dean, who threw back a solution.

  ‘I’ll be happy to drive him home if that’s okay with you. I’d love to have him come for dinner. Both of you, even.’

  Alice mumbled her thanks, unsure if she’d got what she wanted out of that conversation.

  ‘Cal,’ Liv said, nudging him with her elbow, ‘if you don’t feed me soon I’m going to mistake your arm for a chicken wing.’

  ‘That’s a big chicken!’ he said with a laugh.

  ‘Don’t flatter yourself.’ She winked.

  ‘I got the garage sign fixed,’ Dean said, so casually that Alice knew this was the moment.

  Cal looked above the roofline, interested. ‘I didn’t know it was broken.’ Then his expression changed.

  Alice looked up too. A big, squashed diamond turned in a slow circle above the garage. When she’d started work here, the sign had read Foster’s Garage on both sides. Now it said Foster’s Garage on one side and Foster’s Carpentry on the other.

  Liv gaped at it, then like Cal, dropped her gaze to Ethan, who was too busy kissing his wife to notice. Lifting his face from Samantha’s, he murmured something that made her laugh. She pushed her lips against his throat, murmured something back then unhooked her hands from the back of his neck and slid them down his chest. When they turned, they appeared startled to have an audience.

  ‘Can’t a guy have a moment?’ Ethan grumbled.

  Cal shook his head. ‘It would appear a guy can have two.’

  ‘Two what?’

  ‘Moments,’ said Dean. ‘Get ready for the next one.’

  Sam grinned at Liv and walked over to her. Dean had told Alice that the two women had been best friends since primary school. Apparently, they could communicate with just a look—except today, Sam wasn’t getting the message. At last, she turned around and looked up, her gaze guided by Nina’s helpful finger.

  Her mouth sagged for just a moment, then snapped back into place as her eyes dropped to Ethan. Still grumbling, he took a moment to notice.

  ‘What?’ He looked up. Propped between the old roof and the new, between the past and the future, was the metaphorical and literal sign of things to come.

  ‘What is that?’ he demanded, thrusting his index finger at it.

  Dean shrugged. ‘A sign.’

  ‘That’s a new sign.’

  ‘True.’ Dean let the moment stretch out, then reached into the pocket of his jacket and removed something small, which he held out to Ethan. There was another beat of silence as Ethan took the object, the brothers considering one another, then Ethan pressed his thumb against what Alice now saw was a garage remote.

  The large roller door to the warehouse shuddered then lifted. Four pre-assembled workbenches had been lined up against the wall. Piles of boxes, plastic packaging and miscellany filled the middle of the space and an enormous sheet of reinforced plastic rested against the closest bench, its hundreds of holes waiting for shelves and hooks that were yet to be unwrapped.

  Alice clutched her hands together and pressed them between her breasts.

  Ethan stared at the equipment for such a long time that Alice could only guess what he was thinking. Finally, he looked back at Dean. ‘Was this Mum and Dad’s money?’

  Dean shook his head. ‘You didn’t want that money. You gave it to me. So this is my money.’

  Ethan considered this. His thumb moved in a slow circle around the remote button.

  ‘I paid for this,’ Dean said quietly. ‘I was going to put everything up for you, but then I figured you should make it your own. I’ve got a supplier on standby to deliver materials this week—you just need to amend or confirm the order. The shelving units are coming tomorrow at eleven. You’ll need to decide where you want them set up.’ Then he handed Ethan the white box full of business cards.

  Ethan tugged a handful free, laughed once, then passed them to Cal who began to hand them around. Ethan walked over to his brother, stared at him for a moment, then pulled him into a tight embrace.

  Ethan pulled away and grasped the sides of Dean’s face. ‘Thank you.’ His voice was gravelly, altered by emotion. And then his arms were around Dean again.

  Very cautiously, Nina crept forward and folded her arms around Ethan’s leg. She pressed her face against his dirty jeans and smiled when his hand came down to welcome her into the hug. Rowan needed no further invitation—he rushed forward and collided with his father, then he, too, was part of the embrace. Sam stepped forward next, her eyes shining, and then was lost from sight amid the two large men. Cal and Liv joined them and then everyone was hugging and laughing. Liv was crying, Ethan was stuttering his thanks, Cal was revving the kids up, and Alice and Ben were left standing on the outside of something wonderful. Something she wished she belonged to, had a right to, and could offer her son.

  As the group shifted, Alice saw Dean in its centre, laughter making his eyes bright. Another wish nudged alongside the first. What would it be like to be one of them? One of his?

  Wonderful, of course.

  She smiled when he made eye contact with her, and raised a hand in a small wave. He grinned at her, but was a prisoner within the wall of people around him, and when he shifted, she couldn’t see him anymore.

  As soon as the kids broke away and came over to Ben, Alice said goodbye to her son, whispered ‘Behave’, then slipped away into the late afternoon.

  Chapter 18

  Nina sat alone, and if that bothered her, it was hard to tell. The seat was a little tall for her: the toes of her shoes only touched the ground if she pointed them down, and from time to time she swung her legs and grinned. What prompted her smiles was a mystery to her father, who sat in a car parked near the school gate, arms folded over the steering wheel and brows drawn together. It was lunchtime. There were dozens of kids running around the open space, enjoying the long-awaited sunshine, playing games or sitting in little groups. And then there was Nina, all by herself on a bench by the Year Five classroom, toying with her lunch and throwing her bread crusts to the birds.

  Dean’s heart hurt. He thought of his clever, loving little girl not having any friends, and had so many questions. Was she doing something to alienate the other kids? Had she got on the wrong side of a kid who had sway with the others? Or
was the beautiful, complex Nina Foster too unusual for her classmates?

  Had Dean failed her? Had he not paid her enough attention or somehow hindered her social skills? Why hadn’t he acted sooner when her friends had started saying no to play dates?

  He’d watched Nina throughout recess in John Gibbs’ Land Rover, and now he was sitting in a Hyundai sedan, seeing the same cheerful isolation he’d seen earlier. A day of surveillance told him that action was long overdue.

  Dean’s focus was redirected when a woman stepped out of the administration building. It was Lana, wearing a knee-length white skirt—which he thought brave, considering what she was surrounded by all day.

  She waved at a few kids as she crossed the grass, then waved at him as she neared the gate. Dean sucked on his bottom lip. He’d been sprung.

  She reached the car, opened the passenger side door and got in.

  He smiled at her. ‘I know it’s sunny, but I’m not sure it’s skirt season.’

  ‘Nice of you to notice.’ She twisted in the seat to better face him. ‘Hi, Dean.’

  ‘Lana.’

  ‘You’re lurking.’

  ‘It’s not what it looks like.’

  ‘It looks like two different cars have parked alongside the school today, for the purpose of staring at kids.’

  ‘That was me this morning.’

  ‘I know it was you. When I called John Gibbs to ask him what he was doing, he told me he was killing time at the bowling club until his car was ready to be picked up from the garage.’ She glanced around. ‘Is this Dodge’s car?’

  ‘Maybe.’

  She grinned and shook her head. ‘So what are you doing here, Dean?’

  He looked past her into the schoolyard. The bell must have rung because there were only a dozen kids left, dragging their feet back to class. Nina was gone.

  ‘Neenz doesn’t have any friends, does she?’

  Lana nodded, understanding, then sighed. ‘I asked around between recess and lunch. I figured you were looking for something in particular. From what I could learn, Rowan has half a dozen good friends that he spends all of his time with. You might be interested to know that two of them are girls, and one of them is a lot closer to him than the other.’

  ‘Great. I bet she leaves town, comes back and marries him one day. That seems to be pretty typical in this town. I should give her my blessing now, it’ll save time.’

  Lana laughed, touched his arm, then settled further into the seat. ‘Nina, on the other hand, had a great little circle of friends a little while ago, but some of the teachers suspect that she alienated them. She’s very clever but she’s not all that patient with those who aren’t at her level.’

  When Dean shifted in his seat, disturbed by what he was hearing, Lana reached over and took the hand he had been palming against the knee of his jeans.

  ‘She seems happy,’ Lana soothed. ‘Apparently, her schoolwork isn’t suffering and Ben Jaye seems to have taken a real shine to her lately. Whatever you did for that kid worked a treat—he hasn’t caused any more trouble.’

  ‘Ben’s not a troublemaker. Nina started it.’ He looked over at her. ‘I’d appreciate if you didn’t spread that around, but please don’t let people say that Ben’s bad news. He’s not, he’s great.’

  ‘Okay. And how about you?’

  ‘Me?’

  ‘You seem to be doing well. I heard about what you did for Ethan, and you seem a lot happier lately.’

  Dean nodded. He had been happier lately, and a certain blonde’s face came to mind when he contemplated the cause. Alice had made him feel reanimated. Ready, even, to move cautiously into the next chapter of his life.

  He thought about that kiss and decided it was time to risk his heart again.

  Lana grinned. ‘Wow, look at that smile. You don’t do that often.’

  He squeezed her hand. ‘You know what? I am doing well and I am happier lately. It’s time I got out there again.’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘I’m throwing myself back in the dating pool.’

  ‘Really?’ Lara touched her mouth, then the hem of her skirt. Then she pushed her hair back and said, ‘I’m free tonight.’

  He chuckled. And then for the second time in a week he was on the receiving end of a completely unexpected kiss. Lana’s lips were slick with lipstick and sliding over his mouth with perfect knee-knocking pressure. She smelt like sugar and honeysuckle, which wasn’t entirely unpleasant, except for the fact that it was entirely unwelcome.

  She wouldn’t let her hand be shaken from his, so Dean was forced to lift his arm awkwardly between them. He ended up fending her off with the back of his forearm.

  ‘What the hell,’ he said, freeing his lips. ‘Why is everyone kissing me all of a sudden?’

  This stopped her cold. Lana lurched away. ‘What?’

  ‘Where did that come from?’

  Her eyes rounded. ‘You’ve got to be kidding me. I’ve been keen on you for years, you know that!’

  ‘News! This is news!’

  ‘What was all that talk about dating again, then? And who else has kissed you?’

  ‘Lana, I think you’re great, but—’

  ‘No.’ She held up a palm like a stop sign. ‘Don’t say that. You’re just surprised. Okay. Now you know how I feel—you vague, blind …’ She swallowed the rest, and took a deep breath. ‘Just think about it.’ She shifted in the seat and reached for the doorhandle. She’d shoved the door open and dropped one foot onto the road before she turned back. ‘We could go to dinner. Take it slow. Whatever, really. Just … don’t freak out. Take a chance.’

  She lifted herself from the car, affording Dean a fleeting glance of her lower thigh as the skirt shifted, then she shut the door and walked back to the school, her back and shoulders so straight that he knew she was putting on a brave retreat.

  Blindsided, Dean turned the key in the ignition and pulled away from the curb. He drove straight past his garage and parked in front of Cal’s pub. He didn’t need a drink—he needed an interpreter and a friend.

  When Dean strode into the pub and found his best friend behind the bar, Caleb looked like he was about to break into song. Cal pushed a dry rag over the counter—seemingly unaware that the task was achieving nothing—and waved cheerfully.

  ‘Dean! So Lana, huh?’

  ‘For god’s sake,’ Dean said, dropping onto a bar stool in front of him. ‘Who called you? You know I drove straight here, don’t you?’

  ‘I know, this has to be some kind of town record. Apparently, Lana was talking to Jess about it in the staff room, Nat overheard and called Rosie.’

  As if summoned, Rosie, Cal’s middle-aged casual employee, edged out from behind the wall that divided the dining and bar areas. Wringing her hands together in an almost believable display of regret, she said, ‘I’m sorry, Dean! I didn’t mean to gossip. I didn’t really, I mean, when you think about it—Cal was listening in on my private conversation.’

  ‘About my private life,’ Dean said.

  ‘Yes—no!’

  Cal’s grin broadened. ‘Rosie, I need you to clear out for an hour. I’m going to have a chat with my mate here.’

  She didn’t move. ‘But there’s so much to be done—’

  ‘No, there’s not. I’ll pay you for the hour. In fact, I’ll call you when you can come back.’

  ‘But—’

  ‘You can tell everyone your boss is a dick. Seriously, Rosie. See you in a bit.’

  Summarily dismissed, Rosie was not impressed. She pushed her lips together then stomped from the room.

  Weary, Dean dropped his forehead onto the bar top.

  The front door opened, Rosie stepped out and Ethan stepped in. He claimed the bar stool beside Dean and propped his elbows on the table.

  ‘What?’ was Ethan’s greeting.

  ‘You called Ethan?’ Dean groaned.

  ‘You bet I did,’ Cal answered, then to Ethan, ‘You haven’t heard? Guess the news hasn’t
got to the garage yet. What am I supposed to call that place now, anyway? The Fosters’?’

  ‘What news?’

  ‘Dean kissed a girl and he liked it,’ Cal said in a sing-song voice, to a tune Dean vaguely recognised.

  Ethan turned in his seat and shoved Dean until Dean sat up. ‘Are you serious? That’s great!’

  ‘Actually, she kissed me.’

  ‘Even better. Hot.’ Ethan smacked Dean’s arm. ‘When? I knew it, by the way—can I just say that? Knew it.’

  ‘She found me at lunch.’

  Ethan frowned. Dean glanced at him and shrugged.

  ‘What did she say after she kissed you?’ Cal prompted.

  ‘That she’s felt like this for a while, and to take a chance on her.’

  ‘She channelling ABBA or something?’

  Ethan snorted. ‘What do you know about ABBA?’

  ‘I’m practically an expert, thanks—it’s all my mum listens to.’ Cal threw the towel at him then began pouring a round of soft drinks. ‘So? You know, Sam told me this was coming—how the hell do women know these things?’

  Ethan was frowning again. ‘How would Sam know?’

  ‘Beats me.’

  ‘I saw it.’ Ethan held his hand up. ‘The way you two look at each other, it was only a matter of time.’

  Dean tilted his head to the side and considered this. ‘How we look at each other? I barely see the woman!’

  Ethan’s hand dropped to the bar. ‘I don’t get it.’

  ‘And that’s the other thing—I’ve been having these thoughts, you know?’ Dean dropped his eyes to his knees. ‘About Alice.’

  ‘What?’ both men chorused.

  Ethan shook his head. ‘Who the hell are you talking about?’

  ‘What do you mean? Lana! Who are you talking about?’

  ‘Alice!’

  ‘How do you know I kissed Alice?’

  Ethan’s eyes boggled. ‘You just said Lana kissed you!’

  ‘So did Alice!’

  Silence. Then from Cal. ‘Are you frikkin’ kidding me? Two women are throwing themselves at you? What cologne are you wearing?’

  Ethan spoke over this. ‘What are you doing kissing other women if Alice kissed you, and you’re having thoughts about her?’