by Jenny Frame
He shrugged and looked depressed. “I just want to help people, just like I wanted to help you and the baby.”
Again, Becca felt the guilt eat away inside her. Her life seemed filled with trauma and drama. Maybe that was just her fate?
Chapter Three
Dale opened her eyes and found herself in a vaguely familiar bedroom, and a feeling of dread bubbled up inside, not to mention the pounding in her head and sick feeling in her stomach.
She rolled over and saw an alarm clock displaying the day and time: Sunday, 11:00 a.m.
“Fuck me. I did it again.” She groaned.
This was the second day in a row she had woken in someone else’s bed. She hadn’t been on a two-day bender like this in a long, long time. The last thing she remembered was downing some shots with a group of women she met at a club in town, and then…then she’d bumped into Lisa.
Dale rarely saw a woman more than once, but Lisa was persistent. Maybe Val was right—maybe Lisa thought she could be domesticated.
She pushed herself to sit on the side of the bed and her headache got worse. She looked around. Luckily she was alone in the room. Dale spotted a bottle of water on the side table and downed it quickly.
“I’m too old for this,” Dale told herself.
As her head started to clear, more memories of last night came to the forefront of Dale’s mind. She remembered dancing with some girls she met, then being pulled away by Lisa, who had appeared from nowhere. She’d been extremely drunk, and she hadn’t put up much of a fight.
After some kissing in the toilets of the club, Lisa manoeuvred her to a taxi and home to her flat. From there Lisa was all over her, and the one thing that was clear in her mind was that she’d felt nothing. No excitement, no thrill, no nothing. So much so that she had feigned falling asleep to get out of the awkward situation, and that was a first.
Dale had always enjoyed sex, and it came naturally to her. She loved everything about a woman’s body—the feel, the smell, the taste, everything turned her on—but last night and the night before, there was nothing.
She rubbed her face with her hands furiously. Maybe age was finally catching up with her.
Then the gnawing in her stomach, that she had been drinking to get rid of, returned with a vengeance. The image of Jake and Becca, standing outside their broken-down home, crashed into her head.
Dale could hear Jake’s voice loud in her mind. You won’t disappear, will you?
But she had, hadn’t she? She had broken her word, even though she did it because his mother, Becca, had asked her to.
Becca. Something had happened inside when she looked into Becca’s eyes. The sad loneliness she had seen there made her want to chase it away.
“Get a grip, for fuck’s sake, man,” Dale said angrily.
She grabbed her jeans and hurriedly gathered her clothes, and pulled on her boots. The only thing that was missing was her green combat jacket.
Dale headed to where she remembered the living room was, and found Lisa sitting on the couch with her jacket on her lap, staring at her picture of Becca and Jake.
“What do you think you’re doing going through my things?” Dale said.
She made a grab for the picture, but Lisa ducked away, holding the picture up in the air.
“Who is she, Dale?” Lisa voice was ripe with accusations.
“Nothing to do with you. Give me the picture.” Dale grabbed her jacket from her but Lisa jinked out of the way again.
“Look, stop acting like a child and give me my picture back.”
Lisa’s face was red and angry. “This is no way to start a relationship, Dale.”
Dale couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “We have no relationship. We’ve slept together once—last night didn’t even count.”
“Yes, funny that, isn’t it? You fall asleep just when we fall into bed. That doesn’t sound like the great lover Dale McGuire, does it?”
Lisa was clearly deranged, and she had to get out of here. “You don’t even know anything about me. I’ve never said I’m a great lover. I’m just me. Give me the picture now or I’ll take it from you.”
“Tell me who they are first,” Lisa demanded.
Dale had enough and used her long legs to cover the distance between them, catching Lisa by her nightshirt before she could move. She grabbed the picture and put in safely in the back pocket of her jeans.
“Don’t ever get in touch with me again, and if you see me at Belles, don’t come near me. I’m finished being nice.”
Dale put on her jacket and marched towards the front door of the flat. She had to get out of there.
Lisa’s tone changed and she came running after her saying, “Dale, I’m sorry. Please don’t leave…”
But Dale walked through the front door and slammed it shut. The thought of Lisa looking at Jake and Becca’s photo made her really angry.
She pulled out her smartphone and saw countless messages from Val and Sammy, worried about how she was.
When Dale got out to the harsh light of the street, she vowed never to put herself in a situation like the last two nights again.
Dale looked at her watch and realized she was going to be late for her weekly Sunday lunch with her friends, and that was one thing she never missed. She tapped out a quick text message to Sammy, jumped into a taxi, and headed home to get a quick shower and change.
* * *
Ashley Duval was woken by a cold breeze coming from the open balcony doors of her penthouse apartment. Her lover Nika had a habit of taking her coffee out there each morning, even when the autumnal chill had descended.
She got up, pulled on her T-shirt and boxers, and gazed with smug satisfaction around the luxurious bedroom. Life was good. Ashley was chief investigative reporter at the country’s biggest tabloid newspaper, on a fantastic salary, and she was sleeping with her editor, who also happened to be the daughter of the owner of the newspaper.
She had been offered the job just at the time when her career was starting to wane, after an early stratospheric rise in the media world. When she had seen Nika at a party, Ash saw her way back to the very top and went in for the kill.
She started to walk to the balcony doors and saw Nika grasping her coffee cup lightly and gazing over the London skyline. Nika was beautiful, but never quite believed it herself. Years of trying and failing to meet her father’s unattainable standards left her with a certain vulnerability, and Ash, being an opportunist, prided herself on using that to get what she wanted.
Ash walked up behind her and put her arms around her waist. She immediately felt Nika stiffen, and that was not a normal reaction.
“Morning, angel. Is there something wrong?”
When Nika only sighed, Ash gave her little kisses on her neck. “You’re not still angry about that girl from the mailroom, are you? I told you, she was lying. Do you think I would have sex with her when I have you? Come on, angel.”
“No, it’s not that. I know you wouldn’t do that to me—that’s why I fired her,” Nika said as she turned in Ash’s arms.
I’m so good, thought Ash.
She had indeed slept with the pretty new girl from the mailroom—a few times—with promises that she could help the girl get a leg up in the newspaper business. Women were so easy. It had given Ash such a thrill to fuck her in the empty office right next door to Nika’s.
“Good, because you know all these rumours are just because they’re jealous of what we have. Don’t you?”
Nika gripped her T-shirt nervously. Something was clearly wrong.
“What’s wrong then?” Ash asked.
“I need to talk to you about work.”
She was beginning to have a bad feeling about this. “What about work?”
“Daddy’s worried about the circulation figures. He says we may have to lose some people from the staff.”
Ash dropped her arms from Nika and took a step back. Her lover looked really nervous, and whatever she was about to say was clearly co
ming from her father.
She crossed her arms. “And?”
“Daddy says that we need more from you. That you came with a big reputation and got a huge salary for it, but we haven’t had any big stories from you yet. I’ve tried to keep him off your tail but I need you to find something soon. Just to placate him.”
Ash couldn’t believe what she was hearing, and replied angrily, “Does Daddy even have the first clue about how an investigative journalist works? I can’t just produce a story out of thin air. I need to follow leads, wait on tip-offs. It all takes time.”
Nika didn’t take anger very well and started to retreat from her. “I tried to tell him that. Believe me, baby, I’m on your side. I know how hard you work. We just need something like the Carter story. That’s what we hired you for, and I know you’ll come good.”
Ash balled her fists in frustration. The Carter story. The story that had made her as a young, green journalist, and the story that had also been a millstone around her neck, as she’d failed to produce anything as good as that since.
Nika reached out to touch her and Ash hit her hand away. “I’ll get you your fucking story. Then I’ll maybe be good enough for Daddy’s precious girl. I want to marry you, and you doubt me like this?”
Ash walked off, ready to get out of there, and her lover chased after her, tears falling down her face.
“Please don’t go, Ash. I’m sorry. He said I had to talk to you or he would. I want to marry you too—I want you to be part of my family.”
She got dressed quickly and grabbed her coat. “I’ll go and find you a story then, angel. Don’t wait up.” She slammed the front door and heard her lover’s sobs behind the door. “Fucking bitch.”
* * *
Dale paid the taxi and walked up the path to Sammy and Val’s suburban home. She spotted an excited face at the living room window. It was Mia, her ten-year-old god-daughter. Mia started to wave furiously and then ran off to meet her at the door.
Dale loved Mia and the special friendship they had, and it only made the guilt she had at leaving Jake intensify.
She rang the bell expecting Mia to answer, but instead it was Val, who immediately threw her arms around her neck.
“Thank God you’re all right. We were so worried when we didn’t hear from you.”
Before Dale got the chance to explain herself, Val pushed away from her, and this time her eyes were filled with fury, not relief. Val pointed an accusing finger in her face and gave it to her both barrels. “Don’t you ever make us worried like that again, Dale! You get some life-changing news, and you just disappear for two days, no phone call, no text. I hardly slept a wink.”
“I’m sorry—” Dale tried to say, but Val just continued.
“No, I’m not interested in your sorrys. You were thoughtless.” Val turned on her heel and walked off full of fury, leaving Sammy and Mia standing in her wake, looking as shocked as Dale felt.
“Mum was really mad, Dale,” Mia said.
Dale walked in the front door and said, “I guessed that, munchkin.”
Sammy clapped her on the shoulder. “Don’t worry. She’ll soon calm down. We were both worried, mate.”
“I’m sorry. I had a lot on my mind.” Dale was conscious of saying too much in front of Mia, and Sammy nodded.
“We can talk later. First you look like you could do with some food. Lunch will be ready soon.”
“Do you think Val will feed me, or serve it on my lap?”
Sammy laughed. “She’ll forgive you quickly.”
Mia pulled at her jacket. “I’ve got a new game to play with you and I got this cool Zelda mod for Minecraft. Come on.”
Dale lifted Mia off her feet and threw her over her shoulder. “Great, I can’t wait. Hey, I’ve got a new joke for you. Why do cows wear bells?”
Both Mia and Sammy replied, “Because their horns don’t work!”
“Your jokes are awful. You know that,” Sammy said.
Dale winked at her friend and softly smacked Mia on the bottom. “No more laughing at me, munchkin.”
Mia giggled as they made their way into the house. Dale was home, the only home she had now, and was ever likely to have. She had to stop thinking about Jake and Becca. This was her family.
* * *
Dale, Sammy, Val, and Mia sat around the kitchen table enjoying Val’s delicious Sunday lunch. Val had seemed to warm up as the dinner went on and luckily Mia talked nonstop about her computer games.
“The Zelda mod I downloaded for Minecraft is so amazing.”
“Cool, I can’t wait to play it. The gaming expo is coming to London soon. We need to go to that,” Dale said while wolfing down the last of her dessert. Val’s Sunday dinner was a perfect antidote to a hangover.
Mia got down from the table, and asked excitedly, “Can we go and play now?”
Dale looked to Val, who shook her head. “We need to speak to Dale first, sweetie. Adult talk time.”
“Mu-um,” Mia whined.
Dale ruffled her hair and said, “You go and get the game started and I’ll be there soon, okay?”
Mia gave her a big hug and walked off happily.
Sammy poured the coffee and said, “So? What happened when you took Jake back?”
Dale took a sip of coffee while Sammy sat down beside an expectant Val. “I met his mum, Rebecca Harper. Becca.”
“What was she like?” Val asked.
Dale fished into her jeans back pocket, pulled out the photo, and showed it to her friends. “That’s Becca. Jake left this picture for me to find in the car.”
They both studied the picture. “She’s beautiful,” Sammy said.
Dale nodded. “She really is, and she’s so elegant. She has a really posh accent, although they live in this run-down house.”
Val took the picture from Sammy, to study it more carefully. “There’s something familiar about her, but I can’t put my finger on it.”
“How did she react to you?” Sammy asked.
Dale sighed. “She was terrified I was there to take Jake away from her. She’s a single mother. Jake told me Becca couldn’t have kids herself, and used a sperm donor as well as an egg donor. The sperm donor is dead, so that just left me for Jake to find.”
Sammy handed her back the photo and Dale stared at it.
“You did reassure her it wasn’t your doing, didn’t you?” Val said.
“Aye, I did. She told me that Jake had done this kind of thing before…computer hacking. He’s a bit of child genius by all accounts. She asked me to turn around and forget they existed.”
Val covered Dale’s hand with hers. “And did you?”
Dale gulped hard, and shook her head. “I couldn’t. I felt a connection to them…something deep inside. I mean, Jake, he loves maths, just like me and—”
“He has your big brown eyes,” Val finished for her.
“Yeah, it’s like I know him, and not just him. When I looked in Becca’s eyes I saw sadness and loneliness, something I recognized. I offered to help, but she told me to leave.”
“Maybe that’s best,” Sammy said. “This is an emotional and difficult situation—maybe you should just forget it ever happened.”
Dale rubbed her forehead furiously. “I can’t get them out of my head. That’s why I went on a bender all weekend. I hoped I might forget these feelings if I drank enough.”
“And did it work?” Sammy asked.
“Nope. It got worse. I feel guilty that they have no one to lean on and no one to look after them, and I broke my promise to Jake. I promised I wouldn’t disappear, and I did. I lied to him just like I was lied to by my family. I promised I would never do that to anyone I cared about.”
Val moved her chair closer to Dale and put her arm around her. “You have nothing to feel guilty about. You helped Rebecca have this lovely, clever boy. That’s something to be proud of.”
Dale closed her eyes and remembered the feeling when Becca told her that her unborn baby was hers as well. She fe
lt a rush of emotions, and it brought tears to her eyes.
“It’s not just Jake.”
“What do you mean?” Sammy asked.
Dale looked at her two closest friends with tears in her eyes. “Becca is six months pregnant, and it’s mine too.”
Sammy and Val were stunned into silence.
Chapter Four
Becca felt the room start to spin a little as she took a seat in the waiting room of her lawyer’s office. The Monday morning journey into the city of London had been horrendous. After putting Jake on the school bus, she walked a mile to the nearest bus stop, took the bus to the nearest train station, and caught a train to the city. Her stress levels were sky-high, and no doubt her blood pressure was too. She stood on the train for a while and then, thankfully, a young woman offered her a seat. Becca could have kissed her.
By the time she arrived at the offices of Trent, Trent, and Masters, she was ready to faint, vomit, or cry, possibly all three.
Becca gripped the arms of her chair tightly, trying to steady her dizziness, and said to the receptionist, “Could I have some water, please?”
“Of course, Ms. Harper.” The staff at Trent, Trent, and Masters knew her well. They had been her family’s solicitors for many years, and the firm was now run by the younger Ms. Trent.
The receptionist returned with a chilled bottle of water and a glass. “Trent won’t be too much longer.”
Trent, as everyone called her, was an old friend and ex-lover. She was the one person in the world who had always stood by her, and although their relationship didn’t work out, they had remained friends. She trusted her implicitly with her business, just not her heart.
Becca took a sip of cool water and some big breaths of air to try and quell the sick dizzy feeling she was having.
Trent opened her office door and with a big smile and a welcoming gesture. “Becca, wonderful to see you. Come in.”
Trent looked as smart and dapper as usual, with a pale grey three-piece suit and highly polished shoes. She was very good looking and always popular with the ladies.