by Louise Bay
He smiled back, a little embarrassed. “There are no guarantees. I’d be one of the youngest partners ever made up if I got it, so . . .”
For a second, I forgot about the distance I was supposed to be putting between us, and I grabbed his hand and squeezed. “I’m proud of you,” I said. “Your parents would be so, so proud.” The death of Luke’s mum and dad just before he started college had been horrific, but he’d kept it together, scooped up Haven and given her everything she needed emotionally. His college work had never wavered; he’d always kept his grades up at the same time as making sure Haven was looked after. I’d always been amazed at how adult he’d become, overnight. He’d inherited the mantle of the head of his family, and it was a responsibility he took seriously. He wanted to live the legacy of his parents—that kind, honest, hardworking people would win out in the end.
He looked down at the table and nodded, twisting his wrist so we were holding hands across the table. “Promise me you won’t change, that I won’t lose you, Ash,” he said, his voice serious as he glanced up at me from under his brows.
My breath hitched at his request and my forehead crinkled. What was he asking me?
“Here she is,” Richard’s familiar voice came from behind me. “I thought I might catch you in here.” The room tilted slightly, and I wondered if it was the sensation people felt just before they fainted. I turned my head and tried to pull my hand from Luke’s. He resisted at first, but as he took in what was happening, he released me. The cool Formica soothed my tingling palm.
If I closed my eyes, could I transport myself somewhere else, so the moment that was about to happen, wouldn’t happen? It felt as though the room slowed down and I was watching two airplanes about to collide. This was not what I wanted. Luke was Luke. Richard was Richard. For me, they existed in parallel universes, and if they met, everything would explode or implode, or something equally terrible would happen.
Richard bent and kissed my forehead and quickly turned to Luke, holding out his right hand. “I’m Richard, Ash’s boyfriend.” His smile met his eyes and I could tell that there was no territory claiming. He wasn’t trying to make a point. He asked often about my friends and I imagine he was pleased to finally meet one of them.
I continued to stare at the table as Luke stood and shook Richard’s hand. “I’m Luke,” he said. He gave no explanation as to his relationship with me. I wasn’t sure if it was because he was confident that Richard would know who he was, or because Luke wanted to keep him guessing.
“Oh, right. Haven’s brother,” Richard said. Assisted by my description, he knew Luke as simply my best friend’s sibling. And that was what I needed him to be. “Can I join you?”
My stomach flipped up in my chest. I stood abruptly, the legs of my chair tearing against the floor. “Actually, I need to get back,” I said. I flicked a glance at Luke, urging him to back me up.
“Yeah, me too,” Luke replied after a second’s hesitation, and I dared to take a breath.
I pulled on my jacket and picked up my half-eaten sandwich, wrapping it back in its wax paper then slipping it into my bag. “I’ll see you later,” I said, glancing at Richard.
He raised his eyebrows and nodded, his face warm and open. “Nice to meet you, Luke.” He wasn’t jealous or judgmental. He was honest and kind, like Luke.
Except that he wasn’t Luke.
“And you. I’m sure I’ll see you again,” Luke said as he smiled at Richard.
I shot out of the door, not waiting to see if Luke was following me. Out in the fresh spring air, I paused. How was I going to explain to him that I’d cut our lunch short as soon as Richard had arrived? I heard the café door open and Luke appeared at my side.
“You okay?” he asked.
“Sure,” I said, trying to sound normal. I started to walk back toward the hospital. “So what are you working on at the moment?” I was desperate not to mention what had just happened, and hopeful that he’d not sensed any kind of atmosphere that I’d singlehandedly created.
Luke was happily diverted. “You know I can’t tell you that because it’s classified.”
I laughed. He loved to pretend his job was slightly more interesting than it was. “You’re such a dork. It doesn’t make you sound like James Bond, you know.”
“What does it make me sound like?”
“Like a frustrated lawyer who is trying to be wilder than he is,” I said.
He grinned. “You’re killing me. You know all my secrets.”
My stomach lilted. It was true. I knew his and he knew mine.
As we arrived at the hospital entrance, he hugged me. “Don’t let Richard change things between us,” he said over my shoulder, his tone darker than before, like it had been when we were holding hands earlier. He pulled back. “Will I see you Sunday?”
His words, his nearness, his solemnity flustered me. “Yeah, I think.”
“Promise me?” he asked, his eyes intently fixed on mine.
“Okay. I’ll see you at Haven and Jake’s.”
The black cloud over him seemed to pass as quickly as it arrived. He grinned, ruffled my hair and stalked off down the street. I stood for a few seconds, more words in my mouth than I’d let escape. What had he meant about Richard changing things between us? I was desperate to know what he was thinking.
Luke
It had been a while since Ash had had a boyfriend. Everything was moving too quickly. Emma wanted things to change between us; Haven was married; Ash was getting serious with someone. I longed for things to be how they were. I wanted Haven and Ash to wake up hungover in the guest room; I wanted the three of us to have dinner together, for the three of us to have the easy laughs that I’d grown up with. None of that had happened recently. I wanted to be able to hold Ash’s hand because we had been friends for forever, not pull it away because her boyfriend arrived.
Because Emma would be home and I didn’t want her to bring up getting married again, I’d worked late. I’d thought of little else but her recent declaration, but I didn’t have any solution for her. All I could focus on was how marriage would take away things from my life, not add them. It was almost ten, and I was just heading home. Hopefully, she was asleep.
I let myself in and immediately heard the sounds of the television. My heart sank.
“Hey,” Emma called.
“Hi,” I said, wandering into the living room.
“There’s leftover spaghetti in the refrigerator,” she said.
“Thanks.” I shrugged out of my jacket, pulled off my tie and headed to the kitchen.
Emma got up from the sofa and followed me. “Do you want me to heat it up for you?” She never got me dinner unless it was her day off. We both tended to fend for ourselves when we were working.
“I’ve got it, thanks.”
She pulled open the fridge, grabbed a beer and handed it to me.
“Thanks,” I said, forcing a smile.
“No problem. There’s never going to be a good time to discuss this, you know.” she said.
I took a deep breath, and I tipped my head back. I really didn’t want to have this conversation. “Emma, I’m really tired.”
“I know, but there’s barely ever a time when one of us isn’t shattered. If we wait until we’re both full of energy, we’re going to carry on like this for years.” Her voice was softer than usual, but I could tell she wasn’t about to let this go.
“We’ve done okay ‘like this’ so far. I like my life.” I was happy with things how they were. I was about to make partner. Work would be crazy for the next few years. And her job was really demanding—where did she think we were going to fit in kids? No longer hungry, I took my beer and went to collapse on the sofa.
Emma followed. “It’s time to move to the next stage in our lives. Don’t you feel that?”
I couldn’t look at her. I didn’t know what she’d see in me. Fear, maybe.
“I’m happy as I am. I thought you were too.” I’d never led her to believe
I wanted anything more; at least, I didn’t think I had.
“I want to get married and have children,” she replied. She didn’t say whether or not she was happy now, as if it didn’t matter. “Don’t you?” she asked.
I could do nothing but focus on what I wouldn’t have if I married Emma. Particularly if we had kids. We would give up our freedom. What I loved about Emma was that she was independent and she didn’t need anything from me. If I became her husband and then a father . . . Those were roles that provided and protected. I’d done that my whole life with Haven. At the time, I’d wanted to do it, though my parents’ death had meant I’d had to. But there was nothing in me that wanted to take on that responsibility with Emma, or anyone else. It would change our entire relationship.
“This is important to me,” Emma said, kneeling on the sofa, facing me. “I want a family. I want us to be a family.”
I focused on my heartbeat banging against my chest. Was I too young to have a heart attack? Haven was my family. Haven and Ash. And now Jake and his sister, Beth, had widened that group, but Emma had never really become a part of that. I didn’t want to create a family that would pull me away from the one I already had. The banging in my chest got louder. I threw back some more beer.
“I’ve given you time and space. I’ve not been demanding or high maintenance. And now I need you to realize what you have with me.”
“But isn’t that why we work? Because we’re independent? I didn’t know you were wanting us to be different, waiting for us to change.” I didn’t want or need anything else from her.
“I want us to be a unit. A family. Our children and us. At the moment, I’m constantly competing with Haven and Ash, and that’s not fair.”
She was right—I had a unit. Haven and Ash. I turned toward her. “So this isn’t about getting married—this is about you not wanting me to spend time with my sister?”
“Jesus, that’s not what I said. I just feel second place all the time. I don’t want a roommate. I want someone who I can grow old with, someone to share a life with.”
Whenever I imagined getting older, it was Haven, Ash and me I thought of. Had I led Emma on all these years? She looked at me expectantly, waiting for me to say something that would make her feel better, but I couldn’t. I wouldn’t lie to her, and I had nothing truthful that she wanted to hear.
My conversation with Ash had helped me realize that this was more than me not wanting things to change. It was about me not wanting to get married—not only because I didn’t believe in marriage—but because marriage wasn’t right for me, and definitely not for me and Emma. We didn’t work in that way.
Haven, Ash and I were a team. We were a family. Jake had understood that from the beginning, and he’d become like a brother to me in a short space of time. Emma hadn’t got it yet, and I wasn’t sure she ever would.
“Are you ever going to grow up? You can’t hang out with your sister your whole life. I thought things might change after she got married. She can move on. She can hold down a relationship. What are you so scared of?”
I hated arguing. Life was too short. I regretted every argument I’d ever had with my parents before they died. I wished I could take it all back. For years, words I’d said to them—just typical teenager stuff—had swirled around my head, haunting me. The fact that Haven felt similarly made it slightly more bearable. Our pain was shared.
I stood up, wanting to create space between us.
“Oh right, so now you’re going to walk away. We need to talk about this stuff,” she said, her voice getting higher and sharper. “Tell me what you want. Tell me if you want me.”
“I don’t know what to tell you. I don’t want to get married. I’m not ready. And I didn’t realize you’d started thinking about kids.”
“You don’t think that most people get married in their thirties? Everyone does it! How is this a shock to you? It’s what people do.”
“Luke!” she screamed when I didn’t reply.
“What?” I shouted back and then instantly regretted it. “I don’t know what you want me to say,” I said, more softly.
“Fine,” she said. “If you’re going to be like that then you can sleep in the spare room tonight. You can’t say that you don’t know what I want. I think I’ve been very clear. I suggest you think about what it is you want. I’ll give you a month.”
“A month?” I asked.
She took a sip from her wine glass. “Yeah. You’ve got a month to work out what you want.”
“What? I have a month to work out if I want to marry you?” I asked.
“Yes, we have to put a time frame on this or . . .”
“And if I decide I don’t want to get married?”
“I don’t know.” She sounded tired. “I guess that’s it. These things are important to me. It’s what I want from my life, a family, and if you can’t give that to me then . . .”
She didn’t have to finish. I understood. I had a month until my life changed forever, whatever decision I made.
Ashleigh
Richard looked at me across the table, his eyes narrowing slightly. We were in his favorite French restaurant. It was a little masculine for my taste—dark, with oak paneling and almost black wood floors—but Richard was greeted like an old friend here, which he liked. The waiters fussed over us and nothing was too much trouble. Sometimes it felt as if we were dining with the staff as well as each other.
“It was nice to meet Luke,” he finally said.
I’d been waiting for him to mention our run in. Had he seen us holding hands? I nodded and took another spoonful of my soup to avoid responding to him.
“I didn’t realize you were meeting him for lunch.”
I swallowed. Was he pissed off? “It was a last minute thing. Haven, Luke and I all grew up together. I told you that.”
“Yeah. You’re still very close,” he said.
I wasn’t sure if it was a question or an observation, so I kept silent, concentrating on my soup.
“It’s nice,” he added.
“It is. We’re like a little family.”
He nodded and smiled a wide, generous smile. He wasn’t jealous, apparently. He seemed to like whatever made me happy. He wanted what was good for me and that felt nice, healthy.
“How was work?”
“Good. I’m getting used to things now.” Richard hadn’t been at the hospital I worked at long. “Megan’s been showing me the ropes.”
“Megan?” I asked.
“Yeah, Megan Fable.” He rolled his eyes and grinned.
Yeah, I bet she was. Megan was a notorious flirt and desperate to land a doctor. She had no end of male attention, but somehow she’d never managed to get serious with anyone.
“That’s good,” I said. “I’m glad you’re settling in.”
“She’s a bit of a flirt. I mean, wow.”
I laughed. “A little bit.”
“She’s a pretty girl, but not my type.”
I realized he was heading off any jealousy I might have if I found out they were working together. It was a kind thing to do. I smiled at him. “She’s very pretty.”
“Not as pretty as you.”
“Richard.” I wasn’t used to all this flattery.
“What? It’s true. You’re gorgeous.”
“You’re not so bad yourself.” I blushed. I was as terrible at giving compliments as I was at receiving them.
“Are you playing rugby tomorrow?” I asked, changing the subject. Richard played for the hospital team.
“Yeah and it’s a big night. You can come along if you like.”
I liked watching rugby. Luke used to make Haven and I watch when we were younger, and it wasn’t a hardship seeing all the super-fit men in tight shorts get dirty and sweaty. “And be the only girl amongst you lot? I wouldn’t get out alive.”
“That’s true. One of them would be bound to steal you away from me. I take it back. You can’t come tomorrow.”
I laughed. He was s
weet.
“You have a beautiful smile,” he said, grinning at me.
“Thank you,” I replied, trying to be a bit more gracious about his compliment than before.
“Yeah, that dress suits you. But everything looks good on you.” My cheeks started to heat. Partly from his words, and partly because I was embarrassed that I was thinking about Luke saying at lunch that I looked good in everything. Had he meant that? Did he think I was attractive? I hadn’t had much time to change when I got home, so I’d just pulled on the nearest thing and put on some makeup. I never wore makeup to work.
“Are you going to Haven’s on Sunday?” he asked.
“Yeah, it’s my turn to cook. We used to alternate venues, but now it’s mainly at Haven and Jake’s because they have such an awesome kitchen. But we still take turns cooking.” I was looking forward to it. I loved to cook desserts, and I had a blueberry cheesecake in mind for tomorrow. I wanted Beth to give me her seal of approval. She was the best baker this side of the Atlantic.
“So if you’re cooking, does that mean you get to invite guests?” he asked.
My stomach lurched. I’d been insensitive to mention it and then not invite him. I just wasn’t sure I was ready. Luke would probably want to talk about Emma, and I wasn’t sure how that would affect me. If he announced that he was going to marry her, I was pretty sure I would want to excuse myself and take to my bed for a week. Having Richard there would . . . complicate things.
And anyway, it felt too early. Haven’s husband, Jake, had started coming to Sunday night dinners very quickly, but normally, casual boyfriends and girlfriends didn’t make an appearance. There wasn’t any rule about it, but that’s how it had always been. “I think Haven has some stuff going on that she wants to talk about, so I don’t think it would be a good idea for you to come along tomorrow. Maybe another time?”
“I’d like to meet your friends,” he said. “Perhaps we could have them over to your place one Sunday. I could help you cook.”
I nodded and concentrated on pulling apart my bread.
“What about next weekend?” he asked.
