by C. J. Duggan
“Oh, Lisa.” He smiled. “Yeah, she’s a handful all right.”
I fought not to slam down each glass on the tray.
I forced a smile. “She sounds like a riot.”
I could feel Sean’s eyes on me, judging my expression, waiting for me to elaborate. Why should I? I didn’t care who he was with or what he did with his free time. Or who. I loaded the tray into the washer, slammed the door, and pushed the power on. I straightened up and met his eyes.
“So where’s Lisa now? Waiting for you to grab more booze? Is that why you’re here? You know we’re closed, right?”
Sean’s eyes narrowed. “If you must know, I kissed her goodnight and sent her on her merry way home.”
My stomach twisted in a pang of jealousy as I imagined her snake-like arms wrapped around his neck, her hands in his hair, his hands on her tiny frame, holding her to him. My miserable and unreasonable thoughts were broken as he stood from his stool.
“I’m not here for more grog because unless it’s free flowing from the person running the show, which I’m pretty sure is you, I would never beg or expect it after hours.”
Sean pushed in his bar stool. “I was just doing a welfare check, but I see the tears are gone and you’re back to your old self. I’ll be off then.” He headed towards the door.
I just stammered, watching him go, trying to find the words to make him stay, to tell him I was an idiot, just being a jealous fool. No, I wouldn’t say that, I wasn’t jealous, why would I be? My head was all over the place tonight, why would I admit to a moment of insanity? I was tired and stressed; that was probably why I was being so snappy and unreasonable – had to be.
Sean unbolted the door and opened it to walk away and disappear out into the night.
“I have to fire Matt,” I blurted out, causing Sean to stop mid- step. He turned back, a silent question in his eyes.
I walked around the bar, my hands wringing a damp dishcloth.
“He’s stealing from the till.”
Sean closed the door and walked towards me with a guarded, unreadable expression on his face.
“Are you sure?”
I nodded. “I saw him slip a twenty in his pocket from the register.”
“Have you checked to see if the till balances?”
I blanched, unable to look at him. “I have been so flat out I didn’t even think to check what the float was before; I wouldn’t even be able to guess what it was, and I don’t want to ask Dad, he’ll just get suspicious. It’s something I shouldn’t really care about since I’m, you know, not ‘working here’ or anything.”
I was pretty certain the till had never added up, not even when Dad was running the place personally. Dad was always ripping out the odd note for ciggies, and shouting drinks to mates; on that alone I was pretty sure it had never balanced in its life.
Sean rubbed at the whiskers on his chin, something he tended to do when he was deep in thought.
How did I know that?
“The only staff member I have and he turns out to be a thief,” I added glumly. “Now do you still think I can do it?”
“Eternally pessimistic, aren’t you?” He smirked.
“Do you blame me?” I asked, lifting the stools up on top of the bar.
Sean started gathering glasses from the other end of the bar. “No business is smooth sailing; you just have to ride it out. Look at the bright side. You had a full bar tonight; people are looking for somewhere to go and this is the place.”
“Yeah, money’s flowing in and a chunk of it is probably going into Matt’s pockets.”
“Let him go and don’t pay him what’s owed; hopefully you will be able to make up some ground that way.”
“I guess.”
The phone rang behind the bar; we looked at each other, confused. Who was ringing at twelve-fifteen a.m.?
Sean’s brow arched. “Expecting someone?”
“Nobody rings that phone, except Matt.” I would never give him my own number.
“Where is he, anyway?”
“Sent him home. I kind of locked him out.”
“Maybe he’s about to do you a favour and quit?”
I quickly walked around the bar to the cream landline phone mounted to the wall. “Believe me, after the way I treated him tonight I wouldn’t be surprised. Hello?”
“Amy?” My mum’s voice sobbed through the receiver.
My smile instantly fell as my eyes fixed with Sean’s. “Mum?”
“Amy, it’s Dad … He’s had a heart attack.”
Chapter Fifteen
“He’ll be all right.”
Sean’s words were barely audible as I zoned in and out, listening to the whirrs of his Toyota Hilux’s engine. The vibration of the passenger glass window massaged my temple as I stared out at the dark. Our headlights illuminated the white stripes of the highway as we distanced ourselves from the winding Perry Ranges and headed towards the city. Two long hours away, the longest of my life.
As I had crumpled to the floor and dropped the receiver, Sean had rounded the bar in one fluid motion, breaking my fall. He’d held me in his arms as he picked up the phone to find out for himself what had made the colour drain from my face.
Sean had to convince me that my dad had not died, that he’d suffered a heart attack, and was being looked after in the hospital. I hadn’t even asked if Sean could take me to the city. He had just told me to grab my things while he scrawled a note and taped it on the front door.
Sean just did. Without question, without hesitation.
“Thank you,” I whispered, the tears flooding my eyes.
“Did you say something?”
I closed my eyes and turned my face into the window, praying that if I slept the tears wouldn’t come. I felt Sean place his hand on my shoulder and he rubbed it gently.
“Get some sleep; I’ll wake you when we get there.”
***
I woke up stiff from sleeping so awkwardly upright in the car. Dust particles danced on the stream of light that filtered through the windshield. Sean’s car seat was tilted back and his arms were crossed; he leaned his head against the seatbelt strap and was fast asleep.
I rubbed my eyes and looked out through the windshield to discover we were in a car park. I twisted around to look out of the back window. We were at the hospital.
What time was it? And why didn’t he wake me?
The dashboard read six a.m. I tapped Sean on the arm.
“Wake up!”
Sean stirred, unwrapping his arms and slowly stretching them above his head with a moan.
“Why didn’t you wake me?” I frantically searched for my other shoe.
Sean yawned, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. “We arrived at three in the morning.”
“Mum’s probably wondering where I am.” I opened the door.
“She doesn’t even know we were coming straight away, she probably went home.”
“Did you even check?” I snapped, slamming the car door. I bolted towards the administration entrance.
The automatic doors hissed open and the receptionist told me to follow the long, navy line along the wall. It led me through a maze of twists and turns, through double doors to where I needed to be. As I pushed through to a vast, white, U-shaped waiting room, I saw Mum walking down the hall, dunking her teabag like a zombie. Her hair was dishevelled and I could tell she had been crying. The sight of her scared me; it was an unkempt Claire Henderson, and that was something you would never normally see.
“Mum!” I ran to her and hugged her so fiercely she nearly spilled her tea out of her polystyrene cup.
“Amy, sweetheart! What are you doing here?”
I looked at her incredulously. “Of course I’m here. Dad had a heart attack – I had to come.”
Mum cupped my cheek with a sad smile, her weary eyes trailing over me, but then something caught her attention over my shoulder.
“Is that Sean?”
“Mrs Henderson.” Sean nodded.
/> Mum sighed. “One of these days you boys are going to have to start calling me Claire – you make me feel old.” Mum ran her fingers through her hair and straightened her shawl, no doubt mortified that she was so unkempt in front of him.
“What are you doing here?” She looked from him to me.
“Sean gave me a lift,” I said.
“Oh, that’s right; he was with you when I called.” Her eyes flicked from me to him and back, the speculative cogs turning in her head.
“Sorry, Sean, it’s been a long night,” she said.
“No worries, Mrs. He— I mean Claire.”
“How’s Dad?”
Mum smiled and hooked her arm in mine. “Come and see.”
***
Dad was sat up in bed, smiling broadly. I would have been relieved if it wasn’t for the intravenous drip and oxygen tube in his nose.
“Chook! What are you doing here?” His bright eyes narrowed towards Mum. “Claire, I told you not to say anything.”
“She’s your daughter! She has a right to know.”
“That’s right! I’m glad Mum told me, I would have been seriously pissed if she hadn’t.”
“Amy, language.” Mum frowned.
I rolled my eyes and sat in the seat next to Dad’s bed. “Are you going to be okay?”
Dad laughed. “I’ll be fine, just had a little turn.”
I knew he was sugarcoating it.
“You know, that’s the last time I try to surprise your mother,” Dad said. “I thought she would be the one clutching her heart in amazement, but it turned out it was me.”
“That’s not funny, Eric,” Mum chastised.
“No, you’re right, love, sorry.”
“So what has the doctor said?”
“I’m to take it easy – no coastal trips, skydiving, or clay pot making.” He winked at Mum. Okay, I seriously didn’t want to know what that was about.
“And no stress,” Mum added.
“Yeah, that’s a big one.” He smiled at me.
“Maybe your body’s in shock after the health kick,” I said in all seriousness.
“I’m sure it’s a combination of a lot of things, Chook.”
“Your father and I are going to work on some things, to make life a bit easier.”
I nodded. “Sounds like a plan.”
Thank God I hadn’t unloaded all the issues of the Onslow onto Dad; I would have blamed myself for this. That was it, then: the Onslow was my problem. No more complaining or blaming, I would just get on with it. For Dad.
Dad smiled. “I know I may be hooked up like Frankenstein’s monster in a hospital bed, but I can’t help feeling like the luckiest man alive right now.”
I gave Mum a dubious look. “Have they put Dad on drugs?”
He chuckled at me. “What I mean is, I have my two beautiful girls by my side and that makes me the luckiest man alive.”
***
I spotted Sean out in the waiting room, sitting next to the vending machine. He had his elbows on his knees and was intently reading the label of his energy drink. I paused a moment and smiled at his intense, crinkled brow, his stubbled cheeks and dishevelled hair. I noticed the receptionist staring at him as well, chewing on her pen with a glazed look in her eyes. And why wouldn’t she? Even in his sleep-deprived, dishevelled state, there was no denying his presence. His square shoulders filled out his shirt, betraying the long, curved muscles that were snug against the material. He was sex on legs.
I snapped myself out of the moment, pushing those kinds of words out of my head as I approached him. He lifted his eyes and instantly sagged in relief as he saw my smile. I plonked down next to him, playfully nudging him with my shoulder.
“Everything okay?” Sean asked.
I sighed. “Yeah, I think it will be. Just a real fright for everyone.”
I unashamedly looked into Sean’s eyes and he gazed back, unflinchingly, into mine. I held him there, taking in the vivid blue irises and the way a darker ring of blue circled it. It was as if no one else was around, or mattered, and I was glad because I wanted him to believe me when I told him what I had to say.
“Thank you, Sean. Truly. I know I can be a snarky, impossible princess sometimes.”
His brows rose.
“Okay, most of the time. You say you’re not a knight in shining armour, but I don’t wholly believe that.”
“I thought you didn’t want to be rescued?” He reached out to me, delicately moving a strand of hair out of my eyes.
“I don’t, but I do need a friend to tell me to wake up to myself every now and then.”
“Oh yeah? And how do you think that will work?”
I shrugged. “I’ll probably still tell you where to go,” I said, “but I’ll be thankful to hear it.”
He threw his head back and laughed, crossing his arms and shifting in his seat. I punched him in the leg.
“Shhh …”
He sobered and looked back at me with a wicked grin. “Don’t you go changing, Amy, not one single thing.”
I could feel myself blush as his eyes burned into me. I bit my lip and peered down, suddenly unable to look into those eyes.
Someone coughed and Sean sat up straight and there was Mum, her gaze working between the two of us. Sean stood and scratched his head tiredly.
“Ah, I might go get something from the vending machine.” He pushed his hands into his back pockets.
“There’s one behind you,” I laughed.
“Oh, right. Um, yeah, no, I think I’ll get some fresh air and bin this.” Sean held up his empty bottle and excused himself quickly.
I couldn’t help but laugh again. It was always semi-amusing to see my mum’s look of stone turn grown men into babbling fools.
My laughter died when I looked back towards Mum, her same stony expression focused on me.
So maybe it wasn’t just grown men she could reduce to unease. Mum adjusted her shawl and sat next to me. I smiled uncertainly again when she clasped my hand in both of hers.
“This. Has. To. Stop. Now,” she said to me, enunciating each word with an underlying sternness.
I frowned. “What are you talking about?”
Mum’s eyes flicked towards the direction Sean had just left in. “Whatever is going on between the two of you has to stop.”
I could feel the hairs on the back of my neck rise. I slipped my hand out of Mum’s grasp, straightening. “There’s nothing going on.”
“Amy, you know I don’t suffer fools.”
“There’s nothing happening between me and Sean Murphy.” I tried to keep my voice down.
“You were together late last night.”
“He was helping me clean up the bar.”
Mum’s eyes narrowed. “Where was Matt?”
Oh crap!
The rat was out of the bag.
“He wasn’t feeling too well so I shut up for him.”
Mum inhaled dramatically and rubbed her temples. Jeez, if she reacted like this to something so trivial, I hated to see what she would do over the truth.
“I curse that bloody pub,” Mum said. Those were harsh words coming from her, so I knew she was upset. “It’s not enough that it’s taken ten to twenty years off your father’s life, but now it’s eating into yours as well.”
“It’s not,” I said. “I’m fine. It didn’t worry me, Mum, I wanted to go back, and if I can help out while I’m there …” Like single-handedly rebuild the rotting hotel from the ground up and re-launch it to the masses again … “Well, so be it.”
“You’re meant to be having a summer holiday.”
“A holiday from what? Shopping and sleeping my life away in the city? Bumming around aimlessly in my gap year? Don’t even get me started on that. Accepted into a Bachelor of Arts, I don’t even know what that means. A major in history … What am I supposed to do with that? I will most likely end up a teacher … When did my future spiral out of control?”
“If having an education and future prospect
s is ‘spiralling out of control’ then I’m not one bit sorry for that.”
Mum was getting defensive.
“Mum, I’m not ungrateful, but seriously, I don’t mind being at the Onslow, and if it means I have to use some elbow grease then big deal, I can handle it. I don’t mind.”
Mum sighed. “It’s no use arguing over this, it’s neither here nor there. Your father and I have spoken about it and after yesterday it’s only cemented our decision. We’re going to put the Onslow on the market.”
Chapter Sixteen
“What?” I cried out. The woman at the nurse’s station shushed me and shot me a disapproving look.
“Amy, please don’t be difficult about this,” Mum said. “Not now.”
“Difficult? What’s there to be difficult about? The fact that you weren’t even going to tell me?”
Mum picked an invisible thread from her shawl. “I don’t know why you’re so upset. You haven’t even been to the Onslow in years.”
“THAT WASN’T BY CHOICE!” I couldn’t contain my anger.
“Amy, stop it! People are staring.”
“Oh, I’m sorry, I’m a little upset. You have just ripped the carpet out from under me, that’s all.”
“Don’t be so dramatic.”
My blood boiled as my anger escalated. “What does Dad say about this?”
“Your father needs to alleviate the stress in his life and that pub is the biggest burden on all of us.”
“Ha! It’s kept you in designer clothes all these years.” The words came out before I had a chance to reel them back in. Mum cut me an acidic look that could have melted glaciers. I squared my shoulders and fought not to shrink away, to hold my ground.
“I suggest you go back to Onslow and enjoy what’s left of the summer; your father and I will sort things out when he is well enough. I’m sorry you’ve taken this so badly, but it’s the only way,” Mum said. “I’m not losing any more years to that pub.”
I stood up. “I want to speak to Dad.”
Mum lowered her voice. “You are not bothering your father about this, do you hear me? He doesn’t need you carrying on about it and that’s final!”
I turned, hoping she wouldn’t see the tears that burned in my eyes.
