‘I haven’t come this far to let them fall at the last hurdle, Jenny,’ she said tightly. ‘They’ve only got two more years of school and I want to make sure they get through them with flying colours, that’s all.’
Jenny reached over for the bottle. ‘You know what? Let’s not talk about it tonight. You need an hour off being a parent, and we are here to do that for you, aren’t we, Sarah?’ She refilled their glasses. ‘Get that down you and forget your woes.’
Lucy smiled. ‘Sounds good to me. I’m happy to get away from being a mum for an hour.’
‘So what about Christmas presents?’ Jenny said. ‘Anything the twins really want?’
‘Ollie wants an archery set,’ Sarah said. ‘If you ever call round to find me face down on the path with an arrow through the back of my head, you’ll know what’s happened.’
Lucy and Jenny burst out laughing.
‘Can you not fob him off with a bike, or a watch or something?’ Jenny asked. ‘He shouldn’t own anything that can be weaponized.’
‘Sure boys can turn anything into a weapon,’ Lucy said. ‘I remember Dylan stabbing Billy in the leg with a fork when he was five.’
‘They were so cute when they were that age,’ Jenny said. ‘I used to love buying them little outfits and doing Kelly’s hair.’
Lucy smiled. ‘They were great fun. I used to love going into their bedrooms at night and kissing their warm sleepy faces. They were so adorable.’
Sarah took a big sip of wine and tried to keep her voice even. ‘I’d say if Tom knew how wonderful they are, he’d really regret leaving. They were, and still are, so lovable.’ She shot a look at Jenny, who nodded slightly.
‘Anyone would be proud to be their parent,’ Jenny said. ‘I’ve always hated Tom for leaving but you’d have to feel a bit sorry for him that he missed out on so much.’
Lucy’s eyes narrowed. ‘Feel sorry for Tom? Are you mad? He chose to abandon us.’
‘But did he really, though?’ Sarah said. ‘I mean, do you think there’s any chance he truly believed you’d had the abortion and had no idea he was a dad?’
‘No,’ Lucy said quickly. ‘And even if he wasn’t sure, if he’d bothered to contact me to see if I was okay, he’d have soon found out. But he didn’t even do that much. Not even a lousy letter or email. He’s an unfeeling bastard, as far as I’m concerned.’
‘It’s an interesting point, though,’ Jenny said. ‘I hadn’t thought about that before. What if Tom didn’t know the twins existed? It’s possible, isn’t it?’
Lucy stared at her in disbelief. ‘Why the hell are you two suddenly talking about Tom?’ she said, looking from her sister to Sarah. ‘Where’s all this coming from?’
‘I’m just wondering if –’ Jenny turned mid-sentence as the doorbell interrupted them. ‘Who’s that?’ she asked, as she went to answer the intercom.
‘Hello?’
‘Hey, babe, it’s me.’
‘Frank?’
‘Yeah.’
Jenny buzzed him in. ‘What’s he doing here? I wasn’t expecting him.’
‘We’ll leave.’ Lucy got up and Sarah did the same.
‘No, stay and finish your wine. I want you to meet him.’
There was a knock on the door. Jenny went to answer it. She came back into the lounge followed by a man carrying a large suitcase.
Lucy and Sarah twirled around on their kitchen counter stools to look at him. He was tall, fit, tanned, had thick brown hair with flecks of grey, and was impeccably dressed.
‘So, this is Frank. Frank, this is my sister Lucy and our friend Sarah.’
Frank shook their hands.
‘Are you moving in?’ Sarah laughed, pointing to his suitcase.
Jenny grinned. ‘No, he’s just back from Shanghai.’
‘Well, yes, I am, but actually, babe, Barbara kicked me out. She’s changed the locks and the gate code and … Well, she seems serious this time. So, it looks like I am moving in.’
Jenny’s face fell. ‘What do you mean?’
Frank put his arms around her. ‘I’ll be staying here until I get this sorted out. We can get a bigger place when I find out how much Barbara wants in maintenance.’
Jenny frowned. ‘How long will that take?’
Frank laughed. ‘Knowing Barbara, she’ll try to take me to the cleaners, but I’m not having that so it could be a while.’ Frank threw his jacket onto the couch. He picked up a cracker and put a huge chunk of cheese on top. ‘Right, what’s for dinner?’
Jenny pointed to his cracker. ‘That’s dinner.’
Frank laughed. ‘I’m not a rabbit.’
‘That’s all I have,’ Jenny said.
Frank went over to the fridge and opened it. It contained one carton of low-fat milk, two low-fat yoghurts, three bananas and a punnet of strawberries that had gone mouldy.
He looked around at Jenny. ‘Seriously?’
‘I don’t cook. I travel a lot at short notice and I eat out a lot.’
‘Right, I’ll order take-out. Ladies, what can I get you?’
‘We’re fine, thanks. We’re not staying. We’ll leave you to it.’ Sarah knocked back her wine and stood up.
‘We all met your wife when she caused a major scene at my dad’s birthday party.’ Lucy looked Frank in the eye.
‘Oh, yeah, Jenny told me. Sorry about that, she’s a bit mad.’
‘Is she? Or is she just humiliated and heartbroken by your affairs?’
‘Lucy!’ Jenny snapped.
Frank’s smile faded slightly. ‘Barbara is very good at playing the martyr. She’s no angel. She’s been shagging the golf pro at our club for the past three years.’
‘Charming. Why are you still together if you’re both unfaithful?’ Lucy asked.
‘Cheaper and a lot less hassle than a messy divorce.’
‘I see.’ Lucy tapped the countertop with her fingers. ‘I presume you know how lucky you are that my sister is seeing you?’
Frank kissed Jenny. ‘I certainly do.’
‘Good. Well, just remember that and treat her properly.’
‘Lucy, I’m not one of your kids.’ Jenny squirmed.
Frank laughed. ‘I haven’t had a speech like that since I took Rosie Johnston to my debs and her dad said the same thing to me.’
‘We’ll head off now.’ Sarah pulled Lucy down from her stool.
‘Where’s the best take-out around here? I need food.’
‘We could go out?’ Jenny suggested.
‘Nah, I’m wrecked after my flight. Besides, Man U are playing at eight and I don’t want to miss it. I’d love a glass of wine though, babe.’ Frank kicked off his shoes and threw himself onto the couch, flinging Jenny’s perfectly positioned cushions onto the floor. He picked up the TV remote control and began flicking channels.
Jenny walked Sarah and Lucy out.
‘Good luck with your new flatmate,’ Sarah said, grinning at her.
‘He seems very at home already,’ Lucy added.
‘He’ll be a great housemate,’ Sarah said.
‘You won’t even notice he’s here.’ Lucy began to laugh.
‘I’d say he’s a whiz with a hoover and a mop,’ Sarah said, and she and Lucy creased over with laughter.
‘Stop it!’ Jenny hissed. ‘I don’t want him living with me. That was never the plan. What the hell am I going to do?’
‘Good luuuuuuuuck.’ Lucy and Sarah closed the front door behind them and laughed all the way down in the lift.
40
Dylan stared at the paper and sighed quietly. They were going over possible questions for the Christmas exams, and with every question he read, he realized how little he knew. Damn it, he should have studied harder these past few weeks. He’d been way too distracted by Taylor.
‘Students, I want you to answer the following question. “Yeats uses evocative language to create poetry that includes both personal reflection and public commentary. Discuss this statement, supporting your answer with re
ference to both the themes and language found in the poetry of W. B. Yeats on your course.” ’ Mr O’Casey glanced at the clock behind him. ‘Right, you have fifteen minutes.’
There was an audible groan.
‘We have spent hours and weeks studying Yeats’s poetry. You are perfectly equipped to answer this question. Stop wasting time and get on with it.’
Dylan looked across at Taylor. She was staring at her nails. As if feeling his attention on her, she looked up and smiled. ‘Boring,’ she mouthed.
‘Dylan, look at your paper not at Taylor, please,’ Mr O’Casey snapped.
Dylan tried to concentrate on the question, but he had no answer. He hadn’t studied Yeats. He hadn’t really studied anything. His Christmas exams were starting next week and St Jude’s took them very seriously.
Dylan felt the pressure to do well because, even though the scholarship was for football, he needed to prove he wasn’t thick, that he could keep up with his classmates. He wanted to prove to the other kids that he wasn’t just a football player: he had brains too.
Dylan tried to think of something to write, but he couldn’t remember any detail about the poems they’d studied. There was the one about daffodils and saying goodbye so he tried to make up an answer around that, but he knew he was in trouble. He had only a week to cram for the exams and he had two training sessions after school this week, and Jordan wanted them to do two extra early-morning workouts in the gym before the final. After they’d beaten King’s College in the semis, the pressure was really on. They had a shot at the cup, and Jordan was going to make sure they took it.
The bell went and they handed their papers to Mr O’Casey as they filed out of the classroom. Taylor came up behind Dylan and put her hand up his jumper. She whispered in his ear, ‘Will you come over tonight? My parents are away.’
‘I can’t. My mum knows we have exams next week and she’s really on my case. She’ll go mad if I head out.’
Taylor’s hand headed down towards the belt of his trousers. ‘Tell your mum I’m hosting a study group. See you later.’ She pulled her hand away.
‘You are one lucky dude.’ Conor came up beside him. ‘She is a fox.’
Dylan grinned. ‘I know.’ He felt proud to be Taylor’s boyfriend. All the other guys fancied her but she only had eyes for him. It made him feel like the king of the school, not just a scholarship boy.
‘How’s the study going? It’s hard to fit it all in, isn’t it?’ Conor said, as they walked towards their maths class.
‘The extra training sessions aren’t helping.’
‘Yeah, I only manage to cram in two hours’ study on the nights we train,’ Conor complained.
Two hours? Dylan did no study on football training nights. ‘How do you manage two hours?’ he asked.
‘I try to do nine thirty to eleven thirty.’
‘I’m so wrecked after training I can barely read,’ Dylan admitted.
Conor shrugged. ‘I have to put in the hours. My parents are paying a fortune to send me here. I have to get good results or they’ll be really disappointed.’
Not as disappointed as my mum, Dylan thought grimly. He’d have to get up early and go to bed late, cram in as much study as he could. He’d tell Taylor later that he couldn’t come over. Kelly could help him: she was a world-class studier.
Dylan sat in front of Kelly while she peppered him with questions. So far he’d got one right out of six. His phone pinged. Hey babe what time are you coming over? The sooner the better.
He looked at his watch. It was nine. He’d only just sat down to study because he’d got caught up talking to Billy and helping stock shelves in the shop. He’d have to put her off. Sry babe Im WAY behind on study, gotta get my head down. C u 2mrw.
So ur not interested in these. Taylor had sent a photo of her naked breasts. Or this. Another photo, this time of her lace knickers.
Stop ur killing me, u know I’m interested in all of it, but I have to study.
Fine. I’ll have to find someone else to play with. So … who will I send these pics to next????
‘Dylan!’ Kelly snapped. ‘Stop staring at your bloody phone. You asked me to help you, so you could at least concentrate.’
‘Sorry, it’s Taylor. She’s sending me photos of her body parts.’
Dylan quickly texted back: Don’t even think about showing those pics to anyone else. That body is for my eyes only.
‘Dylan!’ Kelly stood up and threw the book on the bed. ‘You’re going to fail. History is supposed to be your good subject and you’ve got almost all the answers wrong. You haven’t a clue about any of the chapters you’re supposed to have studied. You’re going to fail and Mum will go mad and so will Mr Gough. How can you know so little? Have you not studied at all?’
He shrugged. ‘I’ve been distracted with football training and stuff.’
‘Taylor, you mean. Seriously, Dylan, she’s not worth risking everything for.’
Dylan slammed his book on his desk. ‘I am so sick of you and Mum being on my case. I’m having fun. Since when has that become a crime? Jesus, I’ve always done everything right to please Mum. I’ve been the peacemaker between the two of you when you get into your fights, I’ve helped Granddad out in the shop. I’ve been the perfect bloody son and now, finally, I’m having some fun and everyone is on my case. I’m sick of it.’ He grabbed his jacket and headed out of the door.
Kelly called him back. ‘Don’t go out! Come on, I’ll help you study – you need it.’
‘To hell with it, I’m going to see Taylor.’
Dylan ran down the stairs and out of the front door. Kelly tore after him to try to stop him, but he was gone.
Lucy came in. ‘Where’s Dylan? He’s not in his room.’
Kelly froze. Did she tell the truth or lie to protect him? She had to protect him: he was her twin. ‘Uhm, I think he just popped out for a sec.’
‘Where?’
‘To … to get a –’ Damn, Kelly couldn’t think of anything. It was a dark, cold night in December. What the hell would Dylan be popping out for? Her mind was blank. Damnit.
Her mother’s eyes narrowed. ‘Has he gone to see Taylor?’
Kelly hesitated. ‘I don’t know.’
‘Don’t lie, Kelly. It’s obvious he has. I can’t believe it. He has exams coming up and a big game on Saturday. That girl is going to destroy him.’ Lucy’s voice cracked.
Kelly hated seeing her mother upset. It was so rare that Lucy cried. All their lives Lucy had been so strong and only ever cried with joy, like when Dylan won a football cup or Kelly got first prize at school. Otherwise she was steely and tough and never let things get to her. Lucy was the rock of the family, the one who kept everything going, the one who looked after everyone. Kelly had never seen her like this.
‘Why is he being so stupid? Doesn’t he see? He’s going to ruin everything.’ Lucy began to cry. ‘One person can ruin your life. Taylor could ruin his.’
Kelly didn’t know what to do. She took a step forward and patted her mother’s shoulder. ‘Mum, he’ll probably be back soon. Dylan won’t let you down, he never does. He’s just having a bit of fun. But he knows what matters.’
Lucy wiped away her tears with the back of her hand. ‘Fun?’ she croaked. ‘Fun is what got me into trouble. Fun with the wrong person will be his downfall.’
She turned away from Kelly, took her phone out of her back pocket and called Dylan’s mobile. Kelly could hear it go to voicemail. Lucy cursed. She texted him to come home IMMEDIATELY. He didn’t reply.
‘Look, Mum, why don’t you go to bed? Have an early night. I’ll bring you up a cup of tea. Dylan will be home soon, I’m sure of it.’
Lucy gave her a watery smile. ‘Thanks, Kelly, you’re a star. I don’t tell you that enough. But I won’t be able to sleep. I’ll wait for him downstairs. I want to speak to him when he gets in. I can’t believe he’s back with her. Taylor has to go.’
Lucy went back downstairs and Kelly texted Dylan
: Get home NOW. Mum on warpath, waiting up 4 u.
He didn’t reply.
Kelly lay awake, staring at the ceiling, exhausted. It was one a.m. and Dylan still wasn’t home. He’d never stayed out so late on a school night before. He was really pushing it this time.
Kelly texted Sean. U up?
Yep. U still free on Sat for David’s party?
Yes, need to work out a lie to tell mum, but I’ll be there.
Cool. I want some alone time!!! Wear that denim mini, u look hot in it.
Kelly’s stomach did a little flip. K. She wanted to be alone with him, but she was worried about sex. She had Shannon’s condoms, but she hadn’t gone to get the pill yet. She kept finding excuses not to go to the clinic because she still wasn’t sure about it. Should she warn Sean she wasn’t ready, or wait and just talk to him on Saturday? She knew he wanted to have sex, but she was scared. Her mother had done a good job of freaking her out about getting pregnant.
Can’t wait to see you.
Me too, Kelly replied.
K. C u gorgeous. xx
Kelly smiled at her screen. C u. xx
She lay back on her pillow. How was she going to get out on Saturday without her mother finding out? Dylan’s late night would set Lucy off again, and she’d be breathing down their necks. She’d have asked Jenny for help, but since Frank had moved in she hadn’t seen her, and when she’d spoken to her on the phone two days ago, her aunt had sounded really grumpy and stressed. She’d have to ask Shannon for advice. She had to make absolutely sure her mother didn’t find out about Sean. She’d freak anyway, but now that she was so wound up about Dylan she’d double-freak. Sean and the party had to remain a secret.
Kelly tossed and turned, unable to sleep. She was worried about Dylan. Finally, she heard the front door open. Dylan was home. She heard him trip and then curse. She looked at her phone: 2.07 a.m.
‘Dylan!’ her mother’s voice cried. ‘Are you drunk?’
Kelly held her breath. Drunk! How could he be so stupid? She’d told him Lucy was waiting up for him. She reckoned Billy was staying well out of it. He hadn’t moved from his room since ten o’clock. She couldn’t blame him.
Our Secrets and Lies Page 27
