Chapter Eight

Joel found an ironic sense of familiarity sitting at the dining table, tucking into yet another delicious meal provided by Sammy.

"This is happening too often, isn't it? Me turning up late, you looking after me."

She was across the room folding small clothes, vests, pyjamas, t-shirts, all in a different shades of pink and pastels. The news was on the TV, but the sound was muted, instead Sammy was listening to some eighties music, the twanging base guitar line was almost iconic. She looked up at him, her dark hair a veil until she pulled it back to sit behind her ear.

"I didn't realise how much I missed company. It's quite nice having company."

He digested that for a moment as it was a stark contrast to the 'what do you want?' that had greeted him when she opened the door.

"You didn't seem that pleased to see me." He ventured watching her response closely, and even from the opposite side of the room he could see her flinch. Placing down his cutlery he crossed his arms, "was someone here earlier?"

She nodded slowly, "Daniel, trying to force me to go to this damned party."

He nodded slowly his blood boiling at the thought of that man stressing her, "did he threaten you? Did he hurt you?"

She laughed at that, "hurt me? Don't be stupid, I just threw him out!"

Laughing he reached for his cutlery again, "good girl. You going to go?"

Lifting the pile of folded washing she moved across the lounge before replying, "there is no way that they are getting their hands on my little girl. So I'm hoping that IF I go, Corinne will come and look after Eleanor. But she works...I don't want to go anyway."

"Janet will always do it you know, she was quite taken with her the other week."

Sammy was staring at him when he looked up, "she barely knows me."

"She likes you, and she liked Marcus."

There he was again bringing a wave of sadness to the room, would they ever get over losing him? Sammy gave s sad smile then disappeared into one of the other rooms with the washing. Joel turned back to his food with a sigh.

It was a surprise that his name still caused such a stilted atmosphere to develop between them, because the place was a shrine to his best friend, every surface held a photo of the couple on their honeymoon, or walking in the park, there was even a picture of him and Marcus taken a few years earlier on that fateful trip to Greece. He smiled at the memory. How they'd needed that trip. Marcus was reeling after being dumped by a woman who no way deserved him, he just glad to get free, to get away from the greyness of the city.

Originally they'd planned to fly to one island, Crete or maybe Corfu and stay there for two weeks chilling in the sun, but as always Marcus' wicked sense of adventure had taken them on a long trip with a chain of ferry journeys moving them from one island to catch a second from its destination until they'd literally hopped to his chosen one. Which had been the one he'd seen in a magazine article featuring the best nudist beach in Europe. Joel had groaned at his enthusiasm to visit it, he was no prude, but he wasn't the exhibitionist that his friend was. He'd envisaged a little culture, a little more than sea, sand and copious amounts of beer. Now there was another element to add to the equation and it made Marcus alive.

As expected it was a disappointment, the only people who'd made a trip to the island to appreciate the natural living it advertised were a selection of middle aged Europeans, some stoned hippies and a group of eight Americans who were on their gap year. The beautiful and plentiful youth that in the mind of Marcus had morphed into some sort of orgy never panned out.

It had been yet another adventure, as planned, but as was often typical, it had bombed. But on the journey back to Athens Marcus had met Sammy, and the rest was definitely history.

Standing, he moved to the sideboard and picked up a small framed photo, it showed the three of them, drunk, just about to leave the ferry after Sammy had fleeced them both at poker. Marcus was draped around Sammy, and he was stood beside them a little awkwardly. He smiled, rubbed his thumb over Marcus, feeling the prickle of emotion at the back of his throat.

Nope, there was no sign of it getting any easier.

"So what brings you here...tonight?"

Joel had started to answer emails on his phone once he'd recovered from his touch of nostalgia. He'd been out of the office a few hours and the world was still crazy, his inbox was constantly receiving mail, and that engrossed him, so the voice caught him by surprise. When he looked up it was to see Sammy leaning against the doorway from the bedrooms with a wry smile on her face.

"Here?"

She nodded, "as nice as it is to see you, I presume that there's more than the thought of some left over curry that dragged you across town."

He laughed, "I'd come just for the curry."

That made her smile, "and you'd be more than welcome."

"I've been working on things..."

If it was possible for a woman with alabaster skin to turn pale, then she had, visibly in front of him, "is it bad news? Is it..."

He stood, forcing his chair back on the wood floor, then rushed to her, "no, no. It's ok."

Suddenly he knew for definite that he couldn't share his suspicions, either his old ones or the new ones, but he could make her smile, make her feel secure, make her happy again, then deal with the backlash when he had to.

"I'll be getting the papers for this place transferred to you soon, the income is sorted. Hopefully some of the policies Marcus took out will come good too, then you'll have ALL the security you need."

As she sighed with relief, the tensions left her in almost visible wafts, shoulders relaxed, the harsh lines that had scarred her face, the worry lines at her brow, the white knuckles of her fist all eased, and he relaxed too.

"Really? I was so worried that you were going to say that this was all over, that I...we had no home."

Reaching out he squeezed her hand and gave her a smile, "no chance. It's all good. I promise."

As she gave a fist bump to no one in particular, he could only smile, her happiness made him happy, it made him feel that he was finally, FINALLY doing the right thing by his best friend, because as the days went on he was realising more and more that he had failed Marcus, SO much. This was the only way left to avenge that behaviour, he owed his friend, and the only way he could help was to care for his wife and child.

Two days later Daniel made his third unannounced visit to her home. This time she was just leaving as Eleanor had a routine check up at the doctor. She was never late, it wasn't her thing, that was before she had a baby, now it seemed to becoming more usual that she was almost running late.

"Sammy..."

Before she turned and saw him she recognised the voice and wanted to scream in frustration 'GO AWAY', but she couldn't. "Sorry Daniel, but I'm running late. I can't stop to talk."

"Let me get you a cab?"

She stopped and turned to him, "I can afford a cab if I want one. But I am only going a few hundred yards; I don't need one, as long as I don't dawdle."

"I don't want to delay you; I just wanted to give you this."

He held another envelope out towards her, but this one was made of elegant and rather expensive cream paper, it looked luxurious, a million miles from the incriminating one he'd handed her earlier in the week. Her eyes flicked from it up to his face, "what is it?"

The last thing she wanted was another 'Joel is a jealous bastard' story. She had little respect left for him, in fact she really wanted to barge past him and get where she needed to be. But he was stood blocking her path.

Snatching at the envelope she ripped it open to see an ivory vellum lace-edged invitation, inviting her to a Prestigious Anniversary Party. He wasn't about to give up.

"They really want you to come. I want you to come."

She rolled her eyes, "really? All you seem interested in is badmouthing my husband's best friend. You've not made any effort to do right by your brother's family...until it suits you."

"I don't want to see you sucked in by someone who has ulterior motives. Neither would Marcus."

She shook her head, "they were best friends, Marcus loved him. So that leaves you...you're being nice to get me to appease your parents. Isn't that exactly the same? Ulterior motives of your own?"

He groaned, "you're right, I promised them you'd be there. My mother wants it more than anything; you are all that she has left of her oldest son. Please come?"

She studied him for a moment, time she didn't have, she really needed to be at the doctor's surgery. But there was something about his desperation, he was being driven by something, it was her curiosity that got the better of her, meaning that she shrugged, "one condition, I bring a friend. That or nothing."

"Brilliant." He sighed with relief as he stepped aside to let her pass. "They'll be ecstatic to see you."

Sammy sat at a window seat in the cafe a mug of tea and a huge Chelsea bun in front of her. Eleanor was asleep having devoured a bottle of milk at the doctor's surgery. The shrieks coming down Sammy's phone at her ear were making her laugh out loud.

"Why is he so desperate to get you there? It doesn't make sense!"

Sammy laughed at Corinne's indignation. "Maybe he has made some outlandish promise to his parents he'd get me there, you know how much the Turner boys worship their mother."

"True, she's like Peggy Mitchell; the woman can do no wrong."

That made Sammy chuckle, "you see? He's not cut the apron strings yet, he'll do anything to stay in Mummy's good books. Well in all honesty he'll do anything to move out of his brother's shadow. This maybe his chance."

"And you're going to upset the apple cart?"

Tearing a piece off the bun she popped it in her mouth chewing for a moment, "I'm not taking my baby, and I'm taking a plus one. That's not upsetting the apple cart. Are you sure you can do this?"

Corinne's laugh was shrill, "of course! Oh my God. He has no idea who he's dealing with, does he?" When Sammy laughed her friend added, "welcome back darling, I have missed you SO much."

As she ended the call she glanced out of the window across the busy street, she had never been patient. In fact she'd had her third cup of tea before the door her eyes were trained on opened and someone stepped out into the afternoon sun. Waving to the barista, she grabbed her bag, pushing Eleanor's pram with her hips and rushed outside herself.

"Wait!" She called out as she the traffic lights changed and she could dash across the road. Immaculate in a suit, his dark hair cropped close to his head, equally dark shades covering his eyes, Joel paused in his step and turned slowly to her voice, watching her intently as she skipped across the pavement.

"Sammy! You ok? What are you doing here?"

She grinned at him, hating that the brief sprint had left her short of breath, "a week Friday..." She gulped air. "I've agreed to go to the party..."

"Margaret and Clifford's? You have?" He looked angry for a moment, "did he bully you to go with him?"

Laughing she shook her head, "no! Of course not. I'm not going with Daniel, and I'm DEFINITELY not taking Eleanor. But I DO have a plus one, I want to take YOU!"