Boy Next Door (Parkside Avenue Book #2) (13 page)

“You don’t have
girl
friends.”

“I do now.”

Molly pulled her hand from
Kendrick’s and fidgeted, nervously. “Perhaps I’d better go.”

Kendrick laid a hand on her
thigh. “You’re going nowhere,” he said.

“I don’t want to intrude.”

Something about the girl prodded
my freak out cells. She looked too much of a mouse to be one of Kendrick’s
usual no strings bimbos. And what was with her fucked-up face? Maybe she wasn’t
as innocent as she looked, and Kendrick’s gentlemanly ruse was all a plan to
get his leg over later. Yeah, that must be it, unless I didn’t know my brother
as well as I thought I did.

“Bollocks to that. Like I said,
I’m fine with the sofa.”

“She can take my bed. I’m
sleeping out.” At least, that was the plan.

“Again? Where this time?”

“Same place.”

“Have you developed a thing for
spiders?”

“No. For Cora.” I pulled a menu
from under the telephone on Pappa’s table. “Should we order takeout? We can get
extra for when Paps wakes up.”

“Back up a second. What did you
say?”

Here we go. Take a deep breath,
Johnny, and just come out with it. It’s not like you’re keeping it a secret. “I
was with Cora, last night.”

“What do you mean, with her?”

“You need me to draw you a
picture?”

“Are you yanking my chain?”

“Nope.”

“I thought you were joking when
you staked a claim.”

“Never been more serious.”

Kendrick’s creased brow ironed
out as his lips curled to a smile. “My brother the perv.”

“Says the guy who was checking
her out, which, by the way, you can quit now.”

“I admit she has a rocking body,
but there’s a big difference between looking and touching.”

“Yeah, there is,” I said with a
huge grin.

Kendrick’s mouth fell open. “Jesus,
man, you’ve slammed her already, haven’t you?”

“Well, we weren’t playing
Monopoly.”

“Are you out of your mind?”

“Only if you count being crazy
about her.”

“Crazy’s right. What are you
going to do now? Move in? Buy a sedan? Play daddy?”

Talking about Cora only made me
long to be with her. “Don’t be stupid. It’s too soon for that, but I really
like her, man. I think I’ve found the woman I want to spend the rest of my life
with.”

“Dude, I reckon you need your
rocks feeling, but what do I know? Have your kicks, if you must, but don’t
expect any double dates. I’ve my street cred to consider.”

Chapter Nineteen

I didn’t bother knocking, and I
was about to call out Cora’s name when I heard voices in the living room. Her
book club. Shit. I’d completely forgotten she would have visitors. Still, it
couldn’t go on all night. I clicked the door latch into place, as quietly as possible,
and tiptoed along the corridor to the kitchen to wait it out, but I’d forgotten
about Cora’s open-plan layout and had to duck down behind the separating breakfast
bar, before anyone saw me.

On the table, numerous plates
were laid out with tiny square sandwiches and miniature cakes. Cora had been
busy. Four bottles of wine sat on the counter next to a cluster of empty
glasses, and an enticing aroma drifted from the coffee machine. Despite wolfing
down a twelve-inch pizza only an hour before, my stomach rumbled eagerly.

“You were supposed to read the
book, Sheila. Watching the film doesn’t count.” The voice belonged to Cora’s
friend, Diane.

“I know. I know. It’s no excuse,
but I’ve just been so busy this week.”

“Why? Have you found a lover?” Diane
asked with a low drawl.

“Unlike you, some of us have a
husband and children. I don’t expect a single woman to understand the
responsibilities that entails.”

“And I don’t wish to.”

“Perhaps we should take a break,”
Cora suggested. “We can discuss the underlying themes to the story after we’ve
had some refreshments.”

Refreshments? Damn. Did that mean
they’d be coming into the kitchen? I’d look a right Charlie, hiding on the
floor, if that happened. If I was quick, I might have time to sneak back out of
the door. I glanced down at the white shirt and black trousers I’d chosen to
wear for the evening, and saw the opportunity to have some fun instead, so I
crawled around the tiles on my hands and knees, pulled the tea towel from a
hook near the sink, laid it over my arm, and grabbed a bottle of wine from the counter
as I stood.

“I’ll take that as my cue,
ladies. Wine or coffee?”

A circle of shocked faces stared over
to me. The one seated next to Cora spoke. “You hired help, Cora? How very grandiose
of you,” she said, looking me up and down.

Cora’s mouth formed an O, but no
words came out.

With an aloof air, I strolled
into the seating area and prised myself into the circle of bodies to place a
handful of glasses on the coffee table.

“This certainly adds spice to the
evening,” another woman added, winking at me.

I smiled back. “I’m just here to
serve the refreshments, madam.”

“That’s a shame,” Diane said.
“I’m a good tipper.”

“Yeah, I bet you are,” I said
through a half grin.

An arm waved at the edge of my
vision. “I’ll take some of what you’re offering, sweetie.”

Jeez, the women were like a herd
of hungry hippos waiting to devour me. Maybe, I hadn’t thought this through.

As I poured more wine, Cora
finally found her voice. “The usual nibbles are in the kitchen. Perhaps you’d
like to help yourselves,” she said, speaking to the room. The women rose, and
Cora smiled at each one as they passed by, before turning to me and whispering,
“What are you doing here, Johnny?”

“Don’t you want me to meet your
friends?”

“Eventually, perhaps, but not
yet. It’s too soon,” she said through gritted teeth.

“So I’m to be your dirty little
secret?” I jiggled my eyebrows and sneakily kissed her cheek.

She jumped and stole a quick
glance at the women. She was safe. No one had noticed, but the woman I guessed
to be Sheila—she was the only one not giving me sideways looks—was making her
way back to the sofa, carrying a plate of sandwiches. I offered her a glass of
wine and a smile.

“Thank you,” she said. Yep. Her
voice confirmed my suspicions. Definitely Sheila. She accepted the glass and
sat down. “I saw Madeleine today, Cora.”

A sudden chill filled the air.
“And?”

“I thought you might like to
know.”

“Why? I have no interest in that
woman anymore.”

Not wanting to be the third wheel
in the conversation, I gave a cursory nod and left them alone, but I couldn’t
help keeping one ear in the room.

“Not even if she was with another
man? One that wasn’t John. They looked pretty cosy.”

“Try the brownies,” I said to the
brunette at my side. “I personally recommend them.”

“Well, if you insist,” she
answered, looking up through her lashes and nibbling the side of her lip. I
smiled weakly.

“What are you getting at,
Sheila?” Cora’s voice rose slightly.

“Only that John might be
available again … if you wanted him back, that is.”

Fuck that. No way
. He’d
had his chance and blown it. Cora belonged to me now.

“Why would I want that?”

“You were happy before.”

Was she?

“I was … for a while, before he
changed.”

“You could be happy again.”

“Not with a dirty, cheating
scumbag.”

That’s right, Cora. You tell it
like it is.

“Aw, come on. You’re not the
solitary type. You need man to take care of.”

She has one.

“I have one,” Cora said in a
matter-of-fact way that surprised me.

I nodded to myself with more than
a hint of satisfaction.

“You do? You’ve been keeping that
tasty piece of news a secret. Who is he?” Sheila asked.

Diane shimmied past me and
returned to her friends. “Is it Roger? I mean, I know you said the date didn’t
work out, but I knew he’d be perfect for you.”

“My goodness. No. It isn’t Roger.”

“Who then?”

“You don’t know him.”

“Okay. When do we get to meet
him?” Diane asked.

Cora stole a glance in my
direction. “It’s early days. Let’s just see how it goes.”

“Why the secrecy? You know I’m
going to get the juicy details from you eventually.”

Cora caught my eye. “Could I
possibly have a top up, please?”

I made my way back to the sofa,
as Sheila pointed to her plate. “Mmm, these are delicious. You’ll have to give
me the recipe, Cora.” She smacked her lips as she rose from her chair and
squeezed past me. “I think I’ll just get one more slice.”

Diane bottom shuffled along the
sofa and closed in on Cora. “Okay,” she spoke softly to Cora’s cheek. “Who he
is can wait. Start with how hot his body is and what he does with it.”

“Just because you enjoy telling
me about your sex life doesn’t mean you get to know about mine,” Cora said.

“Spoilsport.”

“Excuse me, ladies.” I squeezed between
them, to pour Cora’s wine and couldn’t resist giving her a cheeky wink. Her
eyes smiled back, even though the corners of her mouth resisted.

Diane gasped. “I saw that.”

“What?”

“Don’t play the innocent with me.
I’m your best friend. I know you better than anyone, and I know men even better.”
Diane looked up at me through narrowed eyes. “It’s you.” She whirled to face
Cora again. “It is, isn’t it? It’s him! I should have been suspicious from the
start. You’ve never hired help for one of our evenings before.”

“His name’s Johnny.”

I lifted the bottle in greeting. “Hi.”

“Nice to meet you, Johnny, but
let’s get serious.” She turned back to Cora. “You haven’t thought this through,
darling. I’m all for you having another man in your life. Heck, I encouraged
it. But Johnny is not that man. He’s barely grown into the description, yet.
Look, I can imagine how it must feel to have someone so young and virile in
your bed. It’s not as if it hasn’t been a fantasy of mine too, but he’s not
relationship material. Life doesn’t work that way.”

“Oh? How does life work, Diane?
Is there a plan I should be following?”

“I understand your fears. You’re
pushing forty and you think you’re running out of time. It happens to all of
us.”

“You’re talking about me as if I’m
a discarded woman, tossed on the junk heap of life like last year’s Gucci
handbag.”

“I happen to like vintage,” I cut
in. “Just because there’s a newer model on the market, doesn’t mean it’s more
useful or attractive. Beauty changes over time; it never lessens, and a classic
model is a keeper.” The way Cora smiled at my words proved my point. I caught
Diane with a challenging stare. “Stop trying to find problems where there
aren’t any.”

Diane’s voice rose along with her
frustration. “Cora, you can’t recapture your youth by trawling the schoolyard
for a date.”

Over exaggerate much? “Do I look
like a schoolboy?” I asked.

Diane ignored my question, as
Cora said, “Keep your voice down, Diane. I don’t want all the girls knowing
yet, and I didn’t go trawling anywhere. In case you haven’t noticed, Johnny’s
been working in the garden, and he pursued me.”

“And you were flattered. Who
wouldn’t have been?”

“It’s more than that. I never
thought I’d find someone who would make me feel like this. I have returned to
the land of the living, which is what you’ve been pressing me for, for months. Can’t
you just be happy for me?”

“I would, if I thought for one
second it wasn’t doomed. He’s going to leave you, darling. Maybe not tomorrow
or next week, but someday, when he finds someone younger and more … flexible. Don’t
think for a minute he won’t. Is that not something that’s ever entered your
head?”

I placed the bottle a little too
heavily onto the coffee table. “Hey. I’m standing right here. Stop filling her
head with ridiculous ideas.”

“Please, Cora. Think this
through. End it now, before he does, and hold on to a modicum of self-respect.”

“You’re jealous. That’s it, isn’t
it? All the men you date are stuffy and old.”

Diane dismissed Cora’s comment
with a shake of her head. “Johnny, let me ask you something. What do you see in
Cora?”

“Diane, that’s not fair. You
don’t have to answer that, Johnny.”

“No, it’s okay. I’ve got this.” I
looked Diane square in the eye. “I admit, I first fell for her hot body, but
she’s also kind, and gentle, and funny. She doesn’t take shit, but she does it
with class. She looks after herself, and everyone else, and she’s exactly the
sort of woman any man would be lucky to have.”

“Precisely. Why should that be
you?”

“Because, despite your opinion,
our love is real.”

Chapter Twenty

I wiped the sweat from my forehead
and stabbed the shovel into the earth. Cora was topping up her tan on a nearby
lounger.

Using the word love hadn’t been
planned. Perhaps it was too soon to be mentioned, but it was how I felt, and
once it was out there, there was no going back. A tingle still ran through me
when I remembered Cora’s reaction. She hadn’t commented. Her sweet face had
spoken for her, and I was convinced she would say the words, when she was
ready.

I looked over to her. She
wriggled in her seat, looking anything but relaxed, chewing on her bottom lip
and staring into a gin and tonic.

Some of Nessie’s belongings had
disappeared the previous day, while Cora was out jogging, but Nessie wasn’t
answering the texts or calls Cora made, and if she didn’t stop worrying over
her daughter’s absence, I’d soon be able to plant seeds in her frown lines. It
felt as if everything was my fault, and I wished I could make it better. Why
couldn’t Nessie just accept the situation, like her sister, Amy, had?