Denying Mr. Parks (The Parks #1) (24 page)

“You’re such a douche.”

“I’ve been called worse.” He laughed before climbing into his car.

My eyes relaxed as I watched him drive away in apprehension. As he left, he took that feeling of being whole away with him and left me feeling empty. But empty was good.

Chapter Sixteen

“Evey, come in.” My uncle Kevin ushered me inside hastily, taking my holdall from my shoulder. He was a stocky man who used to play rugby in his younger days. His muscle had turned to fat now that he didn’t train anymore, but it suited him. He wore his greying hair in a buzz cut and could look quite mean, but he was the most laid-back, kind-hearted man I had ever met.

“Thanks, Kev.” I smiled as I walked into the warm, terraced house. My aunty Cheryl always kept her home up-to-date with the latest trends, so it was always decorated beautifully, not that Kevin encouraged her. He would have happily kept the same carpets and wallpaper they had back in the 1980s if it meant he would be saving money. I loved visiting because I had such great memories at her house.

I walked down the short hallway and turned right, which led me into the front room that was bursting with lime-greens, yellows, and flowers.

“Where are the kids?” I asked, because it was way too quiet.

Kevin answered whilst placing my holdall onto the lime-green sofa, which had so many fancy cushions it was hard to sit down. “They’re on their way home from their gran’s. I know they’re dying to see you. And Cheryl’s…”

“Here.”

I turned to see my strawberry-blonde, blue-eyed aunty walking into the room with an empty laundry basket under her arm. She cupped my face with her free hand and kissed me on the cheek. “I’ve missed your beautiful face. It’s been two months since you were last here you know,” she scolded me with a pointed finger.

I perched myself on one of the armchairs as she made her way to the three-piece sofa, handing the basket to Kevin to take to the kitchen along the way. “And make us a cuppa, would you? Remember, Evey likes two sugars.”

He looked at her like she was unbearable but did as he was told. He always did.

“Don’t make me feel bad, Chez,” I said. “It’s just this new job. It takes up most of my time, but I love that because it keeps me busy.”

She nodded once and smiled contentedly whilst blowing her thick fringe out of her eyes. “Good. Keeping busy is good.” She knew the way my mind worked. If I didn’t keep occupied by losing myself in a hobby, working hard, absorbing myself in puzzles, reading, or anything that would keep my mind overloaded, I would slip back into thoughts I didn’t want to have and relive feelings and images I didn’t want to relive. That was why swimming had become a big part of my life.

Kevin came back into the room, scratching his overgrown belly under his food-stained, white T-shirt, and passed me the mug of tea carefully, as he always overfilled it.

Cheryl jerked her thumb his way. “Did you notice that heap of shit on the driveway he brought home the other day?”

“Heap of shit?” I questioned before blowing the steam off my tea.

“It’s not a heap of shit. She’s a beaut,” Kevin argued, walking to the window and peeking through the blinds.

I was chuckling and curious by then. “What is it?”

“A Ford Cortina. He bought it from Mick’s Garage.”

I rolled my eyes as Cheryl filled me in. “Dodgy Mick?”

“Yes,” Cheryl sang, clearly exasperated by her husband. “I told him if he thinks for one second the kids and I are being driven around in that crock of shite, he’s got another thing coming.”

Kevin turned his head away from the window and towards his wife. “No, but I’m sure it’ll be trustworthy when you want to go to bingo.”

She marched over to him and swatted him away. “I’ve told you to stop looking out these windows. Anyone would think it was a peeping-tom house,” she scolded whilst fussing with her blinds. I giggled so she couldn’t hear me, and Kevin threw two fingers up at her behind her back. “And you better put those fingers away before I break them.”

Kevin looked at me flabbergasted, because Cheryl hadn’t even looked away from her blinds. “You’re crazy, woman. I’m sat right here.” He quickly sat down on the sofa and picked up an old newspaper whilst she turned her head his way.

“I have eyes at the back of my head, love.”

Kevin wiggled his brows. “She fucking does and all.”

I loved sitting and watching my aunty and uncle banter. Loved watching how much they would wind each other up whilst still having so much love for one another. I often hoped that when I settled down, I would be able to banter with my partner like they did and have the same kind of love they shared. Right then, I thought about my relationship with Alex. We didn’t banter, but I knew who I did banter with, and I chose to ignore that fact. Besides, me and settling down, loving someone, and even someone loving me, was never going to happen. I was hard to like, so I was damn sure intolerable to love. Again, I had no hope.

I finished my tea and chatted with Cheryl before I heard the laughter of children rushing through the front door. I quickly got to my feet and hid behind the living room door and waited silently.

“Is Veve here?” I heard my youngest cousin, Ralph, who was three—and a shock to my aunty, who was forty-seven when she got pregnant with him—asking his grandma Beth, who was dropping them back home. Just like always when he called me Veve, my smile was enormous. He darted into the living room, his little blue eyes looking all around the room for me. I ran behind him, making a lion noise, causing him to squeal in delight.

“Ralph, my little man.” I picked him up and spun him around until he was red in the face from giggling, then smothered him with kisses before placing him back on his feet. As soon as I did, he wanted me to pick him up again.

“He’s been waiting to see you all day.” Ralph’s grandmother entered the room, looking completely pooped.

“You know he won’t leave you alone all weekend,” Cheryl warned me playfully whilst picking him up herself. She then noticed he had a snotty nose and wiped it on her jumper.

“Did you really just use your jumper as a tissue?”

She laughed, looking at my horrified expression. “Evey, when you’re a mother, you will be wiping more than snot on your clothes, trust me.”

“God, no. Could you imagine me as a mum? Kids hate me, and I’m sure my own would feel the same.”

She slapped my shoulder. “Evey, my kids love you. And one day, your own children will too.”

I laughed. “Then I hope
one day
never comes.”

“Veve?” Ralph tried leaping from his mother’s arms as he grabbed for me. I took him from her and smiled at the blond, blue-eyed bundle of craziness. Not many things warmed my heart, but he did, along with her two other children, Darcy, who was seven, and Ella, who was sixteen.

“Right, they’re all yours.” Beth said her good-byes, and Kevin got up to see his mother off whilst Darcy danced into the room in a pink tutu, begging me to sit down and watch her new ballet routine. I took a seat on the sofa and bounced Ralph on my knee as I watched. “Wow. You’re brilliant, Darcy.”

“I know.” She smiled whilst flickering her hair from her face—very diva-ish. I glanced over at Cheryl, eager to laugh, though I daren’t.

“Evey, I’ve got a ballet show in two weeks. Will you come? Mummy can get you a ticket and stuff, can’t you, Mum?” Darcy pulled on her mum’s arm whilst repeating “please” several times.

“Evey is very busy, Darcy.”

“When is it?” I piped up.

“Two weeks from tomorrow,” Cheryl informed me.

“That’s fine. Get me a ticket and I’ll be there.”

Darcy ran up to me and knocked me back as she hugged me enthusiastically. “You promise?” She held out her pinkie finger to make me swear it.

“I promise,” I said, deadly serious as I linked my finger with hers.

“You can’t break a pinkie promise now, Evey,” Kevin added as he walked through the door, his tone suggesting that breaking one of Darcy’s promises was deadly. It probably was. But I meant it. I was already looking forward to watching my little cousin perform.

“It’s her first show.” Cheryl smiled proudly, watching Darcy twirl around the living room. “She’s the main star too.”

“Of course I am,” Darcy sang. She was so funny for a little kid and acted older than she was.

“Where’s Ella?” I asked, having noticed she hadn’t come to greet me.

Cheryl rolled her eyes. “Don’t even go there. She’s turned into a right little madam. She’s started hanging around with older kids. In two months, Evey, she’s turned from being my charming little princess to a complete pain in my backside.”

I was confused because that didn’t sound like Ella. “Just backchat, or…?”

“Backchat?” She scoffed. “Swearing, not telling me where she’s going. She don’t even answer my calls anymore. She’s even coming home drunk!”

“Drunk?” The thought of her mixing with alcohol was stomach-churning, given I knew what damage it could do.

Cheryl rubbed her forehead with her fingers, looking drained. “I don’t know what’s gotten into her, Evey. I was hoping you could talk to her? She adores you.”

“Of course I will,” I said, hoping she was just going through a chapter some kids went through in their lives. It seemed completely out of character. I’d never heard of Ella acting up.

I had a delicious dinner with my family—chicken casserole and homemade bread buns. After that I went upstairs with Ralph and Darcy to get them ready for bed; they both insisted I take them. Ralph went straight to sleep after his warm milk, but Darcy was the difficult one.

“One more time, Evey, pretty please?”

I gently tapped the book against my forehead. “Darcy, there are only so many times I can read you the story of The Princess and the Pea. I think I’m about to go insane.”

She chuckled, making me laugh, twirling my hair around her small finger as she lay in bed. “But how does she know there is a pea under all those blankets?”

I smiled and brushed her hair from her forehead. “Because she’s a princess.”

She continued to twirl my hair whilst looking at me. “You’re like a princess, Evey. Do you think you would feel the pea?”

I sighed, looking down at her angelic face. “No, because I’m like the wicked witch.”

She giggled hysterically. “You’re silly.”

“And you’re going to sleep.” I chuckled. She huffed a little but closed her eyes and turned on her side with her teddy bear. I kissed her head good night and smiled warmly as she slid her thumb into her mouth.

When they were settled, Kevin went to bed and left me and Cheryl downstairs to chat.

“Tea?” she asked, popping her head around the kitchen door.

“A glass of red?” I tried my luck jokingly, but she didn’t find it funny. Her forehead creased in a deep frown. “Calm down, Chez, I’m joking.”

“Well, don’t.” She pointed to me and walked back into the room without getting the tea. I felt a lecture coming on. “Remind me of how many months you’ve been sober, Evey?”

“Almost nine months.” I couldn’t look up from the cushion I held to my stomach.

“Right, now the next time I ask you, I want it to be nine years, okay? You’re not that Evey anymore.”

I felt I had to confess. “I had a relapse last week.” I held on to the pillow, awaiting her reaction.

“You did?” I looked up and saw her stiffen. “Drink or…?”

“Yeah, it was drink. I haven’t done drugs for years.” I rolled my eyes when I said
years
for the effect, because I meant it and I hoped she believed me.

She nodded, confirming she did and crossed her arms, making all the gold bangles jingle around her wrists. “So what caused the slip?”

I cleared my throat, a little embarrassed and pulled my feet up underneath me, but quickly put them back down again as Cheryl raised a brow. She hated feet on the sofa. “I was at a society dinner. The CEO of our company sent invites to all his employees, so I went with Alex. He told me not to drink, but one became two and then…You know how it is.” I shrugged, trying to avoid the objection in her eyes. Cheryl would always be the first to reprimand me about drinking.

“I know it’s hard for you, Evey, and I know you will have slipups, but as long as you reassure me that there won’t be many others
—”

“Don’t worry, that life is in the past. It will not come back around.”

I hoped it wouldn’t.

She clasped her hands cheerily and tried to act nonchalant, but I could see her worry. “Good. So, Alex? Is this Steph’s brother?”

“Yes.” I sighed.

“Why the sigh? Don’t you like him? Are you in a relationship?”

“No, we’re sort of taking things slow,” I told her, picking at the side of the cushion. “We went out a couple of times before he moved to Ireland, and now he’s back, he wants it to become more serious.”

“And you don’t?” She knew me too well not to know I never did serious relationships, but I suppose she held hope.

“I don’t know.” I didn’t, so Cheryl didn’t push me.

“On a lighter note, is he a man with a man? Or a man with a mouse?” Cheryl always called men’s penises either “a man” if big, or “a mouse” if small. Crazy.

I laughed softly. “I don’t know. I haven’t slept with him, so I can’t comment on his genitalia.” She arched her brow, insinuating she didn’t believe me. I threw the pillow I was hugging towards her. “I haven’t, so stop with that look.”