Page 31 of Happier Days

It was good to get everything out in the open about Dan and Katrina’s affair, too. He’d kept the hurt deep inside. Maybe now it would find itself redundant. Because he hadn’t laughed so much in a long time.

He glanced at his watch; there were seven more hours until he would collect Ava from the station. What on earth was he going to do with himself until then?

His phone rang, and he reached for it eagerly. But it wasn’t Ava. It was his daughter, wanting to FaceTime. He took the call.

‘Hey, gorgeous,’ he said. ‘What’s up?’

‘What do you mean? Can’t a daughter ring her dad without any reason? And stop calling me gorgeous!’

‘But you are.’ He couldn’t help teasing her. ‘Anyway, how are you?’

‘I’m good, thanks. Just checking we can still come to you this Friday?’

‘Of course. Are Tom and Maisie game, too?’

‘Yes, if you can manage all three of us.’

‘When have I ever not?’

She grinned, looking so much like her mother that it threw him for a moment. They chatted about her week, he promised to get her some goodies for after the event, and then she was gone.

Three minutes, he sighed. That was all he got nowadays.

Although it was good to see she was doing well and going out with friends, Jack missed having those three-minute chats several times each day. The fallout of the divorce had been tough on him and Katrina, but it had been hard on Brooke, too. That’s why he often spoiled her when he should know better.

He kept his phone in his hand, wondering whether to message Ava again. Wondering if it was too much. But then his fingers began to type.

Do you fancy going out for a bite to eat when you get back?

He waited a couple of minutes, and then his message was answered.

Sure, that would be nice. Thanks.

They made arrangements over a few more messages, and then the conversation was over. But he wanted more. He wanted to hear her voice.

He groaned loudly and got up from his chair.

‘Come on, Graham,’ he said, much to his pet’s delight. ‘Let’s go for a walk.’

Harry Healey pulled in the collar of his coat against the sharp wind that was blowing by the side of the lake. He’d thought a walk might calm him down after getting in a tailspin back at the cottage. His father, Trevor, had died during the night, and it was starting to hit him now that they hadn’t kept in touch.

A numbness had come over him. He was young when his mother died. Being unable to cope with the loss had been the cause of his father’s alcoholism. Frances had only been twenty-eight.

Growing up without a mother, and no grandparents, made for a different life than most of his peers. It was the reason why he’d hung around so much with Jack and Dan, and the rest of the family. Stella Broadhurst had treated him as if he was one of her sons, and he’d liked the attention and love that she’d showered him with.

But Trevor had got worse the older Harry became. It had been one of the reasons why he’d left home so soon after finishing school. That, and the whole debacle around stealing the money from the business account he’d had with Jack, the shame of which still haunted him to that day.

He’d been a mixed-up kid as he’d grown up, and even then, had been envious of how everything Jack Broadhurst did came out smelling of roses.

Jack had aced at school and exams, been one of the most popular boys among the girls, and when he and Harry had gone into business together, Jack was the one who had made it successful. If it wasn’t for him, there would have been no money in the business account.

After one particular row with Trevor that ended up in another brawl, Harry had decided to leave. He’d planned to go that weekend, but the next day, after a further argument narrowly missed being a proper fist fight, he’d seen red and left with all the money he could find.

He’d gone to Birmingham, found work on a building site, and settled in King’s Heath, the place he’d called home until now.

With two failed marriages behind him, he was lucky not to turn to drink, too. But he’d lived through the pain of seeing his father fall apart because of it, so he couldn’t do that to himself. Luckily, he kept away from drugs, too, but he had a temper that was often hard to control.

A figure appeared up ahead on the path, a large dog on a lead. Harry cursed when he spotted it was Jack. He was the last person he wanted to see right now.

---