Page 20 of Lord of the Lock

The bus stops were full of people trying to get home after the match but we managed to barely squeeze on to one bus heading back to Pontycae. Space was so tight that we were pushed up against each other and the Nathan leaned back against me, his face pale. I squeezed one shoulder in a way that I hoped was reassuring and he looked back at me with a tight smile.

“Not good in small spaces?” I whispered.

“Nah,” he said back. “Not for me.”

We stood for most of the way to Pontycae, finally getting seats as the bus passed through Caerphilly and the majority of the valley-bound passengers got off.

“Are you feeling alright?” I asked Nathan.

He turned to me with a real, genuine smile. “I’ve had a fantastic time. Honest. I better get home. But thank you for today, Finn. I really enjoyed.”

And then he was walking back down the hill towards his house, and out of sight. I hated seeing him go. And I wondered whether, in some crazy world, we would have a relationship that wasn’t just an act for everyone else.

12

Chapter Twelve - Nathan

Ihadhad a fantastic time. But something in my stomach curdled with the knowledge that there was a deeper liking for Finn than I’d ever like to admit out loud. It had been inevitable, maybe. He was inevitable, and impossible to deny. Not in the same way other men had made themselves impossible to deny, with a quick shove downwards or a grip as hard as iron, but with his sparkling personality, his joy.

It was impossible not to be attracted to Finn Roberts, and it amazed me that the whole world didn’t think the same. If I was Wales coach and he’d batted his eyelashes at me and asked for his spot back, I’d be handing him his kit back and telling him to lace on his boots before he could finish asking the question.

Which is why heading home alone from the bus-stop was the best idea at that time. Finn had offered for me to head to his afterwards for a quiet beer but I’d let him down as gently as I could. I needed to be by myself.

As soon as I got home I knew I wasn’t going to be so lucky. There were raised voices coming from the kitchen, my mother and father sounded like they were really going at it. Which, considering my mother had been walking on eggshells since Dad had lost his leg, was a minor miracle.

“Nathan does so much for us, and you just had to go and throw it in his face!” Mum shouted. “You are not the man I married!”

“No, I’m a one-legged old man who needs proper care and attention. If our son isn’t going to give me that proper care and attention then he can stop living like a king in this house.”

“For fuck’s sake…” my mother tailed off as she noticed me standing in the doorway.

“What’s going on?” I asked.

“I tried to stop him, I really did,” said Mum. “But he’d already made up his mind.”

“I’ve decided I want my office space back,” said Dad. “So I’ve taken the liberty of moving everything for you.”

“Just…just go and have a look,” said my Mum. She had the same weary tone she’d taken on with almost everything to do with my father.

I rolled my eyes and trooped up the stairs. What had the old twat done now?

I opened the door to the office. It was spotless, the bed was made, and all my packages, all my merchandise…gone. My computer and printer in the corner were gone too.

“What the fuck?” I muttered to myself. I turned to the door into the little box room and pushed it open. It only opened halfway, as the mass of packaging materials and boxes on the bed were stopping the door from being properly opened. Over all the packages, on the bed I could see my computer tower and monitor poking through the mess.

I ran down the stairs two at a time in a rage. “What the fuck have you done?” I asked my father. I didn’t know that I’d ever spoken to him like that, but I was furious. “I dropped everything to come here and help you.”

“Did you? I thought you were off with some bloke,” he deadpanned. “Whereas I’m here, wasting away because I can’t get the proper care.”

“Thengetthe proper care!” I shouted. “God knows you’ve had your only son wiping your arse when you still have two capable hands. You managed to shift all those boxes and unplug my computer without calling for anyone’s help, didn’t you?”

“My mobility is none of your concern,” he muttered. “I needed the office back.”

“So you’re going to help Mum with the business again?” I asked. Dad grimaced. “Apparently not, then. You just did it out of spite.”

“You can use the spare bedroom to do business, I’m sure it’ll all be fine,” said Mum, convincing no-one including herself.

“So I’m sleeping in the office now?”

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