Page 75 of Maybe
CHAPTER 28
ISAAC
“Slash?”was my first word as I steered a punch-drunk Ezra back towards the Tube station. We didn’t get far before Ezra bent forward, with his hands on his knees.
“I think I’m going to be sick.”
I tightened my grip on his arm. “Let’s stop here a second. Take some deep breaths. Give me your guitar case.”
I’d been down an alley with Ezra before. This time, however, I led him, and we were sober. This one ended in the reserved parking area around the back of the solicitor’s offices. He sagged against a brick wall, face ashen, and closed his eyes.
“Slash,” I repeated. “Your son has Slash as a middle name.”
“Yeah.” Ezra sucked in a deep breath, then let it out slowly. Opening up his coat, he wafted cool air down his shirt. “That you have no idea why is one of the cutest things about you.” He checked his phone. “We’ve got to collect Jonty—we’ll be late.”
“Shh. We’ve got plenty of time, you told me so yourself. Take a few more deep breaths.”
For once, Ezra cooperated. Gradually, some colour returned to his cheeks. When he gave me the nod, we started walking again. “Tell me I didn’t just dream that, Iz.”
“Nope.” Struggling to keep a grin off my face, I kept up with Ezra’s long strides. “It really happened. YoungSlashis always going to be able to find the cash for his first month’s rent deposit.”
Money would never bring back Ezra’s happy childhood, but it would grease the wheels of his son’s. We crossed a busy road, quiet for a moment as we concentrated on the traffic. Every now and again, Ezra took a few deep breaths, lifting his face up to the overcast sky. I was still smiling. My mother’s benevolence wasn’t Ezra’s last surprise of the afternoon. Though I wasn’t certain how he’d handle the next one, a quiet promise hung in the air.
The Tube station came into sight. The usual crush of late afternoon commuters already blocked the entrance, but even the impending scrum couldn’t damage my mood. I checked the time. “Um… I’m going in a different direction. Different Tube line.”
“What? Are you not coming to pick up Jonty with me later?”
“Um…no.” I sucked in a breath, on the cusp of tiptoeing over some very delicate eggshells. “I have an appointment with an estate agent in half an hour, to view a property over in Shooters Hill.”
“That’s random. I don’t think I’ve ever been there.”
Ezra sounded calm, only mildly interested even. I wasn’t fooled for a second. Ah well. In for a penny, in for a pound.
“Not really. I’m going to buy a house there for the three of us.”
Ezra’s lips thinned. “Babe. Haven’t we been over this?”
“Yes. We have. But I’m not taking no for an answer.” Tugging on his wrist, I pulled him to the side, away from the middle of the rush. As his arms folded across his chest, I stared him down,determined not to flinch under his steely black-eyed gaze. No easy task.
“I’m doing this, Ez,” I stated. “Big brothers need help sometimes too, you know? As do boyfriends. And you’ve got a boyfriend who’s going to be with you forever. Which means that what’s mine is yours, Ez.”
“It doesn’t always work like that, Isaac.”
“It does this time. You need to move forwards. You remember telling me we sold our childhood as a job lot? That we don’t live there anymore? It’s time you started believing it, not letting it hold you and Jonty back.”
“Who said anything about being held back?”
“I’ve been looking around,” I pressed on. “Shooters Hill is a good area. It has nice parks. Low crime. And it’s not so far from your old place that Jonty would need to change schools. Nor too far from Carly’s.”
Ezra eyed me curiously, pulling on his lip. People pushed past us along the pavement, indifferent to this monumental moment in both our lives. We’d both come a long way since my father died; this final step was all on Ezra. It was a simple choice, really—on paper, at least. Hold on to the past or let go.
Learn to fly. Fly away. Together.
Ezra glanced up at the Tube station, then back down at me. Acomplicated, proud man. If he came along with me now, everything would change. His home, his carefully built life, Jonty’s life—all traded for something unknown. And if he didn’t? Well, that was a decision, too.
I closed my eyes, nauseous.
“This place you’re looking at?” Ezra’s voice, husky and raw. “Does it have a charging point for the mid-range electric car?”
