Page 63 of Retrograde
‘Not a chance, Sunny. I need you.’
‘Why?! Defend yourself, Anderson! Fight back!’
‘No way! I need you to cover me while I get more ammunition.’ Brett began moving across the courtyard towards Rosa and Maggie with Lucie still in hisarms, squirming to get out of his grip. She was making it more difficult for anyone aiming for Brett, but Mateo was relentless in his attack.
‘Dad! Ease up!’ She grimaced as water seeped down the front of her shirt and her wet hair clung to her forehead, droplets falling into her eyes.
‘You may be my daughter, Lucie, but I have no morals when it comes to this. Brett is going down, and I don’t care if I have to take you down in the process.’
With the girls all giving up in fits of laughter near the flower beds, and the pile of balloons diminishing, Brett and Mateo were down to the final two balloons. Lucie had finally been put back on her own two feet, although Brett was still guiding her around in front of him as a defence. She was pretty sure he was still bone-dry.
Lucie heard a ‘psst’ and glanced over to the refilling station, where Rosa stood proudly with a secret, final balloon in her hand and with no hesitation, launched it right at her husband, who promptly dropped the one he’d been holding and surrendered the game, leaving Brett free to throw his last one at him too, striking him in the chest.
Her mum cheered. ‘He lost! He finally lost!’ She high-fived Maggie.
Mateo lay on the ground, pretending to be wounded. ‘This isn’t over.’
‘Just admit it, Mr Carolan. I’m the King.’
Lucie scoffed at his smugness. ‘If it wasn’t for my mum, you would be in his position right now. She saved your ass.’
‘That’s true!’ Brett gave Rosa his famous bear hug, and before either of them could stop them, Cleo and Piper, in their soaking wet clothes, joined in.
It took everything Lucie had not to burst into tears at the sight of her big, loud, extended family. Then the reality of the last couple of years came flooding back to her, bringing the butterflies in her stomach to a screeching halt. The partying, the constant flood of women. Looks could be deceiving, but this was never going to be Brett’s normal.
Brett and his mum were sitting out in the garden, soaking in the last of the Tuscan sun. He hadn’t had much one-on-one time with her in recent years, partly because he was always on the go and didn’t get to stay in Sydney for long, but also because she’d been so busy raising Cleo and ferrying her to and from extracurricular activities, long after Brett and Piper flew the nest.
He studied her as she sipped on her drink, and for the first time he realised just how fast the years were flying by. Maggie was getting older and he didn’t feel like he really knew her any more. Or rather, he didn’t know who she was outside of being a parent. It was the same with his dad; who had Jack Anderson been at his core?
‘Mum, what was Dad like when you met?’ His words startled her, bringing her out of whatever daydream she had been so invested in.
‘A riot,’ she laughed. ‘He was the life of the party, had a wicked sense of humour. He was the focal point of every room he was in.’
‘Sothat’swho I get it from.’
‘All three of you kids take after him in every way.’
‘No wonder he started taking me karting, he liked the adrenaline.’
‘Yeah, he couldn’t exactly take you to a nightclub.’ Maggie chuckled.
‘And yet look how I ended up.’ Brett grimaced, not liking his own comparison.
‘You’re still young, Brett. Just like he was. But it’s about how you grow, and the work you put in to be a better you.’ She said it so nonchalantly, like she had so much faith in his potential.
‘I guess. I just can’t help but feel like a colossal fuck-up.’
‘You’re not, Brett. You’re just on a slightly rockier path than some of us go on.’
‘You’re telling me.’ He sighed and leaned back on the sun lounger, pulling his shades over his eyes. Typically, that signified he was done with a conversation, but his mum wasn’t one to back down once she got going.
‘It took us five whole years to get together after high school, because your dad was always off doing his own thing. I didn’t think he’d ever settle down, but then I went on one singular date with another man, your dad saw us walking along the street hand in hand, and it’s like something clicked. The exact moment I stopped waiting around for him to realise what he was missing.’
‘He stole you away from someone else?’ Brett’s jaw dropped. He had always been told it was love at first sight for his parents, and while it may be true, he hadn’tknown that it had taken them so long to find their way to each other.
‘I was always Jack’s, in my heart. There was never going to be anybody else who could compare. He was my best friend. But my God, he was a party animal until you and Piper graced us with your presence!’
‘And you weren’t?’ Brett raised an eyebrow, remembering seeing old photos.
