The Right Time (23 page)

‘So, how are you going with the taste test?' she said, deciding that it was safer to change the subject. ‘Have you left any for Mum to try?'

Evie arrived at Parramatta Park before Steve, and parked in the carpark near the stadium, as arranged. He worked in Parramatta, so he'd suggested walking here, and Evie didn't mind, she didn't want to meet him too close to home. She got out of the car and went to wait in the prearranged spot. She was feeling antsy, she hadn't been out walking for five days. Cody had stayed home for the remainder of the week, but fortunately his bug hadn't spread any further through the family, so the other two had gone off to school, leaving her and Cody home alone. It was nice to spend time with him, but she missed walking. She'd tried to talk him into letting her take him out in his old stroller, but he flatly refused. He wasn't a baby any more, he'd insisted.

So now that he was back at preschool, Evie couldn't get out of the house fast enough this morning. She was glad she had told Steve nine-thirty, that had given her just enough time to drop the kids off and drive straight here. Which meant she'd had to wear her walking gear, and that hadn't gone down at all well with Tayla.

‘Don't take us into school looking like
that
,' she'd insisted. ‘Just drop us off at the gate.'

But Evie didn't mind the way she looked in her walking gear these days, since she'd lost so much weight. She'd had to buy new clothes, and she didn't have to wear a big loose T-shirt to cover herself up any more. Now that it was getting chillier, she'd bought a black hoodie, but under that she wore a selection of coloured, fitted T's, and in her most positive moments she thought she looked quite smart, despite what her daughter thought.

She noticed a car pull into a parking spot not far from where
she was standing. She didn't know it was Steve who stepped out of the car a moment later, until he waved and started coming towards her. She might not have recognised him otherwise – he looked different in the daylight. He was wearing tracksuit pants and a T-shirt, and dark glasses shielded his eyes. Very different to the other night, though to be honest, she hadn't really taken in much then. As he drew closer she noticed his hair was thinning a little, but he seemed to be in good shape for whatever age he was, maybe a bit older than Craig? He didn't have a beer gut like Craig, anyway.

‘Hi,' he said as he walked up to her. ‘Nice day for it.'

Evie nodded, feeling quite self-conscious all of a sudden. ‘Well, shall we head off?' she said.

They walked for a while making small talk; he asked her if she had walked here before, where she usually went walking, how often, how long she'd been walking for exercise. He told her he didn't get as much exercise as he should, it was hard to get away from the office, he knew he made excuses. Eventually they exhausted the topic of walking and exercise.

‘So,' Steve said, ‘how are things at home?'

Evie felt herself reddening. ‘I don't know. We haven't talked. I don't really want to bring it up. Hoping he'll forget about it, I suppose.'

‘If I can be honest with you, I don't think that's likely to happen,' he said.

They walked on in silence.

‘Do you mind if I ask you something?' Evie said after a while.

‘Fire away.'

‘How have you coped for so long? You said that you lost interest a while ago, how do you keep going for five years?'

‘It hasn't been easy. I got pretty down about it for a while there, and at one point I gave Cheryl an ultimatum. I said it had to stop or we were over.'

‘What did she say to that?'

‘Well, she didn't like it,' he admitted. ‘She reminded me that I'd started it, that she never would have suggested it herself, and now I wanted to change the rules. I couldn't really argue with that.'

No, he couldn't, Evie supposed.

‘I'd made my own bed, so to speak, and she was going to lie in it,' he said with a weak smile.

‘So, she didn't . . .' Evie had to be sensitive how she put this. ‘She didn't care about how you felt?'

Steve glanced at her. ‘No, she did. I told her I was worried that I wasn't enough for her any more, that I couldn't fulfil her needs. But she assured me that she was happy with me, that she felt going to the club enhanced our marriage. She went to a lot of trouble to prove that to me. The sex was good, still is. I can't complain . . . until the third Saturday comes around every month.'

‘But doesn't that change everything else?' said Evie.

‘What do you mean?'

She stared out ahead. ‘I used to be so happy, I thought I had it all – a husband who loved me and who I was certain would stay with me forever, three beautiful kids, a nice house. A future. Craig reckons we can afford to put a pool in next year, and he said we might manage a trip to Bali when Cody's a bit older. I mean, I always felt like I was living the dream. Now all of that stuff means nothing – I don't mean the kids, of course. But I can't look at Craig the same way. Everything's changed.'

They came to a bridge and walked across, pausing to lean on the railing and look down at the river.

‘It's like when my mum started wearing glasses,' Evie said. ‘We'd been hounding her for ages, her arms weren't long enough to hold the paper out to read it any more. And so she finally got glasses, and then she was amazed at everything she'd been missing. Some of it was good, like being able to read more easily, but mostly she was alarmed – by her own wrinkles, the dirty windows and mirrors around the house, smudges on all the furniture, dust. She was horrified. That's how I feel now. I can see the smudges and the dirt and the flaws.'

‘So you think it was better when you couldn't see them?' Steve asked.

‘No, maybe not. It just makes me realise how short-sighted I've been. And now that I have seen them, I can't ignore them. I have to do something about them.'

Ellen pulled into the service station and parked against the side fence, where her poor broken car had been unloaded from the tow truck a few weeks ago. She could see it inside the garage, facing out, ready to drive away. It looked all new and shiny, but that was probably just in comparison to the car she'd been driving. She had been a little embarrassed when she had first come to pick it up, with its panels in different colours, some only undercoated. But beggars could hardly be choosers, and she was most certainly the beggar in this scenario, so she had put up with the sniggers and jibes from the kids at school. Besides, she had to admit it had been reliable, which was all that mattered; she never would have survived this long without a car.

When she walked into the office, Finn was sitting behind the counter, his crossed feet resting on the desk, the phone wedged under his chin. It was Friday afternoon, so he was holding his customary beer which he raised to her as she came to stand at the other side of the counter. He hung up the phone and looked up at her with a wide smile.

‘Well, ma'am, your chariot awaits.'

‘Thank you,' said Ellen. ‘I saw it sitting out there, it looks brand new.'

He rose to his feet. ‘I took it around to the smash repairers earlier and had them detail it for you.'

Ellen's eyes widened.

‘No extra cost,' he assured her quickly. ‘It's part of the –'

‘– service,' she finished for him. ‘I swear I've never had service like this before.'

‘It's just all part of my plan to keep you coming back,' he said.

Ellen felt herself blush, which was faintly ridiculous. He was talking about keeping her as a customer, of course. What else would he be talking about?

She cleared her throat. ‘So you lavish your customers with free extras to make sure they stay your customers? Isn't that a rather expensive form of marketing?'

‘Oh but see, once I've lulled them into a false sense of security, then I start ripping them off. So it all works out in the end.'

Ellen smiled, shaking her head. ‘Well, before we go down that path, I would like to show my appreciation.'

He frowned as she lifted a six-pack of beer up onto the counter.

‘Aw, you didn't have to do that,' he said, and she wondered now if he was blushing just a little. ‘You even got the right beer.'

‘It's nothing,' she dismissed. ‘Please, it really is nothing, just a small token. You've been so decent, after I was a raving lunatic.'

‘That's going a bit far,' said Finn. ‘I never thought you were a lunatic.'

‘Just raving, eh?' she smiled. ‘Well, I wanted you to know that's not what I'm like normally. I really don't go on like that. I can't stand people who do, it's so rude. I mean, it wasn't your fault that my car broke down, or that it was going to cost so much, so taking it out on you was not . . . Anyway, the thing is, I haven't been given too many breaks lately, so I really do appreciate everything you've done for me.'

He looked a little coy. ‘What can I say, I'm a sucker for a damsel in distress.'

That wasn't very PC, but she'd let it pass, this time.

‘So,' said Finn, reaching for the six-pack, ‘you realise now that you're going to have to have one of these with me?'

‘Oh no, really,' Ellen held up her hands. ‘I have to get going.'

‘Ah, come on,' he cajoled. ‘Just one?'

She gave him an apologetic smile. ‘To be honest, I don't even like beer.'

‘I could put some lemonade in it for you, make it a shandy?' he offered. ‘My mum used to like a shandy.'

‘Thanks, but really, I should be getting home.'

He looked at her for a beat longer. ‘All right, whatever you say.' He went to the desk and shuffled through some papers, returning with two sheets stapled together which he placed on the counter in front of her. ‘Here's your schedule of payment . . .'

Ellen winced. ‘I don't know, Finn.'

He looked at her. ‘What? We talked about this.'

‘I know, but . . .'

‘But what? You pay the cost of the parts, I'm not out of pocket. You pay the rest of it off in the next couple of months, that keeps my cash flow healthy.'

She bit her lip. ‘Are you sure?'

‘It's an option I offer any customer with a bill this size,' he said. ‘It doesn't bother me either way, but if it bothers you, then fine, I'll take all your money now.'

‘Okay, okay,' she relented. ‘Thank you, I'll take the payment option.'

‘All right then. So hand over your credit card,' he said with a grin. ‘You're not getting your keys till I get the first instalment.'

He processed the payment and Ellen signed the receipt.

‘And here,' he said, plucking keys from a row of hooks on the wall, ‘are your keys.'

‘Thank you,' she said as she took them from his outstretched hand. ‘For everything.'

He met her eyes directly. ‘It has been my pleasure.'

‘Hi!' said Ellen, holding up a bottle of wine as Liz opened the door to her flat. Then she noticed the expression on her sister's face. ‘Oh God, Andrew's here, isn't he?'

‘No,' Liz assured her. ‘Not yet.'

‘I'm sorry,' Ellen winced. ‘I should have called, I'll go.' She leaned forward to kiss Liz on the cheek.

‘No, come on in,' she said, taking her by the arm. ‘You're here now, we'll have a drink. He won't be here for a while anyway.'

‘Are you sure?' Ellen said, hesitating on the threshold.

Liz drew her inside. ‘I'm sure.'

Ellen walked into the flat, trying to hide her disappointment. She'd had it all planned in her head. After she'd left Finn's, she couldn't face the idea of going home to the empty house. Liz had been right when she'd said she should try to avoid it whenever possible. They had the bridesmaid dress fitting tomorrow, so she knew Liz would offer for her to stay the night once they'd had a few drinks. Then in the morning they could swing by her place on the way so she could change. Kate was at her dad's for the weekend, so she was going to meet them at the bridal place.

Ellen should have called first; this new streak of impulsiveness wasn't really working for her. But maybe it was just as well. If she'd known Liz's was not an option, she may well have accepted
Finn's offer of a drink, and she suspected that was an impulse best left unexplored.

‘So how was your day?' Liz asked Ellen when they were sitting on the sofa with a glass of wine each.

‘Not too bad, actually,' she said. ‘I finally picked up my car.'

‘Here's cheers to that,' said Liz, clinking her glass against Ellen's. ‘How's it going?'

‘Great,' she said. ‘It's running smoother than it ever has, and it's all clean and shiny, they had it detailed.'

‘Wow, sounds like some mechanic,' said Liz. ‘I might have to get his number.'