It was now or never, and at forty-nine years old, the thought ofneverabsolutely terrified her.
7
FAYE
Faye had been travelling for thirty hours so far – thirty hours since she got into the hire car, drove to Brisbane International Airport, boarded her plane that went via Sydney and then Dubai, before landing here at London’s Heathrow. She was exhausted but the excitement as the plane came in to land took over any other feeling. She was here, back in England, after all this time.
‘I thought you’d be more tired,’ said her dad after she finally let him go at the arrivals gate. Somehow she’d found the energy to race around past fellow travellers, and launch herself into an enormous hug.
‘I’m too happy to see you to be tired.’
‘It’ll hit later on.’ She gladly let him take her suitcase. ‘Did you get any sleep at all?’
‘I dozed; that was it.’
He put his free arm around her. ‘It’s lovely to have you here.’
They found their way to the short-term parking and were soon on their way, chattering about the weather of course – a top of twenty-four was expected today – her uncle, Frank, the busy roads around the airport that proved plenty of people weren’t still in bed, and after her dad had navigated his way from the terminal and they were on the motorway she knew it was time to be honest with him.
‘I’ve taken a month off work,’ she said.
‘That sounds like a good idea. It’ll give you time to enjoy being over here once the jet lag has passed.’ He put a hand up to wave a thank you at a driver who let him into the lane he needed. ‘Frank says you can use the caravan as long as you like.’
‘It’s good that you’re here with him.’
‘It is. He’s had some bad days, unfortunately, but lots of good ones too, and it’s nice to be in Dorset.’ He grumbled as the traffic came to another halt. It really was like one big traffic jam on this motorway. ‘You know I’d missed the green grass of home more than I realised.’
She sniggered. ‘Can’t see any green yet.’ All she could see was the side of a long lorry and the rear windscreen of the vehicle in front.
‘Just you wait until we get closer to Dorset.’ The traffic had them moving at the rapid rate of fifteen miles per hour. ‘So how are youreallydoing?’
The speedometer slowed to zero yet again.
She took a deep breath before she admitted, ‘Dad… I’m not getting married any more.’
From her peripheral vision she knew he’d turned to face her but his action was short-lived when he got beeped by the driver of the vehicle behind as the traffic moved once more.
She told him all about how Brad hadn’t only left Queensland with his family to hide out in Tasmania, he’d been applying for jobs there as well.
‘And he didn’t ask you to make the move with him?’
‘No.’ She looked out at the traffic, bumper to bumper in the lane next to them. ‘I really thought we would spend the rest of our lives together, but this makes me feel like I never knew him at all. I thought marriage was about being there for each other even when it got hard, but he left, just like that.’
They moved from the middle lane to the outside one, passing other cars, and her dad maintained the quiet as he took the next exit, but once he was on the way and through a roundabout he spoke again. ‘You’ve been all by yourself.’
‘It’s not been easy.’ Although Steph leaving too had been kind of a blessing. Perhaps it was the one thing her twin sister might have done right. ‘Actually, it’s been really shit.’ She explained about the reporters, the man the other morning after her kayaking session.
His grip tightened on the wheel. ‘I’m sorry you’ve had to deal with all that. I wish I’d been there to?—’
‘No, Dad. It was good that you were away from it all.’ She paused. ‘I’m so angry with Steph. Her decisions have made my life difficult. They caused Brad to…’ She couldn’t even say the words again.
‘I know you are really upset with your sister.’ He waited a while before he said, ‘She really fell for that man.’
That man.When the scandal broke and a reporter turned up at the water-sports business premises, her dad had had a lot more choice words than those, including pervert and predator. He’d apologised to Faye because the man was going to be her father-in-law but she’d agreed with everything he’d said.
‘You’ve spoken to her?’ she asked.
‘I have. She’s upset too. And it makes my blood boil thinking that man might have taken advantage of her.’ He indicated to change lanes. ‘But she gave me the impression that he didn’t, that she honestly believed they were going to be together. And then he stood up on television and told the country and the world that it had all been a mistake. That hit her pretty hard.’
