Page 60 of Love Unlocked

‘What wife wants her husband’s ex-girlfriend hanging around?’

‘I’m not just hanging around. We’re in business together. Or were.’ She feels like crying again. The rejection is so hurtful. ‘I feel like I’ve had a falling-out with my best friend and now he’s made a new best friend and it hurts.’

‘Yes, I suppose that is what has happened,’ Belinda says thoughtfully. ‘But it won’t hurt forever. Look how Sam has moved on. You will too.’

Belinda looks over Melody’s head at something. The clock. She stands up, ‘I better get back to it. Thank you for visiting, love, it’s good to see you looking so well.’

Melody is momentarily stunned but stands up too, feeling rushed out of there. She quickly wipes the tears from the corners of her eyes, picks up their teacups and saucers to carry them to the sink.

‘No need to do that, I’ll do it later. The beds are calling me, I want to get it done before we lose light.’ She’s already putting her mucky gloves back on.

Melody watches her mum. So independent, so ready to race ahead with her newfound freedom. Melody slowly grabs her coat and her bag, not wanting to leave.

‘By the way, we don’t enter the world alone,’ Melody says. ‘I was with you.’

Belinda pauses, then slowly removes her gloves. She gives Melody a proper long hug this time and holds her grown up daughter for a beautiful moment in the silent kitchen.

‘Oh, my love. You’ll figure it out,’ she says warmly, and kisses her nose. ‘By the way, there’s a box at the door for you. It’s Derek’s but he said he wanted to give it to you.’

On the floor by the front door is an unsealed box. Melody pulls back the inner and outer flaps, and sits back on her heels when she reveals what’s inside.

Derek’s record player.

25

AL

He’s had more than one round. Maybe closer to eight. There’s a trad band in the bar, things have gotten messy. The insults are flying, the memories, the laughter, the spittle. They’ve knocked over a few pints already and Mags behind the bar has handed them the mop to clean it themselves.

Al is happy.

The sadness of yesterday has left him, not completely, but doesn’t sit so close to his surface. Like the tide going out, with every passing aching moment, it pulls further away from him, retreating. Still coming in, but moving back out.

‘Glad you came,’ Beano says.

‘Me too. I would have come earlier but I was embarrassed.’

‘What have you got to be embarrassed for?’ he asks, surprised. ‘It’s them that should be embarrassed, not you. You’ve done nothing wrong. Relationships begin and end every day.’

‘It’s not just that. It’s that I didn’t see it, Beano. I was living with both of them and I didn’t sense a thing.’

‘People hide things all the time, you can’t be expected to see and know it all.’

Al feels a little better. He had been worried people would be thinking How the hell could you not have known? Because it’s been on a loop in his own mind.

‘And absolutely nobody would expect this of Walter,’ he adds. ‘He’s your best friend. What got into him? Before there was Al and Tara, there was Al and Walter.’ He shakes his head, his mouth set in a hard grim line. ‘I shouldn’t say any more, you could get back together and everything I say won’t be forgotten.’

‘We’re not getting back together. For weeks I was hopeful. I thought they’d both back out of it, get over whatever thing they thought they had together. I would’ve taken her back, forgiven them both, the idiot that I am. But they’re not getting weaker. They’re getting stronger. Walter is thriving, and I’ve put him through hell.’ Al fills him in on his revenge acts and Beano roars laughing.

‘Is there not a part of you that’s relieved? Because I’m relieved for you. I know you’re heartbroken, but at least you found out who they are before you got married, before there were children involved. Look at poor Stick.’

They look at their friend Stick, messy drunk and close to tears in a conversation with Brick, who’s going through the wars with his divorce. Al sighs. He’s beginning to accept that now too, that the worst thing that could happen could end up being the best.

‘And she was a bit of work, wasn’t she?’ Beano says, giving him side-eye.

Al didn’t realise it at the time, but yes he agrees with that and he’s not going to defend Tara any longer.

‘You don’t need the work. Don’t get me wrong, marriage is work. But it’s not all heavy lifting. Someone should be making you laugh. Putting a smile on your face.’