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Mum clattered about in the background and said a big fat nothing.
Taylor was still behind him, her hands on his shoulders. “Get that nice suntan in Soho?”
“Looking pretty buff too, mate. Lots of spare time for the gym.”
Taylor put her teeth to his ear. “Cat got your tongue?”
He twisted his head to get away from her. Her hands lifted and she moved, joined Mum behind him at the sink. “What’s the story, Midge?”
“Oh Taylor, he won’t want me to tell you.” Mum using a stage whisper you could’ve heard in the far paddock.
“I could threaten to beat it out of you.”
The two of them cackled like kookaburras. Jamie ate a biscuit. Was this a work day? He’d lost track of the week days. What did it mean that they were here together? Was Angus with them and somewhere else now? It wasn’t a problem with either of their families or he’d have known. Which meant they’d come entirely to torture him. Which meant Mum had to have called them in the first place. Double agent.
“Can he talk at all?” Jamie.
“He should be able to.” Mum.
Jamie took another shortbread from the tin. “So why isn’t he?”
“He’s scared, darling.”
Damon put his head on the table and thumped his forehead a couple of times. They weren’t even attempting to talk to him, only at him. Jamie ruffled his hair. Taylor pulled out a chair and sat opposite. He co
uld smell the tea.
Mum put her hand to the collar of his t-shirt and he straightened up. “I’ll go talk to the chooks. I’ll be outside if you need an interpreter. Mostly he just bangs things. It usually means he’s unhappy about something. If you can get him to talk I’ll roast a chook for dinner.”
The scuff of her shoes on the old lino as she left the room. The circular clink, clink of a spoon in a cup. The wap the biscuit tin lid made when someone levered it off and on again. But not a word. He reached for his tablet.
“Oh cute. He’s going send us a postcard from London.”
A sound from Jamie: disapproval, warning. He put the tablet down and opened his arms out. A give it your best shot gesture. Taylor took it, but not in the way he expected. He heard her move and the chair beside him scrape. She bumped his shoulder deliberately. Jamie laughed and said, “Really?”
Next thing, smack, slurp, a satisfied moan; they were making out at the family kitchen table. Not pretend either, they were into it. God, was she dry humping him? He pushed away from the table; he didn’t have to listen to this. He got as far as the doorway and Taylor said, “Where is Georgia? Is she still in the UK?
Not the question he expected. He held onto the doorjamb and Taylor was right behind him. “What did you do?”
Saved a life, that’s what he did. How could Taylor not guess at that?
“She’d think we’re in cahoots, you and me. I totally bought the London thing. Is that where she went? Because you sure didn’t. You packed her off like a problem. I thought she might call until I figured out she’d think I was in on whatever this is. She’s the one for you, you bloody idiot. What are you doing, Damon?”
“Go easy, Trill.”
“Doesn’t feel like easy is going to help.”
“So you’re going for bullying instead?”
“I’m going for anything that will get a reaction out of him. I want him back. I don’t care that he doesn’t trust us. He’s doing something big and stupid but I’m there too. We both were, Jamie, for so long, who are we to judge?”
Hands on his waist, Taylor’s arms around his middle, her face against his shoulder blade. He kept hold of the doorjamb because it was doing a better job holding him up than his spine.
“I don’t know what to do, Dame. I don’t know what you want. I got what I want because being with Jamie was bigger than anything else, worth everything else. I thought that’s what you had with Georgia. I took a risk and so did Jamie but you, you gave it all away. I’d help you if I could, but I don’t know what to do, except love you.”
Christ. He took a step forward and hoped she’d let go, but she clung like a kitten; softness and claws, loveable and deadly.
“Do you have a voice?” Jamie was standing closer now. “I’m not buying you not knowing. I assume it’s bad news. You don’t have to do bad news alone.”
