Chapter 33
SEPTEMBER
Jackie
‘Last warning, I’m having a bath!’ Jackie yelled.
She’d soon found it saved arguments if she warned everyone that she was about to hog the bathroom for the next hour.
The others grumbled a bit but it was important to her to be able to relax properly.
Trouble was, there was always someone wanting to go to the loo or get something from the bathroom just as she was starting to unwind.
Which was so annoying. She’d had a late night babysitting so Pam and Leroy could go out for a meal and was looking forward to a pamper day today.
It had been a very pleasant evening actually.
She loved spending time with her grandchildren if they were in their own home and she didn’t have to worry about them breaking anything.
But they’d kept her on her toes all evening, playing games and reading stories and it had been rather exhausting.
She’d only just got them to bed when Pam and Leroy returned home, both looking very happy and relaxed.
Pam had offered Jackie the spare room for the night, but she’d wanted her own bed, and to avoid the dawn wake-up.
Today, she was going to have a long soak in the bath, manicure, pedicure, face mask, the full works in preparation for her date with Mario tonight.
‘At least let me have a shower first,’ Phyllis said, coming out of her bedroom. ‘I don’t want to be sitting around in my dressing gown all morning.’
‘Go ahead. I’ll make myself a cuppa,’ Jackie told her.
She went downstairs to find Slate eating breakfast in the kitchen. ‘What are you up to today?’ she asked.
‘I was thinking about inviting the lads over and having a barbecue. Do you fancy it?’
Jackie considered it. It might be fun and would be something to do before she went out. ‘Sure. What time were you thinking?’
‘I’ll check with Nancy and Phyllis, but I thought about two?’
‘Perfect. We’ll all chip in for the food, shall we?’
‘Good idea. I’ll shop for it. I’ll just check with the lads and make sure everyone can make it first.’
Phyllis was coming out of the bathroom as Jackie reached the top of the stairs. ‘It’s all yours,’ she said.
‘Thanks. Oh, Slate’s planning a barbecue later, if you’re interested,’ Jackie told her.
She went into the bathroom and locked the door.
A few minutes later she was soaking in perfumed bubbles, fragrant candles around the bath, a deep conditioning treatment on her hair, gel patches on her eyes and some music playing.
It was heaven. She closed her eyes and thought about her date tonight.
She hadn’t met Mario before, but his profile was tempting.
Dark and sultry, he said he was forty-five.
He could be lying. Most people lied on their dating profile.
She did. Apparently, he liked good food, good company and going to music festivals.
As did she. Pam’s conversation last night as she sat and had a coffee with them before going home came back to her mind.
‘Why don’t you go for someone your own age, Mum?
You’re in your sixties now. You need to settle down a bit. Slate looks nice.’
Slate was nice but he wasn’t her type. Now Oxo…
She bolted upright so suddenly that an eye patch fell off.
Where had that come from? Oxo was most definitely not her type.
He was nerdy and shy and… and actually quite exciting in his own quiet way, she thought, recalling the bike rides she’d gone on with him. This afternoon might be fun.
* * *
There was quite a crowd in the garden, as well as Oxo, Decaf and Muriel, Slate had invited Jed, Rosie and the grandkids – Jed and Rosie had come but the grandkids had decided an oldies’ barbecue wasn’t for them.
Nancy had invited Val and Dennis and Phyllis had invited Aurora and Milo.
Jackie hadn’t thought to invite anyone, although truth be told she didn’t have any close friends or family except for Pam – and she and Leroy had already planned to take their kids to a soft-play party.
It was a really enjoyable afternoon. They got some fold-up chairs out of the shed and placed some big throws on the lawn to make enough places for people to sit.
Slate got his speaker out of the van and Oxo Bluetoothed his phone to it so they could play some music which created a fun party atmosphere.
When ‘I Will Survive’ started playing Jackie couldn’t resist picking up a wooden spatula to use as a mic and singing along.
Nancy grabbed the serving tongs and passed a big spoon to Val and they both joined in, too, starting off an impromptu karaoke, which lasted all afternoon.
Slate formed a duet with Nancy to sing ‘Ain’t No Mountain High Enough’.
Decaf and Muriel crooned ‘I’ve Got You, Babe’ and it didn’t matter that Muriel was completely out of tune.
When ‘Don’t Go Breaking My Heart’ came on Jackie impishly handed a hairbrush to Oxo and they sang it together with lots of exaggerated actions much to the amusement of everyone else.
Then Jackie noticed the time. It was almost seven. Her date was at eight. She didn’t want to go; she was having much too much fun here. So she took out her phone and sent Mario a message to cancel. Then she poured herself a double gin and tonic and chose another karaoke song.
* * *
Jackie woke the next morning with a banging headache and an unfamiliar sound in her ears. Snoring? What the hell? She turned around slowly and saw Oxo fast asleep beside her.
Shit! What had gone on here? She dug through the fog in her head to try and recall exactly what had happened last night.
They’d come inside when it went dark, then Val and Dennis and Decaf and Muriel had gone home and Jackie, who had had far too many gins, had suggested a game of Strip Poker.
She groaned and placed her hand on her forehead.
Had she and Oxo done the deed? If so she was bloody annoyed that she couldn’t remember it.
Then Oxo’s eyes flicked open, he squinted then smiled lazily.
‘How’s your head this morning?’ He reached for his glasses off the bedside cabinet and slipped them on.
‘Er, okay, if you don’t speak too loud, but…’ She pointed to him then to her. ‘I can’t remember last night… Did we—?’
‘God, no!’ He edged himself up on his elbows and she was quite stung by his obvious disgust.
‘Huh! I’ve never had any complaints!’ she retorted.
‘I’m sure you haven’t. I meant that I would never take advantage of anyone when they were drunk. You did suggest that I sleep here – I was a bit too drunk to ride my motorbike home – but that’s all we did. Sleep.’
‘Oh, good. Well, I’ll go and do us a cuppa. Tea or coffee?’
But Oxo was already climbing out of bed. ‘Actually, I need to get going. See you soon.’
He pulled on his clothes and was out the door, leaving Jackie feeling a bit deflated. Well, that was a first. She was always the one who left.
* * *
A couple of days later, Oxo turned up at the library. ‘Hello, have you come for some books? Or to sign up for a course?’ she asked.
He shook his head, looking a bit awkward. ‘I came to see you. I wanted to apologise for leaving so quickly the other day. I didn’t mean to be rude but I felt a bit embarrassed.’
She nodded. ‘It’s okay. I get that. Don’t worry yourself about it.’
He paused, his eyes fixed on hers.
‘Is there anything else?’
‘Er, yes. I wondered if you wanted to meet for a coffee or something?’
There was a tinge of pink to his cheeks. Was he asking her out? He wasn’t the type she usually dated.
She did like him though. A lot. Why not go for it?
‘Sure. I have a break for lunch at one if you can make that? Costa?’
He nodded. ‘Perfect.’
Jackie watched him walk back out, a spring to his step. She had a feeling this was the start of something good but she was going to take it very, very slowly. She had no intention of getting tied down again. And things could get awkward if it didn’t work out with Oxo being so close to Slate.