Chapter 27
27
Rick stared after Anya in disbelief. Not at what she’d said to him but the fact he’d put her in such a terrible position. The long-term implications of her and Davy working together had never occurred to him. He’d been too focused on finding a quick solution to both issues. He’d told himself he was doing right by both of them, but had he really considered anything beyond what would make life easier for him? Anya was right about him inserting himself into everything. It hadn’t been his responsibility to find her a job, so why had he done it? Because you wanted her to be grateful to you . No, not grateful, but he’d wanted to do something that would make her notice him, make her think kindly of him and perhaps give him a chance for their friendship to develop into something more. He’d thought he was being so clever, and look where it had got him. She would probably never want to speak to him again and, honestly, he couldn’t blame her.
And what about Davy? Rick had promised to respect his wishes and keep his secret and yet from the moment he’d found out he’d been doing everything he could to circumvent that promise because he hadn’t liked the burden of it. Blackmail, that’s what his uncle had called it and he was right. Shit . Rick needed to talk to him and apologise. He needed to speak to Anya too and try and persuade her to help him keep Davy’s secret. It wasn’t fair to ask, not after he’d put so much on her shoulders already, but what else could he do?
He took half a dozen steps before reality stopped him in his tracks. His gaze scanned across the water, past the swimmers to the windsurfers and paddle boarders further out to sea. He couldn’t just run off and try and fix this awful mess he’d made because he had customers out there. Responsibilities. Trudging back to his post, Rick picked up the clipboard he used to keep track of his rentals and ran through the list. There was a group of four paddle boarders who were due back within the hour. He raised his head and searched the bay again until he spotted the familiar bright yellow life jackets he issued. They had followed his advice and stuck to the water sports zone on the right-hand side nearest the quay wall. He glanced back down to his list… That left the couple who’d rented a double kayak and the photographer who’d hired a jet ski so he could access some of the more remote bays along the coast. He was a regular customer of Rick’s, so he didn’t have any worries about him being back on time. He surveyed the neat rows of unused equipment in front of him. Even if his current rentals returned soon, he still had to drag all this stuff up to his lockup and secure it.
Frustrated at his inability to do anything, Rick pulled out his phone and sent both Davy and Anya messages, apologising and asking if they could talk later. To Anya’s message he added a request not to talk about Davy being ill to anyone because it was his responsibility to sort it out and he’d already put her in a terrible position.
He heard nothing back from either of them .
It was Anya who was his most immediate concern given the state she’d been in when she’d walked away. Who would she go to? Issy, maybe? No, the café would be busy. Chloe would still be at work and he didn’t have Kat’s number, though she’d probably be working too. What would he say to them, anyway? He could warn them that Anya was upset and that it was his bloody fault, but they would want to know why and he couldn’t tell them without betraying his promise to Davy. Rick tucked away his phone and stared once more out at the sea. For the first time in his life it felt like there was nothing he could do to help two of the people who meant the most to him. And he hated it.
All the customers had come back at their expected times and Rick was busy tidying up when his brother, Ed, came traipsing towards him, hands in his pockets. He was hard to miss, not just because the crowds on the beach had thinned out as people packed up and headed back home to start thinking about their dinner plans. Unlike everyone else, dressed in casual attire, Ed was still wearing the smart dark trousers and white collared shirt that were standard office wear for most men. He had at least taken his shoes off and was carrying them under one arm. Rick hoped he wasn’t going to take after Anya and start flinging them at his head. A strappy sandal was one thing, but a black Oxford dress shoe would hurt like hell.
As his brother got close, Rick recognised the hangdog expression all too well and he swallowed down a sigh. ‘What have you done now?’
Ed scowled. ‘Why do you always assume it’s my fault?’
‘Because it usually is.’ Rick checked his watch. ‘You’ve finished early, not that I’m complaining because you can give me a hand with these.’ He nodded at the paddle boards he’d been stacking onto his wide-wheeled trolley .
‘I’m not exactly dressed for it,’ Ed said, gesturing down at his clothes.
‘And I’ve got neither the time nor the patience to listen to you whine about whatever’s put that look on your face, so you either work and chat or you can piss off and leave me in peace.’
Ed gaped at him. ‘Okay, forget my problems for a minute. What the hell’s the matter with you?’
Rick shook his head as he turned away and bent to lift another board onto the trolley. ‘Nothing, I’m just busy.’
Dropping his shoes onto the sand, Ed leaned over at the waist to roll his suit trouser legs up to his knees, then grabbed the next board. ‘Since when are you too busy to help someone? You are literally the St Bernard of Halfmoon Quay trotting around rescuing everyone.’ Ed grinned, clearly impressed at the comparison. ‘If only you had a little keg of brandy strapped around your neck, you’d be perfect.’
Not feeling remotely amused, Rick planted his hands on his hips and glared at him. ‘What if I’m sick and tired of helping everyone? What if I’ve decided it’s time to mind my own damn business and look after number one for a change?’
Ed mirrored his body language. ‘Then I’d assume there was an alien invasion while I was at work and you’ve been body-snatched.’
Rick huffed out a breath. ‘Stop trying to make me laugh, you annoying brat, and get to work.’
With Ed’s help the boards were soon stacked and they trundled across the sand to his lockup, where they quickly unloaded them onto the racks Ryan and Matt had installed. They were on their way back when Ed stepped in front of Rick and he had to stop or risk mowing him down with the trolley. ‘What?’
Ed tilted his head to one side. ‘You’re really not curious about why I left work early? ’
Rolling his eyes, Rick dodged around him and dragged the trolley back towards where the jet skis still needed to be loaded. ‘I can’t say it’s top of my priority list to listen to your latest attempt at self-sabotage, no.’ He lifted the front of the first jet ski with a grunt, glad he’d only put a few out that morning.
‘That’s a bit harsh,’ Ed complained as he bent to lift up the other end. Rick stared at him over the top of the jet ski for a long moment before his little brother sighed. ‘But probably fair.’
Rick set down the vehicle on the trolley and grasped at his chest as if shocked. ‘What’s this? Ed Penrose discovers self-awareness at the ripe old age of twenty-five? ’Tis truly the end of days.’
‘Oh do piss off,’ Ed said, managing to hold onto a wounded expression for all of two seconds before he burst out laughing. ‘God, you are in a brutal mood today. Whatever’s happened to you, I don’t like it. I want the old Rick back; he’s nice to me even when I have been a complete idiot.’
That stopped Rick in his tracks. It wasn’t fair to take his bad mood out on Ed, regardless of the way he seemed to lurch from one scrape to another. ‘What did you do?’ he asked, making sure to keep his voice soft.
His brother looked away, one foot scuffing through the sand. ‘I got involved with someone at work that I shouldn’t have.’
Oh bloody hell . ‘Who?’
Ed’s cheeks began to flame as he risked a peek up at Rick through his lashes. ‘Umm, the head of area sales?’
Rick closed his eyes for a second. So not even a regular coworker. ‘Go on.’
‘We umm, kind of had a thing at the staff Christmas party?—’
‘This has been going on since Christmas?’ Rick interjected.
Ed shook his head. ‘No, not really. I mean, I thought it was a one-off dirty snog in the photocopying room, nothing serious. But she split up with her husband a couple of months ago, and well, one thing led to another.’
Rick shook his head as he turned to pick up the next ski. ‘I’ve changed my mind, I don’t want to know.’
Ignoring him, Ed picked up the other end of the ski and carried on yapping. ‘It was all going so great and there was a temporary job on the sales team which she arranged for me to move into.’
Rick sighed. ‘Of course she did.’
‘Hey,’ Ed protested. ‘It was a good deal. Not only did I get the chance to spend more time with her, but the money was way better too.’
With both skis loaded, Rick began the trek across the sand again. He didn’t need to ask what happened next. ‘She changed her mind and went back to her husband and your temporary job vanished, right?’
Ed stopped short. ‘How did you know?’
Because it was glaringly obvious to everyone, apart from you apparently, how things would play out. ‘So now what?’
Ed fixed him with the beseeching stare he’d been using to twist their entire family around his little finger since he’d been old enough to speak. ‘Didn’t you say something about needing extra help for the rest of the summer?’
Not knowing whether to laugh or cry, Rick instead dug a hand in his pocket and pulled out the keys for his lockup. He tossed them to Ed, who just managed to catch them before they hit him. ‘Fill your boots.’ Without another word, Rick turned and walked away.
‘Hey! Where are you going?’ Ed called after him. ‘I can’t manage this stuff on my own.’
‘If you want a job then you’ll figure out a way,’ Rick called back, not turning round.