Chapter 6 #2
“Sure.” He caught a glimpse of her crestfallen face and felt bad. But the more time he spent with her, the more likely he was to get embroiled in something he really didn’t want. So that meant he needed to be careful and stay away. It was best for all their sakes.
“Careful!” Grady called, as the ball arced past a flock of seagulls on the practice range. “I don’t think people will be very happy if we leave them with dead birds.”
“Hey, I’m not a golfer.”
“A truer word was never spoken.”
Andy smiled and mock-swung at Grady with his club.
“Now, now. Just remember who once earned a visit to the hospital when someone pretending to swing actually clobbered me in the mouth.”
“You’ll never let me live that down, will you?”
“No. Although I did earn a beautiful smile out of it, so I guess I can’t be too ungrateful.”
“You should learn to forgive then,” Andy goaded. But it wasn’t all tease. Grady might pretend to live carefree but he had his own issues to work through.
“Ah, don’t be starting on that again. Not when it’s been such a pleasant afternoon.”
Andy sipped his water, glancing around the greens. The course might be only nine holes, but that was plenty enough for him. Besides, he wasn’t here for the golf as much as he was the company, and the views.
It was a perfect day, with only a few clouds scudding across the sky.
There was some breeze, but here they were mostly protected by the ancient woodlands.
The course itself was more challenging than expected, with some of the holes requiring a little more skill than Andy owned.
He’d been relieved to discover a practice putting green, with nine holes, and a practice range with the markers delineating one hundred, two hundred and three hundred metres.
They started next to the walls of the ruined castle, and slowly made their way around the fairways. Several of them adjoined the seaside rocks, with views across the Atlantic.
“This is beautiful,” he said, glancing around.
Grady swung and hit. “Now that’s beautiful. Come on, let me hear the praise.”
Andy shook his head, and they walked to where their balls sat, mere metres from the yellow flag. He putted, missed, which drew Grady’s mockery.
But when Grady couldn’t sink it either, he complained. “This is a tough hole.”
“Sure it is.”
“Hey, you couldn’t sink it easily either.” Grady had never taken criticism well.
Andy knew he was competitive, but Grady was next level. Finally his ball went in.
They walked to the next one. Here the tee box jutted out on a small headland, beyond which lay the waves and rocky islands of the Wild Atlantic. He paused to take in the incredible views that surrounded him on 270 degrees.
“Come on, Andy. Get into it.”
He teed off, his ball landing perfectly in the middle of the fairway.
“You got the distance but not the line.”
“Yeah.” Whatever that was.
Grady sank his ball, then waited for Andy, who took two more attempts to sink his. “Finally.”
“It’s more challenging than it looks,” Andy protested.
“Exactly.” Grady nodded. “I’m very happy with a birdie on that hole.”
They finished with a drink in the clubhouse, and as Andy drank his Dungarvon red ale, he mused on the past forty-eight hours.
So much had happened. So much felt like it remained unknown.
Regardless, the past two days had felt one hundred percent an improvement on this time last year, when he’d been sobbing in his granny flat, existing on home delivery because he’d been unable to see a soul, not even his family.
Thank God that Grady had been willing to take a day off working at his accountancy firm and able to come this weekend.
“So, what are you thinking about so seriously over there?” Grady asked.
“I’m just grateful that you could come this weekend. It’s been a darn sight better than being here on my own.”
“Almost as good as a honeymoon, eh? On second thoughts, ignore that. I should say almost as good as being on a honeymoon with a good wife, not one like Greta, may her name be ever cursed.” Grady held up his beer.
“I don’t want her cursed, exactly.”
“But it would be nice if she was to come crawling back, wouldn’t it?” Grady grinned. “You know I don’t believe much about this God of yours, but I don’t mind praying for that.”
“I wouldn’t want her, even if she did crawl back on her hands and knees.”
“Just as well. Because if she ever was to come crawling back and you so much as agreed to listen to her, then as your friend I feel I’d be within my rights to say I would disown you.”
Andy munched on the crisps, swallowing some pride. Yes, he might’ve said some things that had earned him that rebuke. “There might’ve once been a time when I would have done that but not anymore.”
“Good. I’m glad you’ve got some self-respect at last.”
“Hey, I’ve always had self-respect.” But he was trying to do things God’s way. And God was Someone who was into forgiveness and second chances.
“I’m just saying that when a woman shows a man who she is, then he should believe her.” He smiled. “Like that woman you sang with last night. You know, the one you bumped into. She might’ve put on a show last night but you shouldn’t forget how she first treated you.”
“She was stressed. And I ripped her dress.”
“She ripped her dress because she wasn’t looking where she was going. And then she blamed you. Look, I’ve come across my fair share of women over the years, and I just know that you need to be careful. Women always have a hidden agenda.”
“That’s a little extreme.”
Grady shook his head. “That’s why I play the field. Everyone knows it’s nothing but a good time, so there’s no hard feelings at the end.” He downed the last of his drink, then eyed Andy over the rim. “Not like with you and Greta, anyway.”
He shifted his gaze out the window again. Okay, so he’d spent a little long in misery land. It didn’t mean it wasn’t justified. “Look, I told you I’ve decided I’m not dating anyone for a while. So you don’t need to worry about me, okay?”
“I’ve heard that before,” Grady muttered.
And yes, he might’ve said that when Grady had first warned him about Greta.
And yes, it had been humbling to be proved wrong and have his worldly friend proved right.
But as Grady had said at the time, “Every good person needs a friend like me who knows something about those who walk on the dark side. I can smell the bad ones a mile away.”
“Because you are one?” Andy had said. Or rather, the beer had said.
Fortunately, Grady had been inebriated too so that comment hadn’t landed as harshly as it could have. But now, Grady was eyeing him. “Look, I’m just warning you to be careful. That’s all.”
He was sorely tempted to ask if Grady’s radar truly had detected something off in Aisling, but his earlier protestations about swearing off relationships for a time meant that was probably unwise. Besides, he didn’t want to be thinking about her. And the fact he still was, was troubling.
“Come on. It’s not that bad. Just because you’re swearing off relationships doesn’t mean you need to swear off having fun. There are still plenty of women out there with whom you can have a good time.”
“I’m not sure our versions of a good time are exactly the same.” That was a lie. He was one hundred percent certain they were not the same.
Grady laughed. “Look, just because you’re a saint and I’m a sinner doesn’t mean you can’t still have some fun.”
“Mm, I’m pretty sure it does.”
“You can still kiss a girl, can’t you? Or is that against your rules too?”
“My problem is that I can’t kiss a girl without it meaning something.” Which was why after he’d kissed Greta as much as he had, especially when he’d meant it so much, he’d been shattered to discover it hadn’t meant much to her. Utterly devastated, Beth had called him.
“Well, there’s one solution to that.”
“What’s that?” He had a bad feeling where Grady was going to go with this.
“Simple. It’s your job to kiss as many girls as you can until it no longer means a thing.”
“Yeah, I thought you’d say that. And no, that’s not simple. Not for me, anyway.”
“It will get easier with practice.”
“No.”
“Look, if it makes you feel better, you could start with someone who clearly has her own agenda.”
“Who’s that?”
“Your redheaded singing partner. She’s all kinds of trouble.”
“What? Why would you say that?”
“I’ve seen how she looks at you.”
His stomach tensed. “How is that?”
“Like she thinks you are hers for the asking.”
“You’re insane.” He shook his head. “She goes to church.”
“Oh, don’t get me started on how many church-goers aren’t what they seem.”
He pressed his lips together. But the truth wouldn’t be denied. “Not everyone is like your Granddad.”
Grady cut him a look. “We do not speak of him, remember?”
He nodded. Grady’s dad’s father had been the reason Grady’s family no longer attended church. Andy had never been made privy to all the details, but Grady had shared enough over the years for him to know it was not good.
“I might not have it altogether,” Andy continued softly, “but my experience tells me that most churchgoers are trying to follow in the ways of Jesus.”
Grady snapped his fingers and pointed at Andy. “Good.”
“Good?” That was unexpected.
Grady smiled. “Because Jesus never married, did he? So that means there’s plenty of fish in the sea.”
“Um, I think you’re getting your metaphors mixed up.”
“I don’t care.” Grady stood. “Come on. Let’s go see what they’re serving for dinner.”