Chapter 37
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
‘I ’ll go see Dad tonight,’ I say to Noah, as we walk hand in hand, back across the beach after work. Earlier we’d talked about us both walking over to Dad’s to have a clear-the-air discussion. The more I thought about it, the more I felt uncomfortable, and it didn’t feel fair on Dad. He is going to have a big enough shock when I announce Noah and me are together. ‘Let me do this on my own.’
‘Are you sure?’ He gives my hand a gentle squeeze.
‘Yes, I want to try and get him to talk about Mum. I think it will be easier if I do it.’ The idea of taking Noah scares me as Dad is probably going to get very angry.
‘Will Lucas be with you?’
I shake my head. ‘Pete’s picking him up from school and taking him back to stay over.’
Noah pulls me to a stop. His arms circle my waist, and he pulls me closer. ‘Are you going to show me your new flat first then?’
I arch my eyebrows suggestively. ‘You could stay over tonight. Lucas is away.’
‘Where would I sleep?’ He smiles and plants a series of tiny kisses on my neck. ‘Your sofa?’
With a giggle I say, ‘You can… but it’s a small sofa.’
‘Okay,’ he says, with a playful wink, ‘the sofa it is.’ His boyish smile makes me light-headed.
‘Why don’t I message you when I am back from Dad’s, and you can come over and I’ll show you around, plus… sort out that sofa for you.’
‘It’s a deal.’
It feels like a long walk to Dad’s house. My palms are already sweaty, and my heart is beating like a drum against my ribcage.
He opens the door and welcomes me in. ‘This is a nice surprise, Alice. Come in.’
Bean is excited to see me and starts barking. I give him a good scratch behind his ears. ‘How are you, Dad?’
We walk into the kitchen. Dad’s kitchen always feels warm and inviting. It’s like stepping back in time as he’s had the same cupboards and units for years. ‘I have some news,’ says Dad, making me flinch. ‘I’ve been laid off from the supermarket.’
‘What? Oh, Dad, I’m so sorry.’
He shrugs and pours water into his kettle. ‘I’m all right. Do you fancy a cuppa?’
Once he has made us two mugs of tea we sit opposite each other at the dinner table.
‘I’ll have to look for another little job,’ he says, with a sigh. ‘I don’t know whether anyone will employ me at my age.’
I cover his hand with mine. ‘Of course they will, Dad. You’re amazing.’
He shrugs. ‘I never really enjoyed the supermarket, if I am honest. Lately I’ve been thinking about baking, but I don’t want to go back to running my own bakery.’ He stares at his hands. ‘I like making things. Shelf stacking and sitting on the supermarket till never gave me an opportunity to make something.’
I smile at him. ‘Lucas and I are always willing to be your cake testers.’
We both laugh. He looks at me. ‘So, what’s going on with you? How’s the new place and more importantly – how many ice creams has my grandson consumed?’
‘The flat is lovely,’ I say. ‘Lucas and I like watching TV together on an evening and the yellow beach hut shower unit has proved a big hit with Lucas. He has two showers a day now. You remember how hard it was to get him to have one a few months ago?’
Dad chuckles. ‘I love him so much. He did cause havoc here when you both lived with me but since you’ve gone, the house has felt empty. I miss hearing Lucas singing and shouting.’ He takes a sip of his tea. ‘I’m sensing you have come to tell me something, Alice.’
I take a big breath. ‘Noah and I are back together.’
Dad looks like he’s been frozen in time. His sea-grey eyes have darkened, and his mouth is open.
‘Say something, Dad,’ I croak.
The atmosphere has changed. His eyes narrow and anger flashes across his face. ‘You know how I feel about Noah Coombes. He will not be welcome inside this house.’
‘Dad, I never stopped loving Noah.’
He shakes his head with disapproval, and my anger rises. ‘You’ve never given Noah a chance, Dad.’
Dad slams his hand on the table making me flinch. ‘I don’t want anything to do with Noah Coombes or his family.’ The air between us has become thick and charged.
‘Will you tell me why you and Dave Coombes fell out all those years ago?’
Dad rises from the table and pours his tea away. ‘I don’t want to dredge all that up again.’
‘Well, I want to know.’
‘Alice, please leave,’ says Dad. ‘I don’t want to talk about this anymore. You’ve upset me enough by telling me you are getting together with that man.’ He turns to face the window with his back to me.
I get up from the table as all the things that Pete told me flood my mind. ‘When were you going to tell me about you and Pete colluding and throwing away my letters to Noah?’
Dad turns around with a look of shock. ‘How do you know that?’
‘Pete told me. He said you’d congratulated him when he admitted to you what he’d done with the first couple of letters.’
‘Alice, I was worried about you.’
Tears are filling up my eyes. ‘Dad, I was mortified that Noah never replied. That decision you and Pete made has impacted my life.’ My voice crackles with emotion. ‘Do you know how upsetting it is to hear your father was happy that your so-called friend was chucking away your letters to the love of your life.’
Dad is staring at the floor. ‘I was protecting you, Alice.’
‘From whom? You never took the time to get to know Noah. I can’t remember when you and he were in the same room together.’
He looks up and stares at me. ‘I knew his family, Alice. That was enough.’
I baulk at his comment. ‘Dad, you fell out with Noah’s father, not his family.’
‘I had good reason to protect you from the Coombes family.’
A tear rolls down my cheek. I wipe it away. ‘Tell me the reason.’
He shakes his head. ‘Alice, please leave.’
I’m tear-stained and snotty when I fall into Noah’s arms as we meet outside the ice-cream parlour. He helps me find my keys and we go upstairs to the flat. On the sofa he holds me close as I tell him everything that was said between Dad and me.
Noah wipes my tears away with his thumbs. Once I have finished, he whispers, ‘It will all work out, Alice, I promise.’ He kisses my forehead. ‘I know your dad is holding on to a lot of stuff from the past but he won’t want to lose you.’
‘Do you think so?’
Noah nods. ‘We are going to get through this together. Maybe we should give your dad some space and put all our efforts into getting the café ready for the judge’s visit.’
‘Maybe,’ I murmur, as I turn to face him. His mouth finds mine. His kiss is long and lingering. Lifting me into his arms he carries me to my bedroom. Laying me down gently on the bed he smiles. ‘Do you want me to go sleep on the sofa?’
I pull him down and his warm soft lips find mine. ‘You have that wild look on your face again,’ he murmurs.
‘I’ve waited twenty years for this.’
He laughs and kisses me. ‘When we were teenagers the only place, we could go was our rock and it wasn’t the comfiest of places. The beach was better although sand was an issue…’
‘Noah, stop talking,’ I say, with a grin. ‘I’ve been waiting a long time.’