Boy Next Door (Parkside Avenue Book #2) (14 page)

“Have you tried calling Jess?” I
asked, peeling off my T-shirt. Dang, the day was far too hot to be digging.

Cora’s eyes grazed over my abs. “Do
you think I should?”

“It’s gotta be worth a shot.”

“Yes. Yes, you’re right.” She
placed her glass on the table beside her, picked up her phone, and tapped on
the keypad.

I returned my attention to the
shovel, but couldn’t face picking it up again. It was time for a break, and on
a day like this, there was only one kind. I stripped down to my boxers, took a
run-up, and dived into the pool.

Soft water rippled over my aching
muscles, instantly cooling me to the core. In the blue of the underwater
cocoon, life was clean and shiny and crammed with sparkles. If only it were
really like that. When you’re starting out on life’s big fishing trip, no one
tells you the freaking river of life is full of sewage and the weeds will try
to pull you under.

It had been a pretty busy week,
all told. I’d started work on the old cemetery, and that had led to a couple of
one-off jobs for some local old folk, but I’d spent every spare moment I had with
Cora, both in her garden and her bed.

Reaching the other end of the
pool, I took a quick breath as I turned around, and swam back towards Cora.
When I surfaced, I was staring at her crotch. She was sitting on the edge of
the pool, swirling her feet through the waves. Her bikini bottoms were stretched
tight, moulding over her curls, and my body responded to the sight. We’d made
love every single day, sometimes more than once, and I still couldn’t get
enough of her sizzling hot body.

Dragging my eyes up to hers, I
asked, “Any luck?”

“Vanessa’s in Ireland.”

“She’s where?”

“Ireland, the large piece of land
off the west coast.”

“I know where Ireland is. What is
she doing there?”

“Spending time with her
boyfriend. He lives there.”

“Oh. I didn’t know that. Does
Jess have any idea when she might be coming back?”

“No, but she never stays long.
Garrett’s on the road a lot.” I must have looked puzzled, as Cora went on to
explain, “He manages a band.”

“Really? Anyone I’ve heard of?”

“Now, how would I know that?”

I laid my hands on her thighs and
stroked the inside of them with my thumbs. “I guess we still have a lot to
learn about each other.”

Cora held her face up to the sun.
“Vanessa told me who they were, once, and I googled them. They’re quite
successful, but I can’t say I’ve been interested enough to remember the name.”
She licked a film of sweat from her top lip and blew her breath up her face.

“Well then. I guess she’s safe,
and she’ll come home when she’s ready. So, how about you keep me company in
this pool?” My hands moved around to her ass, and I scooped her towards the
water. She giggled and wrapped her legs around my waist, before lowering her
head to meet my eager lips. The taste of salty sweat mixed with my chlorine
flavoured tongue. I pressed her up against the pool edge, pushed her bikini top
to the side, and grabbed a handful of creamy flesh. “Have you ever made love in
the pool?”

“You are joking?”

“I never joke about pleasure.”

“But the neighbours …” She
panted.

“Pappa hasn’t been outside for
days, and the couple at the other side are at work. No one’s gonna see.”

“You’re a wicked man, Johnny.”

***

I swam over to where Cora’s bikini
floated and threw it back to her, before retrieving my boxers and pulling them
back on. By the time I swam back to the steps, Cora had dressed.

“I need to take a shower,” she
said. “I’m meeting Diane for lunch.”

I pulled her back as she tried to
leave. “Can’t you cancel? I’d booked you in for full day’s services today,” I
said with a cheeky grin.

“Aren’t I the lucky one?”

I kissed her neck and nibbled playfully
on her earlobe. “You don’t know how many times you might have been, unless you
stay.”

“As tempting an offer as that is,”
she said, pushing me away, “I wouldn’t want to keep you from your work. Your
client is expecting a professional job.”

“Aw, come on. Break the habit of
a lifetime. The world won’t end if you don’t stick to your routine, and my
client
will understand. Stay.”

“I’ve got to go.” She kissed me
on the cheek, climbed the steps, and grabbed her phone on the way to the house.
I watched her dripping ass all the way inside, before climbing out and getting
my head back on the job.

Chapter Twenty-One

Later that afternoon, I heard
Cora’s car pull into the driveway. One day I would own a car like hers: a
sleek, gas-guzzling, engine purring, look at me I’ve made it, machine. But the
way things were going, that day was a long way off. I’d already had to dip into
my savings, this week. Travelling by bus just wasn’t working out, and I’d given
in and bought myself a truck. It was far from the cutest dog in the pound, but it
should be good for a couple more years.

My stomach growled, despite
having returned to Pappa’s for lunch. I wondered if I should pop home to check in
on him again. When I’d seen him earlier, he was sitting in his chair, alternately
puffing on his pipe and wheezing.

“I think you should see someone,
Paps,” I’d said. “You’ve not been right for days.”

“Nothing wrong with me that a
break from this damn heat won’t cure. My plants would be happier too.”

“I’ll stick the hose on them
later. Can I get you something to eat?”

“Already eaten. Just see to
yourself.” He’d racked up a lungful of tar, and grumbled, “Damn cough.”

“Okay. Drink then?”

“No. Nothing, thank you.”
Irritation had crept into his voice.

“Are you sure you’re okay? You
don’t look too good.”

He’d laughed—an alien sound of
late. “I haven’t looked like Cary Grant for forty years. Old age will creep up
on you too, you know. I’m fine. When I’m dead, you’ll know about it.”

I worried about Paps. Seventy-six
wasn’t that old, but the jovial, old man, I’d returned home from uni to, had
transformed into a grumpy sod, complaining about the smallest of things, and the
new model seemed smaller, whiter. Maybe he just needed to get out in the sun
more, instead of avoiding it.

I stared into the hole awaiting
the new maple tree, hoping that Cora would think to bring me out a sandwich.
She often brought me a bite to keep me going, and now would have been a good
time for her to show up with the goods.

A car door slammed, as I dragged
the tree into position. Was she going out again, without even saying a hello,
or a goodbye? Perhaps she’d been shopping and needed a hand to bring her
purchases inside. She’d been gone for hours, and I’d missed the hell out of
her. If she were going out again, I couldn’t let her disappear without at least
a kiss to stoke the fire.

Wiping my hands on my shorts, I
headed for the house, but when I reached the back door, I paused. Cora was
inside, and she wasn’t alone.

“You’re looking good, Cora.” It
was a man’s voice.

“Why are you here, John?” That
bastard? Seriously? Yes, why was he here? Cora must have been out of her mind
to open the door to him. He’d better fuck the hell off, and soon.

“I missed you.”

Yeah right
.

“Oh really?”

“Have you missed me?”

My body tensed as I waited for
her to respond.

“Not for a minute,” she shot
back.

“I don’t believe you.”

“Believe what you want.”

“Honey, I wish I could fix what
I’ve done. I know it was my fault.”

The sound of him using an
endearment made me want to punch my fist through the door. I had to see what
was going down, so I ducked under the window and peered up over the ledge. The
pair were facing each other over the breakfast bar.

“You’re damn right it was your
fault,” Cora said.

“We had a good thing and I threw
it away. I’m so sorry.”

Did he really believe he could
come crawling back into her life, again, with an apology and a smile?

“It’s too late to be sorry.”

“Don’t say that. We can try
again.”

“Not this time.”

“Why not? You took me back
before.” He rounded the breakfast bar, backing Cora into a corner by the table.

She dodged past him. “I was a
fool. I’m not a fool anymore.”

“It’ll be different this time,”
he said following her.

“I remember you saying the same
thing the last time. It was a lie then and it’s a lie now.”

“It isn’t. Madeleine and I are
over. I know what I want now.” He took another step forwards, and his line of
sight almost connected with mine. I shot back under the sill with my heart
beating rapidly.

“The funny thing is, John, so do
I. I should have been broken-hearted when you left me for a second time, but I
wasn’t. I was relieved. Things were never the same between us. We can’t get
back what we had, and recently, I’ve realised I don’t want to. I’m a different
woman to the one you knew. Times change and people move on. I’ve moved on.
You’re part of my past. I can’t change that, and I wouldn’t, but you are no
longer part of my future.”

A speech like that should have
gained John’s full attention. I risked another peek.

“Is there someone else?” John
paused and studied Cora’s face. “That’s it, isn’t it?”

She avoided his gaze and pushed a
strand of hair behind her ear, her trademark sign of nerves. It killed me to
witness her discomfort. If she didn’t get rid of this asshole soon, I would
have no option but to interfere.

“All I’ll say is that I’m happier
than I’ve ever been.”

A smug smile spread across my
face.

“Who is he?”

“None of your business.”

“Get rid of him.”

What the fuck?

Her eyes flashed back to his. “Excuse
me?”

I’d heard enough. My territorial
instinct took over. She might not have said it yet, but Cora loved me. John was
history, and if he wasn’t getting the message from Cora, he’d get it from me,
loud and clear.

Attempting to get my wave of
emotions under control, I flung open the door and strode into the room. “I
think it’s time you left.”

John eyed me from top to toe and
back again. “Who are you to tell me to leave my own house?”

“I’m sorry. I was under the
impression you didn’t live here anymore.”

“Johnny, this is between me and
John. Go back outside, please.”

I could see Cora was struggling
to remain calm, and she was doing a far better job than I was. “I can’t believe
you’re giving this shit the time of day.”

“We have history. He’s the father
of my children. Haven’t you got a tree to plant?”

I walked over and placed my body
between them. “I don’t trust him, and I’m not leaving you alone with him.”

John’s eyes narrowed as he
watched our altercation. “If I wasn’t so disgusted by the thought, I’d say
there was something more than gardening going on here.”

“What if there is?” Cora’s voice
vibrated my left eardrum. “My private life has nothing to do with you any
longer.”

“He’s a child, Cora.”

Audacity puffed out my chest, and
I faced up to him. “Oh yeah? If I’m such a child, why don’t you show me how
much of a man you are?”

He stepped back in disgust. “You
think you can compete with me? Look at you.” His gaze fell and rose. “You’re
dropping dirt all over the floor, and do you even own a shirt? Cora, how could
you choose a manual labourer, who probably has so few brain cells they get lost
swimming around in his head trying to find a friend, over me?”

“Actually, Johnny is very smart,
and talented, and exciting,” Cora paused to offer the final blow, “and ten
times the lover you ever were.”

John blew out a breath. “You don’t
even like sex,” he scoffed.

“How would you know?”

“Well, let’s see. How about the
amount of times I’ve heard, ‘Well, if you must, but make it quick and pull my
nightdress back down when you’ve finished.’ Remember those nights?”

“I wish I didn’t, but I’m doing
my best to forget.” Bitterness oozed through her voice.

John’s eyes narrowed. “Were you really
surprised I looked elsewhere? Being in bed with you was like sleeping with an
ice cube.”

“Maybe if you’d treated me like a
real woman instead of a trophy wife …”

Thinking about them together made
me sick, and hearing him call Cora an ice cube was just ridiculous. If only he knew.
“If you want my opinion …”

John interrupted before I could
finish. “You don’t get an opinion,” he said, roughly pushing me against the lip
of the tabletop. The bastard was seriously asking for it. His tone changed, and
he reached for Cora’s waist. “If sex is what you want, then there’s even more
of a reason for us to get back together. We had fun, back in the day. Remember
when we were first married? It could be like that again.”

Ugh
.

“You were a different man then.”
Thankfully, she smacked his hands and backed away, before I hit more than his
hands. “Leave me alone, John. It’s over.”

With one final scowl, he swung
round and stormed off down the corridor. “Fine. Keep your plaything, but don’t
come crawling back to me when you come to your senses,” he shouted.

Cora screamed at his back. “Don’t
worry. I won’t.”

I waited for the sound of the
front door slamming before taking Cora into my arms. She was shaking. I held
her tightly and stroked her hair until she calmed. “It’s okay,” I said. “He’s
gone, and now he knows the score, I don’t think he’ll be back.”

She pulled away and looked at me.
“I hope not. I don’t think I can go through that again.”

“You won’t have to. If he ever
shows his face here again, he’s toast.”

She sighed and stroked my cheek.
“I’ve tried so hard to put my marriage behind me. I just want to stop fighting
old ghosts and live again.”