The Rock'n'Roll Romance Box Set (Pam Howes Rock'n'Roll Romance Series) (76 page)

  
‘Kevin, my eldest, found
out where Jon works and we got in touch. He didn’t make the funeral because of
Nick and Jess’s accident. But he called me and came to visit last night.’

  
‘He’s made a smashing
young man,’ Cathy said. ‘Angie would have been very proud of him.’

  
‘She would. He’s lovely.
Tall and dark, not a bit like Eddie.’

  
‘He takes after Angie
with his curls and everything,’ Cathy said. She took a sip of coffee.

  
‘That’s funny, Cathy,
because
I
don’t think he looks anything like Angie.’

  
Cathy frowned and chewed
her thumbnail. She looked at the photograph again.

  
‘He does, a little
bit.’
 

  
‘Take a really close look
at Richard then look at Jon again.’

  
Studying the photograph,
Cathy wriggled uncomfortably.
 

  
‘Jon was three years old
when that photo was taken,’ Sally said. ‘But there’s a definite resemblance
even then, wouldn’t you agree? Now
you
saw him recently at Nick’s
service, so you’re well aware of how he looks today. He’s the double of Richard
Price.’
 

  
Cathy’s eyes filled with
tears and she walked across the room to stare out of the window.

  
‘Tell me, Cathy, please,
is Jon, Richard’s son?’

  
Cathy nodded. ‘Yes, he’s
Richard’s.’

  
Sally’s hand flew to her
mouth. ‘I knew it.’

  
‘I’m sorry, Sally. It
must be an awful shock to you.’

  
‘Why didn’t Angie tell
me? How long have
you
known?’

  
‘Since he was born I
suppose, even before. When Angie found out she was pregnant she didn’t know who
the father was, but of course she blamed Eddie. He married her and Richard’s
name was kept out of it.’
 

  
Sally leant back on the
sofa, speechless. She couldn’t believe her sister would be so deceptive. ‘So,
when did she realise the baby wasn’t Eddie’s?’

  
‘As soon as he was born,’
Cathy said, sitting back down.

  
‘And she still led Eddie
to believe it was his?’

  
‘Yes, Ed doted on Jon.
She couldn’t bring herself to say anything to him.’

  
‘So all this time, Ed’s
brought Jon up as his own, never realising he was someone else’s?’ Sally shook
her head in disbelief.

  
‘Well, actually, no.
There’s more, and it might be a bigger shock than what I’ve already told you,’
Cathy said.

  
‘I don’t think I can be
anymore shocked than I am now, but go on.’

  
‘The police gave me back
a camera Angie borrowed. It was in the car following the crash. It was
undamaged, so I used up the film at Jess’s christening. I had the film
developed and Carl looked through the photographs. He spotted the likeness
between Jon and Richard immediately. He assumed Richard was your brother, Jon’s
uncle. I couldn’t handle it any longer. I broke down and told Carl the truth. I
was certain he may mention the likeness to Ed one day in passing and Ed of
course knows you don’t have a brother. Carl was horrified and insisted I told
Ed and Jane right away.’

  
Sally nodded as Cathy
continued.

  
‘We went to see them that
night and I told them everything. They were devastated, but they couldn’t bear
the thought of losing Jon. He was happy, settled in a lovely home and calling
Jane, mummy. We made a pact never to tell a soul and we never have done, until
now.’ Cathy broke down sobbing, while Sally sat silently, tears pouring down
her cheeks.

  
‘Sally, I beg of you,
don’t tell Jon. Can you imagine what the shock would do to him? I’ll have to
let Eddie know that I’ve told you. The only other people who know are the
Cantellos and the Davis’s. The eight of us were at
Hanover
’s Lodge the night the pact was
made. It’s been the most closely guarded secret and not even Phil Jackson, the
other Raider, knows.’

  
Sally sat silently for a
while, gathering her scattered thoughts. ‘Thank you, for being honest with me,
Cathy. There’s no need to upset Eddie and Jane. I promise I’ll take the secret
to the grave. Eddie’s been a wonderful father to a boy who’s not his own. I
reckon he had enough to put up with when he married Angie in the first place.
What with
her
moods and the stick my mother gave him, the man deserves a
bloody medal. I just needed to know the truth for my own sake; otherwise, it
would have eaten away at me for ever.’

  
Cathy nodded tearfully.
‘I understand. Would you like more coffee?’

  
‘Please,’ Sally said,
thinking Cathy might need a moment or two on her own. Left alone she gazed
around the room, her eyes alighting on a framed colour photo in pride of place
on the wall.
The Raiders
accepting an
award. Sally leant forward to look at their smiling faces. Eddie looked so
happy, his blue eyes shining brightly, standing next to a jubilant Roy, who
held the award above his head. Eddie looked very different from the teenage
tearaway who’d married her sister. There was no doubt in Sally’s mind that
Angie would have denied him all the fame he’d achieved if they’d stayed
together.

  
As much as she’d loved
Angie, Sally would be the first to admit that she’d been selfish and
thoughtless to take away Eddie’s freedom. No matter how frightened Angie had
been of telling their parents, what she’d done was inexcusable, and to carry on
the charade after Jon’s birth was unforgivable.

  
Cathy arrived back with a
fresh tray of coffee and sat down.
 

  
‘I knew one day it would
all surface again,’ she began. ‘You can’t keep something like that a secret
forever. But you have to understand how much Eddie loved Jon. To lose him to
yourselves or maybe even Richard’s family, who were total strangers to Jon, was
more than he could bear.’

  
Sally nodded. ‘I
understand. I just wish Angie had confided in me. I thought we were close in
spite of our age difference.’

  
‘She was embarrassed and
said you'd be really angry with her for getting into such a
mes
s. The guilt made her withdraw from
Eddie, and also
he
was still in love with Jane, so the marriage didn’t
stand a chance.’

  
‘Poor kids, all of them,’
Sally said softly.

  
‘There’s one more thing.
The day Angie and Richard died, they were going to tell Eddie that same night
that Jon wasn’t his.’

  
‘I never thought I would
ever hear myself say this, Cathy, but someti
mes
things happen for all the right
reasons, if you know what I mean.’

  
‘I’ve thought that myself
over the years. God moves in mysterious ways, as Carl’s mum’s always telling
us.’

  
‘I’d better go home,’
Sally said. ‘I don’t want Mum or Martin to get wind of this. They’ll wonder
where I am if I’m away any longer.’ She stood up, put her arms around Cathy and
hugged her.

  
‘Are you sure you
wouldn’t like me to tell Ed and Jane that you know?’ Cathy said.

  
‘There’s no point in
causing them any upset. They’ve had enough to contend with recently with the
accident. Thanks again for being honest with me. I’ll see you sometime soon I
hope. Goodbye.’
                                   

***

Roy
leant back on his chair and
frowned. He’d arrived at The Lodge earlier than planned. Eddie was still out on
the school run and Jess had just asked him how he felt about the prospect of
being a father again at his time of life. ‘Am I really that old in your eyes,
Jess?’

  
She shrugged. ‘Not old
exactly, it’s just a bit of a shock, that’s all.’

  
‘Well it was to
me
as well. I still can’t quite get my head around it. I fainted when Sammy told
me.’

  
‘Yeah, Dad said. Livvy
thinks that you love her. Do you?’

  
Roy
lit a cigarette and took a long
drag. ‘I do, in a way. I feel responsible for what happens to the baby.’

  
‘But you won’t ever
divorce Sammy?’ Jess asked anxiously.

  
‘Never. I love her more
than anything. She’s my life, my whole world,’ he replied.

  
‘
Your Special Girl
,’ Jess sang out.

  
‘Absolutely.’
Roy
smiled, glad the mood was
lightening. Jess’s questioning was making him feel decidedly uncomfortable.

  
The back door flew open
and Katie bounced into the kitchen. ‘Uncle Roy,’ she squealed and jumped onto
his knee.

  
He grimaced. ‘Careful,
Katie, watch where you’re putting your knees!’ He tickled her and she squirmed
and giggled.

  
Eddie strolled in,
carrying the bags, Dominic on his heels.

  
‘Katie, go and take off
your uniform and hang it in the wardrobe. Don’t dump it on the floor like you
did yesterday. I had to press her skirt this morning, all those bloody pleats,’
Eddie complained as
Roy
looked at him with an amused expression.

  
‘Don’t you laugh at me,
you bastard! It’s hard work looking after kids and the home, and then there’s
Jane demanding dinner on the table at six-thirty every night, and woe betide me
if it’s not ready.’ Eddie rolled his eyes in a mock gesture of a put upon
housewife and folded his arms below an imaginary bosom.

  
Roy
roared with laughter. ‘Ed, shut
up! You look and sound just like your old mum.’

  
Eddie grinned broadly.
‘Oh, heaven forbid. Jess, keep an eye on the kids for a while. Give them juice
and biscuits when they come downstairs. We need to talk,’ he told
Roy
.

  
‘Why, what’s happened?’

  
‘Livvy,’ Eddie replied.
‘I’ll tell you in a minute. Come on, let’s go up.’

  
Roy
frowned and followed him up to the
music room. He flopped down on a chair by the mixing desk. Eddie handed him a
cigarette and lit one himself.

  
‘So, go on, what
about
Livvy?’

  
‘Well for starters she’s
told Jon and Sean that you stayed the night at her place. I presume that means
you screwed her again?’

  
‘I might have done.’
 

  
‘I’ll take that as a
yes.’

  
‘Okay, yeah, I did. It
was more to comfort her than anything. I went round to try and sort things out.
Listen, Ed, before I go any further, I know that you tried to help and I
appreciate what lay behind it. Thanks, mate, I owe you one.’

  
‘It’s okay. I never
intended to interfere. At the end of the day I’m only interested in what
happens to you and Sammy. I had a quick word with Livvy earlier and she said
you were going to support her financially after the baby’s born.’

  
‘I haven’t a choice. If I
help her voluntarily, then she’s less likely to sell her story for money.’

  
‘Good point. I know
you’ve other problems as well. Jane told me about Jason and what’s going on there.
But you need to be aware that Livvy’s convinced once she’s dropped it you’ll
want to be with her and live as a proper family. She told Sean and Jon all this
and Jon was concerned enough to call me.’

  
‘Bloody hell! I only
ended up staying because she was so upset. I had a real go at her. She got into
a state and told me to clear off. I tried to talk to her and I held her in my
arms. I put my hands on her lump and felt protective. But I never made her any
promises to be with her permanently and I told her I couldn’t marry her. I
thought I’d made it clear. She’s obviously taken my TLC a bit too much to
heart.’
Roy
took a lengthy drag and
coughed.
    

  
‘I won’t let Sammy down
again. Ed. She’ll kill me if she finds out I spent the night with Livvy. That
would be the last straw. She almost called the hotel, but fortunately she fell
asleep. Things are going well now, just as long as I don’t blow it again. She’s
going out with Stuart Green tonight for a meal and it really bothers me.’