Page 53 of One More Time

‘Actually, make that two. And two Cokes.’ Marty gathered the menus and passed them back to the waitress.

Charlie did his best to relax into the surroundings, but the chatter, the people, the noise – it was all so much. Just as he was about to ask Marty to elaborate on what he’d missed, something chimed loudly from the tabletop, sending him to his feet.

‘It’s all good, buddy, it’s just my mobile.’ Chuckling, Marty held up a flip phone. ‘Hello.’

Shamefaced, Charlie avoided catching the eyes now staring at him, and sat back down as quickly as he could. Marty kept his voice low and his head turned. Clearly it wasn’t a conversation for Charlie to be privy to, not that he minded. He was too busy realising just how far the world had moved on while he was buried deep inside the prison system. These few minutes with Marty’s attention elsewhere gave him essential time to ease his nervous tension. He was free. He was safe. The people here weren’t out to get him.

Once Marty was off the phone, Charlie was ready to hear what he was dying to know… was Grace with anyone? He wasn’t about to ask outright, not yet anyway; he wanted to see what Marty had to say first. ‘So, other than you and Jen becoming proud parents of two beautiful kids, fill me in on what else has happened the last eight years.’

‘Where do I start?’ Static anxiety seemed to surround them as Marty exhaled loudly before he leant back, his hands clasping behind his head. ‘Do you want the good news or the bad news first?’

Charlie’s stomach tumbled. ‘Might as well get the bad news out of the way.’

‘There’s no easy way to say this, so I’m just going to give it straight-up.’ He inhaled sharply. ‘Grace and Rodger are living together.’

Feeling like he’d just been punched in the gut, and stabbed in the heart for good measure, Charlie took a long moment to recover. ‘But I thought he was a married man?’ Rodger was one of Marty’s close mates, so he needed to tread carefully. ‘What happened to Alison?’

‘He and Alison went their separate ways about five years back. They just couldn’t seem to get past the fact that Rodger couldn’t have children.’

‘He’s barren, hey?’ He shouldn’t be taking so much comfort in the fact Grace wouldn’t be having any children with the man.

Rodger Burrows? Of all the men Grace could be with …

‘Yeah, afraid so.’ Marty nodded then grimaced. ‘Grace was living in the guesthouse when Alison and Rodger split and … well, I think they just became close over time, by being there for one another.’ He shrugged. ‘One thing led to another, and now they’re a couple.’

Charlie took a fortifying breath. ‘Well. As long as Grace is happy, I suppose I have to try and be happy for her.’

‘She seems to be. Happy, that is.’ Marty looked extremely uncomfortable. ‘Jenny reckons she still loves you, though, and I have to say that I definitely agree. Not that I’ve told Rodger as much.’

‘Yeah, well, sometimes love ain’t enough, hey?’ He’d have been a fool to expect that Rodger wouldn’t have made his move on Grace. In the grand scheme of things, he had no right being angry about it either. ‘How is he with the kids?’

‘He’s real good to them, Charlie.’

‘That’s good to hear.’ Ignoring his innate need to be jealous of the man caring for his children while begrudgingly feeling grateful to Rodger for stepping in when he couldn’t, Charlie folded his hands on the table and his brows knitted together. He was about to ask more when their food arrived at the table. ‘Well, well, look at this magnificent feast.’ Charlie couldn’t believe the mound of food on the mammoth porcelain plate was all his. ‘Where do I start?’

‘Just tuck in.’ Marty gathered his steak sandwich and brought it to his mouth.

Charlie did the same, taking a decent bite and groaning in pleasure. ‘Wowsers,’ he garbled through his tasty mouthful. ‘This is amazing.’

‘Too right it is,’ Marty garbled back.

Savouring their lunch, they remained quiet for a few minutes.

‘So, Marty, now we’ve gotten the crappy stuff out of the way, how about you give me the good news,’ Charlie said between bites of his super-long chips dunked in tomato sauce.

‘Well, I just thought you’d like to know. Rodger asked Grace to marry him, but she said no.’

‘Oh. I see.’ Charlie took far too much pleasure from the fact that Grace had rejected being Mrs Burrows. ‘And how did he take that?’

‘He was pretty upset, but eventually got over it, and now they seem …’ Marty half shrugged. ‘Content, I suppose.’

‘Content, hey?’ Charlie dunked another chip into his sea of sauce.

‘Yeah. She doesn’t look at Rodger the same way she used to look at you, Charlie.’ Marty paused, tipping his head from side to side as if trying to find the right words. ‘You know Rodger is my good friend and always will be, but if I’m being honest, she and Rodger are more of a friendship than a relationship. You and Grace … you were just meant to be.’

‘I see,’ Charlie said again, not knowing what else to say.

Taking a sip from his Coke, Marty regarded Charlie over the top of the glass. ‘Did you and Grace ever legally divorce?’