Page 40

Jack

Nerves bubbled under my skin.

The heated seats of my Jaguar heated me from the outside in. I frequently thanked past me for having the foresight to add it as an option when purchasing the car. Call me old, but the idea of freezing my arse off in car parks or halfway up the motorway, was not my idea of fun.

I was waiting in the hospital car park while Willow attended her final appointment in the Burn’s Outpatient Unit.

It was a momentous occasion. The bandage around her left ring finger was to be removed.

It was the remaining visual of everything she’d been through, with all other bruising calmed or faded completely.

The emotional scars would take longer, but I was proud of the way she was managing, even if she had disappeared for the past five days.

Tonight was the first of two surprises I had in store, an opportunity to make her smile and forget.

A blur between other parked cars caught my eye. Willow bounced towards me, struggling to keep her grin under wraps. She hopped in the car, beaming as she removed the red scarf from around her neck. I couldn’t help but crack a smile – she was addictive.

“Let’s see it then.”

Removing the glove, she held her hand between us, fingers splayed.

I inspected it, brushing the finger with mine.

I hadn’t seen much of the damage caused to her finger that night or since, so it remained a surprise even healed.

Just below the second knuckle of her ring finger, was an angled strip of pink scarring indenting the skin.

“It looks so much better than it did, I promise,” she breathed out, trying to convince us both.

“Sweetheart, it looks amazing. Did they say you needed to do any aftercare going forward? ”

“Moisturise and avoid getting a tattoo for a while after it’s healed, but for now I’m excited just to use it again. You wouldn’t believe how inconvenient it is having a finger out of action.”

“I bet. I’m so happy for you, Willow. You’re a trooper.” I held her hand in both of mine.

“Thank you for everything, Jack. I don’t know how I’ll ever repay you for your kindness.”

I shook my head, her thanks were appreciated but not needed.

Turning the car on, it grumbled to life.

“Any chance you’ll tell me what we’re doing?” She pulled her seatbelt and clipped it into place.

“Absolutely none.”

“I should never have introduced you to Elle, she’s a bad influence,” she muttered, and I bit back a smile, enjoying her mild huff.

Lunch, a companionable dog walk, and a few hours of work later and Willow was practically buzzing with anticipation. She wore a fuzzy red jumper, black gym leggings tucked into thick white socks, and chunky beige Ugg boots at the stairs waiting to be worn.

“Jack?”

“Yes, Willow?”

“Will you tell me where we’re going?” She bounced on her toes as I prepared the dog’s dinners.

“Nope.”

“Damn,” she muttered, before playfully eyeing me, dancing around the island to where I stood and bowed her head until she was blocking my focus to the dog bowls.

“Willow, you’re going to get your hair covered in dog food.” She raised an eyebrow at me, pouting. “Sweetheart, please?” I sighed.

It was a nickname I’d used before for her, but always in a comforting tone. Now it was edging into the overly-familiar and I felt uneasy. Was it too much? Too far?

“Will you tell me where we’re going if I move?” she continued, pulling me from my internal panic.

“No.”

“ Forgodssake, Jackkkkkk ! ”

She dramatically sauntered and huffed onto the sofa.

The way she groaned my name in frustration did something funny to me, something I’d not felt in eleven years.

I had to shake my head to clear it, it was a dangerous trench to be sucked into.

Despite her mildly irritating need to know all plans, it was entertaining to see this side of Willow.

“Considering we’ll be leaving once the dogs have eaten, it won’t be long before you find out for yourself.” I placed the bowls in their usual places and signalled for the dogs to eat. “If I’d known what you were like with surprises, I wouldn’t have bothered planning two.”

Her eyes widened with realisation.

“ Two surprises ?! Oh my God, can’t you tell me anyth—” She stopped when she saw the daggers I was shooting at her.

“We’re leaving in a minute.” She skipped off and I shook my head, laughing

Once the dogs were fed, I clipped their leads on to their collars and met Willow at the door.

“Do I need a coat? Scarf? Which coat would be better, puffer or pea?”

“You won’t need a coat, we’re not going far.” I watched as the cogs turned, trying to figure it out.

I opened the door, ushering her, and the two dogs out the door. She followed clueless, as I weaved through the parked cars. I pushed open a red front gate, holding it for Willow as the dogs tugged me to the door. Willow looked up at me in confusion as I rang the doorbell.

“Oh, hey strangers, come on in.”

Mike beamed from the entryway, and Willow relaxed beside me.

The dogs whined and strained at their leads, desperate to rush into their favourite place. I released them and they shot past Mike, and down the hallway.

“Good to know who they’re really here for,” Mike laughed as he hauled me in for a hug, then a kiss on each of Willow’s cheeks.

Removing our shoes at the door, we moved through the house. Mike’s house was almost identical to mine in layout but flipped the other way round. The living room on the left, office on the right and stairs to the right of the hallway, the kitchen still at the back of the house.

Where my house was dark and moody, Mike’s was colourful and full of books and ornaments. Lucille was an editor for a local non-fiction publisher, so every inch of the house was covered with books. Mike had lost count of the number she’d brought home years ago, it kept Lu happy, so made him happy.

We pushed through into the kitchen, where we met a sea of familiar faces. Willow stood behind me, hiding from the masses.

“Jack! Good to see you,” Lu called out from the L-shaped sofa, beneath my two Lu-obsessed English Setters. I squeezed her shoulder over the back of the sofa .

“Not much to see with these mutts blinding your vision. Thanks for having us.” I looked beyond Lu to find two of their three sons across from her, both nursing a bottle of cider.

Mike and Lu had started their family before we’d even started.

Their eldest, Jacob was twenty-seven, the middle son, Freddie, was twenty-six and their youngest, Gabe, was twenty-two, born the same day as Frannie.

It was a well known joke that Gabe was the result of the couple’s honeymoon and was a complete surprise after they’d sworn off more children.

Jacob and Freddie were too old to care by the time Frannie came along, so she and Gabe would run rings around us all until they grew apart in their teens.

“Boys, how’re you doing?”

“All good thanks Jack, you?” Freddie replied, while Jacob headed to the kitchen, grabbing us a cider each before patting me on the shoulder by way of greeting. Jacob was the quieter of the three, more select with his words, but he saw and took in everything.

“I’m good, thanks, Fred. This is Willow. She’s living with me at the moment, works with us.” I stepped aside, allowing the room a view of her.

“Oh, Willow, it’s so good to see you again.”

Lu pushed off the sofa, making the dogs flop to the cushions. She spun around, her long silver hair spinning around her shoulders as she rushed to hug Willow.

“Hi Mrs Johnson, thank you for welcoming me into your home,” she murmured into Lu’s shoulder.

Lu pulled back from their embrace with a frown.

“Oh hush, Lu, not Mrs Johnson. These are my two eldest, Jacob and Freddie. Our youngest is at university.”

“Alright, formalities are over. Take your seats around the charcuterie board before the games begin,” Mike called out, already filling his plate with snacks, despite Lu’s efforts to smack his hands away.

“Games?” Willow whispered, leaning into my shoulder. I placed my hand on her lower back.

“Games night sweetheart, that’s tonight’s surprise.”

There was that nickname again, I couldn’t stop now I’d started.

My gaze bounced around her face to gauge her reaction when she broke into a ball of excitement, bouncing past me towards the sofas to mingle with my best friend’s family.

Forty minutes later, scraps of food remained, and Lu had decided the two guests should be the team captains, automatically placing me and Willow on opposite teams. We took turns picking our teammates.

‘Willow’s Branches’ consisted of Willow, Mike and Freddie, ‘The Invincibles’ held me, Lu, and Jacob.

“I just hope you’re all okay with losing.” I held my hands up in mock surrender as Freddie rolled his eyes dramatically.

“I’d forgotten how competitive you are.”

“Oh, it’s so much fun,” Mike declared with a Cheshire cat grin. “We beat him, then hand him back to you” —he pointed to Willow— “to deal with the post-loss grump.”

“I don’t get grumpy,” I muttered under my breath, loudly enough for him to hear. He gave me a knowing look.

“Games night, July 2009.” Of course, I knew what he meant. Everyone in the room, but Willow, knew what he meant. Her head whipped between everyone as they held in snickers.

“What happened in July 2009?” she eventually asked.

“Noth—” I started, before Lu interrupted.

“He lost at Monopoly and when Mike wouldn’t stop taking the piss, he picked up the key lime pie and shoved it in his face, then stormed off home. Harriet left Fran for a sleepover to deal with him.” She winked at me teasing, but instead a lance of pain shot through me at the memory of Harrie.

She’d followed me that night with gentle promises that she still loved me whether I’d won or lost, with a joint shower and soft kisses.

It hit me at that moment, I hadn’t thought of Harrie in a while. Longer than I cared to admit, and I could only assume it was down to the dark-haired beauty I lay beside every night, the one whose eyes were dancing with amusement at the stories being told by my best friends.

Acutely aware of my turmoil, Lu placed a hand on my shoulder, a silent acceptance that I could miss my wife even when life moved on.

“ Right ,” Mike clapped, breaking me out of my thoughts. “Order of the night – Pictionary, Heads Up, then Twister.”

I internally groaned at the thought of playing Twister with Willow. Mike smirked at me, knowing exactly what he was doing.

“As I say, I hope you’re ready to lose.” I looked Willow dead in the eye, confident of our win.