I glanced towards the bathroom and waited for him to emerge. A minute later the ringing stopped and started back up again. I bit down on my bottom lip.
“Hello?” I said.
“Harvey?” A female voice asked. She sounded hot and impatient—a woman not to be messed with—and I wondered if she was his girlfriend, or perhaps a regular fuck-buddy.
“Sorry, he’s in the bathroom at the moment. Oh, hold on. He’s here.” Right in time, Harvey appeared, and I passed the phone to him. He smiled, took the phone from me and walked into the hallway. I perched on the edge of the sofa and waited patiently. I was desperate for us to recreate our little moment again—safe in his arms, watching movies and thinking of nothing else.
“Is something wrong?” A line marred my forehead when he ended the call and came back into the room.
“Sorry to cut our night short, but Sadie needs me.”
I need you, though.
Sadie, so that’s her name, I thought. Another twinge of disappointment gripped me. It was foolish to think I’d have him all to myself; he had his own life that didn’t revolve around me. I knew I shouldn’t be jealous of her and her relationship with my stepbrother, but every fibre of my being coloured itself green with envy.
He must be dating this Sadie, otherwise what could possibly be the reason? I scattered the thoughts away and told myself that it was none of my damn business. Harvey could fuck whomever he wanted, and I wasn’t entitled to pry into his business or feel jealous.
“I gotta run and see what she needs. I’ll check up on you later, OK?” he said and bent down to kiss my cheek. Surprised at his movements, I sat rigid, my eyes closing softly as his lips caressed my face. I felt his warm breath, and then he was gone.
“Bye,” I whispered.
10
Sara
My life was falling to pieces as the weeks passed by. During those weeks I received three missed mortgage payment notices from the bank, one of them demanding full payment of my arrears within thirty days. Did they expect me to perform miracles or something? The money I was bringing in from the minimum wage café job was simply not enough, and dark days lurked in the corner as I became more and more stressed. Desperation crept into my life, suffocating me, and though I wanted to stand on my own two feet and shy away from the damsel-in-distress routine, I knew I had to swallow my pride and ask for help.
I chewed on my nails as I placed my phone against my ear, waiting for Harvey to pick up. I hoped that maybe he’d had some luck with the insurance investigation.
When I heard his voicemail on the other end, I ended the call and tried again. I speed-dialled his number, brought the mobile back to my ear and listened intently as it continued to ring. I tapped my foot against the carpeted floor, growing restless and troubled. I began to pace around the room.
The ringing stopped and went straight to his voicemail again. A sob slipped free from my lips. Why wasn’t he answering? A worst-case scenario formed in my head, but I shoved it aside, replacing my fear of Harvey’s unanswered calls with fear of the never-ending nightmare Eric had seen fit to leave me with.
“I’m never going to get past this,” I murmured into my hands, wracking my brain for anything I could do to get myself out of this mess. Eric was dead, and yet he was still tormenting me, and I was powerless to stop it. He was still dictating the course of my life.
It had to stop.
I worried my lips and gnawed down on the flesh, nipping at it as my anxiety increased.
First things first. I had to think logically. I needed a way to pay the mortgage before the bank took possession of the house and kicked me out of my own home, forcing me to live out in the streets, or worse, with my sister or mother.
A knock sounded on the back door. With a quick look in the hallway mirror, tidying away a couple loose strands of hair and wiping my tear-stained cheeks, I went to see who it was. But I knew there was only one person who ever came to the back door. Over six feet of muscle was revealed as I pulled open the door. Harvey stood before me, looking grim.
“Why didn’t you answer your phone?” I shouted at him, lashing out at him for no real reason other than he was there—alive. “I was worried!”
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you. My phone must’ve been on silent.” He took a thorough look at me, the tears welling up in my eyes, and he pulled me to his chest. “Shit, I’m so sorry. I didn’t think. But I’m OK, I promise,” he soothed, as he held me tight.
Eventually he let me go, and I escaped into the living room, desperately swiping at my face, angry at the tears that flowed. He thinks I’m pathetic, I thought, and I blew my red nose on a piece of tissue.
“This can’t be all about me not answering my phone, can it?” he asked as he came over to me.
I shrugged and blew out a noisy breath.
“Everything’s fucked,” I declared, “and I think I need your help.”
“Tell me,” he urged and planted his feet, his hands on his hips, his suit jacket parting at the motion.
“I got another notice from the bank. I’m three months behind on my mortgage payments. I have thirty days to get the money, or they’ll take the house.”
“Is that all?” he scoffed. I wanted to hit him but made do with swatting the air in front of him instead, my eyes on fire with fury. At least the tears were gone, I thought.
“Everything’s going to be fine. You won’t be kicked out of your home. I will make sure of that. And I have some news. But don’t get your hopes up, OK?”
It was my turn to demand answers. “Harvey, tell me,” I said as the first inklings of smile graced my face.
“Well, I reached out to some people who owed me a favour, and they got in touch with the right people at Bluelife Insurance, who have agreed to open the case back up and take a second look at the car wreckage. I was adamant that they send it to an unbiased, independent evaluator, a mechanic and engineer who specialises in this type of thing.”
I let out a sigh of relief, but the weight I felt on my shoulders didn’t loosen. “Thank you. Thank you so much,” I said gratefully and rushed towards him, threading my arms around his waist. “You don’t know how grateful I am for this,” I proclaimed and shot him a thankful look, “and what you do for me, the time you spend here, keeping me company and indulging me.”
He shrugged. “It’s nothing, really. Besides,” he said and playfully poked me in the side, “when you’re not crying you’re a lot of fun.”
I giggled and sprang away from his touch as he started to tickle me.
“I’m sure you would do the same for me if I were in your position, anyway,” he continued.
“In a heartbeat. I’ll try to restrict the waterworks to when you’re not around. I just can’t help it. My emotions are all over the place these days.”
“I’m only teasing. Cry all you want. My shoulder’s right here for you,” he answered.
We spent the rest of the day hanging out and enjoying each other’s company. He insisted on doing a few jobs around the house for me despite my feeble protests.
“I can just call a plumber you know.”
“I’m here, though; you might as well use me. Plus it’s not like you can afford it.”
“Harsh, but true,” I replied.
I smiled at the sight of him hunched over, trying to fix the broken dishwasher, and I stifled a rush of giggles as I secretly drooled over his bare, muscular back. Not wanting to dirty his clothes, he’d stripped off his shirt to reveal a washboard of tanned abs, and instead he himself was becoming smeared with dirt and sweat. It was a delicious sight.