Never Again - 27

Chapter 27 - getting on with life

Erin’s mother turned back to Jack, “nice to meet you, and call me Sara.”

Jack nodded and gave a gracious smile, then looked down at Erin, she looked terrified. It was his first chance to study Dan Bailey, though he had seen him play a lot when he was young. He was a distinguished man, he’d aged well, he was tall, broad and seemed younger than his sixty plus years, in fact he barely had a grey hair on his head, he was frowning, and that gave him an imposing appearance, not that Jack was scared. His father had been more threatening when he’d been in his teens than this man could ever be to him as an adult.

Turning to the door, jack smiled at the older man, “and you of course Mr Bailey, a face I remember from childhood.” Extending a hand he forced Erin’s father to accept the hand shake, “saying that it’s not the face that I remember, but that goal against Italy, what was it 1981? It’s played every time England play the Azzurri, and quite rightly so. Great game and a great goal!”

Jack watched the older man struggle to deal with his enthusiasm, so he decided to keep unsettling him. “Sorry that you had to hear about me dating your daughter from the bloody paps, I really hate that.”

With a grunt, Danny Bailey turned and walked back into the house, when Jack turned to look at the other two women he saw reluctant smiles on their faces. They’d been apprehensive of the contact between the two men, but it seemed that he’d diffused everyone’s tension.

With his own smile, he held out a hand to Erin and they interlinked fingers, suddenly she could see he was right, their solidarity was vital, any hint of the truth about their relationship, or lack of would spell disaster.  As they entered the house he squeezed her hand then when she looked up at him smiled down at her.

                “Coffee?” Sara offered and jack replied enthusiastically.

                “That would be great Mrs...Sara!” He added at her look of chastisement. “With milk if possible.”

Sara smiled then filled the machine.

There was no sign of Danny, so the three sat at the kitchen table and drank coffee, Jack answering Erin’s mother’s questions, Erin watching the interaction with interest. When her mother finally left them alone on the pretence of visiting the bathroom, he edged his chair closer to Erin’s.

                “You ok? You’re quiet!”

She sighed, “I didn’t think this would work, but you’re right, my dad is a moody git anyway, but my mother seems happy...but then I’ve got to tell them about the baby.”

He nodded, “and we’re grown adults, we don’t need their approval. But they love you, they already have grandchildren they love...it’ll be fine, you’ll see!”

When Sara returned, she announced excitedly that Erin’s brother and his wife were going to join them for lunch; the recently mentioned grandchildren were out with their maternal grandparents. Within moments, just like the old days, Erin was drawn into helping cook the meal. Erin’s father had finally lowered himself to join them and the two men were at opposite ends of the table both perusing Sport’s sections from various Sunday papers.

Half an hour later Jack had broached the topic of golf successfully and a begrudging conversation had been struck up. Erin had shared a few knowing glances with her mother as things seemed to get a little easier.

Then Peter and Yvonne had burst in bearing wine, beaming smiles on their faces. What could possibly go wrong?

Jack fortunately hadn’t drunk alcohol despite the copious amounts being passed around; he’d have hated to rely on Erin in her current state which could only be described as extreme shock. Any ground work he’d made with Erin’s father had come crashing down in an awful display of male bravado.

He knew he was part to blame, the man was a pompous old fool, but he was also protective of his daughter. So when Jack had misread a few warmer conversations with Danny Bailey, he’d misjudged timing hugely and announced that they were having a baby.

For a split second he’d seen delight on Sara’s face, but that soon mirrored Erin’s shock as Danny turned to him, both hands on the table, threatening to rear up like some python waiting to strike.

               

                “You what? ‘You’re having a baby’! What? Do you expect us to jump up and down that ‘you’ some fly-by-night playboy has chosen our daughter for your five minutes of fun? I know people like you!”

Jack adopted a similarly aggressive position, “Mr Bailey, whether you like it or not this is happening! Your daughter lives with me, we want to be together and we want this baby.”

                “You don’t know WHAT you want! Just a few weeks ago you were in the paper with some dizzy blonde! My daughter may have shit choice in men, but she has way too much intelligence for you!”

                “Danny calm down, be sensible!”

Sara tried her best, but she wasn’t having any effect. Jack glanced at Erin and she looked like death, after their scare previously he didn’t want this to get out of hand.

                “Mr Bailey, Erin hasn’t been well...I don’t think this fighting is good for her.”

                “Fighting?” As Danny set off in another tirade of anger and abuse, Sara turned to her daughter.

                “You’ve been ill?”

Erin nodded, ignoring the two men who were rutting like stags, “low lying placenta. I bled a lot, I’ve had to stop work...rest...hopefully it’ll be just a precaution.”

As Sara nodded, Jack took Erin’s hand, “let’s leave love, this is all a bit ridiculous...”

                “What is it with you trying to tell me what’s best for MY daughter?” they were still arguing around them.

Jack smiled apologetically at the stunned faces of Peter and Yvonne, he turned back to Danny, “I don’t know why you’re being so unreasonable, I admit this may not be the fairy tale you wanted for your daughter, but we’re happy, really happy about this baby, and whether you like it or not, our lives will be linked forever. How you feel about Erin? I already feel about her and that baby, MY baby.”

Standing he led Erin to the door, “thank you for your hospitality Sara...Peter...Yvonne,” he nodded an acknowledgment to each of them, then smiled at Danny, “Mr Bailey.”

Once Barney caught up to them, they were gone.

Erin hadn’t spoken for the first forty minutes. So they’d driven in silence.

                “You need to stop?” he glanced across when she didn’t answer and saw tears rolling down her face.

With a groan he took the next exit off the motorway and pulled off the road. Turning in his seat, he took her hands, “hey, I’m sorry. I should’ve held my tongue.”

She shook her head, then looked up at him, “no you were right, I didn’t have the strength to tell them. But all you said, you’re right. He...thanks. For everything.”

Using his thumbs he wiped the tears from her eyes, “it’s ok, I meant what I said, I’m seeing things differently. Suddenly my life has purpose. That’s because of you. I’ll do anything to protect and support you both. Don’t ever forget that. Ok?”

When she nodded, biting her lip in such an innocent way, he slipped the car back into gear and rejoined the motorway. 

Erin was shaking with cold or despair, she wasn’t sure. But she knew that she was glad of Jack’s arms around her as he woke her outside his house. Helping her indoors he led her straight to the lounge and settled her on a sofa then made her tea. Hoping that it would work as it seemed to on TV.

She drank silently, then stood. “I need sleep Jack.” When he nodded an understanding, she added, “Would you hold me? Just hold me?”

Jack felt like whooping. She’d pushed him away for so long, the thought of holding her, letting her sleep in his arms was a painful thought, but it was a start, a move in the right direction. He kept his answering smile enigmatic and assisted her upstairs. 

Diving in his bedroom he slipped into shorts and a t-shirt reaching her room just at the moment Erin emerged from the en suite in those ridiculous strappy short pyjamas. The sort that would make a quick glance torture, having her wrapped around him...he was definitely testing his saintly side.

Pulling back the duvet he helped her into bed, then wandered around to the other side and climbed in himself. And then she snuggled up to him, all soft curves, and lemony perfume, and sighs...it was the little sigh that crippled him with lust.

It had been a hellish day, but Erin couldn’t fault Jack’s behaviour, her father despised him his good fortune, he had become a far greater football player than her father had had chance to be. He was jealous of him, she could see that, and disliked him because he had a reputation for being hot-headed, some might say passionate, but not her father. He thought he was spoilt, childish, overindulged. He couldn’t be more wrong, and if anything he’d showed himself to be that childish pathetic man. And she was embarrassed.

But jack Reilly, well Jack had done the right thing, he hadn’t resorted to name calling, point scoring or beating his chest, he’d merely tried to explain how things were, respond to her father’s accusations, then when that proved fruitless, he’d offered her his complete support and protected her, taken her away from the trauma of it all, and he hadn’t forced her to analyse it all the way home either.

And now, she was snuggled into him, her nose against his neck, head on his shoulder, and his arms wrapped tightly around her. And he was warm, hard and smelled so good.

The hand that rested on his stomach wandered under the t-shirt he wore and she gasped against his skin as she felt the warm skin of his body, his response was a similar moan, and his lips connected with her forehead.

As she tilted her head back to meet his lips, wanting nothing more than to lose herself in him, Jack sighed, “remember what the doctor said Erin, don’t make this too difficult, will you?”

How could she forget that mortifying moment in the doctor’s office when sitting together still scared stiff at the thought that they could lose the baby, and Doctor Carter warning that along with no work, no lifting, no strenuous activity, there was “no sex, definitely not, and I don’t just mean intercourse. Any contraction of the uterus could set things off, and I don’t know how that would end.”

At the time Erin had blushed to the ends of her hair she was so mortified, but Jack as usual took it all in his stride, smiling and murmuring an “of course”.  

Oh yes she remembered that ok. With a sigh she nodded, then turned her body towards his and closed her eyes.

Jack was having rather different memories lying there, and wondered how long it would take until she was fast asleep and he could disappear into an ice cold shower.

During the week Erin’s mother called several times, her father was still livid, she admitted she thought that a large part of that was anger at himself, but her father was stubbornly proud, they both knew that.

                “Do you want to meet up? Do some shopping?”

Erin sighed, “I’m so tired Mum, and I really don’t want to push things, I’m so worried.”

                “Of course, are you still going to Michelle’s next weekend? Maybe I could come into London and see you?”

It was Michelle’s birthday the following weekend and the two girls had always done things together. Ironically Jack’s first game of the season was also in the capital that weekend, so he’d agreed she could go, as long as she’d let him drive, and not gallivant in her usual mad way.

It was hard succumbing to his demands so wholly, but she really didn’t have a choice.

                “That would be great. I’m meeting Michelle on Friday evening, then there’s football on Saturday, so I’m at a loose end.”

Her mother was quiet for a moment, “I’m happy to meet you with Jack if that helps Erin, I’m not like your Dad, you know that.”

                “I know Mum, but it’s fine. I’m staying at his apartment; do you want to come there? See how things are?”

That was as concrete as their plans really could be.

Jack had got special permission to not be at the team hotel the night before the inaugural match, so that he could accompany Erin to Michelle’s birthday meal. He was keeping up the attentiveness that he’d shown since he found out she was pregnant, and since the blow with her father they had a closeness that they’d missed out on before. Erin was happy, happier than she had been for a long time, despite everything.