The Honourable Maverick / The Unsung Hero (20 page)

He took them along Beach Street and then George Street, through the small town centre with all its cafés and galleries. He felt Josh loosen his grip around his waist. Fortunately, he was coming to an intersection when he needed to stop and give way. Before he could turn and tell Josh to hang on tightly again, he felt a small fist thumping his back.

‘What’s up, buddy?’

‘That’s
Sarah’s
car,’ Josh shouted.

‘What? Where?’

Josh pointed. Then he waved.

With a sinking heart, Rick looked from the small car to the window of the café it was parked in front of. Sure enough, sitting on a high stool in front of a counter in the window was Sarah. Staring back. Looking as though she’d been caught out. Completely busted, no less.

The reddened cheeks and guilty expression made a nice change. Put Rick back on the moral high ground, even. He revved the bike engine gently. Just enough to give him the momentum to turn and roll into the vacant spot beside Sarah’s car. It was too tempting not to rub her nose in it just a little.

‘Let’s go and say hello,’ he suggested to Josh. ‘I could do with a coffee.’

Sarah had known it was them as soon as she’d seen the bike rolling past the café window, slowing down for the intersection. Her heart had skipped a beat, seeing
the reality of the small figure on the back of the black monster of a bike.

Josh had spotted her and there had been that awful moment of waiting for Rick’s head to turn, knowing that he would think she was hanging around, spying on his lifestyle if not his person.

Her discomfort increased when she saw him turn the bike and park beside her car. Then he got off and pulled off his helmet and she saw this rugged man in his leather jacket and pants and heavy boots. The dark hair all tousled from the helmet removal. She couldn’t drag her gaze away as he stripped off his gloves and stuffed them into the helmet. He wasn’t smiling as he reached to lift Josh from the back of the bike but, perversely, that only made him seem more attractive.

A bad-boy biker. Dark and dangerous. But she could see the care he took in lifting Josh. The way he made it seem no big deal and not a putdown because of the boy’s size or physical capabilities. Sarah’s breath caught in her throat somewhere. She hardly knew Rick but she was getting the distinct impression that he was something rather unique. Special.

Josh looked tiny in his oversized clothes, needing both arms to carry the helmet inside, but there was something about them being dressed alike. It was more than the clothes, as it had been at the wedding. Something about the way they walked, maybe. An air of owning the space they were moving through. Sarah had the strange feeling that she was merely a guest in
their
café. That she was privileged to be here, in fact. Even the smiles that the man and boy greeted her were oddly similar.

I did it, Rick’s said. See? I’m not as bad as you think I am.

I did it,’ Josh’s said. See? It’s not as dangerous as you thought.

Rick ordered a short, black espresso and didn’t add any sugar. The remains of Sarah’s sweetened cappuccino suddenly seemed frivolous and feminine. Josh opted for a milkshake but Sarah shook her head when he asked if he could have some food from the cabinet.

‘It’s not that long till dinnertime,’ she said, despite feeling like a party-pooper. ‘You need proper food, not cakes.’

‘What’s on the menu, then?’ Rick queried.

They had taken the other stools at the counter and sat in a row, with Josh in the middle, but the boy was leaning forward, intent on holding his straw with no hands so Sarah and Rick had an almost clear space between them. Close enough to touch each other if they reached out, Sarah surprised herself by noticing.

‘Whatever Josh fancies,’ she said hurriedly. ‘As long as it’s real food and not junk.’

‘A hamburger,’ Josh said. ‘They never give you hamburgers in hospital.’

‘Hmm.’ Sarah put off having to debate the nutritional value of Josh’s choice. She smiled at him instead. ‘How was the ride, short stuff?’

‘Awesome. We went
really
fast.’

She couldn’t help firing an accusing glare at Rick but he was shaking his head slowly, unseen by Josh. The wry smile made it perfectly convincing.

‘I like the jacket.’

‘It’s Jet’s. He’s away rescuing soldiers in a helicopter.’

‘Wow. That sounds exciting.’

‘You should see Rick’s house, Sarah. He gets to watch the ships and cranes and everything. It’s cool.’

‘Is it?’ Sarah avoided looking at Rick this time. He might think she was angling for an invitation to visit his home. And she wasn’t. This was about him and Josh. She was only involved as a facilitator and that was fine by her.

Absolutely fine.

Had he said anything to Josh about their relationship? Unexpectedly, Rick saw the question in her gaze, as though he could read her thoughts. He looked uncomfortable and the subtle movement of his head was negative. Sarah jerked her gaze away, disappointed.

A silence fell. Josh’s initial enjoyment of the milkshake had waned and he seemed to become aware of the silence around him.

‘I have to go back into hospital on Monday,’ he announced.

‘I know,’ Rick said.

Of course he did. He would have an appointment to have his bone marrow collected within days of Josh’s admission. He was watching Josh at the moment, his expression curious.

‘Do you know what’s going to happen this time?’

‘Yeah. I’m gonna get radiated. I’ll prob’ly go green and start glowing.’

Rick grinned. ‘Maybe you’ll get a superpower at the same time and be able to hear stuff from miles away.’

‘Or go invisible.’ Josh nodded. ‘Or fly. That’d be cool.’

‘Sure would. Closest I get to flying is going fast on my bike.’

‘Like
we
did.’

‘Mmm.’ Rick’s glance at Sarah assured her he was only agreeing so he didn’t shoot Josh down. ‘Do you know why you’re getting the radiation?’

‘To kill my bone marrow,’ Josh told him. ‘I’ve got ALL. D’you know what that is?’

‘Tell me,’ Rick invited.

There was genuine interest in his tone. He wanted to know how much Josh knew about his illness. Sarah peered into her coffee cup and caught a bit of leftover cinnamon dusted froth on her finger. She licked it off and went back for more.

‘It’s acute lymphoblastic leukaemia,’ Josh said with careful pronunciation and obvious pride in his ability to remember.

‘What’s that?’

Josh rolled his eyes. ‘You should know. You’re a doctor.’

Rick grinned. ‘I do know. I was just wondering if
you
knew.’

‘‘Course I do. I’ve got it.’ Josh sighed with exasperation but co-operated anyway. ‘It means that my white blood cells are wonky and I get too many of them, which means there’s no room for good blood cells and it makes me really sick.’

Rick nodded. ‘Wish they’d made it sound that easy at med school.’

‘I might get fixed this time,’ Josh continued.
‘Because if I get good bone marrow, it might make white cells that aren’t wonky.’

Sarah watched Rick drain his small coffee cup as though he needed fuel.

‘It’s my bone marrow that you’ll be getting,’ he said to Josh. ‘It’s always done a pretty good job for me.’ A muscle in his jaw bunched. ‘You know why it’s
my
bone marrow that you’ll be getting, Josh?’

‘Yeah. You’re my dad.’

The statement was completely matter-of-fact but it hung in the air with all the presence of an unexploded bomb. This could be it, Sarah realised, unable to expel the breath she’d sucked in. Josh could be in for a rejection of anything but a genetic similarity.

‘Yeah…’ Rick said quietly. ‘I’m your father.’

The correction was subtle but significant. A dad was involved. Part of the son’s life. A father didn’t have to be.

‘I never knew,’ Rick added.

‘I know.’

‘It’s been a bit of a surprise, really.’

‘I know that, too.’ Josh tilted his head to scrutinise Rick’s face. ‘I don’t think you’re really scared, though.’

‘Who said I was?’

Josh turned away, clearly avoiding the need to make a response. He stared out of the window and his face suddenly lit up.

‘Look at that dog, Sarah.’

She looked. The dog was large and very scruffy. It sat on the footpath with its nose almost touching the glass, staring up at Josh.

‘Isn’t it
cool?’

‘Hmm.’

‘Can I go and pat it?
Please?’

‘Josh, you know you have to be careful of—’
Bugs,
she stopped herself saying.
Infection that could kill you so fast you wouldn’t know what hit you.
‘Strange dogs,’ she carried on in a slightly strangled voice. ‘They might bite.’

‘He
wouldn’t bite,’ Josh said with absolute conviction. ‘Look at him.’

She took a second glance. The dog’s tongue was hanging out. Its tail was sweeping a patch of the footpath clean. Josh was sliding down from his stool and Sarah was aware of Rick’s stillness. She could feel him staring at her. Clearly, he hadn’t been distracted by the dog’s appearance and was still stewing about who had told Josh he was a coward. Maybe an apology of some sort was due.

‘OK,’ she told Josh. ‘Just for a minute, though, and be
careful.’

The small boy streaked out of the door. Sarah met Rick’s gaze.

‘I told Josh how scary it was to have a kid land on your doorstep,’ she said cautiously. ‘To have your life tipped upside down and everything.’

Rick’s closed expression was a warning that he had no intention of letting that happen. It was a clear reminder of the terms he had set out and let her know that if the repercussions of those terms being broken were unfortunate, it wasn’t going to be his fault.

Sarah merely raised an eyebrow to remind him that the repercussions would affect him as well.

They both looked out of the window to where Josh was crouched beside the dog, hugging it. The dog wriggled with joy and sent a vast, pink tongue across the boy’s face. Sarah couldn’t help herself. She leaned forward and knocked on the window, shaking her head as Josh looked up. She could see the huge sigh he heaved and the difficulty with which he prised himself away from the dog. He even went back for a final stroke before he came back into the café. The dog watched until the door swung shut and then trotted away out of sight.

‘Come and finish your milkshake,’ Sarah told Josh. ‘We should probably head home. We’ve got a big day tomorrow.’

‘He didn’t have a collar,’ Josh said unhappily. ‘And he shouldn’t be running around on the road by himself, should he?’

‘Lots of dogs do that around here,’ Rick said. ‘I wouldn’t worry about it, buddy.’ He raised an eyebrow at Sarah, which seemed like a query about whether it would be a good idea to change the subject. Her nod of agreement was subtle.

‘So what’s on the agenda for tomorrow?’ Rick asked brightly.

‘Shopping, mainly,’ Sarah responded. ‘We’ve got some Harry Potter episodes to stock up on amongst other supplies. And I’m going to try and get hold of Josh’s teacher, Miss Allen, to get some work to pass on to the hospital tutor.’

‘What?’ Josh stopped leaning on the counter to peer hopefully out the window. He sounded aggrieved. ‘Do I have to do extra schoolwork?’

‘You don’t want to get too far behind, do you? For when you go back to school?’

‘I s’pose not. The other kids would think I’m dumb.’

‘You’re not dumb, buddy.’ Rick’s statement was firm and Sarah could see the way Josh straightened his back with pride.

‘Can we get a hamburger on the way home?’

‘Maybe.’

‘You said I could have whatever I wanted.’

‘As long as it’s proper food. Hamburgers are more like junk.’

‘Not all of them,’ Rick put in. ‘There’s a gourmet hamburger joint not too far from where we’re sitting, in fact.’

Sarah frowned. Was he trying to undermine parental boundaries that were hard enough to get established anyway?

‘You get things like fresh chicken breast with avocado and bacon,’ Rick said calmly. ‘Or steak. The one I like is grilled lamb with mint and cucumber yoghurt. And you can get kumera wedges instead of chips.’

Sarah’s mouth was watering.

‘I just want an ordinary hamburger,’ Josh complained.

‘These are better,’ Rick said in a tone that brooked no further argument. ‘Healthier. You can still get a beef and cheese burger.’

‘You seem to know the menu off by heart,’ Sarah said.

Rick shrugged. ‘Jet and I didn’t always have the time
or inclination to cook. And these are seriously good, take my word for it.’

But Sarah looked at her watch. ‘I don’t think we can,’ she said. ‘We need to get your bag, Josh. You’re due for all your pills.’

Rick barely hesitated. ‘How ‘bout we all grab some burgers and take them back to my place?’

Sarah’s hesitation was far more pronounced but Josh was nodding vigorously.

‘Yeah…that’s what
I
want to do. Please, Sarah? Can we? We might see that dog again near the hamburger shop.’

It had been the polite thing to do, inviting them back.

Maybe the invitation had been a form of expressing his relief at how easily a potentially awkward situation had come and gone.

Josh simply accepted the fact that Rick was his father as steadily as he appeared to deal with his illness. No recriminations. No promises extracted regarding future involvement.

It was easier to get along with the boy than his aunt but what prompted the invitation also included a kind of peace treaty. He could let go of the anger he’d been holding for Sarah. Yes, she had pushed him. Manipulated him. But he’d never have offered to spend time with Josh voluntarily, would he? And now it was done and there were no dark secrets and it all seemed much more straightforward and less threatening.

She had done the right thing, with no assistance from him, and Rick could only respect that.

So, here they all were, lounging in the comfortable
armchairs near the window, eating the enormous burgers and watching the lights come on all over the wharf as work continued into the night.

A bit different from sitting here with his mates, as he’d done so many times in the past, but it wasn’t as bad as he’d thought it could be. The company was quite pleasant, in fact. Not that he’d want it all the time, of course, but…now and again didn’t seem like it would be too much of a hardship.