Second Time Around (10 page)

“What did you have to eat?” Alec asked, setting himself between Halley and Rufus as he followed her into the kitchen.

“I had the steak and it was delicious,” Halley murmured as she set her purse on the end of the kitchen bench. “Please excuse me. I want to check on Cassie.”

“She’s been down for about an hour,” Alec told her retreating back. When Halley was out of sight he spun around to face Rufus. “Why were you out so long? Did you have to catch your food before you could eat it?”

“The service was a little slow and we talked a lot,” Rufus said dismissively, trying not to smile at his partner. It was clear to him that Alec had feelings for Halley but Rufus knew that Alec wouldn’t act on them. Miranda’s behaviour had practically emasculated his friend and since his divorce Alec hadn’t dated anyone.

Rufus felt it was long past time Alec got past Miranda and after hearing Alec extol Halley’s virtues for weeks Rufus had thought she might be a good place to start. However he wasn’t going to set up his best friend with any woman without vetting her first.

He had been keen to meet Halley after reading the report Leonora had written. She seemed almost too good to be true, prompting him to want to check her out personally. While he and Alec had been working on the fence it had interested Rufus that Alec hadn’t seemed to like him flirting with her.

He had decided that he needed to know whether Halley returned Alec’s interest. And what better way to get to learn her thoughts about Alec than to take her out for dinner?

During their meal it became clear to Rufus that Halley held Alec in high regard which suited his purpose. He suspected they would eventually become a couple without his help but he was more than happy to be the catalyst if it would prod Alec into action a lot sooner.

After they had eaten he had insisted on taking Halley to a movie then had deliberately chosen a theatre in Warrawong so that they would have a long drive back to her house. Halley had fallen asleep with her head on his shoulder five minutes into the film so he hadn’t felt bad about choosing the thriller over the romantic comedy which had caught her interest.

Halley gave Alec a grateful smile when she returned to the room.

“She’s sleeping soundly,” she said, sounding relieved.

“Does she sleep through the night?” Rufus asked.

“No,” Halley and Alec replied together.

During the short silence that followed their answer Alec decided that Rufus had outstayed his welcome.

“You’ve got a long drive ahead of you,” he pointed out jovially to Rufus before Rufus could suggest a nightcap.

“That’s true,” Rufus agreed, tossing his car keys in the air and catching them. “I guess I had better be going.” He turned his attention to Halley. “Thank you for a wonderful evening. I hope we can go out again sometime.”

“I’d like that,” Halley said warmly, then smothered a yawn. “Excuse me. I’m not normally up so late.”

Rufus leaned forward and kissed her on the cheek.

“Thanks again,” he said then gave her his trademark smile that disappeared when Alec gave him a less than gentle nudge towards the door.

“Come on,” Alec said gruffly. “The door’s this way.”

Rufus pasted his smile back on and waved to Halley across the room as Alec herded him out to the hallway.

“What was that about?” Rufus demanded when they were both standing on the porch.

“She’s not for you.” Alec practically growled the words at him.

“She’s single,” Rufus pointed out.

“She’s got responsibilities,” Alec told him tersely.

“And they’re cute ones,” Rufus replied, deciding to bait him. “Relax Alec. I don’t mean to string her along. After getting to know her tonight my intentions are pure.”

“What do you mean by that?” Alec asked suspiciously.

“I intend to marry her.”

Alec stared at Rufus in shock for a moment then slowly relaxed.

“You’re kidding,” he muttered.

“No, I’m not,” Rufus replied, sounding almost earnest. “I would tick off all her great qualities but I’m sure you’re already aware of them. The fact she’s also talented actress could be very helpful in our sphere of business.”

Alec coughed to cover an involuntary laugh at Rufus’ mistake.

“Halley’s not an actress,” he corrected. “She’s a primary school teacher.”

“Do you remember that sci-fi movie trilogy
Escape from Razxif
?” Rufus asked, changing the subject.

“Yeah, it won a lot of awards. I think I recall seeing the movies,” Alec said, playing down how big a fan he was. He’d just started university when the first film had come out and he had been so taken with the story that he’d seen the entire trilogy multiple times and had bought it on DVD as soon as it was released. He also had it on Blu-ray but he didn’t feel it necessary to mention that.

“Halley was the Time-Sifting Princess,” Rufus said smugly.

“No way,” Alec said in disbelief. “The princess was about twelve at the beginning of the trilogy.”

“It can take a couple of years from being filmed to being released,” Rufus reminded him.

Alec conjured up the image of the Time-Sifting Princess and realised that the girl did bear an uncanny resemblance to Halley.

“After I met her this morning I felt as though I already knew her but I couldn’t figure out how. It took me until half way through dinner to place her face,” Rufus confided. “When I asked Halley if she had been the Time-Sifting Princess she admitted it was her.”

Alec didn’t like the idea that Rufus had learned something about Halley before he did.

“She could be teasing you,” he said.

“No. I don’t think so,” Rufus mused. “I asked her a few questions about how she got to star in such a big Hollywood blockbuster and she told me that part of it was filmed in New Zealand and a talent scout came to her school. Several girls from schools in the area were picked to try out for the part and she was the one who got it.

“I had loads of other questions I wanted to ask but she started talking about the kids and the topic didn’t come up again.”

Preoccupied by what he had just been told, Alec saw Rufus off cordially then returned indoors with a million questions running through his head.

The Time-Sifting Princess had been one of the main characters in the first two movies and he had expected her to wind up with the mercenary who had initially held her captive by the end of the third film. Instead the princess had been killed off near the beginning of the third movie and the story had finished with the mercenary ending up alone. It had made for a poignant ending but it wasn’t as satisfying as a happily-ever-after.

After he had locked the front door Alec turned around and found Halley standing at the bottom of the stairs with her high heels dangling from one hand. If she had heard their conversation she gave no sign of it.

“Would you mind if I gave you a house key and let you lock up?” she asked.

“You want me to stay here?” Alec asked, wondering whether he had missed something.

Halley gave him a tired smile.

“No, I’m exhausted. I was hoping that you’d hang around here long enough to ensure I make it to the top of the stairs without falling over.”

“Do you want me to help you to your bedroom?”

Halley considered his question for a moment.

“Yes please. If it isn’t too much trouble,” she said, rubbing her back.

“No problem,” Alec said, taking the shoes from her. He gently led her up the dark stairs. At the top he followed her to her room where she switched on the light.

Alec hadn’t spent any time wondering about the room she slept in but when he saw it he knew it wasn’t what he would have pictured. There was a stack of boxes in one corner and on one wall was a large photo of Krystal in her wedding gown. The surfaces of the tall boy and dresser were clear apart from a smaller framed photo of a younger Krystal hugging a teenage Halley to her side. To him, the setup seemed temporary.

Halley dumped her shoes in the closet and looked towards the en suite almost longingly. Alec guessed she usually showered last thing at night once the children were taken care of so in the morning she could hit the ground running.

“I’d be happy to hang around while you have a shower,” he said. “I wouldn’t want you to fall over and not be able to get up after getting this far.”

Halley gave him a small smile.

“I appreciate this. I promise I won’t be long.”

She almost staggered into the en suite and closed the door. Alec waited until he heard the shower turn on before crossing the room to take a closer look at the photo on the dresser. Picking it up, he examined Halley’s younger face beaming out at him. Rufus had been right. She had been the Time-Sifting Princess. Now that he knew he couldn’t believe he hadn’t seen it straight away.

He set the photo back on the dresser then wandered around the room. Apart from the photo there weren’t any other personal effects of Halley’s lying around. Maybe she hadn’t got around to completely unpacking yet but Alec didn’t think that was the reason as the photo of her with her sister had been set out on the dresser.

Looking about, he took satisfaction in realising there weren’t any signs of Halley’s deceased husband in the room. No photos, love letters or even jewellery. Had Rob Clarke worn a wedding ring in the photo in the boys’ room? Alec couldn’t remember.

He wondered if anything to do with Rob Clarke’s presence in Halley’s life had been kept out of sight because it was her way of dealing with his death.

After a few moments considering that thought he decided that it didn’t sit right. It was because of the photos of Krystal she kept on display. Alec knew that Halley had loved her older sister and missed her presence keenly.

He stepped over to a box, lifted up a flap and peered in. A daisy covered photograph album sat on top of other wrapped objects. Feeling as though he had hit the jackpot, Alec picked it up and opened it.

The ones at the front of the album were discoloured as though they’d been left out in the sun until they had begun to fade. They were mostly of Krystal and Halley although there were a few that included an older woman too. Their mother Chantelle?

As he flicked through the pages he couldn’t help but notice the height difference between Halley and her sister. Krystal had to have been a few years older than her. He came across one of Halley all made up in costume where she was sitting in a director’s chair sipping out of a bottle labelled Pinto. Any doubts he may have had that she was the Time-Sifting Princess disappeared.

Under all that makeup she looked a lot older than she was at the time, he decided. Amongst the photos that followed were ones of her, Krystal and the older woman with some of her co-stars from the movie. His gut inexplicably tightened when he came across one of her in the arms of a laughing, young and handsome Riker Sell who played the mercenary.

After the end of filming for that franchise he had gone on to bigger and better things. He was now the go-to leading man for big budget Hollywood action movies. Alec had little interest in Riker Sell’s career but couldn’t help but keep up with it because his face was always plastered on the covers of women’s magazines which were unavoidable in supermarket checkout queues. Feeling a little disgruntled he turned the page.

There were more photos of sets from the film and of Halley with other people involved with it. Alec didn’t recognise any of them and guessed that they must have worked behind the scenes.

He heard the shower shut off and started flicking through the pages faster. More photos of Halley filming the sequel judging by what she wore. Towards the end of the album he saw photos of Halley from the beginning of the third movie. He came across a full length one of her with Riker Sell that looked to have been taken by a professional. Her body was now that of a young woman and their pose hinted at something sexual in their relationship.

The en suite door opened behind him and Alec dropped the album into the box as though he had been scalded. He pressed the box flap down over it and spun around guiltily.

Halley was running a comb through her hair and hadn’t noticed what he had been doing.

“Thank you,” she said with a yawn. “I think I’ll be okay now.”

As she sat on the side of the bed Alec noticed her t-shirt twitch where the baby was kicking. While Miranda had been pregnant with Em he had been working long hours for his father-in-law who had been dangling an offer of partnership if he brought in enough clients. Miranda had felt she came second to his career and had punished him by not involving him with anything to do with her pregnancy. As a result he had only felt Em kick twice, both times by chance while Miranda was sleeping.

“May I?” he asked and held his hand out.

“Sure,” Halley said, knowing what he wanted. She leaned back against the pillows and took his hand. Her fingers felt warm and soft as she placed his hand over the side of her belly. Alec felt soft thumps against the palm of his hand and shared a smile with her. After half a minute the thumps stopped and Halley shifted his hand to another position.

“Do you have a name for the baby?” he asked as he felt something press against the palm of his hand. A foot? An elbow?

Halley shook her head.

“No,” she murmured. “I haven’t really had time to think about it.”

It seemed an odd thing to say when Alec thought she appeared to have only a couple of months to go but he nodded as if in agreement then returned his attention to the movement under his hand.

The baby continued to stretch and Alec savoured the contact.

“He’s really moving around in there,” he said softly after another minute of feeling the baby’s calisthenics. When Halley didn’t respond he glanced up and discovered that she’d fallen asleep.

Feeling a little guilty that he had imposed on her when she was so obviously exhausted, Alec reluctantly took away his hand from where the baby was still kicking. He stood up, gently picked up Halley’s feet and slid them onto the bed.

As he headed towards the bedroom door he finally noticed how hot it was in the room. He opened a window then turned on the ceiling fan so that she could hopefully sleep in comfort.

He briefly checked the children were all sleeping soundly before he headed downstairs. On his way down he made a mental note to somehow change the light bulb after work tomorrow. The steps would have been treacherous without the light left on in the entry to guide him.

Since he had Halley’s house key he let himself out the front door so he wouldn’t disturb Cassie asleep in her bassinette in the lounge.

Hours later Alec woke to the sound of a baby crying coming through his open window. He waited a minute for the cries to abate but if anything they became more intense. He sat up in bed and switched on his bed light. It was possible that Halley could be sleeping through the racket Cassie was making. She had been incredibly tired. Then a more sinister thought came to mind. Had she fallen down the stairs?

Concerned, he pushed off the sheet that he must have pulled up while sleeping and headed for the door. When he got to the top of the stairs he marched back to his bedroom, tugged open a drawer and yanked on a pair of boxers and a t-shirt.

Setting off again he snagged Halley’s house key on his way out the back door. If Halley was still asleep there was the remote possibility that he could take care of Cassie without waking her up. As he stalked across the back yard and through the gate to Halley’s property her neighbour over the back fence slammed a window shut.

A streetlight from the cul-de-sac over the back fence gave him enough light to navigate Halley’s backyard in the dark. Even so he still stumbled over a tennis ball.

Making it onto her back deck he unlocked the ranch slider with the key. Alec knew that Halley was up because light seeped between the curtains. The moment he slid the door open Buddy scrambled out to greet him then took off into the dark. Having a fair idea of what the dog was heading for Alec slid the door shut behind him and engaged the latch lock for good measure.

Pressing past the curtains he discovered Halley jiggling a screaming Cassie in her arms.

“I don’t know what to do,” Halley told him, sounding distressed. “She’s not interested in a bottle.”

Cassie’s little legs were tucked up against her chest and her face a blotchy red.

“She might have colic,” Alec said, thinking that Cassie’s posture seemed familiar. Em had suffered from colic during her first few months and that had been the one thing that Miranda had been happy to have him take care of without her input.

“What do I do?” Halley cried.

“Give her to me,” Alec said, and took Cassie from Halley’s arms before she could object.  He made Cassie’s legs straddle the inside of his elbow and pressed the palm of his hand against Cassie’s cheek then slowly lowered his hand until her head was a little lower than her belly. He then rubbed his fingertips over her back in small circles.

“What’s all this noise about?” he asked Cassie in a soothing voice as he continued to rub her back. After a long minute she gave a small belch and the crying tailed off to a whimper.