The Rock'n'Roll Romance Box Set (Pam Howes Rock'n'Roll Romance Series) (5 page)

‘Come here, son.’ Eddie swept him
up. ‘It’s nearly bedtime. Mummy says I stink. You can share a bath with me and
we’ll sail your boat.’ He turned to Angie who was wiping her eyes on the tea
towel. ‘This has to stop happening in front of Jonny. He’s shaking, poor kid.’

‘Well you started it by implying
my friends are witches.’

‘For God’s sake, Angie it was a
bloody joke. Can I help it that you don’t have a sense of humour?’ Sighing, he
carried Jonny off to the bathroom and yelled over his shoulder, ‘Stick my tea
in the oven, please.’

The mood
she
was in tonight there was no way he was telling her he’d lost
his job until he’d thrown a few more pints down his neck. She’d be chucking
more than plates at him later.

***

Eddie walked into the kitchen, a
towel wrapped around his middle, carrying a freshly-bathed and pyjama-clad
Jonny. He watched Angie tip the sausages into the bin. ‘Why have you chucked
them away?’

‘They were burnt. I went into the
bedroom and forgot all about them.’

‘So, no tea again?’ He shook his
head and put Jonny down. ‘It would be nice to come home to a hot meal
occasionally. I suppose it’ll have to be fish and chips on my way home from
night-school.’

‘I can do you some baked beans
and there are still the potatoes,’ she offered.

‘Forget it. They’ll be cold by
now.' He looked closely at her tearstained face. ‘This can’t go on. We need to
talk. I mean seriously, without the bawling and shouting.’

‘I know we do. Maybe later? I’ll
warm Jonny’s milk and then sort my face out before Cathy arrives.’

‘Shall I expect some pain around
my nether regions tonight?’ he said as she poured milk into a saucepan.

‘What do you mean?’

‘I mean, when Cathy gets out the
effigy of me that she’s made. She’ll probably stick a big pin right where it’ll
hurt most.’

‘Don’t start again about
witches.’

‘I’m trying to lighten the bloody
mood here, that’s all!’ He stomped off in the direction of the bedroom.

‘Oh, Jonny, what will we do with
your Daddy?’ Angie picked him up and cuddled him. ‘Let’s make your milk and get
you to bed.’

‘No cry, Mamma.’ Jonny stroked
her wet cheeks as she ran her hands through his dark curls. ‘Dadda sorry.’

‘Is he? I don’t think so somehow.
But that’s not your problem, little man.’

***

CHAPTER
FOUR

Eddie drummed his fingers on the
table as
The Rolling Stones
I Wanna Be Your Man
blasted from the
jukebox. He felt relaxed and almost sleepy, sitting by the roaring log fire, in
the Royal Oak’s smoky lounge. He
swallowed the last of his pint and waved at Sammy and Roy who had just strolled
in. ‘Over here!’ he shouted, above the noise of the music.

Eddie thought the tall, slender
pair made a great looking couple with their matching black leather coats, red
and white striped scarves flung casually around their necks. His mate bore more
than a passing resemblance to Elvis, with thick black hair and smouldering
brown eyes while Sammy could pass for a brunette Bardot any day.

‘Your usual, Ed?’ Roy
called from the bar as Sammy made her way over.

‘Please, Roy.’
He stood up to greet Sammy and kissed her on the cheek. She sat down opposite,
flicked her long hair over her shoulders, and removed her scarf and gloves.

‘It’s bloody freezing out there,
but that’s a nice cosy fire.’ She rubbed her hands together. ‘It’s busy in here
tonight.’

‘Most of them will be off to the
flicks shortly,’ Eddie said. ‘
Dr
Strangelove’s
on at the Plaza this
week.’

‘We’re going to see it on
Friday,’ Sammy said. ‘You look a bit brassed off, Ed. Another row with the
lovely Angie, perhaps?’

‘Is it that obvious?’

‘Why do you put up with her
moods? Leave her. It’s not working. Don’t you think you’ve given it long
enough?’

He shrugged. ‘I stay because of
Jonny. She won’t let me see him if I walk out.’

‘She can’t stop you. You’re
Jonny’s father.’

Roy
made his way over with a tray of drinks.

‘Here you go. Get that down you.’
He slapped Eddie on the back. ‘You look like you need it.’

‘He’s had another row with
Angie,’ Sammy said. ‘She won’t let him see Jonny if he leaves her.’

‘She can’t stop you seeing him,’ Roy
said and sat down.

‘That’s what I told him.’ Sammy
picked up her drink and took a sip.

‘See a solicitor,’ Roy
advised. ‘Find out how you’d be fixed if you did a bunk. You were bloody daft
to marry her. Other blokes clear off. Phil Jackson’s put two birds in the club
since he joined
The Raiders
. He
denies responsibility. Tells them he’s sterile due to mumps as a kid.’

‘And the crafty sod backs it up
with a forged doctor’s letter,’ Sammy chipped in.

‘If he can get away with it, good
luck to him,’ Eddie said. ‘Anyway, what’s this news guaranteed to put a smile
on my face? Because believe me, I could do with something good happening in my
life.’

‘All in good time,’ Roy
said, taking a lengthy swig of beer. He offered Eddie a cigarette and lit up
himself. He took a long drag and blew a circle of smoke. ‘My halo! Remember the
last year at school when we failed our O levels? But we learnt to blow perfect
smoke rings, formed
The Raiders
and
knew all the words to
Johnny B.
Goode.
That’s what
I
call education.
’
He
took another swig of beer and smiled. ‘There’s a couple of things I want to
talk about, but first things first. Me and Sam went to The Lakes last weekend.
Posh hotel, four-poster, the works. We planned a perfect night of pure lust but
spent it in separate rooms.’

‘Why would you do that?’ Eddie
frowned.

‘Because a certain young lady of
our mutual acquaintance dumped her fiancé on Saturday night. I ended up looking
after her ex to make sure he didn’t top himself, and my lovely, sexy Sammy here
spent the night looking after Jane.’

‘Jane?
My
Jane!’ Eddie exclaimed. ‘She’s finished with Fisher? I don’t
understand. I thought she was dead happy with him.’

‘Well.’ Roy
took another drag. ‘The reason she dumped him is because she’s still in love
with you, Ed.’

‘No! She hates me for putting
Angie in the club.’

Roy
related the happenings of the weekend and finished, ‘Jane asked if you’d call
her tomorrow. Get together and talk. You could meet up occasionally for a bit
on the side.’

Eddie shook his head slowly.
‘Jane’s worth more than that. Leave it with me. I’ll work something out. I
can’t believe she’s got rid of Fisher.’

‘She’s been fed up for a while,’
Sammy said. ‘But
you
sending her that
card at Christmas started the real rot setting in.’

Eddie felt his cheeks warm and he
grinned. ‘I had to let her know I still cared.’

‘Well, it worked. Here’s Tim and
Pat.’ Sammy waved to a tall, blonde-haired, leather-clad couple that had
strolled in and were standing by the bar. ‘They look a bit windswept.’

‘They’ll have come on the bike.’ Roy
held up his glass. ‘Two pints of mild and a ’Cardi and Coke please, Tim.’ He
tossed a coin in Pat’s direction. ‘Stick some Cochran on the jukebox. It’s too
quiet in here.’

‘Yes, your Lordship!’ Pat’s blue
eyes twinkled as she caught the shilling piece, dropped a mock curtsey and
chose a selection. She bent to kiss Eddie and Roy
as the jukebox burst back into life and Eddie Cochran belted out
Summertime Blues
. ‘It’s really nice to
see you again, Ed. We miss you.’

‘Not half as much as I miss you
lot.’

It was good to be surrounded by
his mates. It didn’t happen often enough. Angie preferred the company of her
own friends. She expected him to spend time with them. Not that he had much in
common with a bunch of posey hairdressers, but it kept the peace.

Tim carried the tray of drinks
over. ‘Good to see you, Ed.’

‘And you, mate.’

Tim turned to Roy.
‘You told him the good news?’

‘Yeah! He’s gonna give Jane a
call. I wanted to wait until you got here before I dropped the next bit on his
toes.’

‘Great,’ Tim and Pat chorused and
flopped down next to Eddie.

‘Right,’ Tim said. ‘We’re here
now, so get on with it. He’s looking puzzled.’

‘We’ve got a proposition for you,
Ed,’ Roy began. ‘We’re not happy
with Kris on drums. I know you can’t afford another kit at the moment, but we
wondered if you’d consider re-joining
The
Raiders
as a singer alongside me. Our duets always went down a bomb. We
miss having you on stage with us.’

‘We’ve a gig at Mario’s this
Saturday,’ Tim said. ‘He’s extended into the premises next door. It’s the
re-opening night.’

‘It’s called The Roulette Club
now,' Roy added, as Eddie’s face
lit up. 'It’s really smart with proper dressing rooms for the artistes. Much
better than that stinky old room we used to get changed in. So, what do you
think? I’ll pay you a fair share of our wages of course. Perhaps you could save
up for another kit or get one on the drip and pay for it with your gig money.
Tim’s just got a new bass and it’s only a couple of quid a month.’

‘Fuck! Shit!’ Eddie almost
dropped his pint. ‘Are you taking the piss? Of course I want to get back with
the group. To be honest I could use the money. I got sacked today.’

‘What did Angie say about you
losing your job?’ Sammy asked.

‘Haven’t told her yet. I’m
feeling overwhelmed with all this news, not to mention pissed. I’m drinking on
an empty stomach. I’ll get something to eat on the way home.’

‘Finish your drink. We’ll take
you for a curry, our treat,’ Roy
offered. ‘You need feeding up a bit. You’re far too skinny these days.’

‘You
have
lost loads of weight,’ Sammy said. She leant across and pushed
his floppy fringe off his face. ‘Mind you, the lean look suits you. You’ve
still got that lovely dimple in your chin and your eyes look bluer than Paul
Newman’s.’

‘So, Sam, you reckon Jane will
fancy this leaner me?’ Eddie teased. ‘I mean, I’m half the man she used to
love.’

‘Most definitely,’ she replied.
‘Give her a call tomorrow and arrange to meet her.’

‘Oh fuck the consequences! I’ll
do it.’

Roy
raised his glass in a toast. ‘Here’s to the future! Come on, sup up. Let’s go
and get that curry. Leave your bikes in the car park. You can collect them
tomorrow and we’ll take a taxi home.’

‘Thanks for a great evening.’
Eddie swayed as he stood up.

Tim caught his arm. ‘It’s not
over yet, mate.’

***

‘You been crying?’ Cathy peered
closely at Angie who dropped an armful of ironing on the kitchen table.

‘Yes,’ she sniffed and ran a hand
over her eyes. ‘I had a row with Ed.’

‘Another?’ Cathy said, helping
her sort the clothes into a tidy pile. ‘You shouldn’t have married him. You
can’t go on like this.’

‘I know. But what can I do? He
just blames
me
all the time for the mess we’re
in. He knows I have to look nice for work, yet he begrudges every penny I spend
on clothes.’

‘He does have a point. You spend
a fortune. Look at this lot. I’ve never seen you wear half of these.’ Cathy
shook her head. ‘If you spent less on clothes and shoved some money in the
bank, you and Ed could soon be moving from this awful flat and things might
improve between you. He shouldn’t blame you though,’ she added, in a kinder
tone as Angie’s eyes filled with tears again. ‘If he’d taken precautions you
wouldn’t be in this mess.’

‘Yeah, then I’d have been free to
see Richard again,’ Angie said quietly, chewing her lip.

‘Richard? Richard Price?’ Cathy’s
eyebrows shot up. ‘Is
he
back on the scene? I thought he was living in Wales?’

‘He was, but his marriage didn’t
work out. He’s back at the salon as our head stylist.’ Angie wound a curl
around a finger and lowered her eyes. ‘I had lunch with him today.’

'Hope lunch was all you had?’

‘Cathy.’ Angie blushed. ‘I’m a
married woman.’

‘You had a fling with Richard
before you married Eddie. You weren’t even sure that Jonny was Ed’s.’

‘Of course he’s Ed’s. It was only
the once with Richard. Ed doesn’t know and he mustn’t find out. He’d go bloody
mad.’

‘Well he’s had
his
share of flings.’

‘No, he hasn’t. There was only
Jane and me.’

‘Huh, and the rest,’ Cathy
snorted.

‘That’s just not true,’ Angie
said. ‘He wouldn’t.’

‘He would, but let’s not argue
about him. He’s not worth it. Dry your eyes while I stick these clothes in the
airing cupboard and we’ll open that bottle of Blue Nun I brought and you can
tell me all about your lunch date with the handsome Richard before the others
arrive.’

***

Eddie clambered out of the taxi
and shouted goodbye as it sped off into the night. He looked up and waved at
Angie and Cathy who were glaring at him from the kitchen window. ‘Fucking
hell,’ he muttered. ‘What’s up with her face now?’ He fumbled in his jeans
pocket for his key and climbed the stairs to the flat. He dropped the key and
was on his knees, scrabbling around, when the door opened and Angie appeared,
arms folded a peeved expression on her face. He could see Cathy hovering behind
as he struggled to his feet, swaying slightly. ‘Evening, ladies.’ He pushed his
way past them into the hall, kicked off his shoes and flung his jacket on the
floor.

‘You’re pissed,’ Angie snapped.
‘Why were you in a taxi? Where’s your bike and where have you been?’

‘I’m not pissed and which bloody
question would you like me to answer first?’ he slurred, wobbling into the
kitchen. ‘Coffee?’ He waved the kettle in their direction. ‘Bike’s in the pub
car park and I’ve been for a curry with Roy, Sammy, Tim and Pat.’

‘What about night school?’ Angie
shouted.

‘Yeah!’ Cathy folded her arms.

‘Christ, have I got two fucking
wives now?’ He placed the kettle on the stove and belched loudly. ‘Couldn’t be
bothered going to night school. And don’t shriek like a banshee, you’ll wake
Jonny.’ He turned his back on them.

‘Well, I’m waiting,’ Angie said.
‘
Why
didn’t you go to night school?’

‘Had something more important to
do.’ He lurched towards a chair. ‘Make me a black coffee, Cath, I need to sit
down.’

‘Before you fall down, you mean,’
Angie said. ‘You’ll never get a decent job if you fail your exams. How can
getting drunk be more important than that?’

‘I’m re-joining
The Raiders
,’ he announced. ‘Singing for
now until I can afford a new drum-kit. That’s more important to me than a
so-called decent job. Fag, Cath?’ He waved the packet in her direction.

‘I don’t smoke,’ she replied,
banging a mug down on the table and slopping coffee over the sides. ‘Make your
own bloody coffee next time.’

‘Whoops, temper, temper. I forgot
you don’t smoke, Little Miss, I’ve No Vices!’ He tried to light his cigarette
but dropped the lighter.

‘Don’t you be so rude to Cathy.’
Angie picked up the lighter and threw it at him. It hit the side of his head
and bounced onto his knee. He tried again to light up and succeeded while she
ranted on. ‘And you can forget about re-joining
The
Raiders
, or buying
another drum kit.’

He slammed his fist on the table.
‘Don’t you fucking tell me what I can and cannot do! Who the hell do you think
you are?’

‘Your wife, in case you’d
forgotten.’

‘Wife! Wife? Where did you get
that notion? You can’t cook. The flat’s a pigsty, and when was the last time
you let me into our bed?’ He turned to Cathy with a smirk. ‘We haven’t had a
shag for bloody months. But I expect you know that, seeing as she tells you
everything.’ He ignored her blushes and Angie’s embarrassed gasp and continued.

‘She couldn’t get enough of me in
the early days. Wasn’t fussy where I screwed her. But now, well, she’s just a
frigid cow who makes me sleep on the sofa!’ He stood up, grabbed Angie by the
shoulders and backed her against the wall. He tried to kiss her and forced his
leg between her thighs. She screamed and pushed him away. ‘See what I mean?
Frigid!’