Classic Bestsellers from Josephine Cox: Bumper Collection

Making the last entry into the ledger, Kathy glanced up at the clock. It was pointing to midday. ‘My God! I didn’t realise it was that time!’ Closing the ledger, she helped Rosie hang the many keys in their rightful place on the board.

Just then, the weekend shift arrived to take over. ‘Fancy a drink before you get off?’ At the minute, Rosie was without a man-friend and, as she had told Kathy many a time, her family were too far away for her to visit too often. ‘I’ve a thirst on me like a navvy,’ she said. ‘Will ye join me in a little drink?’

Going through the main bar, they ordered their drinks – a Bacardi for Rosie, and a long cool glass of orange for Kathy. ‘Look, I’m a bit short o’ cash,’ Rosie began.

‘Don’t worry.’ Kathy was used to Rosie’s excuses and, as always, she discreetly brushed it aside. ‘This is my treat.’ The sad truth was that Rosie liked a drink too much. She’d be paid on a Friday and, after a wild night out in Weymouth, she’d have to scrimp and save for the whole week. But Kathy didn’t hold that against her. She knew all too well what it was like to be lonely, and if that was how Rosie coped, then it was nobody’s business but her own.

When the drinks arrived, they carried them outside to the terrace. ‘It’s getting chilly.’ Rosie took a great gulp of her drink. ‘Come September, there doesn’t seem to be the same warmth in the sun. Don’t ye think so, Kathy?’

Glancing up at the drifting clouds, Kathy agreed, though, ‘I hope we haven’t seen the last of summer just yet,’ she mused.

Sitting there, lazily chatting with her new-found friend, Kathy thought she had never been happier. Now, as the clouds shifted and the sun struggled through, she looked across at the harbour and the people strolling by. An image of Tom suddenly came into her mind. She felt her face flush.

‘Penny for them?’ Rosie’s voice interrupted her thoughts.

Kathy apologised. ‘Sorry, Rosie. I was miles away.’

‘Huh! Sure, I could see that for myself.’ She took a swig of her drink. ‘Was it your man ye were thinking of?’

Kathy blushed again. ‘What man?’

Rosie gave a wry little smile. ‘Ah, sure didn’t I see him walking you home from work the other night, and didn’t the stars sparkle in your eyes when you looked up at him?’

Kathy laughed. ‘Nonsense!’ she said firmly.

‘Ah well, we’ll see about that,’ Rosie declared. ‘I’m just a born romantic, me.’ Taking another swig of her drink, she asked, ‘So he’s not your man, then?’

Kathy was slow to answer, because she wasn’t at all sure what she felt, never mind what his intentions were. ‘He doesn’t say much about the way he feels,’ she said finally. ‘He hardly ever talks about himself, or his past. I’m not sure he views me as anything more than a friend.’

‘What do you feel about him?’ Once Rosie had a drink inside her, there were no boundaries to what she might say. Besides, she had come to like Kathy a lot, and wanted her to be happy.

Kathy thought. ‘I really like him,’ she said, ‘but sometimes I wish I didn’t.’ No sooner were the words out than she regretted them; she realised she did want to be more than his friend.

‘Have ye told him?’

‘No.’

‘Why not?’

‘Because there’s something about him … some private thing that makes me keep a distance. When we’re together I feel he needs to talk, but then he suddenly clams up and that’s that.’

‘He’s got troubles of a kind … is that what you’re saying?’

‘I’m not sure. All I know is, we have been alone on a few occasions, but sometimes he seems to be somewhere else … miles away. Yes, he does seem to be troubled about something, and though I feel he wants to discuss it, he doesn’t seem able to.’

‘Do you think he is keen on you?’

Kathy smiled at the prospect. ‘Like I say, I’m really not sure.’

‘Why don’t ye ask him?’

Kathy shook her head. ‘I can’t do that.’

‘Why not? You want to know where ye stand, don’t ye?’

‘Not if it frightens him off.’ Leaning forward, Kathy said quietly, ‘Oh, Rosie! He seems such a special man, I’m afraid to spoil it.’

Not wanting to step over that line between concern and interference, Rosie backed off. She could see how deeply Kathy felt about Tom.

They both relaxed, drinking their drinks and, for a time, content to watch the world go by.

While Rosie dreamed of love won and lost, Kathy thought about Tom and how he did seem haunted by something. But she never doubted his love for her, not really, because she sensed it every time he looked at her.

Just then Rosie voiced what was on Kathy’s mind. ‘Is he married, d’ye think?’

‘I don’t think so.’ Kathy was quick to answer. It was good to discuss it with Rosie, as long as she could be discreet. ‘I’m sure Jasper would have mentioned his wife if he had one.’

‘Have you ever seen him with a woman?’

‘Never.’

‘Have ye been to his house?’

‘No.’

Rosie thought on that for a minute before stating the obvious: ‘He could be hiding something.’

‘Such as what?’ Kathy didn’t care much for this line of thought, but she had to admit to herself that all these things had already crossed her mind.

‘I wouldn’t know,’ Rosie answered, ‘but if I were you, I’d find out before ye get too deep in love it breaks your heart.’ She paused for a minute, her mind wandering back over the years. ‘I’ve been through all that, and I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy.’

‘I know what you mean, Rosie,’ Kathy replied quietly. ‘And I appreciate you worrying about me.’ She had told Rosie that she was divorced, that Dan had left her, and she knew her new friend was looking out for her. She gave a whimsical smile. ‘But the truth is, I think about him when I go to sleep, and when I wake, and all day long he’s never far from my mind.’

Rosie groaned. ‘Dear mother of God, you’re a lost cause, so ye are.’

Kathy laughed. ‘Thanks for that!’ Taking a long gulp of her drink, she then confided, ‘Jasper goes in Tom’s house often. He’d know if Tom was hiding anything.’

‘Is Jasper that old fella with the beard and whiskers … a kind of rough-looking Father Christmas?’ Rosie asked.

Kathy laughed. ‘He’s the one. The best friend a man could ever have, that’s what Tom says, and I agree with him.’

Rosie nodded. ‘I’ve passed the time of day with him myself. He’s a lively old bloke … always ready to set the world to rights.’ She was curious. ‘How well d’you know him, then?’

‘He just kind of turned up on my doorstep. He saw me there and we got talking. Apparently, he knew about my father and Liz. He helped me to get myself sorted out with the house and everything, and now he comes round often. It was Jasper who organised the outing to Weymouth the other week, you know, when Tom bought the sailing boat.’ She’d told Rosie all about that special day.

‘Did Tom seem keen then?’

‘He seemed to like talking to me on the bus. And he told me what a lovely time he’d had.’