Free The Catch by Tom Bale Page B

than Dan, and that was Hayley Beaumont. Two years his junior, she had begun as a Saturday girl, aged fifteen, and then went full-time after leaving school a year later. She was a small, curvy, intense woman with dark wavy hair and warm brown eyes. She had doll-like features and a quiet, sensual manner which had disarmed Dan from the beginning, and which neatly camouflaged a will of iron.
    Their relationship had begun seven years ago, and for more than half of that period they’d rented a flat near Queens Park. Then, just under two years ago, they’d split up by mutual agreement, Dan returning to his aunt’s while Hayley first shared with a female friend before going back to her parents’ home in Newhaven.
    After six or seven months apart, during which time both of them had had a few casual dates, they had drifted back together. This time, however, they saw no point in renting: instead the seven or eight hundred pounds a month could be saved towards a deposit on a place of their own.
    Or on a coffee shop. Dan felt that should be the priority. In the long term they stood a better chance of buying a home if they could rely on the income from a flourishing business. Hayley hadn’t opposed the idea, but he was aware that she wanted to fit the acquisition of a business in and around buying a house, getting married and having babies.
     
    ****
     
    Today, because he had walked, Dan arrived later than usual. Hayley was waiting for him in the staff car park at the rear of the shop, sitting behind the wheel of her cherry-red Vauxhall Corsa.
    She looked startled when he came around the corner on foot, and it struck Dan just how much effort would be required to maintain the illusion of normality: not only with Hayley and his family, but with colleagues and customers, with everyone he encountered. Having to behave as though nothing in his world had changed fundamentally since the day before.
    He felt a surge of revulsion at the thought of kissing Hayley. He was unclean, contaminated by guilt and shame.
    Perhaps the fear showed in his face, because Hayley wore a deep frown as she emerged from the car. ‘What’s happened to you?’
    ‘Nothing. Why?’
    ‘You look terrible. Where’s your car?’
    In a flash of inspiration he tapped his temple: ‘Bad head.’
    ‘I thought you were driving last night?’
    ‘I was. We ended up in Hove. I got a cab back.’
    She clicked her tongue. ‘Cabs cost money, Dan.’
    ‘I know. Sorry.’ He forced a smile. When she took a step towards him he braced himself for a kiss, but instead she lifted her nose to his face and sniffed.
    ‘What?’
    ‘Checking your breath. Can’t have you breathing alcohol over the customers.’
    ‘Bloody hell, Hayley, I’m the manager.’
    ‘Exactly. It would look really unprofessional.’
     
    ****
     
    After Robbie had done wonderful things with his mouth and Bree had reciprocated with her usual enthusiasm, they both lay shoulder to shoulder on the bed, resting.
    ‘Jesus,’ he said. ‘You could win awards for the way you do that.’
    ‘You were a bit selfish today. I’d have liked it slower.’
    ‘Didn’t hear you complaining.’
    ‘Oh, you’re still good, babes. Could earn a fortune if you put your mind to it.’ A pause. ‘Except you don’t seem to need it any more.’
    ‘Not really.’
    ‘So what’s changed, then? Last week you were desperate to lay your hands on some cash.’
    ‘Had a bit of a windfall,’ he said. ‘A lucky bet.’
    ‘Oh yeah?’ He could tell Bree didn’t believe him, but she didn’t push it. ‘Anyway, it’s worth thinking about.’
    ‘What’s your obsession with this? Do you wanna be my pimp or something?’
    ‘Yeah, your business manager. Love it.’ She sniggered. ‘It’s just such an opportunity, you can’t let it go to waste. Jimmy’s got all these mates, and if you saw their wives ... Most of ’em are twenty, thirty years older than me, but all they talk about is sex . Lusting after their tennis coaches