Yesterday`s flower - Michelle Tarynne (fun to read TXT) 📗

Maybe it’s time for you to fall in love again. Just not with me.’

‘I’m not actually a piece of merchandise you can calmly pass on,’ Erika said. ‘And how do you know that Jared is even interested?’

‘Oh, he’s interested, all right. He hasn’t been out of the house so much in months. That’s his vague sense of conscience talking; giving us time alone,’ Max said, picking up the salad bowl to carry it to the kitchen. ‘I’m se ing you free of any obligations you might feel, Erika. The rest is up to you.’

♥

Angrily, Erika slapped acrylic on canvas, and found she was painting her first impression of Le Domaine.

Brookie lace and gables, ivy clinging determinedly up a wall. That impressive bougainvillea, and the Cyprus trees, thick and tall, planted too close to the house. She managed to capture the look of the paint peeling just under the gu er, now rusted. The weather vane she’d found so quaint as it twisted in the breeze, though it was depicted, she realised, slightly larger than it should have been.

Erika had thought of leaving. Packing her unimpressive belongings and returning to Scarborough. To England even. It was November, and she’d been in the Cape for just over four months. With a few meaningless shags to show for it, some paintings sold for much less than they would have fetched in England, and a book commission she wasn’t sure she should continue with.

And where did Max fit into all of this? Surprisingly, his a ention towards her didn’t seem to have changed, and the la e delivered as she painted suggested no hidden agenda.
‘Goodnight, then,’ Max said, placing the steaming mug on her bedside table.
Erika wanted to catch his hand but Max retreated, not even glancing at her work.
‘Goodnight, Max.’ She a empted a smile.
He’d smiled back, but with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

Erika went to bed smelling of soap, her hands raw from scrubbing the paint from her fingertips. She fell asleep half-listening for Jared, and at four she thought she heard the slam of a car door, keys in the lock and the squeak of footsteps on the wooden floor. But not in the direction of her room. Down the passage the shower squealed; there was the ba ering of uneven water pressure as she became more alert. He didn’t come, and she fell asleep, head half-cocked, waiting.

When she awoke, her head ached. She felt as though she’d been crying, but she didn’t remember any tears, not even in her dreams.

She dressed quickly, pulled on a pair of trainers and slipped out the front door bearing a bo le of mineral water and an apple from the kitchen. She wasn’t much of a runner, but she liked to walk. She ended up strolling through the vineyards and up into the mountain foothills, and she didn’t return for four hours.

♥

‘Where in God’s name have you been?’ Jared’s trousers were muddied, and he’d gouged out a chunk of skin from his arm.

Less forcefully but equally dirty, Max made a move towards her, but then stopped.
‘I went for a walk,’ Erika said.

‘A walk?’ Jared asked quizzically, as though he’d never heard of such a thing. ‘But you didn’t leave a note.’

‘I’m sorry, Jared. It was a spur-of-the-moment thing. I needed to ... clear my head.’ ‘Are you okay?’ Max asked.

‘I’m fine. Well, apart from a bit of sunburn and an a ack by rampant fynbos of some sort.’

Erika walked past inside, making her way towards the bedroom passage. She could sense their eyes on her, a silent exchange that had passed between the brothers.

It was Jared who followed her inside. ‘Erika,’ his voice caressed her back. ‘We were worried about you. I was worried about you.’
‘I already told you I’m sorry,’ she retorted.
‘Max told me what happened last night.’
‘Well, what did happen? Perhaps you can help me out?’

She felt Jared’s hands on her shoulders as he spun her around, gazing at her with his emerald eyes. His touch was rough and insistent and when he put his lips on hers, it was all she could do not to lose her balance completely. Jared’s mouth parted slightly, his tongue touching hers. Head spinning, knees weakening, she realised she was kissing Jared back, and with a hunger she hardly recognised.

‘Well, that’s se led then.’ Jared sealed their kiss with a pout. ‘What are we going to do for the rest of the day?’

But her pleasure was interrupted by the soft entry of Max’s shoes in the hallway. Self-consciously, she stepped back a li le.

‘So,’ he said. It came out like the sound of a throat being cleared. His face was inscrutable.

‘Erika’s going to stay,’ Jared said. ‘Aren’t you, Erika?’ She nodded.

‘That’s great news.’ The cheer in his voice either real or very well enacted. ‘So we’ll finish the book.’
‘Of course,’ Erika said. ‘We were doing so well.’

‘Have you seen her drawings, Jared?’ Max asked. ‘You won’t believe how’s she’s captured Grandpa.’

Jared nodded, but Erika wondered if it was with interest or dismissal. Either way, the comment reached a dead end.

‘Well, anyway,’ Max said. ‘I was coming inside to tell you that I’ve got to go into Cape Town to see the auditors again. You’ll be okay taking the day off, I think?’

Without warning, Jared thrust Erika over his shoulder. Seemingly oblivious to her shrieks and Max’s dismay, he charged with Erika down the corridor.

‘Don’t worry about us, Brother Max,’ Jared called. ‘I’m sure I’ll be able to entertain her until you get back.’

♥

It wasn’t just the sex, although the sex was phenomenal. Jared made Erika feel like she was completely captivating. When she spoke, he lay on his stomach, leaning his head on his hands to focus entirely on her. He made her laugh and his endless energy didn’t just mean

stamina in bed, but also gave her a refreshing outlook on what life was like as an eternal optimist. While Albert had been the sort of man with a solid foot on the ground at all times, Jared seemed to be in a continual bounce. Like Tigger, Erika thought, giggling. So Albert was Eeyore.

Jared was also extremely tactile. Even out of the bedroom, he always had a point of contact with her: a hand on her thigh, a foot against hers, fingers laced. She was in a constant state of ecstasy. That afternoon they made love in the vineyards (Merlot grapes, T4577) as the sun was just beginning to set.

‘Do you always bring your girlfriends here?’ Erika asked, straightening the picnic blanket he’d brought along.
‘Every relationship is unique,’ Jared replied, evasively.

And perhaps she didn’t really want him to answer. Jared slapped away a mosquito. ‘Maybe we should get back to the house,’ he said. ‘Rustle up something to eat.’

He drove them home through the vineyards as shadows began to dance. Erika liked the speed. It gave her an excuse to push against him, feel the solid contours she was ge ing to know. The fumes from the quad bike rose from the exhaust, but somehow this was not unappealing. She knew later, this would be a smell with totally new associations.
‘Good day?’ Jared asked her as he helped her off the bike.

Erika smiled. ‘You know, despite the fact you’re digging for compliments, I’ll have you know that you’ve totally lived up to my expectations.’

‘You had expectations?’ asked Jared, grinning. ‘You could have let me know a li le sooner. Think of all the time we’ve wasted.’

Though it was meant to be light-hearted, the comment made Erika think of Max. She looked for his car as they walked past the garage. Silent and still.
I’m going to let myself be happy, Erika thought. I deserve to be happy.

As Jared slipped his hand into hers, she neither flinched nor pulled away. I deserve to be happy, she told herself, repeating it like a mantra. I deserve to be happy… I deserve …

Chapter 13

 

It had felt to Erika that Jared had curled around her for most of the night, but by the time she awoke his side of the bed was cold.

In the kitchen, all she could make out was Prudie’s solid bulk as her flapping biceps stirred something on the stove. Erika was intimidated; she couldn’t deny that. There was something about Prudence’s eyes that drilled into her, making her feel decidedly small. She turned to escape back to her bedroom, but Prudence whirled round and gave Erika an all-knowing look.

‘Mr Max said to tell you that they’re at the mobile bo ling unit.’ No ‘good morning’ then.

‘Mr Max left a pot of coffee for you. I was going to bring it to your room, but you were still asleep.’
Even that sounded accusatory.

‘Thanks, Prudence.’ Erika tried a smile on the older woman. ‘I really appreciate it.’ Prudence snorted, her back once again to Erika. Resigning herself to the glacial

treatment, Erika pulled a banana from the fruit bowl, then cut it into some muesli, adding a dollop of plain yoghurt on top. Si ing at the kitchen table, she pulled a magazine in front of her and tried to read. She wondered if she should try to make things easier between her and Prudence. The way things had turned out, Erika wasn’t planning on going anywhere soon. But the wall of uniform kept her at bay. She just didn’t have the nerve.

♥

The sound of activity drew Erika closer.

She heard bo les sha ering, following by a torrid hurl of abuse. It didn’t sound like Max, and she couldn’?t really picture it being Jared. She turned the corner as Max approached from the opposite side, his forehead crunched in a worried frown.
‘Erika!’
‘Are you okay?’ Erika replied, seeing his expression.
‘I’m just going to check the bo le stocks up in the warehouse. Simon ...’

Erika nodded. ‘I heard glass breaking. Do you want me to come with you to count?’ It was the least she could do, she reasoned.
‘Sure, but don’t you want to say good morning to Jared first?’
She shook her head. ‘I don’t think he’s going anywhere,’ she replied.

They walked side by side to the warehouse. Max was silent, as though their once amicable conversation had become a chore. Erika again was aware how unalike he and Jared were – even the way they walked was different. Jared took large, quick strides, ge ing everywhere as fast as possible. Max’s set his pace to match hers, and he never seemed to be in a terrible hurry – despite what she now imagined was a crisis with the bo ling.
‘Is it serious?’ Erika asked, as Max bent to unlock the warehouse door.

He bent to examine why his key wasn’t inserting smoothly into the lock. He jiggled it and twisted the handle simultaneously. The door creaked open.

‘With a small range like this, there’s a chance that bo ling on different days could make a huge difference to the taste of the wine bo led later. Not to mention the fact that we’d

 

have to get the mobile unit in again – the additional cost would be enormous. Come inside.’ Erika followed Max, who peered into the darkness, feeling for a light switch.

‘Damn it, Jared,’ he mu ered tensely. ‘I told you to order extra.’ ‘Where do the bo les come from?’ Erika asked.

‘Cape Town. I could have