Mel Black dabbed the corners of her eyes with a tissue and tossed it into the bin next to the bathroom sink. She’d always known that going to her dad’s funeral was going to be rough, but she hadn’t expected to feel so raw. The day they’d gone fishing together was supposed to be a day of bonding between the two. He’d chosen the activity, of course. She hated fishing. But if it meant that they could hash things out, if Mel could make her dad see that she was her own person instead of comparing her to her brothers all the time, then they might have stood a chance of salvaging their father-daughter relationship. No one knew that they’d argued that day, right before his heart gave out. She’d promised herself that she would keep that secret close to her, until the day she died herself. It was bad enough that her mother blamed her for his death purely because she was present when it happened.
Looking in the mirror, she saw him looking back at her, willing her to help the family business succeed. She’d never agreed with the criminal underworld lifestyle. It wasn’t something Mel had ever wanted to be a part of. But she’d always been outnumbered. Even her boyfriend was involved, had been from the minute he’d become friends with Donnie and Steff.
‘I’m sorry, Dad,’ Mel whispered, wiping her thumb under her eye, smudging the mascara tears that continued to fall.
A knock on the bathroom door sent a surge of adrenaline through her. She grabbed another tissue from the box at the side of the sink and dabbed at more tears. It was no use, they continued to fall.
‘Two minutes,’ she called out, hoping that whoever was on the other side of the door would take the hint and go to one of the other bathrooms in the house.
‘It’s me. Let me in, Mel.’
The sound of Cammy’s voice melted her, and she turned to unlock the door. Seeing the sympathy in his eyes made the waves of emotion come quicker and, as Cammy shut the door behind him, Mel fell into his arms and began to sob.
‘Hey,’ he whispered. ‘It’s okay.’ He ran his hand up and down her back, attempting to comfort her. It didn’t matter what anyone said or did at that particular moment, she couldn’t stop sobbing.
‘I’m sorry,’ she said.
‘Don’t apologise for grieving, Mel. Your dad has just died.’
Being in Cammy’s arms was a welcome comfort. She knew she could be herself around him and he wouldn’t judge.
‘I just feel like we wasted so much time when he was here, Cammy. He was always giving me a hard time about not being up to running the business with Donnie and Steff. And Mum was always judging me alongside him. I wish I could have changed for him.’
Cammy pulled away, held her face in his hands and sighed. ‘You didn’t have to change. I’m sorry to say it, Mel but if you weren’t good enough for him, that was his problem and above all else his loss. You know what he was like. He was always spouting about family coming first, but he always put business before family. Even Donnie and Steff know that.’
Mel took a deep breath. She didn’t want to speak ill of the dead, especially when the dead was her own dad. But Cammy was more than right; she just couldn’t stop the feeling of guilt when she thought about things that had happened in the past.
‘You know, I always kept my mouth shut when they talked business. I still do. But I don’t want to live this life, Cammy. Why don’t me and you just go away together, start somewhere new?’
Cammy’s eyes dropped away from her gaze and he let go of her. She knew what that meant.
‘I can’t just up and leave, Mel. You know we’re trying to make a go of the boxing firm, here.’
‘And you think Donnie and Steff are going to allow you to make that a priority? If it’s something that is going to directly affect the trading of Black Enterprises, then you know what he’ll say.’
Cammy sniggered. ‘He doesn’t have a choice, Mel. Just because he’s my mate doesn’t mean he can rule me.’
Mel shook her head. ‘But he’s not just your mate now, Cammy. He’s your boss. Now that Dad’s gone, he automatically steps into that role.’
Cammy raised a brow then softened his expression. ‘Look, I didn’t come in here to talk business. I came in here to check if you’re okay. Let’s go out there and get a drink, or some food? You’ve not eaten anything all day.’
He held out his hand, and she took it. Mel was happy to stop the conversation there. It wasn’t going in either of their desired directions. It would only lead to the same one they’d been having for months now.
‘I’m not hungry,’ she replied.
‘You don’t have to eat. We could go for a drive somewhere, get away from the funeral, the grief.’
‘Yeah, okay.’
They slipped out of her parents’ house and from the funeral wake unseen and got into Cammy’s car. She wanted Cammy to stop working with Black Enterprises. She wanted them to have a normal relationship, a normal life. But the mayhem of the criminal underworld in Glasgow was embedded in Cammy and in her family.