Bobby had left the yard in such a hurry he’d forgotten to hand in his clocking-off board. Davey hung out of the window, shouting to catch his attention, but it was no good. Bobby couldn’t hear, and even if he had heard, he wouldn’t have gone back. There was no time to lose. Why he hadn’t done this before, he did not know. It was like everything had come to him in one fell swoop. Seeing Toby had somehow pulled away the chocks and now he was off there was no stopping him.
Racing towards the ferry landing and seeing the boat pull away, he leapt on board, grabbed the railings and climbed over the entrance barrier. Stan, the ferry master, gave him a look like the summons as Bobby apologised, digging in his pocket and giving him his penny fare along with extra for a pint.
‘Something important has just come up,’ he said, sucking in air and trying to get his breath back.
‘Let me guess,’ Stan said, speaking into Bobby’s good ear. ‘It concerns a woman.’
Bobby let out a loud guffaw. ‘How did you know!’
The old ferry master walked away, smiling to himself and shaking his head.
As Bobby looked out at the Wear, for the first time he really felt happy to be back home. Since hearing the reports that Peter was dead, he had thought a lot about life and love. He had come to realise that his father still had power over him – was still stopping him enjoying his life with his mam, her new fella, his little sister and all the people they had around them. It was up to him to let go of his anger and resentment and to finally allow himself to be happy.
When he had left his hometown all those years ago, he had succeeded geographically in leaving the past behind, but it had stayed within him – no matter where he went. How strange, he mused, that it had taken his return to the home he’d run away from all those years ago for him to be able to let go of the past and move on.
It took Bobby five minutes to run in his steel-toecapped boots along High Street East, onto High Street West, then left down West Sunniside, before slowing to a jog when he reached the top of Foyle Street. The sun was still beating down despite it being late afternoon. He was dirty and sweaty. Reaching the main front door of the flat, he knocked, wiping his brow with the sleeve of his overalls. He really should have gone back home, cleaned up and changed, but he couldn’t wait. He felt as though he were in a race and every second counted.
‘Ah, Bobby.’ It was Mrs Kwiatkowski. She stepped back and opened the large oak door wide to let him in. ‘I’m guessing you’re after Dorothy?’
Bobby gave a short laugh. ‘I am. For my sins.’
Walking over the threshold, he took a deep breath and clomped up the two flights of stairs to the woman who had taken his heart captive.
Seeing that the front door was open, Bobby knocked loudly.
‘Hello, anyone home?’ he shouted through.
Seconds later, Dorothy appeared from the kitchen. She was still in her work overalls, but was in the process of freeing her arms and tying the sleeves around her waist. She didn’t hide her surprise at seeing who her caller was.
‘What do you want?’ she asked.
Bobby laughed loudly.
‘Do you mind if I come in?’ he asked, thinking how she reminded him of that day by the quayside. His ardour for her had not abated since then but grown.
‘If you must.’ Dorothy turned and went back into the kitchen.
Bobby walked down the short hallway and into the small kitchen. Dorothy had her back to him and was making a pot of tea.
‘So, to what do I owe this pleasure?’ she asked, turning round and putting the pot onto the table, which already had two cups and saucers in place and a jug of milk.
Bobby looked around.
‘No Angie?’
Dorothy made a show of looking under the table and around the room. ‘It doesn’t look like it.’ She went over and opened the small kitchen window. She felt hot. A light breeze made its way into the room.
‘She’s at the shops,’ she said eventually, ‘or rather, standing in a queue waiting to get into a shop.’
Bobby smiled and opened his mouth to speak.
‘And before you say it – I have not bullied her into doing the shopping. We take turns and today it’s Angie’s turn.’
Bobby chuckled. ‘Actually, I wasn’t going to say that, but it’s good to know.’
Dorothy glowered at him.
‘So, what were you going to say?’ Suddenly, she felt a little self-conscious. This was the first time they had been in a room together, just the two of them.
Bobby stepped forward and put his hands on the back of one of the chairs.
‘I was going to say what brilliant news it is about Peter.’
Dorothy’s face immediately lit up. All awkwardness gone. ‘Isn’t it just! No one can quite believe it.’ In the blink of an eye Dorothy’s demeanour had changed from surly to sunny.
‘See,’ she said, ‘you can have a happy ending in real life.’
Bobby laughed. ‘You certainly can.’
He stood for a moment, taking in the vision of this woman whom he found irresistible. He had to stop himself going over, taking her in his arms and kissing her from here to eternity. He forced himself to push all amorous thoughts from his mind.
‘And I think you might have another happy ending …’ Bobby let his voice trail off.
‘Really?’ Dorothy said. ‘Two in one day?’
Again, Bobby smiled. ‘Yes, two in one day.’
‘So, what’s the second one?’ Dorothy was now genuinely curious.
Bobby inhaled.
‘I’ve just had a chat with Mam – and we’ve managed to sort out our differences,’ he said simply.
Dorothy’s face lit up. ‘That’s brilliant news!’ She looked at Bobby and for the first time saw that there was something different about him. He seemed happier. More at peace.
‘Tell me more,’ she demanded.
‘Well, there’s nothing much to tell,’ Bobby said, suddenly feeling slightly ill at ease.
‘Of course there’s plenty to tell,’ she said, putting out two cups. ‘Sit down and drink some tea – I want every detail.’
Bobby smiled and sat down, watching as Dorothy sloshed tea and milk into the cups. How lovely, he thought, that she was so happy for both Rosie and Gloria.
‘Come on, I want to hear all about it,’ she said impatiently.
Bobby smiled. His heart lifted to see that the only barrier between them had been the problem he’d had with his mam. Now that had gone, so had Dorothy’s animosity towards him. He took a sip of his tea, stalling a little. Talking about his personal feelings and his past was not his forte. It was something he rarely did – especially not with women, never mind with a woman he was mad about. Bobby knew, though, that he had to be open and honest if he was to win Dorothy over. And so he started to tell her the real reason why he had found it so hard to be a loving son to his mam. It was not as Dorothy had thought – he was not against divorce, far from it, and he didn’t judge those who chose to live in sin. It was, he explained, because of his own feelings of resentment, the origins of which stemmed from way back when he was just a boy.
The more he talked, the more easily the words came and, after listening intently, Dorothy confided in Bobby about her own childhood, which, she said, had been in no way as bad as the one Bobby and Gordon had suffered living under the same roof as Vinnie, but it was, however, still something that had affected her. She knew how it felt to be young and innocent and to be an unwilling witness to the violence of a father – a man whose role it was to love, care for and protect his children.
They had been talking for quite some time when Dorothy glanced at the clock and jumped up.
‘Oh my goodness, look at the time. I’ve got to get ready.’
Bobby knew why Dorothy had to get ready. Toby was in town. He felt a rush of jealousy. And also panic. He had been sidetracked into talking about his mam and his dad and now it looked like he was running out of time to tell Dorothy what he had really come here to say.
‘I better let you get on,’ he said, standing up.
‘I’ll see you out.’ Dorothy stepped forward, but Bobby didn’t move out of the way.
She looked at him and knew what he wanted. Knew what she also wanted. Now that her anger towards Bobby had dissolved, the feelings she had tried to deny were laid bare.
Bobby saw the look in Dorothy’s eyes. He leant forward and kissed her. Softly. Gently. The feel of her full, soft lips on his own was the most sensuous feeling he’d ever experienced.
Suddenly, he felt Dorothy pull away. His heart was pumping at full force. He opened his eyes just as Dorothy raised her hand and slapped him around the face. His skin stung momentarily.
He looked at Dorothy, into those blue eyes, and saw not anger that he had overstepped the mark, but confusion and, dare he even think it – love.
He watched as she leant back into him, her eyes dropping to his mouth before she kissed him. He closed his eyes and was again lost in the sensuous feel of her lips. He pulled her close, feeling her body respond and pressing against his own. All he wanted to do in that moment was touch every part of her body, explore every wonderful curve and make love to her. He sensed she felt the same about him.
They stood, their bodies so close they could feel each other’s chests lifting as their breathing became heavier by the second. He felt Dorothy kiss his neck and then whisper something in his deaf ear. He responded by kissing her neck, breathing in her scent, desperate to ask her what she had just told him, but not wanting to break free.
And then, all of a sudden, they heard Mrs Kwiatkowski’s voice shouting up the stairs.
‘You’ve got another visitor, Dorothy!’ Her words were followed by the sound of footsteps taking the steps two at a time.
Bobby and Dorothy froze. They seemed unable to part.
‘Oh my God!’ Dorothy said, finally forcing herself to move away from Bobby.
She managed to put a little distance between them just in time.
‘Where’s that jolly gorgeous girl of mine?’ Toby’s voice could be heard before he appeared in the kitchen doorway. His face dropped as soon as he saw Bobby.
‘Ah, hello there, old chap.’ His voice was flat, he was clearly disappointed to see Dorothy had company and that company was Bobby. ‘Didn’t expect to find you here.’
Bobby simply stood there. He wanted to explain that this jolly gorgeous girl was no longer Toby’s – that Dorothy was now his girl. They were meant for each other. It was as clear as day. Especially now they had kissed – her kisses spoke a thousand words.
‘Bobby just popped round to chat about his mam,’ Dorothy explained.
‘Ah, is that so?’ Toby asked. ‘Everything all right, I hope?’
‘All good,’ Dorothy answered. ‘Bobby was just leaving, weren’t you?’
Bobby gave a tight smile, ran a hand over his jaw and nodded. His eyes lingered on Dorothy as he started to leave.
‘I didn’t catch what you said just then,’ he said, touching his left ear.
Dorothy looked him in the eye. ‘It wasn’t important.’
Bobby turned, giving Toby a sharp nod farewell and throwing Dorothy one last look.