The Faithless - Martina Cole [20]
Jimmy knew then that Jonny Parker wouldn’t be getting an eighteen any time soon. He was too shrewd for that. Jimmy also knew that he liked him, even if those last few moments had surprised him. Still, whatever he might be, Jonny Parker was a nice bloke.
Chapter Seventeen
‘You all right, Jimmy Boy?’
Jonny Parker was laughing as Jimmy emptied his stomach into the lay-by. He rubbed Jimmy’s back and, when the retching eased off, he opened the boot of his Mercedes and got out a bottle of water.
‘Here y’are, mate, get that down you, you’ll feel better.’
Jimmy drank the cool water gratefully. ‘I don’t drink that much normally.’
Jonny laughed delightedly. ‘I should fucking hope not and all, your liver must be praying for a transplant.’
Jimmy smiled and Jonny wondered at how this big man, who was a lump in many respects, had lumbered himself with someone like Cynthia. But he knew the answer to his own question; Cynthia was a looker, and she had that stuck-up way about her that attracted men. Jimmy had fallen for her, just as many a man before him had fallen for a prize bitch; it wasn’t till they were safely married that they showed their true colours. Jonny should know – his own mother had been a ball-breaker, and his father, a Face in his own right, a hard man, had still never been hard enough to put her in her place. She had dripped her poison in his earhole all day, every day and, eventually, that kind of treatment could bring down even the toughest of men. This poor sap didn’t stand a chance.
Jimmy sat on the kerb and took a few deep breaths; the world was finally coming back into focus, and he was grateful for that much at least. ‘I really enjoyed tonight, Jonny, but I think the strippers had best be kept a secret if you know what I mean!’
‘Well, I won’t be broadcasting it to the nation, mate. Celeste is an easy-going girl, but she ain’t that easy going!’ Jonny lit a cigarette and pulled on it deeply before settling himself beside Jimmy on the dirty kerbside.
‘She’s a lovely girl, Celeste, you got a good one there, Jonny.’
‘I know that, wouldn’t be marrying her otherwise.’
Jimmy sighed heavily. ‘She’s kind is Celeste, very kind-hearted. My Gabriella loves her, which is just as well, because she spends more time with her than she does with her mother.’
Jonny could hear the bitterness in Jimmy’s voice, and felt ashamed for the man’s weakness. ‘Well, Jimmy Boy, that’s not really any of my business, is it?’
Jimmy shook his head; he appreciated Jonny’s tact, but the drink had taken its toll and he wanted to talk to someone. Needed to talk to someone, say it all out loud, and he knew that Jonny would listen and not hold it against him.
‘I know that, Jonny, but tonight I realised how much I’ve lost out on. You lot together, having a laugh, a few drinks. I miss that. Not that I ever did anything like tonight, but I used to meet the blokes after work in the West End, you know. Not any more, though, Cynthia has me on a bloody schedule. She knows my movements better than I do, plus I’m not running the firm, not even going upwards if truth be told. I haven’t got what it takes for the office politics. I congratulate men younger than me when they get promoted over my head. My kids live at their grandparents’ house. Not that my parents ever get a look in with the kids – they’ve never been allowed to see them. I just don’t know how this all happened to me. I don’t know how to make it all right.’
Jonny threw the cigarette into the road, and immediately lit another one. He was genuinely sorry for the man, even though he couldn’t help feeling that the situation was all of his own