For Your Own Protection(3)

It did seem faintly ridiculous.

‘That’s not why I’m ending things though,’ he clarified. ‘It’s been fun, and she’s really nice, but I don’t think it’s going anywhere. I don’t want to waste her time.’

‘Fair enough. For what it’s worth, I still think that Beth is the only girl for you.’



Matt headed home on the bus. He thought about Harvey. It would be good to get to know him better, to try to understand what he wanted.

He was enjoying the teaching more than he could have imagined. And it had awakened something in him. But it was merely a temporary diversion, not a new route in life.

Five minutes from home, his mobile buzzed in his pocket.

It was a text from Beth.

Hi Matt. Can we meet first thing tomorrow? Nine o’clock at Giuseppe’s? Need to talk to you about something really important.

Matt was surprised by his emotional response to the cryptic message.

He felt hope.





CHAPTER TWO


Matt tried to dismiss any potential significance in Beth’s chosen location for their meet-up. Giuseppe’s had been a favourite haunt of theirs throughout the years they’d been living in Camden, north London. At this early hour on a Saturday morning, the cafe-bar was quiet. Beth was over in the far corner, her head in a book, with two drinks already on the table.

‘Hi, Beth,’ he said, approaching and feeling surprisingly nervous.

‘Hey.’ She smiled warmly, placing the book down on the table. Matt noticed it was a trashy thriller. She’d always been a sucker for that kind of thing. Matt tried to push away thoughts of whether she still read in bed as she used to, but with James now lying by her side.

‘Take a seat,’ she said, pushing strands of her brown shoulder-length hair behind her right ear. He had always loved the way she did that. ‘I took the liberty of ordering you a mocha.’ She studied his response, mistaking his nerves for dissatisfaction. ‘You do still like mochas, don’t you?’

‘Yes, of course, thanks.’

Matt could see she was nervous, too. He was taken back to their first date. They’d gone to watch a movie and grabbed a coffee afterwards, finding their way through the conversation, making that initial, tentative connection.

Beth sipped at her drink. ‘You still okay to have Charlie tomorrow?’

‘Of course.’

Charlie – their four-and-a-half-year-old son. The lack of daily access to him was still a source of immense pain, even though visitation rights were as good as could be expected.

‘Swimming and the park,’ Matt said. Charlie was a real water baby, and delighted in the trips to the local children’s pool, with its inflatables and water jets. And the new toddler-friendly, sit-on zip wire in the park across the road from the swimming pool was a total winner.

‘Sounds good,’ she said, stirring her coffee absent-mindedly.

‘You off out with James?’ Matt ventured.

She nodded, and for a moment looked as though she was going to elaborate. But she then didn’t offer anything further, and Matt didn’t pursue it. After all, it wasn’t really any of his business.

Matt looked off towards the counter, where a girl was preparing supplies for lunchtime. He wondered what this meeting was all about, but was prepared to wait until Beth was ready to explain. Then, through the windows, he caught a glimpse of someone walking past the cafe. It looked like Catherine. If he wasn’t sitting with Beth he’d have leapt to his feet and run after the woman. He needed to know whether Catherine was following him – and if so, why. So far, he’d never quite been able to shake off the suspicion that it was just his mind playing tricks.

‘How are you, anyway?’

Matt brought his attention back to the table. ‘I’m okay, thanks. Good, pretty good.’

Beth was really looking at him, in a way she hadn’t done since things had started to go so terribly wrong. ‘I hear you’re seeing someone.’

‘How did you—’

‘Sean mentioned it to James. Sorry, I didn’t realise you wanted to keep it secret.’

‘I didn’t. It’s just that, well . . . It doesn’t matter.’ Matt wasn’t happy about Sean, who was his friend, blabbing about his private life to the man who was now dating Matt’s ex-partner. He’d have to speak with Sean about it.

‘That’s great news,’ Beth said. ‘I’m happy for you. We both need to move on.’

Matt searched Beth’s face in an attempt to determine whether she meant what she said. He was disappointed to find that her sentiments appeared genuine. He considered telling her that by this evening the relationship would be over, but injecting that piece of negativity didn’t seem appropriate or particularly helpful.

‘I also hear you’re volunteering at the local college.’

Sean again!

‘Just the past month or so. Amy asked me to help out with a financial management class for these guys who’ve been in trouble with the authorities. I’m teaching them some basic maths and accounting skills.’

Beth looked genuinely impressed. ‘So how’s it going?’

‘Really well, actually. Really well.’

‘You always wanted to be a teacher,’ she said. ‘Do you think you might not return to UGT?’