Count On Me

Part Forty One

A/N Sorry for the confusion earlier. Not sure how I managed to upload a random chunk of story, in my defence I'm shattered! But that's my issue not yours. Hope you enjoy, xx

Chapter Forty One

Vicky was dating a new man, and she was gushing with the details of their latest date. Lizzie was laughing for the duration of the call at her embarrassing faux pas and the details of her swoop in for the first kiss only to have him look to down as he dropped his wallet, and her ending up head butting him. It made her recent dating incident fade into insignificance.

"So what's happening with Oscar? You've been deliberately quiet about him, but you are not hanging up without debriefing young lady."

Lizzie groaned, "I was hoping to end this call without mention of him."

She chuckled down the phone, "spill."

Lizzie lounged back to lie on the sofa, kicking her feet up, "he realised I was pissed off. Wormed it out of me. I told him I won't be lied to."

Vicky sighed, "oh Liz, when are you going to have more confidence in yourself?"

That made tears well in her eyes, her friend seemed to cut through her layers of bullshit, straight to the point every time, "it's not just that...but he was purposely not telling me the truth..."

"I sense a 'but'..."

She closed her eyes, "he showed me a file of stuff, jobs he's applying for, he's trying to stay here."

"So maybe you jumped to conclusions?"

Groaning she rolled on to her side, "maybe, but with reason...then he said he wants me to find a job I want, that's why he is encouraging me not to go back to work."

"Wow! That man does know you well!"

A tear escaped her eye, because Vicky was right, and that scared her.

Oscar hadn't laughed so much in ages. He and Mike were great mates, even when he'd been his boss they'd socialised well. He was a few years older than him but since his divorce a ten years earlier, he'd been great company on many a business trip and night out.

Tonight was no exception. He raved over the West coast, the celebs, the surf, the sun. A few months earlier and Oscar would have hankered after joining him, but now that he had family, nothing was further from his mind. Cold and wet Manchester maybe bleak and dark, but he had Nate, radiating sunshine in his life. And Lizzie.

She was becoming as important to him as his son, he knew that. But then there was her lack of trust, it had hurt him more than he wanted to think about.

"So, another beer?" Mike's voice dragged him from his reverie. He was in a bad place thinking of Lizzie here, with alcohol in his system. She was potent enough without that.

When he shrugged, Mike grinned, "that'll be a yes? And look at that...two o'clock."

As mike left him to go to the bar, Oscar glanced left, 'that' referred to two women, a blonde and a brunette, slim, no skinny, waif like. He had never felt so disinterested.

Watching Mike ordered drinks, he groaned as he spotted him leaning in and whispering to the barman, and sure enough, as he turned around and came back towards him, beers in hand, he spotted the barman move in the direction of the women with shot glasses in his hands. They giggled, then followed his nod to them...and as their eyes cast over him and Mike, he groaned at the flash of excitement. Mike was good-looking for someone approaching fifty, not that he was old, but he was in good shape with neat hair and what Freya had told him was a strong jaw.