Second Base by Raven ShadowHawk

He laughed. ‘Did she ever tell you how much of a rebel she was when she was younger?’
    Dan snorted. Though he had every intention of trying one of the cookies he’d managed to salvage from the night before, now was not the time. ‘Only when trying to convince me not to do the same.’ He raked a hand through his hair. ‘What were you up to?’
    Julian hesitated. ‘I stopped to pick up some odds and sods for your mother, then had a drink at the pub. Just one or two while the cricket was playing.’
    In his mind’s eye, Dan saw a cricket match playing on the big screen mounted on a wall in a far corner of the pub. He licked his lips. ‘See anyone you know?’
    ‘As a matter of fact, yes. Odd—it’s a long time since I socialised in this city—but I saw a few faces I recognised.’
    ‘Where from?’
    ‘The working men’s club back in Ely. Dan, are you okay? You sound peculiar.’
    ‘I’m fine.’ His grip tightened on the phone. Once more he paced the length of the room.
    ‘What did you want to talk about? Surely not how I spent my day.’
    Dan flexed his fingers, then forced them to loosen. The knot of stiffness in his jaw pulled tight. ‘Actually, I wanted to talk about Robert.’
    ‘Karen’s father?’
    ‘Yes. He cheated on Charlaine. Lots of times. He still does from what I can tell.’
    Silence from the other end.
    ‘Dad?’
    ‘Yes, I’m here, my boy. Just confused. You want to talk to me about Karen’s dad’s marital issues?’
    ‘That’s right. I want to know what you think.’
    ‘Well,’ he stretched the word. ‘If Charlaine is anything at all like Karen in her looks, then I’d say this Robert character is a special kind of idiot. I didn’t get a good look at her last night before things got overexcited. A shame as I would have liked to talk to her. How’s your face by the way?’
    ‘What?’
    ‘That punch. Did you bruise?’
    Dan touched his cheek. He barely remembered the pain with this new, all consuming distraction. ‘I’m fine. We were talking about Robert?’
    ‘Oh, yes. Well, I’d also say if Charlaine is anything like Karen personality-wise then he doesn’t deserve her either.’
    ‘But the cheating. What do you think of that?’
    Julian’s voice hardened. ‘It takes a special kind of man to cheat on his wife. To break the vows he made before family, friends and God. A man like that doesn’t deserve the love of a woman.’
    ‘Really?’ The sick feeling returned to Dan’s gut. He swallowed it down.
    ‘I know not all marriages last and that some relationships fold, but there’s no reason why that can’t be dealt with in a sensible, grown up manner. Sneaking around, lying, cheating—that’s wrong. There’s no excuse.’
    Confusion and distress slowly hardened into anger. ‘No, there isn’t.’
    A long pause followed. ‘Is something happening between you and Karen?’
    ‘Excuse me?’
    ‘Sometimes you take a roundabout route like this to tell me about your problems. You used to do it when you were younger, all these hypothetical questions about this, that and the other when what you really wanted was advice. Are you asking for advice, my boy?’
    ‘You mean, am I cheating on Karen?’ He gnawed his lip until a hot burst of metallic fluid told him he was bleeding.
    More silence.
    ‘No, Dad. I’m not cheating on her. I never would. I don’t have to. Our relationship doesn’t work that way.’
    ‘I’ve upset you. I’m sorry, but I don’t know what to say. Unless you can be more open about what you’re really trying to ask.’ A hushed whisper cut across his voice. ‘Sorry, I must pay this fine gentleman and get out of his car, but I need both hands. My hips aren’t what they used to be.’
    Dan sighed. ‘It’s okay. You’ve told me what I need to know.’
    ‘Good. I hope so. I need to go.’
    ‘Fine. Bye Dad.’ He hung up without waiting for an answer.
    At his side, Karen looked away from her laptop screen. She gazed at him for long, steady