Haunted by the past

Chapter Nine

For Evan things were almost perfect. Long walks in the park, movies, intimate meals were as pleasurable as the late night telephone calls to Maddie. They met up several times a week, and spoke a lot. She was excelling at work, Eric couldn’t praise her more highly, and his new venture was starting to take shape. So what could possibly be wrong?

Evan hated it, but he was still confused. Whether she knew it or not, Maddie was evasive and distant and he still didn’t know where he stood with her.

He grabbed his clubs from the back of his car, and made for the clubhouse pushing his confusion to the back of his mind. He’d been playing golf once a week with Danny his old college mate, and he was never more relieved to be playing than today. Trying to avoid a crushing defeat was more than enough to block his own problems for a day. Danny worked as a finance controller for his family construction company, and he saw the games as a way of switching off, relaxing. A mutual thing.

Danny was stood in reception talking to someone that Evan didn’t recognise when he approached. By the time he’d approached the other man had left, and his friend was smiling at him.

                “Tate! You’re looking shattered...too much new love?”

Danny knew exactly what to say to push his buttons, and Evan could only groan. “I wish. Just never realised going after my dream would be so hard!”

Danny chuckled, “so you’re telling me that creating a small kitchen is more taxing than the five restaurants you’ve set up?”

Following his friend out on to the course he nodded, “maybe it’s because this is my chance to create what I want as oppose to what I think people want. I need this to be perfect and that’s hard.”

With a clap on Evan’s back Danny laughed, “you of all people should know that perfection is unobtainable...unlike me!”

Shaking his head Evan followed out onto the first tee already laughing at the tonic that was his friend.

                “So how are things with this new love?” It had taken to the fifth hole and a huge tee shot for Danny to finally broach the subject. He’d married the love of his life five years ago and Rachel was expecting their second child. Evan envied him dreadfully for so many years, and he now realised it was this envy that had led him into a far too serious relationship with Stephanie. The woman he’d taken five years to get over.

Evan sighed “okay”, as he hit the ball, but for a change he seemed to hit it sweetly off the tee and straight up the fairway. He hated thinking about Stephanie, and did so rarely these days that the sudden reminder almost caused pain. Not pain at what she’d done, but pain at how much of his life he’d wasted getting over her. With a sigh he followed Danny in the direction of their balls and it was only as he paced across the green that he thought things through. The timing of all this was perfect, if she hadn’t hurt him so much he may never have met Maddie at the exact right time. No, the past was not his problem; his future depended on the present, and Maddie herself.

Three hours later and they’d discussed everything under the sun from work, to football, even TV. Everything but the hot woman who was absorbing Evan’s every thought. As they grabbed a beer in the clubhouse and made for a window seat, Danny was still hounding him.

                “I’ve known you long enough to know that ‘okay’ is not the real answer!”

Evan took a sip of his pint, glad of the distraction for a moment, “I like her a lot.” He finally offered.