Chapter Twenty Five
Still Nine Weeks Ago...
"Charlie, you really don't need to spoil me like this," Joey protested, although she knew it would do no good.
She hovered behind her 'wife' as she ran her a hot bubble bath.
"You've done this for me every day since I've been here," Charlie pointed out.
"I didn't this morning!" Joey pointed out.
She felt a little guilty for objecting. It wasn't that she didn't enjoy Charlie treating her like a Princess. It just wasn't something she was used to and it was taking a lot to get her head around being with someone who was so nice. And the situation wasn't exactly conventional. They had fallen in love with each other on reality television while both of them had partners. None of this made sense. But for the first time, Joey had decided to be selfish and go for what she wanted. And what she wanted was Charlie. She couldn't quite help admiring Charlie's backside as she bent over to test the water and then switch the taps off. The police officer turned around, coming into very close contact with Joey. They grinned at each other, checking each other out.
"Enjoy," Charlie said. "I'll um... resist offering to scrub your back."
Their looks lingered for several moments longer, smiles teasing their lips as both their minds hit the gutter.
"Dinner will be in an hour and a half," Charlie said, escaping the room and leaving Joey to it.
Ruby was curious when she found Angelo's car only half washed and the bucket and sponge still by its side. She looked directly down the camera lens and supposed aloud that Mel had probably demanded dinner or some such thing. Heading on into the house, the cameramen surrounding her glanced at each other, wondering if they ought to interfere. That was the ethical thing to do but they and the producer that had instructed them to stay quiet, were all very aware that brilliant drama was about to unfold.
In the kitchen, Charlie was happily cooking up a storm while being grilled by the camera crew.
"What do you think is happening between yourself and Joey?" the designated cameraman asked.
Charlie blushed and felt immediately uncomfortable.
"Um... I don't know."
"But you have feelings for her?" the man pushed.
Charlie sighed and nodded.
"I can't help it," she said. "Joey's amazing. I feel absolutely evil for doing this, especially on television. I love Angelo but... there's just something between Joey and I that I can't ignore. Things... well, they haven't been right between me and Angelo for a while and..."
She sighed again, more heavily this time.
"I don't know what to do," she admitted.
"Angelo?" Ruby called as she headed upstairs.
She was puzzled by his lack of answer but supposed he and Mel had gone out. She headed into her room and lay on her bed looking up at the ceiling. The cameras zoned in on her. She blinked a few times and was surprised to find tears in her eyes.
"What's wrong?" the cameraman asked.
Ruby sat up against her pillows.
"I really miss my Mum," she said, deciding to be honest. "I know this wife swap thingy was something she really wanted to do and I hope it's helped her with her problems with Angelo and everything but... I've never been away from her this long. She isn't just my Mum. She's my best friend. And I miss her."
Sighing heavily, Ruby scrambled off the bed and wandered along the hallway. The cameraman and the sound technician exchanged worried glances as Ruby pushed open her mother's bedroom door. Then she gasped.
In the bath, with the bubbles arranged very carefully around her, Joey agreed to an interview. She was sipping the glass of wine Charlie had provided her with and was having an extremely nice time.
"It feels pretty good to be pampered," she admitted with a grin. "Joey's treating me far better than I deserve."
"How does that make you feel?" the female camera operator asked.
Joey thought about it for a few moments.
"Special," she finally said.
"And how does Charlie make you feel generally?" the camerawoman asked. "It's quite obvious that there are feelings between you."
"I... I... um... well, I've never felt like this before," Joey admitted a little shyly. "Charlie... well, I feel like she's given me my self esteem back. I didn't realise until now that I was lacking or that I was unhappy really but... Charlie's shown me how good life can be. And I don't want to hurt anyone. I feel very guilty to be falling in love with someone else behind Mel's back but blatantly in front of her... if that makes any sense..."
She shook her head, trying to gather her thoughts together.
"I just... I can't help it. I'm in love with Charlie and if she'll have me, I want to be with her."
Angelo leapt off the bed, wrapping a sheet around him. He chased a screaming Ruby down the stairs, calling her name and begging her to wait. Unfazed, Mel sat back in bed and wondered what the problem was.
Joey kicked the camera crew out of the bathroom so she could finish in piece and get out. Wrapped in a big fluffy towel, she headed into her room. Ruby and Indigo scampered after her to 'assist' her in getting changed, which usually meant tripping her over by weaving between her legs. Wrapped in her towel, she released her hair and began to dry it before perusing her wardrobe to try and pick a nice outfit that might impress Charlie.
"Ruby, wait!" Angelo begged, still clutching the towel around his waist.
The teenager had reached the lounge. She spun around furiously, her face red with rage.
"Wait for what?" she screamed. "Because if you think you can explain that any other way than you being an absolute shit, you've got another thing coming! I think you took this whole wife swap thing a bit fucking far!"
"I didn't mean to..." Angelo protested.
Ruby's eyed widened even further.
"How the hell do you do that by accident!" she shrieked.
"Look, you know things haven't been going well with your Mum..." Angelo ventured. "And I'm hurting over the fact that she lied to me about..."
"You fucked another girl... again... because my poor Mum was raped sixteen years ago?"
Ruby's pitch got higher and higher. Angelo looked increasingly helpless.
"That's not what I mean," he said lamely.
"I hate you. You never deserved my Mum in the first place. She's worth a million of you and more. If anything good is going to come out of this whole thing, it's that she'll finally get rid of you!"
Ruby turned to the camera.
"I want to stop this swap right now!"
Joey arrived downstairs to the delightful aroma of a home cooked meal, just as the doorbell rang. She was about to open the front door when Charlie got there first and let Aden in.
"Hey!" Joey greeted happily as he waved flowers and a bottle of wine. "What are you doing here?"
"Charlie invited me round for dinner," he said cheerfully.
He and Joey smiled at each other. Mel would never have even thought of doing such a thing and both of them knew it.
"I'm nearly finished," Charlie said. "Make yourselves comfortable."
"Can we help?" Joey offered.
"Nope," Charlie said. "Just go and sit down. I set the dining table. I hope that's okay."
Joey turned and peered behind the sofa where the dining area was. She grinned. The table was laid beautifully.
"You're amazing," she said affectionately.
Charlie beamed at her and headed into the kitchen. Joey and Aden made their way over to the dining table. Aden put his arm around his friend.
"I think you've finally found a keeper," he said honestly.
Ruby headed to the beach to try and clear her head. She felt like her mind was now scarred with images of Angelo quite obviously penetrating Mel. Tears streaked her face as she worried about her Mum. She didn't want her to be hurt. Nicholas tentatively approached. The cameras were still trained on Ruby but they kept a safe distance away, not wanting to pry too obscenely.
"Ruby, are you okay?" Nicholas asked.
"No, I'm not okay," Ruby snapped. "Angelo's cheating on my Mum. How could I ever be okay after seeing that?"
"I'm sorry," Nicholas said weakly.
"Did you know?" she asked. "Did your stupid crew know? Did you let me find them like that?"
The producer's silence told her everything she needed to know.
"I hate all of you," Ruby said. "And I want my Mum. Tell my Mum that she has to come home."
Nicholas looked reluctant.
"Look, it's getting kind of late in the day," he said, pointing out the setting sun. "Why don't you sleep on it tonight and if you still want to cancel everything tomorrow, you can and we'll get your Mum back then. Does that sound okay?"
"I want my Mum now!" Ruby yelled.
"If we call her now, she won't be back with you until stupid o'clock in the morning," the producer pointed out. "And if we tell her not to leave until the morning, it's just going to worry her."
Ruby sighed and reluctantly agreed.
"Do you want to go home or do you want to stay with someone?"
"I want to go home," Ruby said. "And I want Angelo and Mel to be gone when I get there."
"Uh..."
"It's not Angelo's house," Ruby added. "It's Mum's. Which means it's more mine than his so he can get out."
"We'll talk to him," Nicholas promised.
"And get that bitch out of there too," Ruby said. "She has no right at all to even touch anything of Mum's, let alone have sex with her boyfriend in her bed."
Next time... Ruby goes to stay with Irene while Charlie and Joey make plans for the future...