Chapter 23

John looked in his rear view mirror and smoothed down his hair for the 5th time in as many minutes. He'd had the car valeted both inside and out and it looked as good as new. He remembered how Caroline used to moan at him about the state of the BMW. Yes she definitely was a 'clean freak' as Lawrence put it, so he was sure that when she saw his perfectly waxed saloon, she'd know that things had changed.

'Yes! You can do this,' he thought to himself.

In the days following his arrest, he had taken stock of his life and decided to be proactive. He'd lost his way, it was all his own fault and he was determined to get his life back. His initial response was that it was about time for him to respect Caroline's decisions and move on. But the long and the short of it was that John's real nature was not so easily subdued and within forty-eight hours he was back to his old way of thinking. Basically lazy, he was devoid of original ideas despite his relative success as a novelist.

Caroline looked happier than he'd ever seen her before, when he had glimpsed her and Kate at the Costa car park. He wanted some of that happiness for himself, and 'his wife' (as he still insisted on calling her) was the only woman who could bring him that joy. Well... maybe Gillian could too but she was now married to her brother-in-law and John didn't fancy his chances against the burly policeman. He had a clear memory of a sore jaw and black eye from a previous encounter.

Kate, on the other hand, was no competition. Get her off the scene and he'd be back in where he belonged. The rear view mirror reflected his smug smile once again.

Judith was a mistake, one he only made because his wife didn't understand him like the lonely divorcee did. She also didn't answer all of his needs, instead she spoke to him like a child and treated him with scorn both inside and outside of the bedroom. Everyone knows men have needs; what was he supposed to do?

What his wife wasn't supposed to do was find out about the affair. He only moved in with Judith because he'd been kicked out of the family home. Setting up with an alcoholic, unpublished writer in a dump of a flat was not in his plans. No. He wanted back into the 5 bedroom house he paid for and back into his wife's bed.

The green BMW purred nicely along the streets of Harrogate as he made his way to 46 Conway Drive. The middle aged man smiled to himself again as he pictured being back in the arms of Caroline. A warm glow rose from his groin as he remembered how they made love all the time before the boys were born. The boys were older now, hardly ever at home, so maybe things could go back to how they were. It was still the school holidays and Caroline would be at home and, hopefully, Lawrence too. John needed an ally and he knew his youngest and favoured son would help him get the family back together.

'Kate can go sod off and find some other married woman to steal,' he growled. 'Better still, find herself a real lesbian and leave straight women alone, the stupid black...'

He stopped himself. He knew the way to get his wife back was to show her that he'd changed. No more racial slurs, no more name calling and most importantly, no more drinking.

His solicitor was sure the arrest wouldn't stand up in court. Something to do with his blood alcohol level, him not being able to produce a urine sample and a blood sample not being taken within a certain time scale. John wasn't sure what it all meant but was confident that he wouldn't lose his licence at the very least. He took this as a sign that he'd been given a second chance not just in his life but his family's. He straightened himself up at the wheel, smiled his best smile (which even he acknowledged looked like a grimace) and put his feet down just a smidge heavier on the accelerator.

Once again he looked at himself in the mirror but this time for a bit too long; it was this and the slighter faster speed that made the beamer swerve and his nearside wheel clip the kerb.

'Shit!' he exclaimed. He knew from experience that to repair the wheel would set him back the best part of £200. 'Bloody hell ' he shouted in annoyance at himself. After slapping the steering wheel he returned both hands in the perfect ten-to-two position and concentrated on the road ahead. His eyes diverting slightly at the tall green trees that lined his route he choked and blinked away a tear as he reminisced of the time when this used to be his regular commute home.

Five minutes away at John's destination, Kate kissed her wife goodbye. 'See you in a few hours my love,' she whispered gently to a stiletto wearing Caroline, who blew her a kiss, turned and opened the door to her 4x4. With her seat belt on and one final wave, Caroline drove off gently in the Jeep, singing along to the radio, happy because the clinic had rung and asked them to come in for a pregnancy test the following morning. She checked the road both ways then serenely pulled out of the drive.

Having to go into work for a few hours to start Gavin's report was a minor inconvenience. Lawrence helping himself to half a loaf of bread, didn't register. The cat dragging in a half dead bird and dumping it under the kitchen table hadn't upset her either. Nothing would, or could, today. Her eyes flicked at her rear view mirror, as they always did when she approached a junction. She caught sight of the smile she'd been wearing all morning. Sade declared 'this is no ordinary love' on the radio and the smile turned into a full beam.

She didn't notice the young man who pulled up next to her in his red Audi A7 until the bass from his car stereo shook her out of her daydream.

He looked over at the middle aged blonde and mouthed 'You are hot!'

Caroline tutted her annoyance, rolled the electric window down and smiled her sexiest smile. The testosterone fuelled young man, sporting a trendy Peaky Blinders haircut, fake tan and sunglasses rolled his window down too and muted the Justin Bieber track that had filled the air. He flashed the blonde his best smile and waited for her response.

'If you think I'm hot, you should see my wife!' Caroline shouted back.

For half a second he looked confused. When his bruised ego recovered, he snorted and drove off at speed to the next set of traffic lights, leaving Caroline pleased with her reply, smiling happily to herself.

'Prick!' she said, then closed her window and carried on humming to Sade.

John arrived at the beginning of Conway Drive just as Caroline turned the corner at the other end. He drove up the driveway tentatively and frowned as he saw the small Fiat but not the black SUV.

'I'll wait. I'll say I'm here to visit Lawrence and I'll wait.'