Chapter 2

The bacon and chicken sizzled in the pan and Simon added a generous amount of cream before stirring it.

"Did you put the Tarragon in?" Rhea asked from the kitchen table as she was flicking through some paperwork. "For some reason, Andy has some in the cupboard, although I am sure he only bought it to see if he could smoke it."

"Yes," Simon replied, nonchalantly in an annoyed tone. Rhea put down the forms from Izzy's school, silently got up and flicked her partner over the head.

"Don't use that tone of voice with me, you hear?" Rhea told him, somewhat aggressively and Simon sighed.

"Well I can cook you know," Simon told her, irritated by her constant interruption since he started preparing dinner an hour ago. "I did used to do dinner sometimes."

Rhea chuckled. "Excellent. If you are so fucking perfect, you can do the cooking all week then."

Simon groaned, but it was all part of the punishment Rhea would inflict.

Almost two weeks had passed since Rhea and Simon moved in and already Andy was beginning to get frustrated with them. This was not anger, just annoyances and it boiled over one Wednesday morning after Andy had driven Izzy to her school ten miles away.

Rhea had taken that opportunity to speak to Andy about his excessive drinking, and the lifestyle he chose to lead. From Rhea's perspective, she did not think it was healthy and would have been nagging him about this earlier had she known, but sharing the same house meant that she had to live with it and this was something she was not prepared to do.

Simon was showering, preparing for a job interview when Rhea stormed into the kitchen holding a pornographic DVD. "Is this yours?" Rhea asked, her eyes sparkling with disgust.

"Probably. Where was it?"

"Under Izzy's bed."

"Well I didn't put it there."

"Well where did you put 'em?"

Andy hummed. "Most of them went up into the loft and there was just a few in my wardrobe."

"Just a few?"

"Yeah, my favourite few dozen."

Rhea rolled her eyes and took a deep breath. "Don't you think it's about time you found yourself a real girlfriend?"

Andy flicked the switch on the kettle and shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah, tried that. Quite a few times, remember? Just found the bitches cheat and lie and ... stuff."

Rhea sighed and threw the DVD in the bin. "Well whatever you need to sort your life out do it, but please don't leave that disgusting filth in my daughter's bedroom."

Andy sucked in a deep breath. "I didn't. But you can't blame me if she comes across it," he shouted waving his arms aggressively. "I am not the bloody parent, she is not my responsibility or maybe you have forgotten that?" Andy spat at his sister and then immediately regretted it. She didn't deserve it.

Rhea went to respond but tears welled up in her eyes and she ran out of the room into the garden. She needed her own space but she had no escape at Andy's house, she literally had nowhere to hide.

Rhea had contend with a walk on the Common and came back to find Andy waiting to take her to lunch, she initially resisted, the argument still making her feel a little bruised but relented when he demanded.

Andy apologised of sorts over their pub lunch and Rhea made him promise to hide all of his pornographic DVDs before travelling back to the house while she did some baking.

"Rhea! Rhea!" An excited voice called for his girlfriend and she came out of the kitchen.

"What's up?" A panicked Rhea asked and her boyfriend emerged.

"I got it. I got the job."

"The deputy manager position?"

"Yep. It's a pay cut but I start as soon as my background checks come through."

Rhea reached up and put her arms around her partner, and then without warning she kissed him on the lips. Simon kissed her back and for a few moments there was a loving embrace between them. "And I think I'll let you move into the shed," Rhea told him charitably.

Simon hesitated and then nervously asked. "Could I please at least move into the garage. It's got very cold outside these last few days at night."

Rhea stared at him and shook her head. "I don't think so, babe. The shed'll do nicely."

Rhea's punishments for Simon also included a complete ban on alcohol. She rationalised if he could afford money for beer, then it would be better spent reducing their debts.

This caused a couple of arguments, but Rhea was as persuasively violent as she was resolute about it and Simon had to accept he would be tee-total for the foreseeable future. The ban on alcohol also extended to Rhea, who had not touched a drop of wine or vodka since shortly after she had moved in with Andy, so Simon eventually accepted the restrictions.

To her credit, Rhea was doing her best to maintain a healthy relationship. She almost insisted that she spend plenty of "quality time" with her cheating boyfriend, which involved everything from a walk on the nearby Common to playing board games or watching a film.

The first few occasions were tense and difficult, Simon was certain Rhea was going to dump him when they alone and away from the house but soon after he realised that this was purely an attempt to salvage their relationship and began to look forward to them and enjoy himself.

Andy did his best to avoid them while they were doing this but wandered in while they were playing Ludo. Simon was wearing just a singlet and Andy saw the tattoo for the first time. "Hey, that looks pretty cool," Andy told him and he gave a grin.

"Bigger than I told him to get," Rhea grumbled, "but it is good." The Gothic Script text, of "Rhea" was at the top of his arm in black ink.

"Well I told the girl what I had done, and she said she would have been happy to write whatever as Rhea said as she was a saint for taking me back."

Rhea smirked. "I ain't ever been called a saint before."