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He saw himself as a mannequin in a sharp suit, with a perfect physique and winning smile. Cracks appeared on its face, running into each other, faster and faster until the whole thing shattered and fell to the floor, revealing the emptiness inside.
What made him genuinely happy? Estelle. She made every part of him sing in harmony. There was no dissonance, no tone missing. She was the first and last note, the intro, verse and chorus of a song that resonated in his every cell. Painting the dog bowls had made him happy. Perfecting a unicorn for her cappuccino, smelling the perfume he’d made on her skin, helping her train on Duke, bandaging her ankle, making her come… In those moments he’d been truly content. The happiness had seeped down to his bones. There was nothing superficial about it. It was just right.
‘Anyway, I’ve been thinking…’ Kevin interrupted James’s thoughts. ‘I’m gonna cut my losses. I know your mum ain’t gonna like it, but I’m selling up. We’ll downsize and go back east.’
‘What?’
‘I’m offloading the house and BDE.’
‘But… What about next year?’
‘What about next year?’
‘The festival.’
Kevin laughed. ‘I don’t give two shits about that. Estelle can partner with the new owners of BDE.’
‘But who would buy it off you when it’s hundreds of thousands of pounds in debt?’
His father shrugged. ‘Then I’ll file for bankruptcy and the creditors will have to suck it up.’
‘Dad!’
‘What? It’s business, Jamesey-boy, not personal. You know that.’
‘The principal creditor is me, Dad,’ he ground out. ‘I’m the one who’s owed money.’
‘Eh? But I thought you were on the skids?’
‘I sold the car to prop the company up and make sure the staff were paid.’
‘Not the Ferrari!’
‘It’s just a car.’
‘No, it’s not!’ his dad whined like a little boy. ‘It’s the dog’s bollocks!’
‘And what about Mum? She’s made friends here. Isn’t this her dream?’
His father glanced away and shrugged. ‘That business in China added ten years to me. I don’t feel as strong as I was. I don’t know if I can hustle hard enough to keep the place.’
James sank his head. Everything was going down the toilet. He’d lost Estelle, he’d never get his money back, and now his parents were leaving Foxbrooke.
Elyse came back into the room. ‘I’m sorry to interrupt.’
Kevin waved his hand. ‘No worries, babe. What’s up?’
Elyse glanced at James. ‘It’s to do with the festival.’
‘Eh?’ Kevin sat up straighter.
‘What’s happened?’ James asked.
Her gaze flicked between them.
‘Spit it out,’ Kevin said.
‘I’ve kept in touch with Max,’ she began.
