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‘Working for him? Have you lost your mind?’ Arran’s arm dropped to his side and he balled his fists.
‘No. It was an interesting project.’
‘Was? Does that mean you’re finished?’
She nodded.
‘Thank Christ. Keep away from him in the future. You’ve no idea what he’s like. He’s a brute.’
‘He was very polite to me,’ she said. What a ridiculous cop-out.
‘Oh yeah? Turned on the charm for you, did he? Well, watch him. He’s totally unstable. One minute he’s your best friend, the next he’s smashing you to a pulp, and if he lays a finger on my little sister, I’ll make sure he’s banged up and never sees the light of day again.’
Rhona managed a weak smile. She appreciated Arran’s concern but the idea of Calum doing anything like that to her was incomprehensible. He just wouldn’t. She’d made mistakes of the heart; she’d trusted people when they turned out to be work-stealing bitches, but this time, she was sure.
‘What actually happened?’ she said.
‘Don’t you remember? He turned on me and I didn’t have a chance to defend myself. He’s a psycho. Remember my face? It was purple and swollen for weeks.’
How could she forget? If he’d done it once did that mean there was a chance he could do it again? Was that the reason for the karate and his avoidance of intimacy and relationships? Did he fear himself? Had he found a safe outlet for his anger?
The twinge in her stomach was back. She felt sick. What a mess. Where did this leave them? Calum had let her in and that had to count for something… But what? Love? Could love stop him attacking again if the same mad demons seized him? Unprovoked demons?
As Arran chatted, she pulled out her phone. Her fingers trembled as she typed in a message, angling the screen away from him. If he saw the name… She didn’t want to think about what he might do.
RHONA: Sorry, I better go with Arran. I wanted to divert him. Talk soon. I hope we’re still ok. XXX
And she meant it. If everything could just be ok; the way it had been for the last couple of months.
With Arran back home that seemed next to impossible.
‘Why do you stick with archaeology?’ Arran said. ‘If you end up working for knobs like him. I’ve got loads of good contacts these days and I could get you into something much more lucrative. You wouldn’t need to retrain or anything. It’s all stuff you can pick up as you go along.’
Seriously?Rhona couldn’t muster the energy to reply.
∞∞∞
Judy exploded with excitement when Rhona and Arran came in together.
‘What a surprise! Oh my goodness. I need to message Alister to come back. Rhona, could you do it? Tell him to come home straightaway. In fact, tell him to pick up some smoked salmon on the way home.’ She seized Arran and wrestled him into a huge hug. ‘Oh, son, it’s so good to see you. If only we could get your big sisters here too. I miss having us all together.’
Rhona lifted an eyebrow. The last time they’d all been together her sisters had fallen out withing seconds of seeing each other and she’d spent the weekend trying to get them talking again. She took out her phone and slumped onto a sofa while her mum fawned over Arran on the one opposite. Her head throbbed and her heart wept. She hashed out a message to her dad, then refreshed the screen several times, desperate for any word from Calum.
Did I make the right decision?What would have happened if she’d gone with him? Would he and Arran have had a punch-up on the ferry? If they’d faced off, Rhona would put money on Arran being the one to strike first. Arran could be hot-headed and Calum was more likely to have mastery of himself, but if he fought back, Arran would come off worse, if today’s display was anything to go by.You’ve been wrong about people before!A vision of Annike’s smug face swam before her. That was her biggest misjudgement so far. Could Calum turn out to be even more of a gargantuan mistake? She tapped the sofa arm and looked into the garden. Branches swayed around the tree house. When they’d kissed in there, the buzz had been incredible.So what?Am I just infatuated?Had it stopped her from seeing reason? Could she not see the wood for the trees?
‘Did you have a good day?’ asked Judy.
‘Yes.’ Rhona summoned her best smile.
‘Did you buy anything?’
‘No, just browsed.’
‘Who were you with again?’
‘Oh… Just me.’
‘You’ll never guess who was on the boat.’ Arran’s expression darkened. Couldn’t he let go? Smile and lighten up? He was a good-looking guy but that face made him so bitter.
