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I saw the moment reality hit him. A coolness swept over his face, bringing it back to his former distant self. A small pang of dismay rang in my chest. I stuffed the feeling down and pulled my protective walls up around me. Holidays can do weird things to people, no matter how wrong they are for one other.
‘I’m going for a run,’ Cameron said, turning away from me and heading for the door, his fingers gripping the handle hard as he wrenched it open.
I wanted to say sorry. To smooth over the past day. But nothing would fix it. So I let him go before sinking back into the bed and cursing.
As much as I wanted to not be married to a Thompson, and to not be trapped in a life I hadn’t chosen, I had to admit that Cameron had driven me to a high I hadn’t known before. And while it was only a quick dalliance, it had left me wanting more.
More that I couldn’t have if I was going to destroy his father.
We largely went back to avoiding each other for the rest of the last day. He ran while I ate; I showered while he worked out; he ate while I slept. A new tension had taken place of the old one, a more intense and more devastating one. It was for the best, though. It would be easier to fuck him over if he went back to hating me. Maybe I’d proven his beliefs about me right. I’d taken my pleasure and left him hanging, and even worse, I did it knowing it couldn’t go on once we got back.
As the sun set on our final evening in paradise, I sat alone on the couch, staring out over the glorious cacophony of colours. I should have kept away. Trying to seduce him into helping me had only made everything worse. And within a day, I’d have to face Harold. To live in the pig’s house with him. The thought sent a shudder through me.
I needed to find a way out, and fast.
Hopefully, my brothers would have had more success with their own plans than I had had. Maybe they were right, maybe I couldn’t save myself. Maybe I was just born to sit back and let the men deal with everything.
A tear rolled down my cheek as the sun dipped below the horizon. Both the day and myself about to enter the darkness.
I just hoped it wouldn’t swallow me whole.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
MAEVE
The Thompson mansion lay a few miles out of the city, surrounded by rolling hills and green, leafy trees. It looked picture perfect, from the manicured lawns that straddled the long, winding driveway to the polished granite that sparkled in the morning sun. Claws ravaged at my stomach as the chauffeur-driven car approached the oversized building and I swallowed hard. It was one thing to be married to Cameron and a few thousand miles from reality, but being so close to Harold made my intestines feel like they were made from jelly.
Benny, the driver, pulled the luxury car up to the main entrance, but Cameron threw open his door and stormed out toward the house before it had even fully come to a stop. Without so much as a word to me. Shit. I was going to have to face it on my own. The door next to me clicked open and extended outward before Benny proffered a hand. But those internal claws had pinned me to my seat, reality washing over me with waves of dread.
‘Are you alright, Ma’am?’ Benny asked, his face appearing in the gap between safety and Harold Thompson.
‘Not really. I don’t think I can do this.’ My breath seemed to escape me, like it was just out of reach as I gasped, trying to remember how to breathe normally.
‘Hey.’ Benny crouched down with a glance toward to house before resting a hand on my arm. ‘You can do this. Cameron won’t let Harold hurt you.’
‘Cameron doesn’t give a flying fuck about me. Why would he care?’
‘I know he comes across as an ice-brick, but he’s not his father. He’s a good kid. I’ve known him since he was a tyke, and I’ve seen him defend those who need defending. You’ll be okay with him around.’ Benny’s face was open and honest. He spoke softly in a way that settled over me like a calming balm.
‘I’m not someone he cares about. I’m the enemy who his dad forced him to marry. It’s not the same.’ The damn claws tried to reach up and drag me further down.
‘Come on, I can escort you over if you wish? They’ll be waiting.’ He stood and straightened out his perfectly pressed black trousers before offering the hand once more. The last thing I wanted was to enter the devil’s house, but what choice did I have? I took his hand and let him help me out of the car, giving him a tight smile as he squeezed my hand a little tighter than would have been customary.
‘Thank you. I’ll walk in myself, though. I can do this.’ I had to do this. Showing weakness would only please Harold and Cameron. Vulnerability was not an option.
Benny smiled before making his way around to the trunk to start on the luggage. ‘I don’t doubt it for a moment, Ms Thompson.’
The name made me shudder. I needed to go in there and find a way out. As soon as possible. Legally I may have been Mrs Thompson, but inside I was still one hundred percent McGowan. And I’d show them all.
The inner hall was like something from a hotel. A really, really grand hotel. The double staircase rose from the ornate marble floor and my eyes followed it up to another story, and up again to the triple height ceiling, topped off with a huge oval window that showed the bright skies above. I was no stranger to mansions, hell we’d lived in one since I was young, but nothing as grand as Harold’s. Every inch of the space sparkled, from the patterned marble flooring to the sleek, dark wood of the stairs, to the paintings and artwork which intersected the space. It would be like living in a museum. Not like the McGowan home where I’d spent years hiding in nooks and crannies, sliding down the staircases on pillows and causing havoc with my brothers and sister. Our childhood had filled the home with laughter and love, chaos and life. The Thompson mansion was resplendent, but with a sense of sterility. Of harsh, imposing, untouched beauty. Unloved and devoid of life, or of the good things in life.
Cameron came into the space from the left and met my eyes. His face was still stony, so much like the beautiful, cold surroundings. The silence stretched between us until it was pierced with a high-pitched squeal that had us both jolting and glancing to the top of the staircase.
‘Oh, my god! You’re back!’ Katie took the stairs at speed before launching herself into her brother’s arms with a grin on her face. The room around her burst to life as she entered, and even Cameron couldn’t help but smile as he hugged her briefly before holding her back with two hands.
‘Are you okay? Were things okay when I was gone?’ Cameron asked her as I stood awkwardly watching them, feeling every bit out of place. Katie’s face beamed when she looked at her brother with a childlike idolisation I’d rarely seen on anyone past the age of ten. She lived with Harold. How on earth could she be that peppy?
‘It’s been okay. I went to Macey’s for a few days and Father’s been busy with work.’
