AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“The deaths. They murdered people, Teddy.”
His chest rises with his breath. “Are you… are you going to do anything about it?”
I laugh. A sound that’s empty, sardonic. “That’s why you really came? To find out if I’d report them to the police?”
“You know that’s not why I’m here.”
“Then why are you here, Teddy?”
“Because you’re my friend. This doesn’t change how much I care about you. I understand that you don’t want to see people, especially not me, but you can’t hate me for something I didn’t do or know about, Dayna.”
I finish my wine and head to the kitchen to refill my glass. “I don’t hate you,” I tell him as I walk away.
He’s on the sofa when I come back into the lounge with the remainder of the bottle of red and place it down on the coffee table.
“It makes sense now, doesn’t it? Why Harold Layton hates me.”
Teddy nods. “It doesn’t justify what he did, not even close, but love does crazy things to people.”
I turn on the TV, pull my legs up to the chair and rest my chin on my knees. “Is Clark okay?”
“He’s finding solace in Jack and tearing up his apartment.”
“He really didn’t know.”
Teddy shakes his head. “His mother had an affair and his father’s a filthy bastard. He’s dealing with a lot of shit, too.”
I train my attention on the TV as a comedian-cum-talk-show-host announces a new guest.
“You know why he told you, don’t you?”
I keep my eyes focussed on the chat show I’m not watching.
“He didn’t have to, Dayna. He knew that once he told you he’d lose you.”
“That’s hardly a concession. He didn’t want me.”
Teddy reaches for the remote and hits the off button, throwing the remote to the far end of the sofa so I can’t reach it. “Listen to me.” I turn to him, his face blurred by my tears. “He didn’t have to tell you. You know what Harold is like. Clark has gone against his family, and when Harold finds out… I don’t know what will happen. Clark has, for the first time ever, defied Harold’s orders. He chose you over his family.”
“He pulled out of the joint bid, Teddy. You said it yourself. He was going to bid because he wanted to keep me safe, because he thought he loved me. But he pulled out. He doesn’t love me. He doesn’t want me.”
“Dayna, even you can see this, surely? He told you the truth because he thought you deserved to know. He couldn’t go ahead with that bid. Harold still has all the power in Layton Oil, and he would have stopped it. Clark had no choice. He tried to find another way to give you what you want without hurting you. And he’s right. If Caspar wins the well with a higher bid, he’ll fail. That’s how you win.”
“Even if that were true, why come back? Why tell me about Little Princess?”
“Because he loves you. He couldn’t be with you and live a lie. He gave up on what he wants so he could do what’s right by you. He wants you.”
My clouded eyes clear as water drops onto my hand.
“We could never be together. Not now. I could never be part of that family.”
“I’m pretty sure he doesn’t want to be part of that family either, Dayna, but there are some things you don’t choose and can’t fight.”
I stare at him, or maybe through him, thinking about what he said.
Eventually, he leans down to the other end of the sofa to retrieve the remote. “Right, what shall we watch, Snot Face?” I offer him as much of a smile as I can manage as he scrolls through movies. “Have you eaten? You look skinny.”
“I had lunch with Mum and Anna.” He raises his eyebrows. “Yep. It was going well until one of Anna’s friends blurted out that Constance Hamilton is broken-hearted because some whore called Dayna Cross slept with her almost-husband.”
