“Don’t call me love when I’m pissed off,” she snapped. Max stopped in his approach and held his hands up in front of him in surrender. “This is part of the problem. Neither of you treats her with the respect she deserves. You both act like she’s an annoying little sister.” Mia sighed and her hands dropped from her hips as she turned to Max. “Do you even know why she does the yoga, aromatherapy, crystals and all that other stuff in the office?”
“Er.” Max scratched his head, and I almost felt sorry for the poor bastard. There was obviously a right answer to this question. “To wind me up?” And that was not it.
“She wantsyourbusiness to do well. She’s trying to settle the nerves ofyouremployees that you scare half to death. If it wasn’t for Yaz, half your staff would have jumped ship by now. Neither of you appreciate her. You both act like… likedicks.” My eyebrows shot up at this – Mia calling us dicks was so far from her normal it was a little unnerving. “And you.” She pointed at me, eyes narrowed and face still flushed with anger. “You need to leave her alone now. That’senough. You know it’s enough. Fair warning – I’ll not put up with it anymore.” With that, she spared us both one last filthy look, before sweeping out of the office. Max and I watched as she went directly to Yaz, grabbed her hand, and dragged her up into a hug.
“Well, it’s safe to say that she’s coming out of her shell,” I pointed out in a dry tone. Max was back to that small smile again. The man seemed awfully pleased for someone who’d just been called a dick by his wife. But then Max was completely in love with that woman – any sign that she felt safe enough to swear at him he would take as a good sign.
“She is, in’t she,” he said, his voice lighter than I’d heard it in a while. Whilst I was pleased for him and Mia, I had more pressing matters to discuss. I slapped the leaflet I’d stolen from Yaz down on the desk and it skidded over to Max. He frowned down at it, then back up at me.
“What’s this?”
“You tell me. This was in your sister’s flat. Is she moving to Brazil?”
“And why were you in her flat?” Max’s standard scowl was well and truly back on his face. Grumpy northerner restored to normal service.
I rolled my eyes. “Stand down, big guy. You’re the one who asked me to pick her up from the arse-end of nowhere last week. Her feet were cut to pieces – I had to go back later and glue the lacerations.”
“She didn’t tell me that. I just thought she got lost after one of her hippy rallies. Why did her feet get cut up?”
“It was a rave, Max. I think she had to make a sharp exit and left her bloody shoes behind. Then she couldn’t find the way out of the woods. Honestly, the girl does not give one single shit about her safety.” I was on a roll now. All the worrying and obsessing about Yaz I’d done over the last week was coming out in one go. “She doesn’t lock her door when she’s alone in the flat. Did you know that? No peephole and no proper lock. And then there’s her injuries. Not just her feet. She’s covered in scars. She’s like some sort of war veteran rather than a windsurfer.”
“Heath, she gets a bit bashed up every now and again, but she’s got it under control. The water is her thing. Yes, there was that concussion three years ago but– ”
“Concussion? What the hell?”
“She was surfing the reef, got thrown onto some rocks. Hit her head pretty hard. They stitched her up in minor injuries – had to spend the night at mine to check she didn’t go doolally as it was such a hard thump to the noggin. But she’s a tough ’un.” Max shrugged. How the bastard could be so blasé about his little sister’s safety was beyond me. The scenario he’d just recounted had made my blood run cold. She’d bashed her head on the reef hard enough to split her scalp open? She could have died. I felt like I was going to throw up.
“You have to stop her doing that shit,” I said, struggling to keep the anger out of my voice.
Max frowned at me. “I’ve never been able to control Yaz. You know that. She’s a law unto herself. And she needs that time in the water. Even when it’s ball-freezingly cold, she’s out there in her winter wetsuit, ripping it up. Nobody could ever separate my sister from the sea.”
“I don’t know what the fuss is about. It’s just messing around on a board, isn’t it?”
“When is the last time you saw Yaz windsurfing, Heath?”
“Oh, I don’t know. The last time V and I went on hols with your fam to Spain?”
“That was ten years ago. She’d only just started out then. I’m sorry, but you have to see her out there to understand. I’ve only just started realising in the last few months. Mia’s been on about how amazing she is.”
I rolled my eyes, surprised that Max bought into all this Yaz-at-one-with-the-sea bullshit. “What about that, then?” I pointed to the leaflet and Max frowned down at them again.
“She’s always been a free spirit. Maybe she feels she needs a change?” he muttered.
“A change? Max, this is Brazil we’re talking about.”
“Oh.”
“Oh? Is that all you’ve got to say?”
Max sighed. “Listen, Heath, I’m sure Yaz isn’t really thinking about moving to Brazil. She probably just wants to spend a few months there. But anyway, I don’t know what you expect me to do about it. Yeah, I’d miss the little shit but–”
“What about how far Mia’s come?” I put in, hitting him right in his weak spot. “I’m sure Mia would be upset if Yaz moved away, even if it was only for a few months. Might even hinder some of that progress she’s made. Especially with the baby on the way.”
Max’s frowned deepened as he considered that before his eyes flashed to me and they narrowed. “What’s all this sudden interest in my sister? I thought you couldn’t stand her. Last few years, you’ve treated her like an irritating gnat. She’s one of the few people for whom you turn the charmoff.”
I opened my mouth to speak, then closed it again. I could feel my ears heating and knew the tips of them would be red by now – a sure-fire embarrassment gauge with me. Max’s gaze darted to my ears, and he pushed up from his chair. I was six foot one and well built, but this big bastard had a couple of inches and a good few kilos on me. “I’m going to ask you again,mate.” His voice had dropped an octave now, and he’d crossed his arms over his chest. “What were you doing in my sister’s flat?”
“And I’ll tell youagain– I was gluing her feet back together afteryouasked me to fetch her.”
