Harry
“Why are we having this meeting again?” asked Toby, as he took his seat next to me in the boardroom. I shrugged, muttering something about assessing progress and choosing a direction. It was all bullshit. The truth was I’d had to call an actual business meeting so that I could talk to my own girlfriend and see her face to face.
Over the last two weeks she’d been avoiding me. It was likemyVerity had been switched off and a new, colder version had been drafted into her place. After she’d left with Mr Crawley, whom I’d since researched and found to be the Markham family solicitor, she hadn’t shown up at my house later that day as we’d planned. When I rang her, she’d given me some excuse about “sorting family business” and said that she’d ring me when she was able to. But she didn’t ring. In fact, she didn’t text or ring for two days. All my calls went to voicemail, and none of my messages were answered. Silence. By this stage, I was beginning to get worried. I couldn’t get her blank expression out of my mind, or the way she’d snatched her hand from mine. Something was wrong. So, I’d phoned Max, but he was his usual uncommunicative self, and couldn’t shed any light on Verity’s silence. My phone call to Max did result in some contact from Verity though. She texted me.
Harry, I’m fine.
I just have some business I have to sort over the next few weeks. I won’t be able to see you at all this month. I understand if that’s not convenient for you and if you want to move on.
If I wanted to move on? What the fuck did that mean? I was in love with this woman. After that text, and the unanswered calls that followed, I started to get angry. Those small doubts and insecurities started to creep back in again. Heath’s words from twenty years ago started replaying themselves.
She’s going to be Lady Markham, mate. What the hell do you think she’d want with a townie teacher’s son?
My sister could have anyone she wanted. Why would she waste her time with a nerd like you? You were just a game to her, you stupid sod.
Yes, Heath hadtoldme that he’d been full of shit. That he’d just been trying to protect his sister from having her heart broken by a bloke who was going off to university and being left to pine after him. That things actuallywerehard at home – there were some family difficulties that Heath didn’t want to get into. He’d also told me that he made a mistake – that Verity didn’t really get over me, and that he still didn’t think she had. He’d seemed to be telling me the truth at the time. At leastpartof the truth. There was definitely information he was holding back. There had been more to it than just him protecting his sister from me. The Markhams hadn’t been honest with me from the beginning, and they still weren’t being honest with me now.
The double doors to the conference room opened and Max walked in, followed by Verity. Toby and I rose from our seats to greet them, but I froze when I saw Verity’s face. She was in her standard ultra-chic business-slash-high-fashion outfit, her hair and make-up were perfect as always. But her cheeks were more hollow than before, her eyes when they came briefly to mine were blank – completely devoid of any expression. And I could just make out dark circles underneath them. She wasn’t sleeping. Was she eating? My chest tightened in concern.
“Verity?” I called softly and the room fell silent.
As if it cost her a huge amount of effort, Verity’s gaze came to mine, and I sucked in a short breath. For a moment, pain flashed through the blue of her eyes so starkly it was like a physical force in the room. What was going on? I forgot about everyone else there, and focused only on Verity.
“Baby, are you okay?”
The pain burned brighter for a moment, before she blanked it completely.
“I’m perfectly fine, if not exceptionally busy,” she said in a voice so cold I was surprised the water on the table didn’t freeze over. “And it would be more appropriate if you addressed me formally in meetings. Now, if you don’t mind, we have a number of things to be getting on with. Being commanded up here for a meeting is significantly eating into our time. And I might remind you both, yours is not the only project we’re working on.”
“Okay, Ms Markham,” Toby said, his normally easy-going demeanour a thing of the past and his voice also laced with ice. “We’re sorry for wasting your precious time. If you could find a few moments to discuss the progress and timeline with us, that would be appreciated. Then you can bothleave.” He was vibrating with fury, and I knew why. This bitch routine was pretty convincing. Toby was protective of me – he had been since university, and he knew how much Verity meant to me.
Max took over at that point. Going through plans we’d already been sent, and information we were already aware of – exposing this meeting for the sham it was. When they got up to leave, I shot around the conference table to catch up with Verity. I caught her arm to stop her as she power-walked behind Max out into the corridor. At my touch, she spun around on her heel, her eyes huge and her expression so vulnerable that for a second I thought she might cry. She looked down at my hand on her arm for a moment, then up into my eyes and her body swayed towards me before she caught herself. She blinked, yanked her arm free and retreated a couple of steps.
“Verity, please,” I begged. “Talk to me. I know something’s wrong. Just tell me. You can tell me anything – remember?”
Max had paused a few feet from us both, and he was looking between Verity and me with concern. “Verity, I think–” he started, but Verity whipped around to look at him, and whatever expression was on her face made him snap his mouth shut.
“I told you,” she said, all that vulnerability gone from her expression again, “I’m busy. To be honest, Harry, I think it’s best that we just call it a day. I don’t really have time for this right now.”
“Call it a day?” my voice was incredulous. “Verity, what the hell has happened to you? We’renotjust calling it a day.”
“You might get your own way here,” she snapped, “with your Big-Dick-Energy office and your minions. But I’m not one of them, Harry. So, you can stick your special eggs, your LP Mayweather and your hot nerd routine. I’ve hadenough.”
I reeled back as if she’d slapped me. I thought she liked Mayweather? And what was wrong with my eggs?Shewas the one who had said I was a hot nerd, for God’s sake. Unfortunately, I let my anger boil through my concern. I let those old, deep-seated insecurities in, and I didn’t register the pain that had made its way back into her eyes as I took a step back.
“Fine,” I snapped. “I guess it’s run its course then. I’ve shagged my teenage crush now, so that’s a win-win as far as I’m concerned. So, by all means, do jog on.”
The anger ringing in my ears meant I didn’t hear the swift intake of breath Verity took, didn’t see how she flinched. And I was already walking away, so I didn’t see how Max had to support her to the lift, or how she’d crumbled against him once inside it. All I registered was my hurt pride, my fury and my disappointment. I didn’t stop to think how incongruous everything Verity was saying and the way she was acting was with the person I had come to know in the last few weeks. Just like twenty years ago, I let myself stew in my own resentment, and once again, I missed the whole bloody point.
Chapter19
Not really our sort of people
Harry
“Hey, Mum!” I called out as I pushed through into the tiny corridor and was immediately assaulted by three small bodies. I managed to grab them all into one mass of squirming kid – shoved the smallest two under one arm, and the largest under the other to stride down the corridor in search of the rest of my family. Mum still insisted on cooking these Sunday lunches at their home, even though there just wasn’t room for us all there now. She said she didn’t trust my fancy oven and was too old to work out my brother’s induction hob. So, all eight of us crammed around the small kitchen table in their terraced house every month, whilst the kids steadily destroyed everything in their path.
“I found some of your rubbish out in the hallway,” I said to my brother. The wriggling under my arms intensified.
