Chapter Eleven
She was up early. David had left late the previous evening. Very late. And she should have been tired, she should have slept like a log, but she was way too hyped up.
What exactly was going on inside of her, she was too wary to try to figure out.
For David, she was probably one in a line of many women.
He was only helping her out of guilt. But did that didn’t stop her heart from doing cartwheels or her hormones from encouraging her to think all sorts of ridiculous things.
Here she was already planning what to make for dinner in case he came over next weekend.
Aargh! She had to stop! Nothing could come of this; she knew that.
Her phone rang. It was Caitlin.
“Hi, Dana. Are you okay? When you left on Friday, you were so angry. I wanted to phone earlier, but Rosa seemed to think you and David needed time to talk?”
Dana rolled her eyes. “Yes, I’m fine. And yes, I slept with David,” Dana said. There was no use even trying to hide this from Caitlin. The minute she heard Dana’s voice, she’d know something had happened between her and David.
Silence. Then the scream. Smiling, Dana held the phone away from her ear.
“What?” Caitlin shouted. “How come you moved so quickly from being angry with the man to going to bed with him? You were glaring daggers at him when you left here.”
Dana sighed. “I’m not quite sure. He organized for us to go and see two financial advisors who knew my dad and then we had lunch and then…”
“It happened?” Caitlin giggled.
“Yes,” Dana said, a giggle also escaping.
“And?” Caitlin wanted to know.
Dana tried to think of words to describe what had happened, but nothing that came to mind could begin to express what she’d experienced.
“That good, eh?” Caitlin teased.
“Oh, yeah.” Dana sighed. “But before you jump to any ridiculous conclusions, I know nothing can come of it. I’m trying to sort out my life. He’s helping me. That’s it. This is just a temporary thing.”
“And you’re okay with that?”
“Not all of us are destined to find our soul mates like you and Zoe did,” Dana said quietly. “I’m happy enough. I’d like to put this thing about my dad behind me, but to do that I need to know what really happened before I can go on with my life.”
“Were you able to find out anything else from the financial advisors you’ve seen?” Caitlin asked.
“To tell you the truth, I’m even more confused, but yes, we did find out several things.” She told Caitlin about the two conversations they had.
“So this Johnson guy thinks your dad’s death might not be suicide? That it might have something to do with the laundering of money?” Caitlin asked.
“I don’t know, but at least we now know for sure he wasn’t selling the product, and he wasn’t earning any commissions from Hastings.”
“And what about Sam Jordan? How come he didn’t end up in jail?”
“Well, there wasn’t much on him in the newspapers, but according to Toby Johnson, his commission payments aren’t traceable,” Dana replied and told her about the poachers.
“Wow, this is sounding more and more like something out of a thriller. What does David think?”
“He has contacts and is going to find out when Sam Jordan bought the house in Kleinmond and for what amount. From there, he can follow the money. I think we should talk to Jordan again.”
“Please, promise me you’ll wait for David before you talk to anyone again? I don’t like the sound of this man.”
“You sound like your mother.” Dana smiled. “But I have been doing things for myself for quite some time, you know?”
“I know. Talking about things, what about your car?”
“Well, if David had his way, I would have had a car already,” Dana grumbled and told Caitlin about the car they’d seen on Saturday.
“But that’s wonderful, Dana, why don’t you—”
“I can buy my own car, thank you very much. But the price sounds right, and I like the car, so I’ll give the guy a call later today.”
“It’s okay to lean on someone else every now and then, you know,” Caitlin said. “Especially if you’re sleeping with him.” She giggled.
“I can’t believe you said that!” Dana cried out, crossly. “That’s exactly why I’ll buy my own car. I’m not sleeping with him because he can get me things!”
“I know that.” Caitlin laughed. “But men like to think they are in charge even if they’re not.”
“Well, I don’t need a man to buy a car. I’m quite capable of doing it by myself.”
“Okay, Miss Independent, let me know what you’re getting!” Caitlin sang before they ended the call.
Dana scrolled down the contacts on her phone. There were two calls she wanted to make. One was to the car dealer and one was to her mother’s financial advisor. She was going to take David’s advice and talk to this guy to try and find out how bad her mother’s financial situation really was.
*
Dana took a deep steadying breath. “Let me get this straight. So what you’re saying is that my mother gets a generous income. Every month.”
“Yes, of course the exact amount is confidential, but what I can tell you is that your mother is well provided for, even if she lived to be a hundred.”
“Thank you. I appreciate you taking the time to talk to me,” Dana managed before her phone dropped from her fingers.
She bent forward, feeling sick. How could her mother do this?
She’d always tried to find an excuse for her mother’s behavior, tried to explain away why her mother treated her so badly, but this time…
Why, then, would her mother constantly claim poverty, beg, and take her money? Did her brother know?
Her phone rang and, still shocked, she answered.
“Miss Roux? This is Barry Cox, the car dealer. You were at our showroom on Saturday. I’m phoning about the car you looked at.”
“Oh… yes?” she said, her head still reeling from the news she had just received.
The man’s voice droned on. She was going to phone George in Dubai. It should still be daytime over there. Surely he would know? But why hadn’t he said anything?
“All you will pay for is the difference.” Barry’s voice finally penetrated her thoughts.
“What difference?” she asked.
Barry cleaned his throat. “Oh, dear. I wasn’t supposed to say that, but…” He laughed nervously. “Let me bring the car, and we can finish the paperwork—”
“What difference?” she repeated coldly.
“Um… Mr. Cavallo is paying for half of the car and you—”
Dana ended the call and threw her phone on the coffee table. She felt light-headed. Someone had just pierced her heart with a sharp object. There was no oxygen in the room—why couldn’t she breathe?
Her mother had been using her, taking her money even though she knew very well how little teachers were paid. And David had simply ignored what she’d said. What was she—chopped bloody liver?
How could he? She specifically told him she’d buy her own car—she didn’t need his help.
The low price the salesman quoted was, of course, possible only because David was paying half! And she believed them, stupid idiot that she was.
She wiped her eyes and stared in amazement at her wet hands. She was crying.
*
Frustrated, David stared at the phone. The salesman from Hermanus had just phoned him.
The bloody idiot wasn’t supposed to tell Dana that David was paying for half of the car.
But, damn it all, he wanted to make sure she got a good car and wouldn’t be driving around in a dilapidated number like the one she had.
“What did the phone do to you?” Darryn asked, looking up from his computer.
“It’s Dana… I…” he began but wasn’t sure how to explain what had happened.
The office door opened and Don strolled in, a grin nearly splitting his face in two.
“I hear you’re in trouble again.” He slapped David on the back.
“What do you mean?”
“Dana and Caitlin were on the phone when I left. All I could make out was that you thought you could pay for half of Dana’s car and she wouldn’t find out.
Dana is upset about something else as well, but I didn’t catch that.
You, my poor brother, have a lot to learn about these women. ” Don smiled sympathetically.
“Come again?” Darryn looked from Don to David. “What’s going on that I don’t know about?”
Don pointed at David. “He tried to pay for half of a new car for Dana.”
“What are you guys drinking?” Darryn cried out. “Are you also falling for a woman?”
David frowned. “I haven’t fallen for anyone; I’m trying to help her. I feel responsible for the bloody story that led to her dad’s death, and I’m helping her to get to the truth.”
“By paying for half of her car?” Don shook his head.
David rubbed his face. “She found out it was my story that led to her dad’s death, and she was upset. Her car also broke down. I drove her back to Hermanus, we spent time together, and I—”
“Back up a bit.” Don’s eyebrows rose. “Define ‘spent time together’—did you sleep with her?”
David grabbed his laptop. He had to get out of here and phone Dana. “Not that it’s any of your business, but yeah, I did,” he said and walked toward the door.
“Wait a damn minute,” Don called out, and David looked over his shoulder at his brother.
All the mirth had gone from Don’s face. “You know Dana is Caitlin’s best friend? And you know how I feel about my wife?”
David nodded.
“If you mess with Dana, you mess with me. Is that clear?”
“Crystal.” David snarled and stormed out of the office. Damn it all to hell! He was only trying to help.
*
The first five times she didn’t even answer the damn phone. The sixth time, she answered. Well, snarled, really.
“I don’t need your money. I don’t need your help. I don’t need you to make deals for me. I don’t need you. Stay out of my life!”
Before David could say anything, she’d cut the connection.
Frowning, he stared at the phone in his hand. Now what? He couldn’t remember a woman hanging up on him. Ever. What was he supposed to do now? Crawl back? Apologize? But he didn’t do anything wrong!
Fed up with the whole business, he opened his laptop. He didn’t have time for a woman who didn’t want his help, who didn’t need him. Work on the newly finished hotel near the Kruger National Park was nearly completed, and they would have to start their campaign promoting the place in earnest now.
Ten minutes later, he was still staring into space. With an oath, he opened the file he should have been working on.
Ten more minutes later, he realized he wasn’t going to get anything done. He had to try and fix this thing with Dana. But how? He grabbed his phone and scrolled down until he found Caitlin’s number.