Chapter 16 #2
Alba blinked repeatedly as she reread the message, each word settling heavier than the last, pressing down on her chest until she found it difficult to breathe properly.
Audrey was many things, but threatening had never been one of them.
Yes, she liked to throw her weight around when it would benefit her, but this message was so far removed from anything she’d ever received from her ex-wife before.
Swallowing down the thick emotion lodged in her throat, Alba leaned in and kissed Colin’s head, closing her eyes as she steadied herself. “Sorry, bud. But I tried.”
As she left the living room, the doorbell sounded and frightened the life out of her.
Her heart jumped into her throat, her breath catching as she stilled for a second in the hallway.
God, she hoped it was Lois and one of her random drop-ins.
After her call with Audrey, she needed something easy and familiar, something…
that didn’t require her to hold herself together so tightly.
As she dragged herself towards the door, each step heavier than the last, her bottom lip quivered. Alba was ready to break down whether she liked it or not, as the weight of everything pressed in on her all at once—the call and the message, the fear rising from low in her stomach.
She opened the door and swallowed. “E-Ellie.”
Ellie’s brows drew together when Alba looked back at her with tears in her eyes and a trembling bottom lip.
The sight hit her hard, a protectiveness rushing through her before she had the chance to think it through.
She stepped closer and took Alba’s hand, glad that she’d made the decision to show up here tonight.
It didn’t matter why she had, not right now. Not when Alba looked like this.
She searched Alba’s face, the pain residing on it raw and unguarded, and guided her back inside the house.
Colin hadn’t even bothered to come to the door to greet her; was he sensing the tension, too?
God, Alba was practically distraught. Ellie closed the door behind them and moved into the hallway. “Come on. You need to sit down.”
Alba shook her head and stepped away from Ellie, the sudden distance immediate and jarring. “No, I’m okay. You…should leave.”
Ellie paused, her hand still half-raised where it had been holding Alba’s.
“Is that what you want me to do?” Ellie asked as she dipped her head and met Alba’s eyes.
She couldn’t help but linger and admire, regardless of how upset Alba was right now.
There was something entrancing about those gorgeous brown eyes, pulling her in despite everything. “Alba?”
“I-I…it’s just for the best.”
Ellie watched her, trying to read the space between what Alba was saying and what she actually meant. Then Alba turned and walked into the living room. Ellie would respect what she wanted and leave, but first, she needed to know that she was okay.
“I don’t want to bother you if you’d rather be alone, but do you need to talk?
You’ve done so much for me recently, and I’d like to return the favour.
It’s the least I can do.” Ellie felt helpless as Alba sat down and looked up at her.
Colin remained at her side, his tail wagging as he panted and stared up at Ellie, unaware of the tension in the room.
She quickly crouched at the side of the couch and gave him a stroke on the head, but her focus remained on Alba. “If I’ve done something—”
Alba frowned. “You haven’t. Why would you think that?”
“I don’t know. I guess it was just the first scenario my mind went to when you asked me to leave.
” Ellie shrugged, though it didn’t quite mask the uncertainty she felt beneath it.
She wasn’t very good at reading personal situations outside of work.
She’d spent so long being at home tending to Colin of an evening or running Eloise around to her various after-school activities that she rarely had the time to get involved in other people’s lives.
This, whatever it was, felt unfamiliar. “Maybe I could make you a cuppa before I go?”
Alba smiled weakly. “A cuppa would be nice.”
Ellie nodded and left the room, going over anything she could have done to upset Alba, even if Alba had already put her mind to rest. But there was nothing she could think of that she may have done wrong.
In fact, they’d only grown closer lately.
That was precisely why she’d felt so conflicted on the way over here tonight.
She wanted to see Alba, she wanted to be alone with Alba, but… Ellie was straight. Wasn’t she?
She frowned as she busied herself making Alba’s cup of tea.
Oh, God. What if she knows I’m interested in her?
Ellie shook her head, trying to push that thought away before it could take root.
Perhaps now wasn’t the right time to worry about her love life.
Her main priority was Alba’s well-being.
“Just do this for her and leave.” Ellie popped a teabag into the cup and poured hot water over it, but it splashed over the side, scalding her hand.
“Fuck!” As a sharp sting shot through her, she clenched her jaw and flared her nostrils, rushing to the sink.
She scolded herself inwardly for not paying attention to what she was supposed to be doing. “You need to get a grip!”
“Are you okay?” Alba’s soft voice reached Ellie and calmed her within an instant, the tension in her shoulders easing a little. She smiled but kept her back to Alba, closing her eyes so she could memorise that beautiful voice. “Ellie?”
She looked over her shoulder, hoping the disappointment of being asked to leave wasn’t showing on her face. Alba was distressed; she didn’t want to add to that. Not when she already looked like she was barely holding it together. “I’m fine. I…poured the water over my hand instead of into your cup.”
“Maybe I could make them instead since you’re accident-prone this evening.”
Ellie took some kitchen roll from the holder and dried her hand off, dabbing gently at the redness.
It stung, but she could deal with it once she was back at home.
“You asked me to leave. I’ll respect that.
” Ellie had been eager to head over here just a short while ago, the anticipation of seeing Alba settling inside of her with a hint of excitement, but Alba wanted to be alone, and that was okay.
It had to be. “I’m sorry for showing up without calling first. I guess I thought it would be okay since we’ve been in and out of one another’s places over the last couple of months. ”
“I’ve really enjoyed getting to know you, and in an ideal world, we’d remain friends.
” The emotion Alba’s voice was hard to hear.
“But my life isn’t so simple right now, and I don’t want you to get caught up in something that can be avoided.
” Alba lowered her eyes and sighed, the severity of what she was saying settling between them.
“I think it would be best if you and I were just work colleagues, Ellie.”
God, that suggestion was more painful than Ellie could have anticipated.
It landed somewhere she hadn’t realised was vulnerable until now.
How could she walk away from someone who brought so much joy to her life, even if Ellie’s own head was a mess with everything she was feeling lately? “I don’t understand what’s going on.”
“Audrey knows I’m working at Park Haven. I knew it would only be a matter of time; it is public knowledge. But she’s planning to make my life difficult.”
Ellie scoffed, that protective instinct flaring again before she could temper it.
“She’ll do no such thing. I run that place, and I’m not having any of my staff made to feel uncomfortable on or off school premises.
” Ellie stepped closer and took Alba’s hands, her grip firm and unwilling to let her retreat again. “Hey, what’s going on? Talk to me.”
“She thinks you and I are dating.”
Ellie’s brows rose, surprise flickering across her face, but inside, her heart ached at the possibility. Though, judging by Alba’s reaction to Audrey’s accusation, it wasn’t likely to ever happen. Still, Ellie understood why. She was significantly older, and she had a whole load of baggage. “Okay.”
“I’ve told her it’s not true, that the idea I could ever be with a woman like you is completely insane, but she thinks something is going on between us and she’s promised to make sure she puts a stop to whatever she thinks is happening.
” While Ellie didn’t know what it was that she was hoping for in terms of the future and Alba’s role in it, she didn’t appreciate Audrey Seddon having any kind of input or opinion on her life.
Alba visibly swallowed and handed her phone over.
The message from Audrey was waiting on the screen.
“I don’t want her to start playing games again.
I’m still recovering from the last lot, and you don’t need this. You don’t need any of it.”
Ellie stared down at Alba’s phone, dumbfounded by what she was reading.
It wasn’t the accusation that bothered her—it thrilled her more than anything—but the way Audrey spoke to Alba was downright disgusting.
Each word felt like it scratched at something inside of her.
She handed Alba’s phone back. “I appreciate you trying to protect me and my job, but I’m perfectly capable of looking after myself. ”
Alba’s eyes widened. “Oh, God. I didn’t mean it like that. I know you’re more than capable. God, you’re the strongest woman I know.”
“Hey.” Ellie smiled and stopped Alba from rambling any further, her thumb brushing against the back of Alba’s hand. “Go and sit down, and I’ll bring us both a cup of tea through.”