Endgame (Roommates #3)

Chapter 1

ONE

ARIELLA

‘We’re here.’

I look out of the helicopter window as we circle the sprawling estate. From the sky, a spectacular white hotel situated in the middle of the property is gleaming in the sun, surrounded by picturesque cottages scattered through lush greenery, woodland, meadows and lakes. The journey from Boston has been short but the views from the air, as we made our way to Kennebunkport, were indescribably beautiful.

‘Is that a vineyard?’ I ask into my headset microphone, pointing.

‘Yes,’ Dominic says with a laugh as he leans over to look outside my window. ‘It’s small but still very much working. We’ve got about six acres and yield about twelve tonnes of grapes a year; so about nine thousand bottles. There’s also an orchard, so we make cider too. Farmers’ market stuff. We should go and play in the tasting barn a little later.’

‘Definitely!’ I accept enthusiastically as we start to descend.

When we disembark, we are led across the helipad and through an immaculately trimmed hedged path to the main building. We are then met at the hotel’s imposing wooden doors by an older gentleman in a sharp, dark grey suit, and taken to meet a radiant lady of roughly the same age.

‘Dominic. You made it! I am so pleased.’ She reaches out to him for an emotional hug.

‘MrsThompson.’ He greets her affectionately as he steps into her arms. It’s nice to see him like this, especially as he almost didn’t make it here for his parents’ ruby anniversary. It’s a long, loving embrace, making it obvious that it has been a while since they have shared one. When they step away from each other, I see MrsThompson give him a warm smile before she straightens up, waiting to be introduced. I find myself straightening too. I know it’s silly, but I want her to like me. When Dominic does nothing, she sighs, steps forward and extends her hand.

‘Hello, Miss. I am MrsThompson, the house manager, and have been since Dominic was an ankle-biter. It seems he’s forgotten his manners and how to introduce people to each other.’

‘Of course, I’m sorry. MrsThompson, this is Ariella, she’ll be staying with us for a couple of days.’

‘Welcome, Ariella. Your bags will be delivered to Dominic’s suite shortly. Let me just check where…’ MrsThompson happily assures me as she reaches for the walkie-talkie clipped on to her waist.

‘I was hoping we could find a cottage for her? It’s only for a couple of days before she heads to Louisiana,’ Dominic asks politely, interrupting a surprised-looking MrsThompson. This is news to her. I’m obviously not the first guest Dominic has hosted here, but clearly I’m the first who has required her own space.

‘Dominic, an email or even a text would have been nice,’ she scolds like a mother speaking to her adored, mischievous child.

‘I’d be more than happy to stay in town and rent a car. It looks impossibly picturesque in this part of the world and I’d quite like to take the opportunity to explore,’ I offer.

‘Oooh, you’re British. Delightful. You will do no such thing, Ariella. It will be my pleasure to find you a cottage.’ MrsThompson looks conspiratorially at Dominic, prompting him to lean into her.

‘The Grahams were supposed to arrive yesterday and haven’t showed up, as usual. They can stay in town. Silly me, something must have happened with the room allocation system. I’ll have to get the technical team to take a look at it.’ She winks at him.

‘I really don’t mind—’ I start.

‘Aari, you’re staying. The Grahams are my mother’s cousins. They do this all the time. They insist on staying the week before and after whatever they are invited to, but then just appear for a couple of days; or sometimes don’t turn up at all. They can stay in town.’

‘Also…’ MrsThompson whispers theatrically as she moves closer, ‘the staff are not fans.’

I can’t help laughing. She makes it easy to imagine some of the trouble she and Dominic must have caused and covered up over the years.

‘Thank you.’

‘You are welcome, Ariella. If you’ll excuse me, I’m just going to move a few guests around so that you’re in one of the cottages closest to the house. Something I would have done if someone had sent a message in advance.’ She tugs the jacket lapel of an apologetic-looking Dominic.

‘I’ll make it up to you,’ he promises.

‘You better. I want dinner in town and a detailed catch-up on the last five years.’

‘Done.’

‘I’ve missed you. Come here.’ MrsThompson pulls Dominic into another indulgent hug and it’s clear from his submission that he has missed her too.

‘Right. Would you like to wait for your cottage allocation first or would you like to join the family now?’

I can tell her question is loaded. ‘Is Max with everyone?’ Dominic asks.

‘Yes, Maximilian and that trollop are here with the twins,’ she confirms cautiously.

‘Is everyone else here?’ Dominic asks carefully.

‘Yes, the powder keg is present and complete.’ MrsThompson raises an eyebrow.

‘We’ll wait for the allocation please,’ Dominic confirms, laughing.

MrsThompson nods, then shows us into a large drawing room and disappears.

‘Is the trollop…’ I start.

‘Yeah…’ His thoughts obviously drift away before he snaps back. ‘Are you sure you don’t mind staying close when everyone is around?’

‘Dom, that’s the only reason I’m here. I promised to stand beside you the whole time and that’s exactly what I plan to do; but I am going to need you to explain what the powder keg is.’ I smile.

‘That’s the name MrsThompson and I have for the whole family when we are together. It can be a little volatile. My mother is my father’s second wife, so I have three siblings from his first marriage and a couple from the many affairs he had during it. He has never played it safe.’

‘Wow. I thought Maximilian was your only sibling.’

‘Nope. There are seven of us. My mother had Max and me but there are other families, and my father insists that all his children come together whenever there is a celebration. As you can probably imagine, that comes with its own unique set of challenges. Believe it or not, Maximilian isn’t my biggest problem.’

‘Uh-oh.’

‘Yeah. There’s a whole family issue about me being called Dominic.’

‘Why?’

‘Well, my father is obviously Dominic the Fifth. Someone got drunk at my christening and made a joke that he’d clearly had six inadequate kids before he found his heir. Since then, I’ve been a bit of a target, and being the youngest doesn’t help.’

‘And everyone is here right now?’

‘Yup. With husbands, wives, kids – all with their own grievances and stories to tell. My mother is probably right in the thick of it too, being entertained and teasing my father for being promiscuous before he met her.’

We both chuckle.

‘I’m really glad you’re here, Aari,’ Dominic says, smiling sadly, changing the mood.

‘I’m so sorry that I can’t stay a little longer. I wish I could.’ I can tell being here is going to be hard for him.

Dominic carries himself with a gravitas that is intimidating to most people. My first impression of him as CEO of DMVI, and later, potential client, was exactly what he intentionally projects to the world. Dominant. Unrelenting. Focused. Entitled. His transition to friend evolved over an evening of smooth, jagged and barrier-setting conversation, revealing a warmer Dominic beneath his immovable solid exterior. Kind. Hilarious. Generous. Trustworthy. Cheeky. Wounded. Lonely. That’s the Dominic I am here to support. The Dominic who made being away from home less cold and barren; especially when I needed it. The Dominic I said yes to, when he asked me to stay in Singapore, even though I desperately wanted to return home. I want to show up for him, the way he did for me in Singapore, but I’m going to have to walk a fine line. More than friendly feelings occasionally surface when we are alone and, while I’m sure Dominic would be an incredible partner to tackle life with, my heart is held captive elsewhere.

‘Me too, but I refuse to cut into your granny Grace’s time. You’re here for the worst days anyway, so you’ll have earned that time off. Maybe we can come back next year? It’s beautiful here in the summer. We can fly the other way around and stop in London on the way next time, if you like?’

‘If I don’t get to hit that tasting barn, I might beg for us to do that.’

‘Oh, we’re hitting the barn. It’s just a matter of how many times you’d like to. We have a lot of wine!’

‘Do not go into that tasting barn with Dominic unsupervised. I have almost been fired on more than one occasion because I made that choice!’ MrsThompson happily approaches us with what looks like a large wooden leaf with a key dangling from it.

‘Thank you for the tip.’ I laugh.

‘My pleasure. You’re in Maple. Your bags are in your cottage. Hit nine on your phone if there is anything you’d like and grab your walkie when you leave your room just in case you need some assistance. Cell phone service is intentionally non-existent on the property, but the Wi-Fi is strong and fast in all the bedrooms. Dominic, do you want to show Ariella to the cottage or shall I?’

‘I can show her where Maple is.’ Dominic gets up. ‘Thank you.’

‘No problem.’ She beams. ‘Next time, please remember two words. Need Cottage.’

‘Yes, MrsThompson.’ Dominic laughs as he walks me down the huge corridor that runs through the entire building and out of the other side. We disappear into a covered wooded path and stop at the first building we encounter, with the word Maple carved in bronze on the white door.

The chatty hubbub suddenly dies to almost silence as Dom and I walk through a groomed hedge into the pristinely manicured gardens. His walk slows to a stop as all eyes settle on us, so I reach out for his hand and lace my fingers through his to remind him that I am here. We stand still for a couple of beats, and then I see a strong, tanned, beautiful woman with fire-red hair in a loose white dress, running at full speed on bare feet towards us.

‘DOM!!!!’ she screams as she throws herself at him, pulling him down to her petite height and kissing his face, mouth, forehead and eyelids fervently.

‘Hello, Mother.’ He laughs as he lets her do what she needs to. I can’t help how happy I feel for him. Thankfully, slowly, the hubbub of chat returns to normal as people turn their attention away.

‘Selene, don’t scare him away, he just got here.’ The resemblance between Dominic and his father is striking. He is basically just an older version of Dominic and looks nowhere near eighty. ‘Hello, young lady, I’m the original Dominic. You’re an impossibly beautiful creature, aren’t you? Who might you be?’ He shares a charming smile and I can’t help but smile along.

‘There were four Dominics before you, darling, making you not the original at least four times,’ Dominic’s mom interrupts before I can answer.

‘But in this context, I am.’

‘No, your father is over there on the oxygen tank, trying to keep up with the names of all the kids, grandkids and great-grandkids you have running around here.’

‘Hello, Father.’ Dominic steps forward to hug his father.

‘Hello, son.’

‘Mother, Father. This is Ariella Mason. She’s my friend from Singapore. She’s staying for a couple of days.’

‘I hope that’s all right, Mrand MrsMiller?’ I ask.

‘Of course it is! You know, you remind me of a girl I was in love with back when I was a student. Back then we had to keep it a secret, but she had the softest, iridescent skin and beautiful—’ Dom’s father starts.

‘Don’t fall for it. He has enough kids.’ Dominic’s mother tuts at her husband. ‘Hello, Ariella, lovely to meet you, I’m Selene. Welcome to our home.’

‘Thank you. It’s gorgeous here.’

‘It is. Sadly, we don’t spend enough time here.’ Dominic’s mother laces her arm through mine and begins taking me on what looks like an impromptu tour.

‘Mother, do you think I could have Ariella back?’ Dominic calls after us.

‘You can for now, darling, but I’d like to spend some time getting to know her later.’ His mother seems like a formidable woman; I’d definitely like to spend some time with her later too.

I walk beside Dominic as we move through the party. He keeps his hellos to family and friends swift. After a few minutes the party atmosphere returns to normal, with the guests enjoying the copious amounts of food and wine provided by sharply dressed waiters.

‘How are you feeling?’ I check in with Dominic.

‘It’s not as bad as I remember. Things have mellowed. The last time we were all together, everyone was at each other’s throats. But I’m still not taking any chances. Let’s grab a buggy and I’ll show you around.’

‘Is it okay if we walk for a little while? I could use a leg-stretch.’

‘The whole property is just over nine hundred acres,’ Dominic says proudly. ‘We can walk for as long as you want.’

Dominic grabs my hand as we navigate our way past some guests and through another hole in a hedge, to be confronted by a huge equestrian centre. I am dazzled by the immaculate turf racetrack, riding trails, round pens, paddocks and pastures with run-in sheds. The Millers are obviously riders. We make our way through more barns, the orchard, vineyard, outbuildings, several garages, and the property’s own independent water system. Out of nowhere, we come across what looks like a quaint little village cluster of twelve detached homes, and two three-storey apartment buildings with driveways filled with buggies as well as carefully tended gardens. There is a small bakery, butcher and convenience store onsite.

‘This is our staff residence,’ Dominic explains.

‘I want to live here! It’s very pretty.’

‘Yeah, I spent a lot of time here when I was much younger and hadn’t learned to defend myself yet. Besides, we could hardly live in that monster of a house and make the team that looks after us day by day sleep in barns.’ He smiles.

‘Wow.’

‘Not quite. Wait till you see the pools.’

‘You have more than one?’ I tease.

‘Oh yes, but it’s a bit of a trek. Are you sure you’re up for it?’

‘Are you tired of walking?’ I make fun of him.

‘Nope, just checking you’re still good.’ He laughs and we head to the main house. After a hard walk back, we sneak past the garden party on the other side of the hedge, childishly running past the openings to avoid detection. We make our way past my cottage, sticking closely to the rear of the house. On the other side, we are confronted with a humongous pavilion-style pool house and venture inside.

‘That fireplace is amazing! I’d easily come in here to read and fall asleep. This is not a pool, it’s…’

‘I know. It’s a bit much, right?’

‘How big is it?’

‘About a thousand square feet? Next door there is a gym, sauna, steam room, ice room, changing rooms, and it has its own kitchen. You’ll be pleased to hear that there are hot yoga and dance studios, so you can practise in the morning if you want.’

‘And this just sits here while the family isn’t here?’

‘Oh, no. It’s a fully functioning private country club and resort when we aren’t here. There are lots of weddings held here too. We get thirty days of private use every year so we don’t piss the members off.’

‘Is this where you got married?’ I recognised some bits from the picture he showed me at our first dinner.

‘Yeah. It was?—’

‘Six?’

‘You lost the privilege of calling me that five years ago, Mackenzie Miller,’ Dominic answers as if on cue.

We both turn around and there she is. The woman he was holding affectionately in the wedding picture, now his brother’s wife. I can feel her assessing us with her big, green, kind eyes. In real life, she is even more beautiful and fairy-like with her pixie-cut. All her short green fitted dress needs is a pair of wings and she could give Tinker Bell a run for her money.

They stand, seemingly spellbound, staring at each other and saying nothing for a few seconds. Actually, I think they’re saying plenty to each other, I just can’t hear it. She finally musters the courage to speak again.

‘Yes. I’m sorry. Please do you think I could have a few minutes?’ she asks, her voice shaking.

‘Sure.’ Dominic reaches for my hand and pulls me towards him. ‘What do you want?’ I can feel how tense he is.

‘Alone?’ she pleads.

I can see why Dominic fell in love with her. She looks so vulnerable, I want to give her anything she wants too. Dominic is silent for a moment. He sighs deeply before turning to me.

‘Aari, please can I meet you back at the party?’

Poor Dominic. She clearly still has a hold on him. Witnessing this interaction, I can see why he wanted me here to attend his parents’ celebrations with him, but this is a battle he will need to fight alone.

‘Absolutely,’ I respond quickly, relieved. I untangle my fingers from his and walk, as quickly as I can without breaking into a sprint, out of the pool house. He’s still in love with her, that much is clear. I really want to go back to my cottage, shower and get some sleep, but I find the strength to return to the party and face a bunch of people I don’t know. I eventually find the right hedge to pop through after a couple of errors and, as soon as I walk through, I am approached by a woman who could easily be Dominic’s sister.

‘Hello, Ariella. I’m Beatrice.’ I assume everyone knows my name now. ‘Where’s my brother hiding?’

‘He asked me to meet him here. I’m sure he’ll arrive soon.’ I try to evade her real question.

‘I saw you two sneak off earlier. No doubt he was showing off the size of his acreage.’ She winks at me. Oh no. Please don’t let it be one of those conversations.

‘The grounds here are beautiful. Are you all equestrians?’

‘No, not really but you’d be forgiven for thinking so. Only Max and Dom managed to take full advantage of this property. Father didn’t acquire it until after he and my mother separated.’

‘How old were you when that happened?’ I try to keep the conversation on her so that she doesn’t ask what she really wants to.

‘I was ten.’

‘That must have been rough.’

‘It was, but then I got to know Selene. It took a while to realise that she was just a beautiful, harmless, crystal-wielding hippie and enthusiastic nudist. I think my father needed that. He’s always had a lot on his shoulders, as will Dominic. I think she lightens his load.’

Beatrice nods at a laughing Selene as she playfully chases some of the little children around under the night sky.

‘So how did you and Dom meet?’

I’d been so caught up in admiring Dominic’s mom that I’d left an opening for Beatrice.

‘I work for a company that delivers DMVI’s engagement programmes across Asia. We met at the end of the tendering stage and became friends.’

‘You look good together. It’ll be nice to inject a bit of colour into the bloodline. We are all a bit white, aren’t we?’

I don’t know how to respond to that, so offer a tight smile.

‘Just so you know, I’m an ally. The way black people have been treated and continue to be treated by our oppressive systems is appalling. You know, last year I was at a Black Lives Matter protest and got tear-gassed and everything?—’

‘Where’s Dom?’ Someone who could only be Maximilian stomps up to us, saving me from Beatrice’s proof of allyship.

‘He asked me to meet him here. I’m sure he’ll be here soon,’ I say, delivering my line again.

‘I can’t find Mack either,’ Maximillian says.

‘Oh…’ Beatrice responds. They don’t know that I know; and I am not about to tell them either.

‘I’m sure Dominic will be here soon,’ I offer. They both look at me with varying degrees of sympathy in their eyes.

It doesn’t take long for the news of Dominic and Mackenzie’s disappearance to spread through the guests. Unfortunately, Dominic doesn’t make it back to the party, and neither does Mackenzie. When the evening starts to wind down, I say goodnight to the group I am standing with and I can’t help but notice the looks of pity I’m being given as I head for my cottage.

I feel instant relief as I step under the shower and take my time, allowing the water to wash the day away. I climb into bed, reach for my phone and connect to the cottage Wi-Fi for the first time since I landed in Boston. A message from Caleb pops up and I feel warm with affection, simply at the sight of his name. I’m smiling before I realise it.

Wanted to make sure you got there safely, little Mason.

I respond quickly, trying to calm the butterflies in my tummy that he still controls.

Yes, I did. Thank you for checking in.

A text comes back immediately.

So, has he put the moves on you yet?

Please, Caleb. I’m just here as his friend.

I know we aren’t together and I promised that I’d give you space, so I won’t say what I’m thinking right now.

Thank you.

When do you catch your flight to New Orleans?

The day after tomorrow.

So I just need to not be paranoid for one more day.

Trust me, I’m the last thing on Dominic’s mind at the moment.

We said we’d be honest with each other and we both know that isn’t true.

I am being honest. He’s dealing with some stuff out here.

Ok. Text tomorrow?

Yes. Goodnight Caleb.

Goodnight Aari.

I read his final text with a deep longing, wishing I’d never taken the job in Singapore.

The move to Asia was meant to be a fresh start for both of us, but our new life turned out to be a carefully constructed lie that he’d kept hidden from me. While I can understand why he made the decisions he did, I’m still hurt because of how much devastating effort he put into keeping the truth about our lives from me, and how long it took for him to come clean. I want to move on. I want nothing more than to trust him again. However, the anguish that has kept me awake for the last few months makes me petrified to open myself up to him again.

None of that, however, stops me from wanting his body curled round mine right now, as I tune in to his heartbeat. With over nine thousand miles between us, this is the furthest we have been away from each other, but it doesn’t make a bit of difference. My heart is determined to love that boy until the pain is gone.

‘Ariella!’

I’m wandering through the gorgeous-smelling orchard the next afternoon, about to help myself to a carefully selected apple with the biggest stick I can find, when I see Dominic again.

‘Hi!’ I smile, drop my stick and wave at him as he jogs towards me.

‘Hey. Did you like breakfast?’

‘I thought that was you!’ I laugh. I was surprised to get a grapefruit, yoghurt and hibiscus tea breakfast that morning.

‘Me and MsPat via Lydia.’ He smiles. ‘I wish my housekeeper and personal assistant cared half as much about me as yours do. So, I wanted to apologise for last night.’

‘Please, don’t worry about it. You two obviously had a lot to talk about. How did it go?’

‘Not very well.’

‘You’re still in love with her, aren’t you?’ I ask, feeling sorry for him.

‘I don’t know.’ He is. He just doesn’t want to admit it.

‘Where did you leave it?’

‘In pieces. Same as before.’

‘Do you mind telling me what happened? Maybe I can help?’

‘After our honeymoon, she had to work in New York for a few weeks while I was stuck in Chicago. The story they are sticking to is that they met up for drinks, both got wasted and ended up in bed together. The twins arrived nine months later.’

‘So she made a mistake.’

‘With my brother. That unravelled at our first baby scan, when the numbers she was feeding me didn’t check out.’

‘Do you think you can forgive them?’

‘I’m trying.’

I pull my friend into a deep, long hug.

‘Sooooo, want an apple?’ I ask to lighten the mood. ‘I’ve found the one I want and it has a good one next to it.’

Dominic nods, smiling at me. I pick up my earlier stick and start jumping to knock them out of the tree.

‘What are you doing?’ He starts laughing.

‘Getting our apples!’ I jump again, missing them. ‘Okay, watch your head.’ I throw the stick into the tree, then run to safety, but no apples. At this point Dominic is doubled over laughing as he pulls out his phone.

‘That’s it. I’m only getting my apple. You can fend for yourself.’ I continue to jump and throw.

‘I’ll just lie here, watch you and record this for posterity then.’ Dominic leans against a nearby tree, happily recording my many attempts until I give up.

‘Stupid apple.’ I kick the leaves at the base of the tree.

‘You’re adorable when you’re frustrated. Here, I’ll get your apple.’ He smiles. As soon as he walks behind the tree, I know what he is going to do.

‘There’s a ladder, isn’t there?’ I start to laugh.

‘Yes, there’s a ladder.’ He scurries up, grabs both our apples and climbs down again.

‘Thank you.’ I wipe and bite my apple. It’s delicious.

‘Want to check out the tasting barn?’ Dominic asks, playfully bumping into me as he takes a bite out of his.

‘Unsupervised?’ I reference MrsThompson.

‘Yeah.’ He wears a naughty grin that makes it difficult to say no.

We make our way over to reception to get the keys, and navigate through some hedges to arrive on a large patio at the back of the house. I am so busy being amazed that anyone would know what hedge to come through, that I don’t spot Maximilian before he shoves Dominic.

‘Stay the fuck away from my wife!’ Maximilian shouts at Dom as he rushes to push him again.

‘Hey!’ I protest and step between them. People suddenly start to emerge from the house onto the patio.

My eyes travel to Mackenzie, who is watching the altercation. She is concerned, but also seems to be enjoying the spectacle.

‘I’m nowhere near your wife,’ Dominic shouts back.

‘Bullshit. She didn’t turn up until ten this morning.’

‘Then you’d better ask her where she was. Keeping track of time has never been Mackenzie’s forte. You of all people should know that.’

‘Dominic!’ I reprimand him as I put my hand on his chest to try to get him to back away. Maximilian reaches round me to clip Dominic on the side of the head.

‘Hey, stop it!’ I turn round to face him.

‘Oh fuck off, you’re not fooling anyone,’ he dismisses me angrily. ‘You didn’t give a shit where he was last night. You just stood in the corner of the party, sizing us all up, you gold-digging house Negro!’

The last thing I see before I feel something really hard smash into me, is Dominic going red and charging. After that, everything goes black.

I wake up in an unfamiliar bed with a violent headache.

‘Ariella, it’s Selene.’ A soft and soothing voice pulls me into the room. ‘You’re in our medical cottage. Don’t move. I have some clear and rose quartz crystals on your tummy, head and chest.’ She rubs the back of my hand. ‘Would you like some water?’

I produce a croak, then try again. ‘Yes please.’

Selene pops a straw leading to a bottle of water in my mouth. I try not to disturb the crystals.

‘Can you handle a painkiller?’

I nod carefully. She removes her crystals and presses a button that folds me up into a seating position. I pop the pills in my mouth as soon as she hands them to me.

‘Is Dominic okay? What happened?’

Her face softens. ‘Dominic is fine. Your little accident put an end to things pretty quickly. I am so sorry you got caught between my two monstrous children. I heard what Max said. I am deeply horrified and ashamed.’

I fight the tears I feel pricking my eyes.

‘Dominic asked me to call him when you are awake. Can I?’

I shake my head. I’d really like some silence.

‘I think I’d just like to be alone in my cottage, if that’s okay?’ I get up. I’m a little sore and my head is pounding, but I’m fine.

Selene helps me outside into a buggy with a driver, which whizzes both of us back to my cottage. When she starts to follow me in I stop her.

‘Thank you for being so kind to me, Selene. I’ll be fine from here.’

She nods and jumps back into the buggy.

My father’s voice kicks in as I lock the door behind me, and I do what he always taught me to do should a situation like this arise. I locate my bag and slowly start to pack away my clothes and toiletries. When I have finished, I dial nine.

‘Hello, reception? Please may I arrange for the next available car to take me to Boston Logan?’

‘My apologies, Miss Mason, we don’t have you leaving until tomorrow and the chopper is already arranged for your transfer,’ the gentleman at the end of the phone stutters.

‘My itinerary has changed. May I have a car to Boston Logan as soon as possible, please?’

‘I can try. Are you not happy with your stay?—’

I feel my throat closing with panic, so I push my next words out quickly. ‘If you could arrange a taxi for me as soon as possible, I’d be very grateful.’

‘No problem. I will be in touch as soon as I have arranged something.’

Shortly after, the phone rings. That was fast.

‘Hello, Ariella. It’s MrsThompson. We don’t have you leaving until tomorrow.’

‘I understand, but I would like to leave now, please.’ I hear my voice crack.

‘Oh, sweetheart. Do you think I could come to visit you?’ The compassion in her voice breaks me and the tears start to fall. I just want to leave.

‘I’m fine, thank you, MrsThompson. I’d just like a car, please.’

‘All right.’

There is a knock on my door five minutes later. When I open it, a sorry-looking Dominic is standing there. I stand aside to let him in before I shut the door wearily behind him.

‘I’m really sorry about earlier, but you can’t leave. You promised.’

‘I can leave, because I don’t feel safe, Dominic,’ I whisper quietly, shaking.

‘Is it because of what Max said? He wants to apologise.’

‘An apology means nothing. He could have called me anything, but he made that choice. Those words came from his gut, Dominic, and they were filled with venom. That’s what he thinks and feels. I’m not safe here.’ I start to sob and there is nothing I can do to stop. I have to sit to catch my breath.

‘Fuck! What can I do?’ Dominic pleads.

‘I just want to leave so I can feel safe again.’

‘I’m coming with you.’

‘Please don’t. I fly to my gigi tomorrow anyway, so it’s only one night.’

There is another knock on the door and Dominic goes to open it. Selene walks in.

‘MrsThompson said you’re leaving us.’

I nod. ‘Thank you so much for having me and looking after me, Selene.’

‘Why?’ she asks.

‘Because she rightly doesn’t feel safe with a violent, racist, narcissistic bigot on the loose when she is staying in a cottage in the middle of the woods by herself,’ Dominic snaps.

‘Can we move you into the main house?’ Selene offers.

‘No thank you, I’d rather just go.’

‘And I’m going with her,’ Dominic states.

‘Nooo, Dom! You just got here!’ Selene protests with a trembling lip.

‘Dominic, please stay. I’ll be all right, I fly out tomorrow?—’

There’s another knock on the door. Dominic goes to answer it as a distressed Selene sits beside me on the bed. To my surprise, his father walks in.

‘Ariella, how are you feeling?’ he asks.

‘I’m much better, thank you.’ I can’t wait till my car arrives. It’s getting a little crowded in the cottage.

‘She’s leaving and Dominic is going with her!’ Selene tearfully tells Dominic’s father.

‘Why are you leaving us so soon, dear?’ he asks.

I can’t bring myself to tell him about his son’s horrific words.

‘Maximilian crossed a line and she doesn’t feel safe with him around,’ Dominic explains. ‘He said?—’

‘Please, Dominic…I can’t hear it again,’ I beg as I try to hold back a sniffle. When Dominic’s father leans his ear in, Dominic whispers it and I watch his father’s eyes bulge in horror.

Without another word, Dominic’s father grabs the walkie on his hip. ‘You, my dear, are not going anywhere. MrsThompson!’ he barks into his handset.

‘Yes, sir,’ she immediately responds.

‘Have you ordered Miss Mason’s taxi?’

‘Yes, sir. It will be here in under fifteen minutes.’

‘Good. I want you to clear out Maximilian’s family’s cottage. Put him, his family and their belongings into it, and send them into town.’

‘Yes, sir.’

‘They are not to set foot on the premises, for any reason, until Miss Mason has left tomorrow.’

‘Yes, sir.’

‘And they are no longer to reside on this property until further notice.’

‘Yes, sir.’

Dominic’s father clips his walkie back on his hip. ‘I will not stand for such obscene behaviour. You are our guest, and please know that you have my sincere apologies.’

‘What shall we do about the anniversary dinner tonight?’ Selene asks.

‘Selene, Maximilian and his family will not set foot on this property until Ariella has left, so they will be excluded from dinner. When he is allowed to return, we will have to have a serious conversation about his future as a member of this family.’

Dominic’s father turns to his son.

‘Stay with her until Maximilian is off the property.’

Then his wife.

‘Come on, Selene. Let the staff deal with Maximilian. He cannot pull on your heartstrings if you’re not there.’

As soon as they leave, Dominic locks and bolts the door behind them, then sits beside me on the bed. It dawns on me that this is the second time in so many months that I have allowed someone to prevent me from going home.

‘You look exhausted,’ he states softly.

‘I am a little,’ I agree.

‘I shouldn’t have let you jump so many times for those frikkin’ apples.’ His light laugh makes me smile. ‘I’m so sorry, Aari,’ he continues. ‘I shouldn’t have asked you to leave Mack and me, or requested that you go to the party by yourself. I forgot how much you hate crowds.’

I turn to face him. ‘You needed closure and you may not want to admit it, but you’re still in love with her.’

‘Maybe, but I made a ton of wrong decisions last night. I shouldn’t have kept her all night. I knew it would piss him off.’

‘Did anything happen between you and her?’

‘No. She wanted to talk, so I let her. I kept us in the drawing room though, because she has a way of getting whatever she wants when we are alone. We were there all night putting each other through one emotional wringer after another. I’d had enough by four a.m., so I went to bed. I don’t know where she was the rest of the night.’

‘I’m sorry that it happened and you’re having to deal with this.’

‘I’m not. If I was still married to her then I wouldn’t have met you.’ He strokes my face.

When our eyes meet, I know what’s coming. I watch as Dominic closes in but, just before his lips meet mine, I find the strength to stop it. It comes out as a whisper.

‘Dom, I can’t.’

He stops silently, frozen in space with his lips millimetres from mine. He is so close; his breath warms my Cupid’s bow. When his eyes flick up from my lips to meet mine, I watch him struggle to restrain himself. I recognise the feeling. I am charmed by Dominic and my attraction to him only seems to be intensifying, but I don’t trust my feelings for him. Dominic’s friendship is important to me, but we often seem to be caught in tight spaces that force me to navigate around him. What I do know for sure is, no matter how annoyed I am with Caleb, I’m still in love with him.

‘It’s still him, isn’t it?’ Dominic asks quietly, keeping his eyes on mine as frustration radiates from him. ‘But you haven’t been together in a while.’

He’s too close and feeling his breath on my mouth as he speaks is eroding my ability to resist him. I break eye contact to give his hand a squeeze, create some space between us and escape from the intensity of his gaze. He may be my friend, but he’s also now my boss, which makes this a little bit more perilous to navigate.

‘No, we haven’t.’

‘But you’re still in love with him?’ he presses.

‘I am. I’m sorry, Dom.’ I can’t find the courage to look at him again.

‘Then what’s happening between us?’

‘I don’t know but it’s…’ I try to find the words.

‘Painful.’

I nod in agreement.

‘You feel it too?’ he asks.

‘I do,’ I admit.

‘I really wish our hearts weren’t being held hostage by other people, Aari – because I am so ready to fall in love with you.’

I don’t have a response for Dominic, so I reach for him and pour all my feelings into a hug, more grateful than ever for the plane I have to catch tomorrow. That’ll put the distance I need between us.