Chapter 20 #2
Sofia nodded slowly. ‘Yes, but it’s complicated.’
‘It’s really not that complicated.’ Luisa slapped her hand on the floor. ‘Sofia’s in love. She doesn’t think he loves her back, but any dummy can see that he does. He’s a smitten kitten.’ Luisa giggled. ‘Hey, that rhymes.’
‘You’re in love?’ Elena couldn’t believe it.
She really had been out of the loop lately.
‘That’s amazing, Sofia. I’m so pleased for you.
’ She reached over and hugged her sister.
‘It’s about time you found a guy who sees how fabulous you are.
This is the best news ever.’ And then she paused.
‘Hang on, why am I only hearing about this now?’
Sofia waved her hand dismissively. ‘Like I said, it’s complicated. And maybe I wanted to see how things panned out before I said anything.’
‘But you told Luisa.’ Elena tried not to feel aggrieved.
Sofia pulled a face. ‘Luisa dragged it out of me, you know what she’s like.’
‘Yeah, you know what I’m like.’ Luisa shoved Elena, before registering the insult. ‘Hey, what d’you mean? What am I like?’
Sofia shook her head, making her solitary earring sway. ‘Look, it doesn’t matter. It’s no big deal, and after last night I can’t see it going anywhere. It’s over, whether I like it or not.’
Elena hated the sadness clouding Sofia’s face. ‘What happened last night?’
Luisa shook Sofia. ‘Yeah, what happened last night? Did you and Connor argue?’
Elena stilled. ‘Connor? … His name’s Connor?’
Sofia nodded. ‘And last night I met his brother … Danny.’
The world seemed to tilt on its axis and slowly grind to a halt, as if it was waiting with baited breath for what came next.
Elena swallowed, praying it was a big fat coincidence. ‘Danny … as in?’
Sofia’s nod confirmed the worst. ‘Danny Jackson.’
Luisa looked confused, but then the penny dropped. ‘Oh, you mean the bloke at work you have the hots for?’
‘I do not have the hots for anyone,’ Elena lied, as she tried to assess the scale of the problem in front of her.
So what if they liked brothers from the same family?
They were sisters from the same family. It was slightly awkward, perhaps, but not insurmountable.
She looked between her sisters. ‘This isn’t a big deal. Why does it need to be a problem?’
Sofia sighed. ‘Because I received my trial papers this morning, with the name of the opposing solicitor—’
‘Don’t tell me.’ Elena squeezed her eyes shut. This couldn’t be happening, not when she’d just spent the morning convincing herself Danny wasn’t like Felix and was a decent guy. Taking a deep breath, she opened her eyes and looked at Sofia, waiting for the bombshell to drop.
Sofia’s expression was gloomy. ‘Still don’t think we have a problem?’
Numerous thoughts tumbled into her mind, deafening her ability to think straight. She needed air. She needed to take action.
‘Are you okay to look after Luisa?’ she said, scrambling off the floor and heading for the door. ‘There’s something I need to do.’
‘You’re not going to do anything rash, are you?’ Sofia called after her.
‘Me, rash? Never!’ Elena raced downstairs, the thud of her pulse in her temples an indication of her increasing anger.
It was this level of anger, fuelled by neat adrenaline and a smidgeon of regret, that pumped energy into her legs as she ran down Lancaster Road and back onto Portobello Road.
A tiny part of her brain urged her to slow down, to take a breath and not emotionally react to the situation. The bigger section of her brain urged her on, eager to unleash hell on the man she shared an office building with.
This was a betrayal of the worst kind, and he was not getting away with it. No one messed with the Romero family. At least she’d discovered the real him in time and had come to her senses before getting too invested.
The iron gate swung on its hinges as she pushed through it and ran up the path into the building.
What she would have done if he’d had a client with him, she wasn’t sure. She was in such a rage she might still have burst into his office and attacked him with his stapler.
Thankfully, he was alone, and there was nothing preventing her from marching up to his desk and smacking her hands down so hard it made him drop his ink pen.
‘When were you going to tell me, huh? On our date tonight? Was that the plan? Sneak it into the conversation and hope I wouldn’t make a scene in a public place?
Or maybe you were hoping I’d never find out and I’d remain clueless.
Is that it? Keep quiet and hope it goes away?
’ She stood up. ‘How stupid do you think I am?’
He removed his glasses and rubbed his tired-looking eyes. ‘I’m guessing this is about the ET hearing?’
‘Oh, you mean you’re not certain?’ She pinned him with a stern look. ‘Why, are there other things you’ve also been keeping quiet about? Like, for instance, the fact that your brother is messing my sister around and making her miserable?’
‘That’s unfair. Leave Connor out of this.’ There was a twitch in his jaw, as if he was clenching his teeth.
‘So you did know?’ She lifted her hands in an exasperated fashion, hoping to emphasise her disappointment.
‘I am so stupid. I knew from the moment we met you were a selfish arse, a man who puts his own interests above others. The signs were all there, but instead of listening to my instincts, I allowed myself to believe there was more to you than that. That underneath the starched suit was a caring, honest man, who put decency above self-interest. How dumb was I?’
He replaced his glasses and stood up. ‘Will you please calm down.’
‘Calm down?’ She smacked the desk again, causing him to take a step backwards. ‘Oh, I’m sorry, am I being a little dramatic for you?’
He let out a breath. ‘Frankly, yes.’
‘Huh! And this is why it’ll never work between us.
’ She began pacing the room. ‘I have every right to be angry. You’re representing the employers who dismissed my sister for having the audacity to put a loved one’s care needs first. They disregarded common decency, fairness, and compassion, and treated Sofia appallingly.
Five years she worked for that company.’ She pointed at him from across the room.
‘Five years, never taking time off sick, and constantly being praised for her commitment to her role. And yet the one time she needed them to show leniency following the death of our mother, they sacked her.’
‘Can I—’
‘No, you bloody well can’t!’ She stopped pacing, ensuring he could see the venom in her eyes.
‘And this is the type of company you’ve chosen to represent, is it?
An organisation who values the bottom line more than their employees’ welfare.
Wow, you must be so proud.’ She began slow clapping.
‘Congratulations, Danny. You really know how to live up to your name. Daniel-the-Jerk-Jackson.’
He came around to her side of the desk. ‘Are you done?’
She folded her arms. ‘What do you think?’
He took a breath. ‘I think you’ve been waiting for this to happen ever since we met.
You’ve been itching to find a reason to prove your theory right and show we’re not compatible.
’ His shirt was unbuttoned at the neck, his tie was skew-whiff, and his waistcoat was buttoned up wrong.
It was the first time she’d seen him looking less than perfect.
It wasn’t enough to derail her anger. ‘Well, we’re not!’
‘What a relief, eh?’ It was his turn to open his arms. He sounded more upset than angry, even though his shoulders were bunched.
‘You were proved right. So maybe it should be me congratulating you, instead of the other way around.’ He took a step closer.
‘But don’t you dare walk out of here acting all self-righteous and somehow believing you’re the wounded party here, and I’m some kind of evil Bond villain, because that’s horseshit, Elena. And you know it.’
Elena stood her ground, refusing to soften at the sight of his shaking hands. ‘You’re the one trying to ruin my sister’s life, not me.’
He shook his head. ‘That’s what you’d like to believe, isn’t it?
It suits your narrative. It justifies you laying into me.
It never occurred to you to come in here and talk to me rationally, did it?
To ask questions and let me explain my side of things.
’ His shoulders lifted in a huff. ‘Oh, no, that would be too reasonable for you. Instead, you make assumptions, fire accusations, and decide I’m guilty of all charges without any tangible information, or any facts about the situation. ’
She pointed a finger at him. ‘Don’t lawyer talk me.’
‘Why, is it that too logical for you? Are you incapable of having a rational discussion without resorting to shouting?’
‘Fine.’ If he wanted to discuss the facts, then so be it. She lowered her voice to a reasonable level. ‘Did you know about Connor and Sofia?’
He paused. ‘Yes, but—’
‘Are you representing Sofia’s employers at the ET hearing?’
‘I’ve been assigned the case, but—’
‘So I haven’t made any assumptions, have I?’ She raised her eyebrows, but not her voice, forcing herself to remain ‘rational’, as he’d put it. ‘These are the facts. You’re a complete shit, and I’m justified in being angry. There, discussion over.’
‘No, discussion not over,’ he said, running his hands into his already ruffled hair.
‘I only found out about Connor and Sofia last night. Just as I only discovered the name of the employee who’d been dismissed last night.
This is not information I’ve been sitting on for weeks, Elena.
I haven’t been hiding anything from you, or lying, or being deceitful.
I’m as shocked by events as you are, and I’m still trying to process everything. ’
‘Right.’ She waited a beat, ensuring he had enough time to look directly at her before she spoke. ‘So you won’t be taking the case then? Now you know Sofia is the person you’ll be up against, you’ll do the decent thing and withdraw representation?’
His eyes closed and the twitch in his jaw reappeared. ‘It’s more complicated than that.’
‘Just as I thought.’ Any last remaining hope drained out of her.
‘Despite all your protestations, when presented with the option to do the decent thing, you don’t take it.
So protest all you want, Danny, but you’ve just proved me right.
You’ve displayed your true self.’ She walked over to the door.
‘You’re nothing but a suit. And before you say it, you’re right, I’m nothing but a drama queen. ’
She imagined she’d feel an acute sense of satisfaction as she slammed the door behind her and exited the building, having made her parting shot—which, judging by the hurt look on his face, had landed with precision.
But it wasn’t righteousness she experienced as she headed home, her legs now weighed down by spent adrenaline, it was sorrow. Heart-breaking, aching sorrow.
Why? Because he’d been right. However much she denied it, she’d been waiting for an opportunity to prove her theory right. Daniel Jackson was just like Felix, a selfish arse who had chosen his career over her feelings.
So it wasn’t satisfaction she felt, it was stupidity.
And to think she’d thought arguing with him might be fun.