You Got It Wrong - Party Thirty Four

Chapter Thirty Four

 A/N Sorry for the slowness of this story, I'm in a kind of half block half not 

happy with how this is going. I'm re editing a lot, not sure I'm happy

but hope you enjoy...would love to know how you are finding it. 

As she marched up the road, wobbling in her awkward heels, eyes scanning the horizon for a taxi, Nina wondered what the hell had just happened. SHE was the one who’d had a hard time, not Theo, when she’d spotted him there, in her peripheral vision she’d been so glad, almost happy. He was the silver lining to the dark cloud of the day, that was for sure. Instead...she shook her head. She had no idea what he was so aggrieved about, she hadn’t lied, she honestly thought of Lilah as her family, it was a long time since she’d thought of James as her brother. That was the truth.

Tony was staring in a bewildered way at Theo as he appeared in the aftermath of Nina who’s waltzed past him hanging on to her dignity, so obviously fighting tears.

                “What the fuck Theo? Please tell me you didn’t...” When his friend groaned he shook his head, “what is WRONG with you? Three years you’ve lived like a saint, not drifting from a position when you protect yourself. Finally a feisty and might I add extremely hot woman...”

Theo could feel his face redden at Tony’s surmise of Nina, then scowled when his friend laughed, “you don’t talk about her. Ok?”

Tony laughed again, “Me? I think I can talk about her, but you, YOU have just thrown ten tons of your quite frankly pathetic insecurities on her, in a room full of what she would describe as the enemy. You ever thought she hasn’t mentioned her brother because she hates him? Or is ashamed of it? He’d tick both of those boxes if I was his sibling.”

Theo was fighting nausea, anxiety, when had the form sold ground under his feet moved, he felt as though he was in a nightmare where his feet were sinking into the ground, the room threatening to engulf him.

                “Swallow your pride, get over and go get her before she disappears you clot!”

He turned to look at Tony for a moment, then grunted. He almost knocked over three waiters in his need to escape. 

It was cold outside which surprised him, it was early autumn, but there was an icy kick in the air. Looking frantically up and down the street he once again cursed the volume of traffic that seemed to occupy London’s streets even at night.

Then he spotted her, a hint of black between cars further down the road, slowing a taxi.

                “Nina...NINA...wait!”

She glanced up; she looked at him, but still disappeared into a taxi. Theo had moments to react, and like a Hollywood Hero, he threw himself in front of a black cab that skidded to a halt, almost hitting him. Ignoring the curses of the petrified driver, he turned to him, “FOLLOW THAT CAR!”

He couldn’t relax, he was pensive leaning forward pointing the other taxi out to the driver, geeing him along from the back seat. The driver dodged through the traffic obeying Theo’s instructions, but also negotiating just how expensive this trip was going to be. Theo didn’t care. He’d been a bastard...again; the money for the fair was a drop in the ocean compared to what he owed Nina.

Her cab disappeared for a moment, but then reappeared as it stopped outside a large hotel in Kensington. As the taxi pulled up across the road from where she alighted, he tossed a wad of notes at the driver.

                “Thank you SO much, you are the best!”

Then he dived out of the vehicle and started to dodge his way across the road.

Nina had never been more glad than to enter the hotel. She had so much to do, and all she needed was a drink. Detouring from the reception, she made for the bar nodding to a waiter as she found a seat in the corner away from everyone. Sat at the table, she ordered a whisky, she wasn’t in the mood for beer or wine, she needed something far stronger. Then she got her phone out and called Larry, her father’s lawyer.

                “He’s going through with it.”

Her words sounded cold even to herself, but here she was about to turn the screw on her brother’s demise, she had to be sure that SHE was ready to go through with this.

                “I didn’t think he’d back down Nina, that isn’t his way. He’ll sink trying...” They paused, and then Larry asked, “so you really want to sell?”

                “There’s no other choice, he’ll lose my part if he’s not careful.”

She could hear Larry rifling papers along the phone line before he said, “well even if they block it you’ve got both legal power of attorney, and the majority of the capital.” She knew that, every time that her brother and Imelda took money from her father’s estate, Larry arranged for it to be released from the equity in the house. Now Nina owned more than ninety percent of it. In fact the last three years they’d been living there on her goodwill. They had no plan B, she was sure they had no money saved, no secret stash, and as she listened to Larry agree to sell the house, she realised that without the facade of a beautiful and large house, her brother could not pretend to be wealthy, powerful, and this whole farce of an engagement would fall apart. But she reassured herself in case there was any hint that she might feel guilty, some young girl didn’t need to find her fiancé sleeping with his step mother, because that WAS happening, and it could ruin the other woman for a long time, like the sight of Josh writhing under the naked Imelda had haunted her for years.

But not for ages.

No, she shook her head, now she was haunted by the way Theo had snubbed her, looked at her as though she was dirt, judged her...the only man she’d let in since Josh.

The whisky appeared in front of her, a ten year old malt that was extravagant, but had the capacity to warm her to her toes with just a sip.

Placing the glass down on the table, she leaned back in the chair, and it was then she spotted the two feet planted in front of her. Nina groaned, she didn’t need this, not now.

Slowly she lifted her eyes over the immaculate black trousers, the ice white shirt that moulded to a body she remembered like a glove, the strong shoulders, every inch of him conjuring up a zillion memories of a delightful and intimate time. He was a handsome man, in a slightly unconventional way, his collar length unruly hair the contrast to his full lips and soft features, but it was those piercing eyes that made her breathless, all seeing, studying her right back.

                “I know that words are useless. But I was out of order...again. I’m sorry.”

She shook her head, “once too many Theo. I have SO much shit going on in my life; I can’t deal with YOU adding to that.”

He lowered himself into the seat opposite her, “that’s a fair comment. I was shocked. I’m truly sorry.”

                “Shocked at what? That I hadn’t explicitly shared the dirty details of my so called family. I never lied; everyone I cared about IS dead. That man trying to rip off a young girl and her family whilst sleeping with his step mother ever day...THAT is not something I associate with, that is not a person I care about, and it is NOYT my family. And you are not qualified to question me, to judge me on that, on them...on anything.”

She was aware her voice was rising and the exclusive bar was quiet, so she relaxed back from her tense aggressive position.

                “We spent two days together; we had sex...that will never give you the right to have any judgment over me, or any right to question me. We are not having another conversation and you are NOT worming back into my good books, so you can quit now.” She glanced to her left and realised that several people had heard her raised voice, with a groan she returned to a hushed whisper. “I have no obligation or duty to you.”

He gave a nod, “I can’t argue with that, you don’t owe me anything, but I just want to tell you that I’ve been like a hormonal teenager, since you left the hotel two weeks ago. I have been desperate to see you again, I’ve missed you more than I thought possible, I don’t remember ever being so frustrated. Not that I am asking for reasons, wanting to know where you’ve been. It’s not that...but when I saw you walk in to the room earlier.” He placed a hand on his chest across his heart, “it hit me here, and it scared me. YOU scare me. Then I heard you...your family...it felt like a kick in the teeth. For a very selfish moment I saw me as giving everything, my heart and soul to a woman who...I don’t know.”

She stared at him, not sure which part of the speech stunned her more. “Heart?”

He nodded, “me, the most hurt, the most undone, the least trusting man in the world, funny hey?”

She reached for her glass and nursed it for a moment before looking up at him, “more like ironic.”

That made him smile, a little hint that she didn’t hate him. “I don’t expect you to forgive me, not just like that.” He clicked his fingers, “but I just ask that you think about it. Please?”

He stood before the waiter came to take his order, and with a nod made to leave, and it was then she spoke.

                “Theo...stop. At least have a drink...something to eat; you’ve just walked out of that party. You must be hungry.”

It was a neutral request, not giving anything away of how she was feeling, what she was thinking, but for Theo it was another small sign that maybe, just maybe she’d give him another undeserved chance.

They ordered steaks, she assured him that the chef there did the best, and they ate them with a bottle of red wine as they talked more neutral topics, weather, work...anything but feelings, each other, or what happened after the meal. Nina was still livid, he’d made her feel so worthless, so dreadful that she wasn’t sure she could get past it, but then he was charming, interested and very humble over the whole thing.

She wasn’t good at these things, judging people, situations, that was where she missed Lilah; she was the opposite, so worldly, so intuitive. She thought about her crumpled traumatised friend and then wondered how she’d ever recover from what happened. Someone who was usually so clued in got caught out, and that was as devastating to Lilah as the actual assault.

                “You seem preoccupied...”

Nina sighed hearing his voice, “it’s been a weird day.”

                “Before me going all psycho on you?”

She nodded, “I’ve just condemned my brother to possible poverty...and I should feel victorious, but...”

He leaned back and let out a deep exhalation, “wow, that’s...wow. So you’re really not close to him then?”

Shrugging she reached for her glass of wine, and took a drink for a moment, “I wasn’t lying when I said I have no family, I really don’t class him as that.”

                “My friend Tony said he’s an ‘unusual’ character.”

Laughing out loud Nina nodded, “unusual, that’s one way of putting it. My father...” she hated that mentioning him made her choke up. “We never saw eye to eye, James was always the apple of his eye, but then he’s a lot older than me.” She wasn’t about to share all her demons, but she couldn’t ignore the issues, “I fell out with them all over my brother, my stepmother...they were horrid. My father defended them...so I left home. I didn’t come back from my travels until I heard my father died.” She sipped at her wine again blinking at the tears that threatened to fall, “alone...they put him in a nursing home miles away when he got Alzheimer’s, apparently it was aggressive, he went downhill quickly.” She looked up at him, “he left me a letter, telling me he was sorry he didn’t believe me about how conniving James and Imelda were...he caught them in bed together...just as I predicted. But he was too proud to let people know, and to proud to tell me.” She hated that a tear fell down her cheek, “so he died...alone.”

Theo had been on the back foot all evening, and as he watched the complex, beautiful and extremely honest woman in front of him, he hated that she was falling apart, that she was unravelling in front of him. He liked her strong, and he wanted her to accept him on her terms, not like this. He wanted to reach out, show her he cared, but he didn’t think she’d cope with that.  So he watched her drop her head, wipe at a tear, try to hide her emotion from him. Before he knew what he was doing he’d reached out and placed a hand over hers.

                “That’s why you volunteer. That’s how you met my grandfather...god I am SUCH a dick. How the hell can I do this to you?”

That made her look up, and she offered a half smile, “you do right by Mansell. I did wrong by my father...no amount of volunteering can make up for my OWN flesh and blood dying lonely and alone...” she angrily swiped at her tears. “So please don’t sit there making out that I’m such martyr. I left him to the actions of two of the most selfish and self-centred people that exist. I KNEW that, I KNEW that they were lying to him, and I went off, abandoned him. I’m such a heartless bitch!”

He scooted across the seat to be closer to her, “don’t think like that. You’ve already told me that he didn’t believe you, he picked them over you...” He didn’t know half the story, she was feeding him emotional ramblings, but seeing her brother, the confrontation they’d had had obviously triggered all this off. “Why do you think he wrote you a letter? To tell you that HE was wrong, never you.”

Nina felt Theo’s fingers touch her jaw, tilt her chin so she had to meet his eyes, those bloody hypnotic eyes, she wanted SO much to hate him, but instantly he understood, he was making her belief that she didn’t need to carry that guilt around with her, not anymore.

When he offered a nervous smile, and suggested, “maybe you need to go a little easier on yourself?” she lost it. Sliding her arms around his neck, she lifted her lips to his, and for the first time in days, she felt at home, relaxed, for that moment trouble free. How could something so special be wrong?