‘I’ve spent years trying to give Scarlett the world.’
‘Maybe that’s half the problem.’ She smiled up at him. ‘She doesn’t need the world, she just needs you on her side.’
‘Maybe.’ He shook his head. ‘But they’ve only just met…jumping into bed together. I can’t get the picture out of my head.’
Time for some honesty. ‘It wasn’t Kyle who bought the condoms and it wasn’t him who suggested they go upstairs at the inn. According to Kyle, who had no reason to lie about it, Scarlett was the one who had the condoms and wanted to take things further.’ She put a hand on his arm when he winced. ‘I’m not trying to upset you. I just think having all the facts is important. Kyle was the one who said he didn’t want to.’
He had no time to react before Kyle and Scarlett came along with the hot chocolates. Amelia waited, held her breath to see whether the drink Kyle handed Nathan ended up being thrown all over him in another rage. But it didn’t.
The awkward silence in the group was only broken when a man carrying a Christmas tree walked right through the middle of them.
‘I’m going to grab a hot dog,’ said Kyle. ‘Want one?’
Amelia shook her head.
He looked at Scarlett, Scarlett looked at her dad, the silence deafening until Nathan had Scarlett hold his hot chocolate, pulled out his wallet and exchanged his drink for a few notes. ‘You both go get yourselves some hot dogs. I’ll see you back at the inn by five o’clock, don’t be late.’
Scarlett took the escape route while she could and Kyle only glanced Amelia’s way once in hesitation as he went with her.
‘I guess I need to accept the fact she’s growing up,’ Nathan admitted when the kids left them to it. His gaze was fixed on the street Scarlet had disappeared along, the market stalls providing a glitzy fringe to the sidewalk.
‘Give me one second.’ Amelia had a word with Cleo, checked it was all right to leave for the day. ‘Want to walk?’ she offered Nathan, who looked as though he’d dropped fifty bucks and found a quarter. She knew it must be hard for him to loosen the reins with Scarlett.
‘Sure.’
They bustled between shoppers until they reached the end of the markets where Mitch was busy at work at the Christmas tree stall, netting a tree for a customer. ‘I’m sorry I stormed over to your apartment last night,’ Nathan began as they crossed the street. ‘I know I came down on Kyle too harshly. Again. But it’s hard having a daughter, I don’t know if I’m supposed to talk to her about boys, or, if I am, how I’m supposed to do it.’
‘I’m not a parent but I suppose it must be like trying to find your way out of a strange building in the dark. You might turn the right way and find daylight, you might take several wrong turns, stumble over in the pitch black, but you get up again and carry on.’
His laughter rumbled on the foggy air enveloping Manhattan. ‘Sometimes it really does feel like that. I worry about making a move in case it’s wrong, other times I leap on in without thinking.’
They wandered, chatting about girls versus boys, the perils, the rewards, and when they came to one of the access points that would take them up to the High Line, it was Nathan who suggested they walk it.
It was busier than she’d thought it would be, plenty of tourists waiting for Instagram- or Facebook-worthy shots of Manhattan with its juxtaposition of new and old buildings, street views totally different from this vantage point. He pulled her in close to him and crouched down, pointing to a plant that looked bare until she spotted perfectly round red berries in a cluster and a bird noshing on them. ‘Look at that.’
‘A bit of colour,’ she smiled. ‘And festive too.’ Suddenly aware she could smell his shampoo or aftershave and see the faint stubble on his jaw up so close, she stood and looked around them. ‘Imagine this place in the snow.’ By now the sun was fast descending and it was amazing to be up this high, take it all in.
It didn’t take long for the moon to come out from its hiding place and the whole city to take on another personality as the lights of the city glowed near and far. ‘Spectacular,’ he said.
‘I’m coming back next year,’ she grinned. ‘Cleo’s getting married.’
The city carried on about its business below. ‘Will Paul come with you?’
The elephant on the High Line with them had finally been addressed. ‘I’ve no idea.’
‘When did he show up?’
‘About twenty minutes before you did.’
‘Bad timing on my part, sorry.’
Or good, depending on how you look at it.
They carried on walking, past an elderly couple sitting on a bench, weaving their way through a crowd chattering about the public park elevated above the streets of Manhattan and built on what was once a freight rail line, saved from demolition.
‘Is he staying at the apartment with you and Kyle?’ Nathan asked as once again they were able to walk side by side.
‘He’s in a hotel in Times Square. He wants me to go for dinner with him tonight.’ He’d sent another couple of texts. He’d never been this communicative when they were together and she had a hard time reminding herself that the Paul she knew rarely took such an interest in the mundanity of life, tourist traps of a new city.
‘Are you going?’
‘I am.’
Nathan stopped, looked around, down at the city streets, absorbing the quietness from up here. ‘If I worked in Manhattan, I’d use this place as an escape.’
‘Depends where you worked. You might be way uptown or downtown.’
He shook his head. ‘Must you always be right?’
‘Yes.’
‘That makes two of us. My brother was forever going on about it when I was little. I do my best to let others have their say now, but I am headstrong.’
‘Don’t apologise for it.’
‘I need to be more laid back, or at least that’s what Scarlett tells me.’
Back to the subject of teens, she suspected they’d both found their comfort zone. ‘Kids can be quick to judge no matter what age they are. They think adults have zero idea about the world around them, especially if the adult is a parent.’ She pulled her scarf a little tighter as the wind whipped around them when they passed on to a different section of the highline, the crowds at least moving. She couldn’t imagine what this place was like come summer. When she’d been chatting with Dylan after Cleo’s visit to the UK he’d talked about his running and how he sometimes came up here but only if it was very early.
‘I know I need to talk to Scarlett.’
‘About the condoms?’
‘About Kyle.’ He smiled. Who’d have thought we’d come all this way to another country and face more teen turmoil than when we were at home?’
‘I definitely didn’t see any romance on the air.’ She was glad it was dark and Nathan couldn’t read the awkwardness on her face at the mention of romance, because it was her own feelings about the man beside her that she was thinking of the most right now.
‘Me neither.’
She wondered, was he thinking the same? ‘Kyle hasn’t had the easiest time, happiness seemed out of reach, but seeing the way he is around Scarlett, well, it’s changing him for the better. We really talked – about her, his dad, his mum, the scumbags he’s been hanging around with. Who, by the way, he doesn’t want to associate with, but Kyle being Kyle is too nice to tell them to bugger off.’
‘What does he say about Scarlett?’
‘He talks about her qualities, what she loves, her art, her talent. When he talks about her it really tells me that his feelings are genuine and go way beyond teenagers fooling around.’
They took the next opportunity to exit the High Line and headed to a café for warmth. And over coffees they left the teen conversation and any reference to Paul and the impending dinner date tonight and instead talked about the friendships that had brought them here.
‘Do you knit a lot?’ he wanted to know as they talked about how much she was enjoying help
ing out on Cleo’s stall.
‘I’m crap at it,’ she admitted. ‘I got the job with Cleo’s aunt and uncle in their shop because my parents knew them. I worked hard. I learned a lot about the different sorts of wool, knitting needles, knitting patterns, and I bought plenty of things for myself, but I never really had it in me to practise. Cleo is keen for me to give one of her workshops a go out at her store in Inglenook Falls, but luckily distance prevents me from doing that.’
‘She was telling me at the inn the other night that her store was once in Manhattan, and Dylan put her out of business. Did I understand that right?’
‘You did. The store had been in Cleo’s family for years until he sold the buildings.’
‘And now she’s marrying the guy?’
His raised eyebrows made her laugh. ‘Sounds ridiculous, I know. But they’re so in love and I’m really pleased Cleo is so settled. How do you know Myles?’
‘We worked together in England, he’s a good guy.’
‘He seems it, and Darcy’s lovely. Are you enjoying staying at the inn?’
‘It’s great, suits us perfectly, apart from finding my daughter in bed with a boy that is.’
When her phone rang Amelia expected it to be Paul and was about to set it to silent but it was Connie. ‘Do you mind if I take this?’ She wanted to talk to her sister about Kyle, tell her how much her letter and the decoration meant to him, how much he was looking forward to a trip away with her.
She moved from the table to a quiet corner of the café, away from the music speaker.
‘Connie, say it again, I’m struggling to hear you,’ she said into the device a second time, pressing it hard against one ear to make it easier.
But what Connie said next brought her whole world crashing down around her.
She finished the call. She made her way back to the table, stumbling into a waitress carrying a plate of eggs, toast, hash browns. Food splattered to the floor, the plate cracked as it hit.
Everything smashed to pieces.
Chapter Sixteen
Amelia
‘Amazing, isn’t it?’ Paul wrapped his arms around her from behind as they stood at the window of his penthouse suite in Times Square looking out over the entire city. Manhattan, spread out before them, full of opportunity, full of promise.
‘It’s wonderful.’ But then she already knew that. She’d come here without him and in doing so had found the missing piece of herself that she hadn’t known when she was with him. She had a confidence, something she lacked when they were together. And it was that confidence that told her all she needed to know.
He turned her to face him. ‘Amelia, what’s going on? I thought you’d be impressed.’
Here she was dressed up in a midnight-blue woollen dress she’d bagged from Cleo’s stall for Christmas day, with polished leather boots she’d brought with her on holiday but hadn’t worn nearly as much as the comfy thick-soled boots she favoured on slippery footpaths. The view was indeed like something out of the movies, but right now she’d rather be back at the apartment with the peeling paint on the ceiling, its thin windows, street noises and Kyle mooching around. Up here in the quiet with New York muted down below them felt wrong.
‘It’s my sister.’ She leaned her head on his chest for comfort. ‘She’s sick. She’s got cancer.’
‘Oh, Amelia, I’m so sorry.’ He pulled her in tight, reiterating his sympathies.
She felt safe, protected from hurt even though she had all that to come. They all did. Connie had wanted to wait until they came home after Christmas, she hadn’t wanted to spoil the holiday by sharing her news, but as she’d found a buyer for the house and things had moved unusually quickly, she’d had to make the call. Because she’d be up in Amelia’s neck of the woods by the time they returned to England.
Amelia told Paul everything. He poured them each a large glass of wine as he listened, he cancelled the dinner reservation and said they’d order room service if they needed. He was there at her side in a way that surprised her as she told him about the shock of the phone call, her worries about her sister, who had undergone one round of chemo already with another looming soon. For someone who never let her rant about her family, he was here for her.
‘Those times I thought she was hungover,’ said Amelia. ‘She wasn’t, she must’ve been suffering, couldn’t tell me. What sort of a person am I that my own sister can’t confide something so important?’
‘For once, I think she did the right thing. Look at what you do for her, Amelia.’ He pulled her down next to him on the sofa. ‘Your head must be all over the place.’
She let herself close her eyes. For the first time since that phone call her body relaxed.
‘Does Kyle know?’
‘I haven’t told him yet. Connie would rather I waited until the end of the holiday.’
‘You can’t keep it from him.’
‘She wants him to have a good time here. They’ve been talking more lately, she wants to have time away with him when we’re home. He has a girlfriend, he’s looking to the future more than he ever has before. And now…’ Her voice wobbled and she bit down on her lip to steady herself and stop the tears. She didn’t want to completely let go in front of Paul, she couldn’t.
‘Are you really happy to hide all this from him?’
She dabbed beneath her eyes with a tissue before her mascara and eyeliner did its worst. ‘Not really, but what choice do I have?’
‘If you think he needs to know sooner, tell him.
‘It’s not my call.’
Paul stood up and jolted her on the sofa as he did so. He went to the window and looked out into the darkness punctuated with city lights. She could see his reflection in the glass, his expression set.
‘She’s always done this to you,’ he said without turning round.
‘What? Get cancer?’
‘No, put you in a position where you can’t do what you think is right.’
‘She has, but I also don’t want to hurt Kyle more than necessary. This is going to be one hell of a shock.’
‘She didn’t have to ruin your holiday though.’ He sounded angry.
‘She’s kept it from me for long enough and I’m gutted she did. I can’t imagine the pain she’s in, neither can you.’
‘You’re being taken advantage of again.’
‘I know Connie would be there for me if I was sick.’ She’d been there after Paul broke her heart, she’d sat up with her well into the night listening to her sob and wonder what she’d ever done wrong. ‘I can’t imagine how Kyle will take this, he’s already lost his dad.’
He turned to her briefly before looking out of the window again. ‘It’s not fair, Amelia.’
‘It’s not the same this time. It’s not taking advantage, it’s about my sister trying to move forwards in any way she can and protect those she loves. This isn’t the moment where I can put my foot down.’
‘You never will.’ The accusation flew her way in a voice she barely recognised.
‘Of course I will, but even you must see the timing isn’t right.’
‘What’s that supposed to mean…even I?’
‘I know you’ve never had much time for her or Kyle.’
‘Don’t turn this back on me to be my fault.’
‘I’m not.’
She joined him at the window and reached a hand out towards his arm but changed her mind at the last minute.
‘What’s the prognosis?’ he asked eventually.
‘I think it’s too early to tell, but she’s preparing for the worst. She’s thinking about Kyle by coming to live nearer to me. It’ll get him away from that crowd he’s been hanging out with too, which can only be a good thing.’
‘And it’ll mean you’re on hand to help.’
She pulled back. ‘And to see her. She’ll need people who love her. She has cancer, Paul, she might not even be alive much longer.’ Her voice wobbled and it angered her that she couldn’t keep it together.
> ‘What about Edinburgh?’
Her silence told him how much she’d thought about that. Not at all. ‘I haven’t had a chance to think about that yet. You sprung it on me six months after you dumped me without explanation. Now who’s taking advantage?’
The muscle in his jaw twitched. ‘I know you, Amelia, remember? I know you’ll always put your family first. Edinburgh won’t get a look-in.’ He distanced himself by walking over to the kitchen counter, the stainless-steel appliances insistent on gleaming despite the low lighting, the expensive coffee maker poised and ready for one of them to demand attention no matter the time of day or night.
‘I haven’t thought much past Connie’s news. My head is all over the place.’
‘But your head will settle back to where it’s always been and you’ll stick by Connie. I’m not suggesting you don’t, I’m not that much of an arse, but it’d be nice if you put yourself, us, first for once.’
Her voice softened. ‘You could put Edinburgh off for a while, until she’s better, until we’ve had a chance to get to know one another again.’
‘We were apart six months, not sixty years. And the job offer doesn’t work like that.’
Her mind was turning over so fast she could barely keep up. ‘Would you wait for me? Go up there, make a start and wait for me to join you?’ She had no idea whether that was what she wanted, but she needed to know how he really felt, she wanted the truth.
He came over and wrapped his arms around her. He planted a kiss on her lips and tilted her chin towards him, looked deep into her eyes.
He held her again, this time for longer, and when he pulled away he looked sad, defeated when he said, ‘I think we both know you’ll never come.’
Tears pricked her eyes because he was right. And it wasn’t only because Connie needed her now more than ever, it was because being apart from Paul had shown her that a life with him wasn’t the right thing. He’d always wanted her to himself and whenever anyone else came into the picture, family or a troublesome kid at work, he hated it. She didn’t think him a bad person for being that way, but he wasn’t right for her. He wanted someone at his side, supporting him at work functions, moving across the country or farther whenever his career demanded it. He wanted the neat idea of a relationship with nothing outside the lines and Amelia knew she’d never be able to give him that. And she didn’t want to either. She didn’t want to morph into a lesser version of herself, not for him, not for anyone. And, now, she realised she hadn’t really missed Paul in their time apart. She’d thought she had but what she’d really missed was companionship. Paul had become a habit, like an old comfortable shoe that had holes in it but you didn’t mind, it fitted well enough. But the shoe had started to cause her pain, blisters in the relationship, and it was time to accept that it wasn’t doing her any good.
Christmas Promises at the Garland Street Markets: A feel good Christmas romance (New York Ever After, Book 5) Page 23