“Worry about what?” I quizzed, and he pressed his palm to his forehead.
“She’s been lying to us,” he told me. “She told us she was out at her friend Holly’s last night and she wasn’t. She must have been out with that stupid idiot Stephen Jones.”
Holy fuck, I felt the guilt.
“What makes you think it was Stephen Jones?” I asked, genuinely curious.
He shrugged. “Who else would it be? She hasn’t been anywhere else but this place. He’s the one who’s been interested.”
I hated myself for lying to him any more than I already had, but it was necessary, for all of us. Especially Stephen Jones.
“I think some of the women from the office might have been out last night,” I said. “I’m not sure it would have been Stephen she was out with. Maybe it was one of them.”
“She lied!” he shouted. “She must have had something worth lying about!”
I kept quiet and he sighed at me.
“Sorry,” he said. “I’m not meaning to aim this at you. I know you’ve been taking good care of her. I’m just worried. She’s still just a girl, and she clearly has no idea how she should be acting.”
There was so much of me that wanted to counter his argument, but this really didn’t seem like the right time, or my right place.
“I’ll be sure to keep Stephen at a distance from her,” I told him, because that wasn’t a lie in the slightest.
“Good,” he said. “I’ll be seriously appreciating it. I’ll be keeping one hell of a closer eye on her from now on.” He paused, and the redness in his cheeks faded a touch. “She told me she’s leading the auction on Friday.”
I smiled a hearty smile. “Yes. She is.”
“Are you sure she’s ready?”
I nodded a hearty nod. “She’s very ready. I’m looking forward to seeing how well she does.”
He managed a smile of his own, even though his eyes were clearly still raging. “I’ll have to head over to watch her,” he told me. “I haven’t seen her on stage since she was in high school in the school pantomime.”
I laughed. “Yes, I remember.”
He laughed right back. “Of course, yes. You got dragged along to plenty of them too. She really is lucky to have an extra uncle at her call.”
I battled to keep my smile steady, so tempted to tear this whole charade down in one motion and tell him what the hell was truly going on here. Consequences be fucked.
But I couldn’t.
Not with Faith so vulnerable in the coming months and her future at university. It would be one huge shit storm she’d struggle so hard to contend with.
And so would Colin and Diane.
“Thanks for giving her that opportunity,” he said. “It’s a great experience you’re giving her here. It means a lot to her. And to me and Diane.”
Once again I felt so fucking sick for the betrayal.
“It’s my pleasure,” I told him. “She really is a very talented woman.”
I made sure to emphasise the word woman, but he seemed oblivious, his eyes following Erica’s approach to the office through the window.
“Please do keep Stephen Jones away from my daughter,” he said, and I nodded.
I figured that would be all for this morning, but he held back with his hand on the door handle, pulling it open in time for Erica’s approach. She stepped on in and he turned to face us both as she arrived at my desk.
“I’ll ask the both of you while you’re both here,” he said. “Saturday night at our place. Both of you for an evening meal. How about it? It’s been too long.”
Erica was quick on the uptake, giving a perfect, can’t wait before I’d even begun to formulate an answer.
Both of them stared at me, awaiting the obvious, and I had no clear out, so found myself shrugging.
“Of course,” I said. “I’d love to join you.”
Once upon a time it would have been the most natural thing in the world, but right now I felt like the biggest cunt on the planet.
“Great,” Colin said, before leaving. “Can’t wait to see you both.”
I made sure not to dwell on it or discuss it too much with Erica. Just shelved it to my to do list and carried on with business.
Faith came on through with the Friday auction listings mid-morning, and winced substantially as she sat down to go through them with me. I managed a smirk and so did she, the tension alive enough to crackle between us. It was just before she left to resume work at her desk that I pulled her in closer and told her about her dad’s visit, and she sighed as she digested the implications.
“We’ll have to be so careful now,” she said. “I don’t even have Holly as an excuse anymore.”
“We will indeed,” I agreed, so tempted to suggest we go all fucking in and have done with it, but she was already shrugging, frustrated.