9
MIRANDA
“Ava!” Harriet snapped.
My niece stopped banging her feet and turned to me, placing a hand over her mouth.
I shook my head and smiled at her expressive little face. “Don’t be like that, Harry. Ava’s driven. There’s nothing wrong with that, is there?”
Harriet tossed things about, which was her version of cleaning. She was like an alcoholic without a drink, only her grumpiness related to lacking a male in her life.
Thanks to my parlous financial state, I had to ask my sister whether I could stay with her again. My finding an apartment had stalled, and I’d hit rock bottom.
Although Lachlan had called two hours after I’d stormed off, I couldn’t bring myself to speak to him.
Our romantic bubble had burst. My idealizing him had blinded me.
But his flaws weren’t what prickled. He was fallible, like all humans, especially by not updating his insurance. The cold look in his eyes, which still made me shiver thinking about it, was what hurt the most.
Gavin, my former tutor, had turned pale at the mention of Florian. News traveled fast. Everyone in the industry knew of his disappearance. And rumor had it that Florian, having succumbed to a raging coke habit, had Interpol chasing him. Gavin apologized profusely for recommending the art dealer to me, but I just shrugged it off and muttered something about bad timing.
The easygoing—albeit rational—response came from my public persona. Internally, regret seeped through my bones. I rued my decision to major in art history instead of opting for a law degree or teaching, as my mother had begged.
But I wouldn’t have met Lachlan, a little tremulous voice whispered.
Are two months of endless orgasms worth this crushing pain?
“Harry, sit down for a minute. I have something to tell you.”
Once I’d told my story, she asked, “So, does this mean you’re moving back in?”
“I never really left.” A lump formed in my throat.
She sat down and smiled sympathetically. “You should just talk to him.”
“I don’t know. He was awful to me.”
“In the heat of the moment, people say things they don’t mean. I’d want to be left alone if I’d been ripped off that badly.”
“But don’t you see? Lachlan had a point. I fucked up.”
“Bullshit. You weren’t to know that guy would run off. And Lachlan fucked up, too, by not getting his insurance together. He keeps calling you. At least talk about it.”
I bit into the last nail I had to decimate. “Look, Harry… I’ve got something else to tell you.” I hadn’t seen my sister since I heard of Orlando’s accident.
“What is it?” She wrapped her arm around Ava, who’d joined her on the sofa.
“It’s about Orlando,” I said.
She sat up and removed her arm from her daughter. “Go and practice.”
“But, Mommy, you said…”
“I don’t care. Just leave us for a minute.”
I waited for Ava to leave the room and said, “He had a surfing accident.” I paused for a breath. “He’s paralyzed.”
“What?” Her brow creased. “Where is he?”