Elijah knots his eyebrows together in confusion. “Huh?”
“That you’ve come for Olivia now. After all these years.” Goddamn it, what am I saying? This is wild, not what I’m supposed to be getting involved with at all. It isn’t my business; it isn’t my place.
This isn’t what I’m supposed to be saying, but now I can’t stop. “Showing up into her life now when she’s an adult. What about before?”
Elijah steps back, breaking the thick fog around us. I can breathe a little easier now, thank goodness. My brain isn’t quite so muddled as it was with him practically pressed up against me. “I don’t know what you…”
“You don’t know what I mean?” I scoff. “Are you kidding? Olivia is twenty-two years old. Almost twenty-three. I’m sure this vacation is going to be wonderful, but don’t start thinking it makes up for everything you’ve missed.”
Okay, so this isn’t what I wanted to say, but I suppose it did need to be said. Not by me of course, because I shouldn’t really in the middle of this. I’m only here because Olivia wants me here. But I think it might be a good idea to make Elijah realize that this isn’t going to be straight forward.
With him stunned to the core, I push past him and head back to my seat. It’s only when I sit back down that I notice my heart is absolutely thundering against my rib cage. I can hardly catch my breath. Maybe I actually do need to get myself a drink, but to chill myself out rather than to make myself tipsy.
“There you are,” Olivia murmurs, waking up with a yawn. I don’t know what she sees as she’s looking at me, if she can tell what the hell is going through my mind, but she isn’t bothered if she does.
“Do you want a drink? I think I could use a drink.”
“God yes,” I chuckle, leaving my laptop to the side, to pick up later on. “I definitely need a drink.” Anything to get the hell away from my seat where Elijah is in my eye line. I’d rather not look at him at all if I can help it.
Especially after that weird exchange.
“Something strong.” I add.
That way I might be able to forget.
ChapterFive
ELIJAH
How fucking dare she? How could she? That was just so…
I know, I’m not great, and that I have made multiple mistakes in my life, but I donotneed them pointed out to me by someone who doesn’t even know me. Isabella has only heard one point of view, and she thinks that makes it okay to criticize me? Absolutely not!
I nearly grabbed her. I almost did. I don’t know how I managed to control myself around her because there is something about Isabella that really fires me up. I want at very least to call her out on it. Now that I have gathered myself back up and I’m no longer shocked into silence, I want to let her know just what I think of her.
Because again, how fucking dare she? But I can’t because she’s drinking at the bar with Olivia. Out of my reach. If Isabella is going to be in my daughter’s ear the whole time that we’re on the island, I know I don’t stand a chance. I can try to get through to Olivia all I want and make her understand, but she’ll always have that influence in her ear, ruining this for me.
This is why Olivia should have come alone. By now, we could be talking, building that bridge, and ever so slowly walking across it to one another.
But we’re not. Here we are, with a chasm of distance between us.
Great, just great. Laucala Island is going to be a real waste of time.
I notice my fists are curled up by my side, the anger is really getting to me now, I can hardly contain myself. I really do have to look out the window now so I don’t get caught glaring angrily towards Isabella, alerting Olivia to the animosity between us.
Things are already shitty enough, let’s not make it worse. I don’t want her to know a thing. I grit my teeth together, not letting any of the yelling out, as much as it wants to come.
Somehow, we’re going to have to overcome this. Unless me and Isabella avoid each other completely once we’re on the island, we’re going to have to find a way to get along for Olivia’s sake. I don’t like it at all. In fact, I hate it, but I’ll make it work.
Not yet though, right now I’m going to let myself feel all this rage in the hope that by the time we land, I will have let it out of my system.
“Are you kidding? Olivia is twenty-two years of age. Almost twenty-three. I’m sure this vacation is going to be wonderful, but don’t start thinking it makes up for everything you’ve missed.”How could she say that to me? So blatantly, without hesitation. It hurts, like a painful knife to the chest with every single word.
“Weird, this. That you’re here now.”
Yes, I am here. I’m here and not going anywhere, unless Olivia makes me go. But if she is going to kick me out of her life once more, I need to explain myself first. I have to.
* * *