Eve walked into her parents home and hung up her coat. Then she took a deep breath and fixed a smile on her face before she walked down the narrow hallway. She stopped at the doorway to the lounge and her smile slipped a little.
Her father was in his hospital bed, watching his programs and looking more depressed than she had ever seen him. Most of his equipment surrounded him in the small room, a constant reminder of what his life was now.
And it was all her fault.
“Hey, dad.”
As always, the moment he heard her voice, the mask he always wore around her appeared as the fake smile formed on his lips.
“Hey, baby girl,” her dad said with that smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “Did you have a good day at work?”
She walked in and kissed him on his cheeks.
“It was okay,” she lied.
It was soul-sucking, but it was the best she could do right now.
“I’m going to see mum before she goes to work, then I’ll freshen up and come watch with you.”
“Sure.”
She left the small room that had become her father’s bedroom and made her way upstairs. Outside her mother’s room, she fixed her mask on her face again before she knocked.
“Come in, Evie,” her mother called.
When she walked in, her mother was still getting dressed, ready to go to work for the night. Her bed was neatly made, but some of her father’s equipment was in this room, too. Her mother said she didn’t blame her for any of this, but she didn’t believe that. Tessa Bright was having to work more than she had done before, just so they could keep this small roof over their heads.
“How was your day, mum?” She asked as she kissed her cheek and sat on the bed.
Her mum and dad couldn’t share a bed anymore.
“Same old same old,” Tessa said. “I was on the phone all day trying to get someone to come and visit your dad.”
The Council had placed them there as temporary emergency accommodation but it had been months and they still hadn’t found somewhere more suitable.
“I’m sorry, mum,” she whispered, her mask finally slipping away.
“Don’t be daft, Evie. None of this is your fault. We were always going to be in this position after we got kicked out of our home,” her mother said. “I’m more upset that you haven’t gone back to university.”
She had told her mother everything when she had eventually felt safe enough to come home. She’d cried for hours, especially after she had seen the disappointment on her mother’s face. But her mother had told her she had done the right thing by walking away. She should never have traded in her self respect and dignity.
“I’ll try in January,” she said as she stood up to let her mother finish dressing.
“What time are you working in the morning?”
“I’m off in the morning then I’ll go to the restaurant at four. You can sleep, I’ll take care of dad.”
She kissed her again and then crossed the hall to her box room. She could only fit a single bed and a thin wardrobe in there, but she has some of her father’s equipment on the top of her wardrobe, too.
She threw her bag onto her bed and then sat down, covering her face with her palms. How the hell had they all ended up here? How could one mistake change things so drastically? But she was determined to get back on her feet.
Roman hadn’t found her by now, so she assumed that he had let her go. He probably already had another woman in that big house of his.
Not that she cared. The other women were welcome to him. Roman had made her feel so worthless and that was something she never wanted to go through again.
The magazine on the floor next to her bed caught her eye. She’d lost count of how many times she had looked at the gossip pages and the pictures of Roman and the blonde woman. Vivian Cartright. Born with a silver spoon in her mouth and the type of woman Roman wanted to be seen with in public. She could bet he would never think of giving Vivian a contract like the one he had made her sign.
She should throw the damn thing away. If she kept looking at it she would never put any of this behind her.
“Bye, Evie,” her mother called out.
“Bye. Be safe,” she answered.
Once she heard the front door close, she pulled her phone out of her bag to put it on the charger while she had a quick shower. The screen lit up and a notification made her freeze.
She had changed her number again, but she knew Roman’s number by heart.
She dropped the phone and stepped back from it. Her heart was pounding. After all these months, what could he possibly want? Was it about the contract she had signed and then breached straight away? Was he finally sending his lawyers after her?
She didn’t look at the message as she picked her toiletries up and walked out of her room to the small bathroom at the end of the short hallway.
Roman had crushed her. Destroyed her. It had been so hard to mend herself – she was still trying to recover from that. If she looked at that message she could get sucked back in.
After a quick shower, she dressed and went downstairs to make some drinks and then sat to watch a movie with her father. They went through a few awkward conversations before she gave up and pretended to be engrossed in the film.
It was seeing her dad like this, after the easy relationship they’d had before, that made her mind up for her. She would read the message. If Roman wanted her to meet his lawyers then she would. She would face whatever legal consequences she had to face then be done with him for good. She would have closure.
Once her father was asleep, she checked all the windows and doors and then switched the lights off before she went to her room.
She sat on her bed and picked the phone up. Her hand was shaky as she unlocked her phone. And then she took a calming breath before she opened the message.
‘Your car has been delivered to the house in Birmingham. Address to follow. Please collect it in the morning. Just ring the bell for the keys.’
She sucked in a breath. Was that it? No repercussions? She could just go and collect her car and leave?
She’d already written that car off and couldn’t afford another one on her wages. Roman’s money still sat untouched in her bank in case she had to give it all back. The car would come in handy, especially these winter months with getting her father around to his appointments.
Her heart felt a little lighter. Having that contract over her head had taken its toll on her but if this was really over then she would finally be able to put Roman in the past where he belonged.
But when she went to sleep that night, it was still Roman’s face she saw in her dreams. Still Roman’s lips on hers. Still his body all over hers. She knew it would take some time to let go of him completely, but she would do it because there was no other option. Roman was not the man for her.