After an hour,Dana still hadn’t spoken a word, but David could feel every pulse of the resentment just about radiating from her body.
The only words she’d spoken were to direct him to her house.
“You are obviously angry with me, and I want to explain the whole thing to you, but I want to know you’ll listen.”He turned down another street she indicated.
“So talk.”She crossed her arms and leaned back against the seat.
David turned his head and stared at her, not sure whether he wanted to throttle her or kiss her.“Why did you speak to Sean Murray?”
Her eyes flashed.“Because I’ve been looking for answers for two years, and he was the first definite lead I got.Talking to the police has been a fruitless exercise.I eventually started emailing newspapers and got hold of Sean.And he told me that you”—she pointed at him—“were the one who implicated my dad.And my dad”—she swallowed—“is innocent!I know him.He would never have stolen other people’s money; he would never have committed suicide.And I have to prove it; nobody else is interested in clearing his name.That’s why I’m trying to find out what happened.That’s why I talked to Sean.I hoped I would get answers.What I didn’t expect to hear was that a guy who kissed me is the same person who spilled the story.And didn’t think to tell me about it.”
Her accusations sliced through him like a sharp sword.Wow.He hadn’t known she was looking into her father’s case and that she was talking to other journalists about it.If he had, he would have made time to talk to her on the plane, but, of course, talking didn’t seem important when he was around Dana lately.
It wasn’t anything he hadn’t told himself before.He should never have taken half the story to the editor, but he’d wanted to make sure he would get the front page when he had finished the story.
Well, he got the front page, just not on the day he’d wanted it and not with the facts all sorted out.
He nodded.“You’re right about the fact that I was the one who took the story to the editor of the paper.But like I said, when I met you, when I kissed you…” He turned and looked at her.“I didn’t know you were Gareth Roux’s daughter—”
“This is my house.”Dana pointed toward a small cottage.
David looked around as he stopped in front of Dana’s house.They were in the older part of town, and this street was lined with old-charm cottages.
“And,” he continued, “you don’t have all the facts.For one, the story I took to the editor didn’t mention your dad.Well, except in the margin, but I was still…” He interrupted himself.“Can we continue this inside?”he asked.
She shook her head adamantly.“No!I’ve done enough talking for the day.”Her eyes welled up, and she got out of the car quickly.
*
Blinded by tears,Dana stumbled toward her front door, trying to find her key.Her only thought was to reach the sanctuary that was home.
“Dana!”David’s voice bellowed from behind her, but she ignored him.
He came up behind her but she stubbornly refused to look at him.Tears were clogging up her throat; she wouldn’t be able to talk anyway.A tear slipped down her cheek and, furiously, she wiped it away.But then another one followed and another.
Gentle fingers took her key and opened her front door.
David steered her inside and closed the door behind them.He pulled her close and rested his chin on her head.For minutes he stood like that, just holding her.
She tried to hang on to her anger, her hurt, but it was so wonderful not to be the strong one, not be the one doing the comforting but to be comforted.
When she was little, her dad was the one who’d pick her up and hug her when she cried.He was the caretaker, the caregiver.And ever since his death, the role had become hers.And she was just so tired of always trying to be the strong one.
But she had no choice; she had to get to the bottom of what had happened to her dad.And she definitely couldn’t let David seduce her into believing his version of the truth.
She pushed against his shoulders, and he let her go.
“Will you please listen to what I have to say?”David asked.
Dana hesitated.A headache was threatening to split her head in two.She was hurting so much.It was a struggle to keep the tears at bay.
She wanted to be angry with David, wanted to hate him, but if she was honest, deep down, she wanted there to be a different story.How did she deal with all these conflicting emotions?
Nodding, she walked toward the kitchen part of the open-plan living area.Fortunately, she’d cleaned her house yesterday.She grimaced.The main reason was that she knew David would be visiting over the weekend, and she’d been looking forward to seeing him again.
And now everything was such a mess.She should have listened to her instincts and stayed away from journalists.
She looked at her watch.Four o’clock.
