Ten
Hanna took several deep breaths and stared at the scenery, which was a total blur right now. It had been such a lovely start to their day out and now it had turned into a disaster. Should she ask him to drop her at a station so that she could get a train back to Folkestone, and a cab back to Betancourt Bay? She couldn’t spend the day with him after this.
And yet. He hadn’t said anything about Griff. Or about her being in love with someone else’s fiancé. But if he’d heard the gossip then he must’ve known what it was about.
He knew better than anyone how unrequited love felt, so was he telling her he understood how she was feeling? And was he also telling her that he was willing to help her if he could? He’d said that he was a friend. He’d said he wanted her to talk to him about anything at all. He also said he was there for her if she needed him. And even if she didn’t, he would still be there. What did that mean, exactly?
Did it mean that he was offering to help her through this? To help her get over what he thought was her unrequited love for Griff? And how, precisely, would he do that?
By talking with her? By spending time with her? By giving the gossips something else to talk about? Because if they knew Hanna and Russell were out together today, tongues would soon start wagging.
Was that so bad? People already thought she was in love with Griff. Did it matter if they started wondering why she was spending time with Russell?
The only thing that did matter of course, was that Russell couldn’t find out what her true secret was. If he knew that it wasn’t Griff she was in love with, but Russell himself, would he run a mile? Would she ever see him again? Would he avoid her at all costs?
She wasn’t sure what she should do.
She watched him surreptitiously, her head lowered and half turned away.
Whatever she chose to do, he would never be unkind.
And everyone thought she was in love with Griff, so what harm was there in pretending it was true?
Grace knew how much Griff loved her so she wouldn’t care about the gossip. She probably wouldn’t believe it anyway. She must’ve heard it by now, and if it had concerned her, wouldn’t she have called and asked Hanna if there was any truth in it? Hanna would tell her soon. But not too soon. Grace, and her sister Hope, weren’t good at keeping secrets. If Grace knew Hanna was in love with Russell, she would instantly tell Griff, and probably Russell too.
Being able to spend some time with Russell would be worth the lie, wouldn’t it? Because that seemed to be what Russell was offering. But he wouldn’t offer that if she told him he was the one she was in love with. Or if Grace, or Hope, or anyone else blurted it out.
When a lie might bring her closer to her secret wish, and the truth might tear her apart, choosing the right path wasn’t easy.
