Wrecked (Dirty Air 3)

His scowl twitches. “You caught me. I’ve been waiting for the right moment to jump you.”

“If you’re trying to bitch me out about Elena some more, save it. I’ve had a shit day.” My qually went to hell after my conversation with Caleb. I somehow managed my panicking before it became anything dangerous, but it impaired my performance.

“I wanted to thank you, actually.”

I pause. “What do you mean?”

Elías leans against the wall. “Elena told me how Connor offered her a ridiculous sum of money for all the damage you caused.”

I shrug. “That’s great. At least she got rewarded for my arseholeness.” My body goes on high alert as Elías assesses me.

“Yeah, thank God Connor is nicer than you, right?”

“Right,” I offer in the driest voice.

“Imagine my shock when Elena then called me the next week saying how James Mitchell from Bandini offered her a PR job.”

I raise my eyebrows in surprise. “You don’t say? Maybe my bad press made the enemy interested in her.”

Elías shakes his head. “You’re telling me. How crazy is it for these two coincidences to happen within the same month for someone like Elena?”

“About as crazy as you thinking I care about us having a conversation about my ex-girlfriend.” My words have a bite to them. I don’t want to talk about Elena, especially to someone like Elías. I think about her enough on my own without her personal bodyguard and best friend snooping around.

Elías’s smirk turns into a full-blown grin. “And then I got a call from Caleb who wanted to quote ‘check in on Elena and give me updates’ unquote. But before he hung up, he mentioned how you’ve been mending your mistakes with Elena. What do you make of that?”

Dammit Caleb, I trusted you. “That you are shit at connecting the dots.”

“I think you’re hiding something. There’s no way Connor happened to offer Elena a hundred-thousand euros to stay quiet about working with you. Even he’s not that generous.”

Well, fuck, Connor must have felt terrible for Elena. “That’s a shit ton of money. I didn’t know I was worth that kind of hazard pay.”

Elías’s eyes narrow. “Weird. I didn’t mention anything about hazard pay, yet Elena used the same statement.”

Fuck, fuck, fuck. Abort the mission.

“We did date after all. We’re bound to have the same humor.”

“Right. Either way, I might hate you for breaking her heart, but I can’t hate you for setting her up to make sure she would be taken care of. I admire that, even if you won’t admit it.” He stands to his full height, making us eye level.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Your secret is safe with me. I wanted to thank you.” Elías holds his hand out to me.

I grab onto it and shake. “You never planned on telling her, did you?”

He smirks. “No. I wanted to confirm it for myself. I think you’ve caused her enough pain as it is, so I want to let her keep her dignity about her job.”

“You’re an all right guy, Elías. I respect that.”

“It’s about time you noticed it after working with me for a whole season.”

I let out my first genuine laugh for the day. At least I can survive another day knowing my sacrifice means something to Elena, even if she doesn’t know.

“I’ve been meaning to talk to you.” Dad’s voice rumbles through the speakerphone.

I take a seat on the couch of my hotel suite, preparing for a long-overdue conversation. Ever since my diagnosis, I’ve kept my conversations with my parents neutral, not wanting to upset them more. Mum can’t look at me for extended periods of time without getting teary-eyed. Dad, on the other hand, has kept relaxed and never probes.

I should have guessed he was biding his time. “I guess the time has come for you to give it to me.”