Rebel with a Cause

‘Yes,’ she admitted. ‘I guess I was. Still am.’

‘Oh, Sophy,’ her mother scolded but folded her into a hug at the same time.

Sophy smiled. They did look good. The jewellery gleamed in the cases, the display was slick, professional and different—vintage inspired but thoroughly modern.

‘Darling, I can’t buy that necklace.’ Her father came back.

Sophy looked up.

‘It’s already sold.’ He was beaming now. It was just like the smile he’d worn when Ted and Vi

ctoria had both graduated with their first class law degrees, the smile she’d never seen him bestow on her before. ‘Apparently it was the first item that went. Several of the other pieces have sold now too. It’s a huge success, Sophy.’

Sophy flushed with pleasure.

‘Apparently it sold within five minutes of them opening the doors tonight. Someone was obviously keen.’

Sophy’s flush deepened. Her thoughts instantly flicked to Lorenzo—had he done it? Was he here for her as a surprise? Had he bought the necklace because of what they’d shared? Was this his way of apologising?

Her heart soared with hope.

‘Sophy, there’s someone here wanting to talk to you.’ Her brother touched her shoulder.

Sophy spun, blood thundering in her ears as she looked through the crowds. He was here—he’d come. Someone tapped her other shoulder and she turned again, getting hopelessly giddy, and too full of hope.

‘Surprise!’

‘Oh!’ Sophy gasped. ‘Rosanna!’ She threw her arms around her friend and hugged her close—hiding her disappointment in her friend’s shoulder and her tight hug.

‘You didn’t think I’d really miss it did you?’

Sophy shook her head. She couldn’t speak, her heart full and yet bleeding at the same time. She had such a great friend, such a great family. She had no right to be feeling so crushed. She looked into her friend’s smiling face. ‘Oh, thank you so much for coming.’

Lorenzo sat in his car, still too shocked to even turn the key. He was parked just down the road from the theatre—had been since ten minutes before the doors opened and that was an hour ago now. Fool that he was, he hadn’t been able to resist.

He’d been going to go—say sorry, or something. He hadn’t meant a word of what he’d said yesterday. He’d done it deliberately—pushed at her until she pushed him away. But she was right, he’d been lying. Of course she was special. She was so special he was terrified.

So here he was sitting in his damn monkey suit and everything because he couldn’t let her down completely. But thank goodness he had. Because now he knew.

Braithwaite. It wasn’t that common a surname. He should have made the connection sooner. But he hadn’t bothered to ask too much. And she offered almost as little info about her family as he did his. Now he knew why.

The collar of his shirt seemed to be tightening round his neck—choking him.

He’d seen them arrive before he’d got out and got in there. For once the fates had shown him some mercy. Because the last thing he’d have wanted was to have met the man again in front of Sophy. Edward Braithwaite—Judge Braithwaite—the man he’d stood before all those years ago. The one who’d condemned him and yet who had offered him that one last chance.

For half an hour tonight, while dressing, he’d deluded himself into thinking he could have fudged it—hadn’t enough time passed? Jayne’s father had sent him packing—he wasn’t good enough for his daughter, wasn’t good enough to invest in back then. And she’d agreed—had laughed at his dreams. He’d just been sex to her.

But ten years had passed since then and things had changed. Some things anyway. So maybe, if it was someone else, he could have pulled it off—skirted round his history and talked up his present successes. But Judge Braithwaite knew everything—had seen him at his worst. He knew the whole sorry story. And no way would he want him anywhere near his precious baby daughter.

Society might give second chances, fathers didn’t. Fathers wanted only the best for their daughters; hell, Lorenzo under stood that—he wanted only what was best for Sophy. And that wasn’t him.

He bowed his head over the steering wheel and faced it: it was always going to be this way—as it had been before, it would be again. And it was why he should never have let her get so near to him. The past was inescapable. The perfect life he’d been imagining for just a few moments was a mirage—something that he just wasn’t meant to have. He’d managed his life fine without until now anyway—forging his career, working so hard. He had his hugely successful business, the charity, he had a couple of good friends. But any other intimacy? A woman, a life partner—there could be none.

He would never be good enough for a woman as wonderful as Sophy and he wanted none but her. It didn’t matter how much money he made, how successful his business became, there was always that part of him—that fundamental truth that he always tried to hide even from himself.

But her father knew that truth, and, knowing how much her parents’ approval mattered to Sophy, Lorenzo knew it was over.

She deserved a perfect family, a perfect lover. But it would never be him. He had never been part of a family. Had never been wanted in a family. Damn well didn’t want one of his own. Being alone was what he was used to—secure, uncomplicated. And he had been a fool to think he could ever deal with anything more—or be dealt anything more.

He had to stay away now. He’d let the end he’d engineered her to declare truly be the end. So there was only one thing left for him to do. He’d go to Vance’s bar. And he’d get really, really drunk.

Sophy didn’t remember a thing about the movie that screened. Afterwards she went with her family for coffee and cake—Rosanna came too. But all she could think of was the necklace that had sold so quickly. She knew it was crazy, that she’d read too many romance novels and watched too many Hollywood movies, but she couldn’t help hoping that he’d bought it for her. Maybe he’d sent someone in to buy the necklace. Maybe he’d present it to her in a romantic gesture, an apology for not being there. It was going to be his way of making it up to her. Oh, how she’d love something like that—for someone to go over the top for her, someone going to lengths to do something wonderful for her.

She was such a sad unit.

‘Are you okay?’ Rosanna curled her legs up on the café’s sofa after Sophy’s parents and siblings had called it a night.

Sophy nodded and flopped back into the big armchair. ‘I’m just a bit tired.’

Rosanna reached forward and put her glass on the table carefully. ‘Lorenzo wasn’t there.’

‘No. He said he wouldn’t be.’

Rosanna’s eyes had narrowed. ‘But—’

‘My mother loved those earrings. Did you see her?’ Sophy interrupted. ‘I never thought she’d be into ones that are so dangly.’

‘I know.’ Rosanna went along with the change of topic. ‘So are we going out to party now?’

Sophy laughed and shook her head. It was after one a.m. already. ‘I don’t think so.’

Rosanna shrugged. ‘I can come home if you want.’

‘And eat chocolate ice cream? No, I’m going straight to bed.’

‘Okay. But if you wanted to do the ice cream, you know I’d ditch the plans.’ She paused. ‘I’m going to meet up with Vance.’

‘What about Emmet? And Jay?’

‘Oh, they’re going to the bar too.’

It was the most genuine laugh to burst from Sophy in days.

Rosanna’s face lit up. ‘I have a surprise for you—close your eyes.’

Sophy obeyed, waited for what felt like ages. ‘Are you still there?’

‘Yes.’ Rosanna chuckled. ‘Okay, you can open them now.’

Sophy did—and stared. Rosanna was wearing the necklace—her necklace.

‘I just loved it.’ Rosanna angled her shoulders one way and then the other, showing off the sparking necklace with its looping swirl.

Sophy made herself swallow the disappointment and bring up a smile. ‘It suits you.’

‘Don’t worry about the display.’ Rosanna leaned forward. ‘I promised I’d bring it back in tomorrow and leave it for the duration of the festival, but I wanted to surprise you tonight.’

And she had.

Sophy gripped her cup closer to her chest. ‘You didn’t have to buy it. I’d have given it to you.’

Rosanna flashed her huge smile. ‘I know, but I didn’t want you to. I wanted you to be a success tonight so I bought it straigh

t away. But then so many others sold too—you’re a legend!’

Sophy was so disappointed it was embarrassing. She’d really thought it had been him. That it was going to be some grand gesture, to have her unwrap it as part of an apology and declaration—of what? His love?

As if.

Hot tears prickled her eyes.

‘Sophy!’ Rosanna looked horrified. ‘I’ve made you cry.’

‘It’s okay.’ She tried to pull it together, but the salty water trickled down her cheeks. Yeah, she had wanted that. It had been the private fantasy that had got her through the last few hours. ‘Thanks so much for doing that. It means a lot.’

It hadn’t been him, of course it hadn’t. She’d been an idiot to think it ever could have been. No, it was her best friend who’d done it for her. She’d been the one to turn up. Sophy knew she should stick to the sisterhood. Men were over rated. ‘You know what?’ She sniffed and reached for her handbag. ‘I am going to come out with you tonight.’

She was not going to go home and wallow. She wasn’t going to waste one more minute of her life mooning over Lorenzo. She had too much to celebrate tonight. She was going to go dancing.

The bar was pumping. Sophy followed Rosanna to the dance floor. Rosanna had sent a text ahead and Emmett and Jay were waiting with drinks for them.

‘Thank you, darlings.’ Rosanna kissed them both.

Sophy managed a smile and downed half her glass’s contents in one shot.

Jay’s brows lifted and he took her arm. ‘Come on, you look like you need a laugh.’

Oh, she did. Jay was a great dancer—held her close, had slick moves and didn’t once make her feel as if she was his second choice partner—though she knew full well she was. She felt her body relaxing into the relentless beat—it blocked all thought from her head and dulled the pain. Yeah, this had been a great idea. She’d dance ’til dawn and then maybe she’d be able to sleep. She stood on tiptoes so he had a chance of hearing her. ‘Thanks, Jay. I’ll put in a word for you.’

He slid his hand round her waist and chuckled. ‘Every little bit helps. But it’s not Emmett I’m worried about. It’s the bar dude.’ He nodded over to the side.