Stand-In Saturday (Love For Days #2) - Kirsty Moseley Page 0,92
find your so-called loving fiancé banging another girl, doggy style, on your two-week-old dream sofa. They didn’t even have the decency to put down a throw to protect the velvet. That’s what’s not fair. But I can’t say that because they don’t know. No one knows.
I look to Lucas, pleading with him to step in here. He has the opportunity to be the bigger man. If he cares about me, wants to talk things out like he said, he should step in and put a stop to this. Defend me. Even if he doesn’t tell them the reason for the break-up, he has the power to step in now and disperse all this anger towards me. I’ve done nothing wrong here. I’m the victim in all this.
He eyes me, a twitch of a smile at the corner of his lips, as if he’s enjoying having the upper hand and seeing me squirm. And when his mother sympathetically looks over at him, instead of jumping to my aid, he lets his shoulders slump defeatedly, and his gaze drops to the floor; he’s hamming it up, playing the little wounded boy routine to make me look even worse.
Marie continues, her voice hitching with a little sob, and my heart clenches. We’ve always been close; I hate that she’s upset over this too. “How could you bring someone tonight when you knew it would hurt Lucas? This is so selfish, Lucie. I would never have expected this of you.”
Tears prickle at the backs of my eyes. My mouth opens and closes, but no sound comes out.
When Theo’s hand closes over mine and he squeezes, it makes my heart ache. He raises his chin and is the only one who steps in to help me. “Excuse me, Mrs Maitland, but I think you’re forgetting that your son is a grown adult. I’m sure if he had wanted to talk to Lucie in the last three months, he could have picked up a phone and called her. But he didn’t. None of this is Lucie’s fault. How exactly does moving on with her life make her selfish? You’d prefer her to sit around and wait for Lucas to decide he wants her back? Be real. Life doesn’t work that way.” His tone is sharp and scathing. He turns his attention to Lucas. “And you. Don’t you ever grab her like that again, or I will fuck you up. Got it?”
I get another rush of affection for him. He is such a great guy.
People close to us stare, stunned, but the rest of the party continues, oblivious.
Theo turns to me and motions his head towards the open patio doors at the back of the house. “Shall we get some air, Luce?”
I cling to his hand, nodding dumbly, my heart beating so hard that I can hear it pulsing in my ears. He confidently strides through the room, guiding me along behind him. It’s still light outside as we step into the fresh air and walk slightly around the corner, so we’re out of view of the other guests.
When Theo turns to me, his eyes are shining with sympathy. “You okay?”
Am I? I’m not really sure. My vision swims with tears, but I fight against letting them fall as I half-nod, half-shake my head, shrugging one shoulder noncommittally. “Yeah. No. I don’t know. Thank you for helping me. You’re amazing, you know that? I really appreciate you stepping in and defending me when he didn’t.”
Without my permission, a tear slides down my cheek, and Theo reaches out, softly wiping it away before wrapping his arms around me and pulling me against his hard body. His smell fills my lungs, and I press my face into the side of his neck, soaking up his comfort like a sponge. The hug is luxurious and takes out the sting of what just happened. I don’t know how long we stand like that, but it’s not long enough. I want to live right here, in his arms, protected from the world.
Sighing deeply, his breath blowing across my shoulder, he pulls back and smiles down at me. “I don’t like seeing you upset. He’s not worth you being upset over, Luce.” His hands cup my jaw, and he wipes more tears away as they glide down my cheeks. “He’s an absolute bellend. And a dumb shit for letting you slip through his fingers. He doesn’t deserve your tears, Luce. I hate that you’re still in love with him.”