“She’s probably downstairs with her friends.”
“She isn’t here?”
“No. Why?”
Lorna laughed quietly.
“Because I wanted to make sure we could talk without her listening.”
I stopped breathing.
There was a pause, followed by the sound of smoke being drawn through her cigarette.
Then Grayson said something that made my fingers curl against the carpet.
“Don’t worry, Mum. She has no idea what we’re doing.”
The words didn’t make sense at first.
I waited for him to explain. I waited for the joke, the misunderstanding, the innocent sentence that would make everything normal again.
Instead, Lorna asked, “Is the apartment officially in her name?”
“It is.”
“And all the paperwork?”
“Everything’s signed. The solicitor has copies.”
“Good. Then we can finally stop pretending this marriage is some great love story.”
My heart struck my ribs so hard I thought they might hear it.
Grayson chuckled.
“Come on, Mum. You know I love her.”
