I didn’t say anything. We’d already managed to piss off said henchmen, and not only were we planning to walk right into the middle of them, we were also possibly going to get the evidence that could bring down the whole cartel. The task ahead suddenly seemed overwhelming.
‘We’re not here to break open a European drug ring, Burrowes,’ Nick said, as if he’d read my mind. ‘Our job is to find out what Ford’s involvement is, if any.’
I made a face at him. ‘Thanks for the recap.’
‘Have you heard from Ford yet?’ Adelita asked.
I shook my head. ‘No, I’ve left a couple of messages but he hasn’t called me back. We found the warehouse earlier, but we couldn’t find a way in.’
‘You went there without making contact with Ford first?’ She looked surprised. ‘You should not have done that. It is very dangerous.’
‘Did you hear that, Burrowes?’ Nick said. ‘Very dangerous.’
‘I couldn’t just sit around and do nothing,’ I said.
‘That is exactly what you should have done,’ Adelita snapped. ‘Your foolish actions may have cost us the story if anyone saw you.’
‘There was no one there,’ I protested. ‘No one saw us.’
‘If nobody saw you, you are very lucky. Your inexperience is proving a handicap.’
‘Wait a minute,’ Nick said. He sounded annoyed. ‘Sarah’s the one who’s done all the work here. I’m struggling to see what exactly you’ve contributed so far.’
Adelita sighed. ‘Naturally you will stand up for your girlfriend. But I am a professional reporter. You are a photographer. You would be wise to follow my advice.’
‘And you’d be wise to remember whose story this really is,’ Nick retorted. ‘We’re already getting paid for this. We don’t need your help.’
‘Um, I do.’ They stopped glaring at each other and looked at me. ‘I could use the money, and we could do with an extra head, Nick, you know that. So let’s just move on and finish this story.’
I picked up a slice of pizza. Nick gave us both a dirty look, then took another swig from his glass.
‘She’s not my girlfriend,’ he muttered.
‘Thanks for sticking up for me,’ I said to Nick after Adelita had left the restaurant.
‘Lot of good it did,’ he said. ‘You didn’t have to shoot me down quite so fast.’
‘Sorry. But we do need her.’
‘For what, exactly? She hasn’t even done anything.’
‘She’s got the contacts, Nick. She’ll help us sell the story. I’ll be able to keep my house.’
‘Will you shut up about the bloody house!’ Nick thundered. People looked over at us.
I stared at him. ‘Why does it matter to you?’
He lowered his voice. ‘I don’t understand why you’d want to keep the house you bought with him. Not after what he did to you.’
I didn’t speak straight away. ‘Because I can’t let him get away with it. He’s punishing me for something I didn’t even do.’
There was a hint of amusement in his expression. ‘So what you’re saying is that you don’t want him to win?’
‘Bingo,’ I said. We shared a smile. ‘Another drink?’
‘Is that your solution to everything?’
‘Oh, shut up.’ I laughed.
Our drinks came out and we clinked glasses. It struck me that I was purposely prolonging the evening. Somehow, I hadn’t even noticed how comfortable I’d become in Nick’s company since we’d been working together.
‘I hope Ford calls me back soon, because I can’t handle the waiting much longer.’ No sooner had the words left my mouth than my phone started ringing. ‘This might be him now.’
My stomach dropped as I saw the name on the screen.
‘Is it him?’ Nick asked.
I held my finger up to my lips as I answered the call. ‘What do you want, James?’
There was silence on the other end of the line for a long moment, and then an intake of breath, and I realised he was crying.
‘I’m so sorry, Sare.’ His voice broke with emotion. ‘I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I miss you so much. I want you back.’
Fury surged through me. ‘I know what’s wrong with you. You’re a coward, that’s what.’ It felt good to finally let loose on him, to unload all the hurt he’d caused me over the last few months. ‘You couldn’t face up to your own mistakes, so you put them on me instead. I’m not going to let you make me the scapegoat anymore, James. You wanted to split, well, you got it, dude. I’m done.’
‘You’re right. I’ve been an idiot. I was so ashamed of myself that I couldn’t look after you, and I panicked. I’m sorry.’
‘Look after me? I’m not a helpless fucking princess, James. I don’t need rescuing.’
‘I know, I know,’ James said. ‘That’s why I love you so much, because you’re so much stronger than I am. You’d never run away from your responsibilities the way I did.’
‘Well. I didn’t really have a choice, did I?’ I’d expected him to defend himself, but it was hard to keep up the tirade when he kept agreeing with me.
‘I’m sorry I accused you of sleeping with Nick,’ he said. ‘And even if you did, I could hardly blame you. I’ve been a prick.’
‘Yeah, you have. This has got nothing to do with Nick.’
Nick looked up from the glass he’d been staring into and our eyes met. For a split second, there was an expression of naked hurt on his face, then he threw back the last of his drink, got up and headed over to the bar.
‘I’ve been thinking a lot over the last few days,’ James continued. ‘All I want is to be with you again. I want to move back into our house, and one day I’m going to marry you, and we’re going to have twenty kids. And I’m never going to take you for granted again.’
I tried to maintain my rage, but I couldn’t help being swept away by his words. No one had ever spoken to me like that before. Despite everything that’d happened, part of
