Page 79 of Delicious Surrender
Six days blurred into one another. Brynne didn’t leave the house, and no one knew she was still in Skye. She was running out of basic necessities and would need to go to the store soon. The rental car was due back too, but she couldn’t summon the energy to do anything. Her meals consisted of toast, coffee, and eggs. All the crackers and cheese were gone. That morning, she found a few tins of soup in the pantry, so she didn’t have to go out. Instead, she lay back on the couch and closed her eyes.
Jared texted each day to make sure she was okay. She hadn’t opened her laptop or looked at her email since Friday when her world imploded.
The sound of tires on gravel had her jumping off the couch. When the garage creaked open and she heard the MG start, she knew it had to be Declan. She checked herself in the bathroom mirror, stunned at the pale face and sunken eyes that stared back. Her hair looked like a rat’s nest. She hadn’t changed or showered in a couple of days. Or was it longer? She should fix herself up or Declan might worry she had lost her mind. Not her mind, just everything else.
She put on a pair of wellies and an old hat and headed out the back door.
He was looking under the hood of the car and jumped inshock when the screen door slammed. “What the hell? Brynne—what are you doing here? I thought you went back to London?”
She shook her head, unable to utter a word. He took one look at her forlorn expression and hurried across the yard. When he pulled her into his arms, she struggled to catch her breath.
“Shhh, there lass, dinnae fash. It’s going to be all right.”
She refused to give in to another bout of tears. Her body stiffened and she pulled back to look at him. “No, it’s not, Declan. But it doesn’t matter.”
“What are you talking about? Josie wouldn’t want you to wallow in sadness for her.”
Brynne shook her head. “It’s not that. I’ve lost both my jobs; someone framed me, and I have nothing to go back to in London.”
They went inside, and Declan whistled in shock. She cringed seeing the mess. Dishes were piled in the sink, the garbage was overflowing, and crumpled tissues littered every surface.
Brynne tried to tidy up, then gave in and shrugged. “It’s been a terrible couple of days.”
They sat on the couch where she had been sleeping, eating, and crying for countless hours, and she told him everything.
He sat silently until she finished. “Listen up, Brynnie, you need to snap out of it. You may not be able to prove your innocence, but you can’t let them win.”
“But—”
“No buts. I’ve got an opening at the inn, in the bar. The best thing for you is to get out of this house.”
Brynne sat there nodding, unable to produce a good reason not to take him up on his offer. Sure, she needed the money, but she had no desire to be around anybody. “I need a few days to pull myself together.”
“Fine—you have until Friday. I’ll expect you in for the lunch shift. You can work alongside Myrna.”
“Okay.” She sighed, letting him win this round.
“I’ll see you there at eleven a.m. And Brynnie, I’m going to leave, and you need to get in the shower. You look like something the cat dragged in.”
She blushed to the roots of her ratty hair, which was sticking out of the wool hat. “I will. I need to go to town for groceries and maybe get a haircut.”
“That sounds like a right good plan, dear.”
He hugged her goodbye. His parting words made her smile. “You have a book to finish and a life to create, Brynne. Josie is tsking from up above and you know she’s saying, ‘No more moping. What’s for ye will no’ go by ye.’”
After a long hot shower, she felt restored, and better able to think. She could stay in Skye for a while and work on the book, but what about after that? Perhaps she was destined to disappear into the woods like the fallen angels? The Highland legends say the faeries hid in the forest after being driven out of Heaven with the devil and the sounds of their cries can be heard in the wailing wind. Brynne remembered when Josie read to her from Otta Swire’s book about the Skye for the first time. Shecried when she learned the faerie angels were never restored to God’s favor.
Brynne shook herself free from those melancholy thoughts. If she wasn’t careful, she would be back in bed, buried under the covers. She booked a haircut for that afternoon and made a list for the supermarket.
Gage hung up from his lawyer and went to find Garrick. He decided they should sue the newspaper for defamation of character and libel. It was a long shot, but he hoped other members would follow his lead and intimidate them. Usually newspapers were careful to say “allegedly” when they gave no proof sources. Brynne had called his club a brothel, which was patently untrue. If he had to, he would also sue her for reckless intent to smear his name.
Garrick also made calls all afternoon. He confirmed that five of their members were sending emails to theMirror’s owner and threatening to pull their advertising. Gage was intent on a front-page retraction and admittance of negligence by the paper for allowing a false and damaging story to run. He showed Garrick the email he crafted to Roger Knight, which would follow the delivery of his lawsuit against the newspaper.
“I suggested they admit a person inside the paper circumvented the process and was subsequently fired for cause. They can prattle on about the procedures they will change so that nothing like this can ever happen again. Then they can apologize to me and the members whose reputations were tarnished by their incompetence.”
Garrick nodded. “I like that approach. If they feel enough heat, we should get the retraction. And Dominus will live to see another day.”
“I won’t go down without a fight.” He sat on the couch and ran his hands over his face. “I could use a drink. What have you got handy?”