Second Chances: Novella One (2 page)

Layla knew she would crumble into a weeping mess if she looked at him, so she stared down at her hands, allowing the man to speak without interruption.

“
I accept there’s no going back from your decision to leave, but I needed to see you one last...” He paused, obviously struggling to get his words out. “One last time to say sorry; sorry for not being supportive enough,” he continued. “I know I’m guilty of letting business get in the way of us being able to grieve together.”

Layla glanced up for the first time since he started talking with an expression of wonder written all over her face. For weeks she had felt guilty for not being able to express her anguish in words. Instead, she had cried endlessly, and mistakenly believed his anger was due to frustration at that. Hearing that Evan considered himself to blame, for not spending enough time with her, to help her grieve, threw her completely off balance.

“
You shouldn’t feel guilty for having to go to work. I’m sorry for all the nights I kept you up with my endless crying, rather than talking about it. Maybe if I’d been able to open up more, we wouldn’t be in this position today,” she said, looking away, unable to handle the hurt in his gaze.

“
Don’t tear yourself up about it. Each of us could have done things better in hindsight, but losing your parents and the baby in such a short space of time is enough to make anyone struggle,” Evan answered. “I know I went into shutdown mode when my mother and father died.”

Layla offered a weak smile, not trusting herself to speak coherently, as she tried to digest how reasonable he was being. She tried her utmost to resist listening to the voice inside her head that was screaming out for her to give him another chance, since he seemed to share the same regrets, but Layla knew it wasn’t that simple.  Too much had been said in the heat of the moment for her to go back now. This whole process only served to hit her with the cold reality that no matter how much she still loved him, she needed time alone to grow up.

“
Anyway,” he added, letting out a deep sigh. “I think my few minutes are up. I guess I’ll be seeing you at Cameron’s from time to time.”

“
You might be relieved to know that I won’t be there often at all,” she replied. “I’ve accepted a job in New York.”

Evan

Evan could not stop the unhappy downturn of his mouth as the full implications of Layla moving to a different country washed over him.
Now what was he going to do?
The thought of seeing her every so often had been the one thing preventing him from falling to his knees and begging her not to leave. He had hoped in time to be able to draw her back into his life, but, now, with that opportunity gone, he faced the painful reality of Layla not being in his life at all.
 

“
Oh, I see. W-well, umm, good luck,” he stammered.

Layla gave him a tight smile. “Thanks.” Her voice was light and casual, but he knew her well enough to know she was faking. “By the way, I appreciate the flowers.” Her understanding of why he’d bought lilies was written all over her face.

Evan shrugged, trying to match her casualness. It was easier for both of them that way. “I bought them before... before I saw your note.”

A flicker of guilt flashed across Layla’s eyes before she glanced away, and her cheeks coloured with embarrassment. Evan wanted to reach out and comfort her, but at the same time a swell of anger was rising up inside him, wanting her to feel guilty for leaving him.

“
I thought you might still appreciate them, better than I do, under the circumstances.” Looking down at the floor, Evan’s fingers grazed against the small, black box in his jacket pocket, which he’d bought on his trip away, with the intention of giving it to her upon his return. In all the confusion of finding her note and driving madly around several places, trying to find her, he had forgotten it. He struggled to compose himself once more before looking up again. As he did so, he caught Layla staring at him wistfully.

“
I’d better get going before the traffic gets too heavy,” he said, even as continued to stand in the same spot, rather than moving.  His legs refused to listen to his brain’s request to walk towards the door, seeming to deliberately choose another route instead.

As Layla raised herself from the sofa, Evan finally managed to act, catching her unawares as he moved swiftly to stand in front of her. Raising his arms, he brought them to rest on either side of her waist before she had time to react. Pulling her close, his lips brushed against hers urgently before Evan released her from his grip with the words, “As much as this hurts, I know loving you means I have to let you go.”

Layla didn’t get a chance to reply as Keely interrupted them by entering the room.

“
Keely, thank you for allowing me to descend upon your home uninvited, but I won’t intrude any longer,” Evan said, turning stiffly from Layla to focus on her friend. I have to get out of here, he thought, and his unreadable mask of emotions was back in place once more as he strode from the room.

Keely followed him out into the hallway.  Despite his pretence not to hear, Evan was fully aware of Layla sobbing in the lounge.
Outside in the driveway, it was a desolate man who got into the driver’s side of his car.

Clutching the steering wheel so hard that his knuckles went white, Evan tried to compose himself. In frustration, he pulled out the object from his jacket that he’d been fiddling with earlier and hurled it across the car, with such force that it cracked against the passenger door before falling into the foot well. The outer box broke apart to reveal its contents: a double-banded, single solitaire diamond ring. The sight of the gem sparkling in the remains of its container cracked Evan’s composure altogether. Bringing both hands up to his face, he sobbed

Layla

Nearly five years later

Stepping on to the pavement outside the hotel, Layla drank in the final images of her favourite part of New York on the Upper East Side before flying back to Manchester. It had been a short trip to make sure her newest boutique was running smoothly, as well as catching up with old friends from her modelling days. The city had been her home back then, and it still held a special place in her heart as it was where her son, Bennett, had been born.

“
Good morning, Madam. Are we heading directly to the airport?” the hotel’s chauffeur asked as he held open the car door for her.

“
Yes, please,” she replied, smiling as she slipped inside the plush vehicle.

Smoothing her dress down over her thighs, Layla pulled out her newest electronic gadget from her shoulder bag. The iPad was the latest rage, and she’d already loaded it up with enough music for her journey home.

Layla had managed to grab one of the last available seats on a plane flying to Manchester airport. The airspace above some of the Western European countries had been closed off for several days due to an ash-cloud plume drifting over from an ongoing volcanic eruption in Iceland. She had arranged to stay with her older sister, Ava, and her husband, Cameron, who lived a convenient fifteen-minute drive from the airport.

As the door of the car shut firmly beside her, Layla settled back into the soft, leather seat. Pressing her fingertip against the tablet screen, she browsed her schedule, which she’d already synchronised between her phone and tablet. The girl had a week of family time planned to celebrate her upcoming birthday, but knew she wouldn’t be able to escape the odd business-related Skype call. In her absence, Luke, the designer she worked alongside, would be overlooking the latest design changes to her ready-to-wear summer collection.

Despite not having much of a business brain, Layla had managed to juggle a two-year course in fashion merchandising at FIT in New York and Florence, as well as raising a child aged under three, before embarking on her own fashion label.

As well as her own birthday, it would also be Ava’s and Keely’s that same week.  Since they were kids they had always celebrated the three events in one go. This year, however, the group dynamics would be rather different. Keely was in Rome and would not be able to get to Yorkshire due to work commitments, so the gathering would be just Ava, Cameron, Millie and Evan.

Millie was the saner of Cameron’s two sisters and the only one Layla could bear; in fact, if the other one had been coming, she wouldn’t be, simple. She thought Caggie Barker had ruined her life and planned to scratch her eyes out if she ever met her again. It was going to be enough of a strained atmosphere seeing Evan again without her presence too.

Layla hadn’t seen Evan since the night before her niece’s christening, nearly eighteen months earlier, and the ultimate reason why she thought Caggie had ruined her life. Layla intended on making her pay for it. The familiar voice of Adele setting fire to the rain broke through her thoughts.

Recognising the ringtone she’d allocated to Ava’s caller ID, she retrieved her smartphone from her bag and hit the ‘Accept’ button. "Shouldn’t you be on a plane?" Layla asked, pressing the handset to her ear. By her reckoning, Ava should still be in the air for several more hours.

Instead of her sister’s voice coming, Layla heard an anxious-sounding Cameron. "Layla, there has been a change of plan. We flew back early as there’s been an accident. Ava has broken her leg quite badly and had an operation. They’ve had to place a metal pin inside to clasp the bones together. I’ve arranged for you to be met at the airport by my driver, who will bring you to the hospital."

A feeling of dread flipped over in Layla’s stomach, knowing how much Ava hated hospitals since she’d spent a big part of her childhood in and out of them. "Is she okay? Can I talk to her?" she asked. Ever since the traumatic birth of her son, Layla always panicked whenever a member of my family went into hospital, even for the simplest of check-ups.

"Yes, they’ve made her comfortable. She’s sleeping at the moment. The doctors say there is nothing much to do now except to wait."

Taking a breath and trying to sound composed, Layla replied, "Okay, I’ll see you at the hospital once I land. Give my love to her." With that, she ended the call and stared blankly out of the car window.

The close brush with death that she had experienced with her son haunted her. Pull yourself together, she chastised inwardly.
Cameron is her husband, and he won’t let anything happen to her. It’s a bone break, not life or death.
 

A short time later, Layla was being shown to her seat inside the sparsely filled first-class cabin by an immaculately dressed stewardess, who seemed to have every hair in place. Sitting down, she couldn’t help noticing a familiar-looking woman sitting across the aisle from her staring in her direction. But, with all the flights she’d notched up between Europe and America every year since the age of eighteen, Layla often recognised passengers who did the same route on a regular basis.

Sighing, she acknowledged the woman with a brief nod before glancing away and trying to look engrossed in retrieving some invisible item from her handbag, to prevent a dialogue starting. Normally she didn’t mind chatting to other people on a flight, but the mood for chit-chat just wasn’t there today. It seemed to work as that initial conversation line never materialised.

Upon closing her eyes, Layla’s thoughts rushed back to Ava’s predicament. If her sister remained in hospital, it would make staying at her place awkward. Layla wasn’t due to move into her new house with Bennett for another week, but she didn’t want to be a burden. She even considered telling Cameron that she would stay in hotel. At one time or another, she could have stayed with Evan, but that was unlikely now, especially after the appalling way she’d treated him the last time they met.

Not wanting to dwell on that particular subject, Layla opened her eyes and opted to browse through the movie choices as a source of distraction for the next seven hours.

***

As one of the first people off the plane, Layla claimed her Louis Vuitton cases with relative ease, and headed through the long corridor to the main arrival lounge. Weaving her way through the waiting mass of people, she tried to locate Cameron’s chauffeur, who she would recognise on sight. He had been in his employ for a while now.

But it was a different man to the one she was expecting that stepped towards her. "Miss Keyes, it’s a pleasure to see you again."

Her eyes focused on his face for a second; he seemed familiar. "Edward, is that you?" she asked. Edward Reynolds had been Evan’s chauffeur when they’d been a couple.

"Yes, Miss Keyes. Mr. Carter directed me to come pick you up, as Mr. Barker’s driver was otherwise engaged," he explained.

Layla stood frozen to the spot, contemplating why Evan would be gracious enough to send someone to collect her when she was certain he hated her.
Moreover, how did he even know I was flying in at this particular moment?
Random thoughts flashed through the girl’s mind until she felt someone take the luggage handle from her hand.

"I’m to take you directly to the hospital, as arranged, to see your sister. Mr. Carter is already there with Mr. Barker.”

Too shocked to do anything but nod, Layla followed the driver to the car.

The drive from the airport to the small, exclusive hospital was over remarkably quickly. Ava had stayed at the same place when giving birth to her daughter, Jess. With the car parked, Layla exited the vehicle under her own steam, rather than waiting for Edward to open the door, and walked around to the back.

Handing Layla her luggage from the boot, Edward told her, "I hope your sister recovers quickly. They are in room eight."

"Thank you, Edward," she replied.

With her heels tapping on the pavement, she walked past several paparazzi, who were lingering outside the building. They hurriedly snapped her picture as she turned into the entrance.

The vultures were out early today, she mused. Layla normally considered the press following her to be a necessary evil in getting her clothing brand noticed, but seeing them lurking outside a hospital entrance annoyed her.  She presumed the possibility of taking a picture of two celebrity sisters together undoubtedly doubled their sale value.