Page 29 of The Layover

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Then Leon says, ‘You weren’treallyplanning to try to break up the wedding, were you?’

‘I … I don’t know.’ Idoknow. But I swallow, hating myself, hating the mirror that’s being held up to me right now. If we hadn’t been diverted for the bad weather, this wouldn’t be happening; I’d still be in wilful, blissful ignorance. ‘I guess I just thought I’d … try to catch him for a quiet moment tonight, and I’d tell him how I felt. And then … Then …’

‘Then he’d run off with you, instead of marrying my sister.’ Leon nods, though, not really expecting a response. He takes a swig of his sugary tea. ‘Well, good luck to you. Like I said – you’re welcome to him. She’s better off without him.’

‘W-what?’

‘She’s better off without him,’ he reiterates. ‘And none of us will be too sorry to see him go. Nobody in our family was exactly thrilled they got engaged in the first place, so good riddance to the both of you.’

I gawp, but Gemma has got a hold of herself just enough now to claw at Leon with one hand. ‘Wait-wait-wait.’ She takes another second to gather herself, and says, ‘Are you serious? Like, genuinely,nobodylikes him? Are you kidding me right now?’

‘Why?’ I blurt. ‘Why don’t any of you like him?’

Objectively, it’s wonderful news that Kayleigh’s family don’t approve of Marcus, and as much as they might hate him for leaving her for another woman – forme, I’m the other woman, oh, God, how is the reality of this only just sinking in now? – they already disliked him, so that’ll soften the blow. Maybe he’ll even berelievednot to marry into such a hostile family.

Because really, if they’re anything like I’ve found Kayleigh and Leon to be, he can’t be excited about becoming part of such a family? He probably feels obligated, knows he’s too far in to back out now. And at least with Kayleigh, he has a relationship he’s sure of, while he doesn’t believewecould be anything more than friends.

That doesn’t stop me wanting to jump to his defence, though.

Leon scoffs, and there is a bitterness in the twist of his mouth as it draws into a smirk that sets my temper on edge again.

‘Where do I even start?’ he says, and then reaches into the front of his bag and throws something onto the table.

It’s a notebook. The green leather-bound one I saw him writing in on the plane and then studying earlier, when I asked if he was working on his speech.

It lands, open, and though Gemma and I both lean in and angle our heads to try to decrypt his scrawling writing, he’s already talking again.

‘He’s pretentious, self-centred, rude, arrogant … He always thinks he’s the smartest person in the room, thinks his money makes him better than everybody else, acts like everybody is beneath him and he’s doing you a favour just by being there atall. And he’s hardlyever there, for the record. I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve met the guy in the time they’ve been together. We used to see Kayleigh regularly, or she’d at least FaceTime to check in – but now he’s on the scene, we hardly even get that much from her. And when theydovisit, it’s like they can’t wait to get away again – likehecan’t wait to get away.’

‘Well, I’m not surprised, if you’re all so horrible to him,’ I mutter, and Leon cuts me a look, his eyes narrowing. The hostility returns full-force in that moment; I can practically feel it prickling across my skin, and this time I stare him down.

He snarls, ‘We have beennothingbut nice to him—’

‘Oh, clearly. Just like you’ve been nothing but nice tome—’

‘That’s different.’

‘I’m sure.’ My voice is dripping with contempt; I’ve never heard myself like this before. It must get under his skin because Leon shifts in his seat, and all I can think is,Good.

‘Even when he showed up unannounced the first Christmas they were together and we’d never met him before, we did our best to make him feel welcome, went out of our way to help him feel at home—’ He breaks off to narrow his eyes at me as if daring me to challenge him, when I obviously can’t; I wasn’t there, I don’t know. ‘But we all can tell, it’s not good enough, nothing is ever up to his standards. Or Kayleigh’s, now, which is all to do withhisinfluence.’

Gemma snorts. ‘Damn, say it with your whole chest, Leon.’

He doesn’t even seem to notice her comment, barrelling on regardless.

‘He’s constantly talking over people, interrupting, doesn’t even do you the courtesy of listening politely and making small talk or pretending to be the slightest bit interested in what’s going on with his fiancée’s family. Always criticising, offering ‘advice’ nobody’s asked for, while never lifting a finger to doanything himself, of course. When hedoesdeign to come and see us, I’ve never heard him so much as offer to help carry plates from the dinner table. And Kayleigh’s followed his lead, of course, started acting like she’s above helping out in her own home. Our dad’s sick, he uses a cane these days, but they’ll let him wait on them hand and foot before they even think about pitching in to help.’

I don’t point out that it’s not her home, it’s her parents’ – because I have to agree with Leon’s disdainful tone, that it’s the very least she could be doing. She’s notreallya guest when she grew up there. And if her dad really is unwell like that … Gosh, I can’t even imagine. I can’t fathom acting that way if it were my parents.

Instead, I say, ‘What makes you think it’s not him taking the lead from Kayleigh?’

‘Excuse me?’

‘Well, if you think he’s such a terrible influence on her – what if you’re wrong, and she’s the bad influence on him, and that’s why you think all those things of him? Alright, so he’s a little bit opinionated—’

‘He’s an argumentative prat.’

‘Pot, kettle,’ I point out, and Leon makes an angry noise in the back of his throat that has Gemma smothering a giggle into her hand. She has to turn away a bit, flapping a hand in front of her face to try to breathe before she sets herself off into another fit of laughter.