Page 65 of Mending Fences
“Sure, I’m game.” Colin added a container of vanilla.
To Mandy’s mind, Colin seemed too eager and Candace too bouncy. Coincidence? More like elaborate setup. Mandy took a step back.
Daniel stepped forward. “You got your boot off. How does your foot feel?”
Mandy looked at her matching flats peeking out from under her maxi skirt. “My foot feels fine, but it’s funny to walk normally again.” Mandy backed into the cooler shelf.
“Careful. You don’t need an accident tonight.” Daniel lifted his hand and brushed her cheekbone with his finger. “It looks like that has healed nicely too.”
Mandy told herself it was an odd scar thing sending tingles dancing across her face. “You know about—? Never mind. Of course you do.”
“I tried to call you that night. You didn’t answer.”
“Hey, you two, the ice cream is melting. We will check out, and I’ll take Colin back to our place. Daniel, can you drive Mandy?”
“May I?” Daniel dropped his hand and stepped back.
Mandy didn’t trust her voice, so she nodded. Daniel raised his hand and waved. “It looks like I still need milk.” He moved back up the aisle to where Colin had abandoned their cart. By the time they reached the checkout counter, Candace and Colin were gone.
Mandy followed Daniel to his car.
He pointed out the huge curve in the back end. “I’m not sure the trunk will open, let’s put these in the backseat.”
“What happened?” Mandy traced the dent with her finger.
“Colin. He has never been an attentive driver, but now I am wondering if it was deliberate.”
“Why would he crash your car?” Mandy slid the last bag into the backseat.
Daniel deposited the empty cart in the cart return. “I wasn’t coming to the store with him.”
“You think they set us up?”
Daniel opened her door. “Of course I do, and if you finally talk to me, his ploy will be worth the repair bill.”
Mandy watched him round the car and get in. “I’ll talk. You have been rather persistent in the weeks since my MFA show. But when we are done and I say good-bye, will you let it mean adieu?”
“If that is what you want, I will. Do you mind if we drop off my milk before going to your place for the ice cream?”
Mandy turned in her seat to face him. “Sure. And I need to say I’m sorry.”
“For what?” He turned north towards the estate, a road Mandy had avoided since the protest.
“I did a final manipulation of your mansion I shouldn’t have. I was angry, and I thought you—never mind. It doesn’t matter what I thought. It was beneath me, and unkind.”
“The bordello? That one is hilarious. You probably designed the pink monstrosity when I was in New York, and with all of the dates I had, you probably thought I deserved it.”
Mandy stared out her window, not sure how to respond.
“I need to explain about the New York dates. They were all setups. Mutually beneficial appearances complete with contracts and nondisclosures. My goal at the trial was to get Summerset into rehab, but I needed to get her father to hear me this time. As long as she maneuvered the press to tell her version of reality, her father would believe her. I spent the past three months in an ever-escalating frenzy of dating that peaked during the trials keeping me in the public eye, building evidence that Summerset and I were not exclusive. The photos made it difficult for her to claim a private liaison. All my contracted dates knew we were acting, and, no, they weren’t paid. They only got the publicity. But then I went on one very real date. And they wouldn’t let me tell you about the others. My guess is you did a less-tame version earlier. After the lick kiss and Summerset’s last stunt, I think half of the web gossips would have turned my house into worse if they had your skills.
Mandy’s head whipped up. “Did Candace tell you about the first one? How much have you been spying on me?”
Daniel reached for her hand. “Other than the reports from Hastings, which did not include photos other than the one of your cut cheek, which you knew Abbie took, I only spied on you once for about two hours.”
“When?” Mandy narrowed her eyes.
“The opening night of your show. Colin was wearing a button cam. I wanted to be there and to see everything, but I was stuck in London working on the opening of the new restaurants. I wanted to ask your permission and have you wear the camera, but—”
