Page 48 of Ms Perfectly Fine
“Don’t worry, there aren’t any sharks in these waters,” he said, laughing.
“Pleasedon’t say shark! Can you distract me so I’ll stop thinking about what might be in here?”
Elijah took a deep breath. When he spoke, it sounded like he was ripping off a plaster. “I’m Tim’s son. He’s investing in my company. One of the reasons I have to stay in the house is that he wants to get to know me.”
Autumn gaped at him. It took her a moment to gather her thoughts. “You’re Tim’s son?” she repeated, needing to make sure she had heard him correctly. Elijah nodded, and she couldn’t stop her next question. “How have I never known about you? I’ve known him pretty much my whole life! He worked with my dad for years. Surely, he would have mentioned if he had a son…”
“I doubt your dad knows. I’m not his wife’s son. You know how much he cares about his reputation. I was—am—a stain on it, but now that I’ve made a name for myself, he doesn’t mind accepting me into his life.”
Autumn noted his dismissive tone, as if his father’s lack of acknowledgement didn’t bother him, but he couldn’t hide the hurt in his eyes.
“He should be proud to have you as his son. You might be a pain in the arse, but you have a good heart, and you work damn hard,” she said.
“Thank you—minus the pain in the arse part,” he said, gently squeezing her thighs, and she rolled her eyes. He looked like there was more to say. “There’s something else I want to admit,” he went on. “I…spoke to Charli yesterday. She didn’t tell me anything, only that I should try and bring you swimming.”
She drew back, feeling a little too exposed. She felt him studying her reaction as though he was waiting for her to let him in on her secrets. She appreciated his honesty, so she took a breath and tried to gather her strength to discuss the parts of herself she wished to bury. There was no shame in her concealment; she did it to protect herself from the opinions of those who couldn’t begin to understand what it took to piece her broken self back together. However, the fact that he hadn’t run when he’d seen her with Charli and instead taken the initiative to help her, gave her some hope that he would understand…or at least had the desire to try.
“I was wondering why here, of all places, but she’s been trying to get me here for the guts of a year,” Autumn said slowly. There was no point in keeping it from him anymore.If he’s met Charli and is talking to Nina, he is getting closer to the truth.“I was in an accident when I was younger. I was performing a duet at a concert with my best friend, Mollie.” She swallowed the lump in her throat and forced herself to continue. “The stage collapsed. I was injured, and Mollie…she didn’t make it.”
“I’m so sorry, Autumn,” he said, hugging her tightly. She thought she would feel suffocated, but instead, all she felt was comfort.
“No one knows how it happened; the stage just collapsed. It was an old outdoor theatre in winter…it just happened,” she said, letting the water wash away the memories. She had long given up asking why; anger only fed her pain.
“I wish I’d known sooner.” His words were almost a sigh.
“Why? You would have treated me differently. Fighting with you and not being treated like a porcelain doll is the closest thing to normal I’ve experienced in a long time.”
“I’ll happily argue with you anyway, but I would have known what was wrong the other night and been able to help.”
His sincerity nearly stopped her heart. There was no look of judgement in his eyes, no pity—only concern.
“The other night was just a bad spasm from all the practice. My conductor gave me a few days to recover,” she admitted.
“I’m glad you got some time off. Nothing is worth your suffering. How old were you when it happened?”
She didn’t mind talking about it with him as much as she’d thought she would. “Sixteen. I haven’t been in the sea since Mollie passed. She was the best violinist I’ve ever met—don’t tell Nina I said that—but an even better swimmer. She wanted to compete, but her parents wanted her to play. They thought there was more of a future in it.” Now that she had opened up, it felt like she couldn’t stop. “After she died, I couldn’t face the water without her. I wouldn’t even do water therapy when I was learning to walk again. I think…if reincarnation exists, she would want to be a fish,” she told him, hoping Mollie was out in the ocean somewhere, at peace.
“I’m sure she would be proud of you for getting back on stage,” Elijah said.
“I would have given anything to swap places with her,” Autumn confessed. His arms around her tightened, as if he feared she would slip away.
“Don’t say that,” he breathed against her neck. Autumn eased back but he kept his hand on her waist. “Who would drive me nuts if you were gone?”
She smiled through her tears. “You would have the house all to yourself.”
Her words caused a flash of hurt in his dark eyes. “Why would I want that?”
His gaze drifted to her lips and back to her eyes. Suddenly, the water felt too hot. Autumn watched a droplet fall from his hair to his lips. Usually a pale pink, they were tinged with blue from the cold, but they had never looked better.
Elijah tipped his head towards her. Feeling his breath against her lips, she closed her eyes.
“We should get to swimming now that you’re warmed up,” he murmured.
Snapped out of the moment, Autumn eased herself out of his grasp and kept her gaze on the shoreline.
“After you,” she said, trying not to think of how she wanted him to kiss her and how he had been the one to pull away. She wanted out and away from him.
She started swimming along the shoreline, going at her own pace, and he swam beside her. It didn’t take long for her to tire, but the weight of the water washing over her body felt glorious. Elijah asked if she wanted to get out, but she couldn’t bring herself to leave the water immediately. The shore reminded her of all the stresses waiting for her. He assured her they could leave whenever she wanted.
