Page 30 of Where There's A Will
I couldn’t believe he was leaving her to struggle on her own, not even having the common courtesy to assist his girlfriend with her bags.
“Sorry, Hugo, I won’t be minute, Will’s helping me get it sorted.”
She looked so sad.
So ashamed.
And I refused to comfort her.
She should be happy that she was going to her dream destination with—apparently—her dream man.
I slammed the trunk closed and slapped it. “You’re all good to go now. Have a fabulous time in London!”
As I said that, I saw Hugo frown in confusion.
Maybe Montana had got it wrong.
I couldn’t bear to watch her driving away, and darted back inside the apartment building, the bag with the bagel in it hanging heavy in my hand. My apartment felt cold and empty, the aroma of stale whisky invading my nostrils. Leaning against the kitchen counter, I pulled the bagel out, examining the slightly congealed cheese spilling out of the sides. My stomach churned as I brought it close to my mouth. I took a bite. It tasted like cardboard. Without a second thought, I tossed it in the garbage.
The day stretched out before me. I had a rare Saturday off, which I’d hoped to spend with Montana. It was still relatively early, but I already knew how the day was going to end.
Roman was on a shoot. My restaurant buddies would be working.
I’d be alone.
With Jack or Jim or Johnny for company.
I checked the cupboards and saw my stocks needed replenishing. Time to head out to the store and buy up what I needed to make it through the weekend. And the next week while Montana wasn’t there. I had a sudden flashback to her impeccably organised takeout binder. Maybe I could replicate it to make me feel closer to her, something I could do this afternoon to while away a few hours.
Plans made, I went about my day and tried not to think of the haunted look on Montana’s face as she stood by Hugo’s car.
9
Montana
Will was so nice.
What the hell was I doing?
With a guy who was clearly such an ass. Hugo couldn’t even be bothered to help me with my bags.
Desperately, I swivelled around in the seat, trying to catch another glimpse of Will before we left. There was no sign of him and I sighed, hard. Hugo was already beginning to annoy me with his out-of-tune singing to Katy Perry before we’d even hit the end of the street.
Why did I think I wanted this so much?
I fiddled with the bagel in my lap, tearing off a piece and trying to chew it. Every mouthful had the consistency of straw. Defeated, I shoved the remains into the bag and stuffed it into my holdall. Maybe I’d feel like eating later.
The car crawled along, the early Saturday morning traffic already building up. I wished we’d taken the subway, although with all my luggage it might have been more difficult. Hugo and I had barely spoken since leaving my apartment building. I wondered how much of that was to do with Will helping me. Considering Hugo was about to take me on the trip of a lifetime, I figured the least I could do was make some kind of effort.
“How was your week?” I asked. “Funny how we saw each other on Monday, then I barely heard from you the rest of the time.”
He gave me a sideways glance. “I was busy. You know, with work. Knowing we were going away for the week, I had loads to do—prep and handover, that sort of thing. I was working late every night.”
I nodded, thinking even if he’d been working late it wouldn’t have taken much effort to have at least replied to one of my messages. Or at least acknowledged it. “Right. I was the same. Plus I didn’t know what to pack, so I kind of ended up packing everything.”
“Figures from the amount of suitcases you’ve got. I hope they don’t try and charge extra for it,” he grumbled.
“Oh, I hadn’t thought of that. What baggage allowance did you get? Have you got the flight details?” I asked.
