Trace of Innocence (No Control Book 3)

Chapter 56

(No Control - 56. Back For You)

"What are you doing here?!" she exclaims. She's still staring at me with a mixture of shock and disbelief. There's a trace of uncertainty too and this makes me nervous.

"I think we need to talk," I tell her.

"Okay. What about?"

She's looking at me nervously now, and I can't resist a sarcastic comment.

"The economic crisis in Greece," I say flatly. "What do you think?"

Seriously. How can she not know why I'm here?

She stands up as I venture into the room, and she begins twisting her fingers together. I want to pull her into my arms there and then and beg her not to be nervous around me, but I'm not sure how she will react.

"Why were you at the Big Weekend?" she asks.

Great. Straight to the point, no beating around the bush. I feel suddenly ridiculous that I flew all this way for her.

"I thought you were staying in LA," she says, looking hard at me, and I feel myself crumbling under her stare.

I pretend to study my fingernails as I answer her shyly:

"I was. I changed my mind. I came back... for you."

"Oh my God, Harry," she whispers, and out of the corner of my eye I see her head tilt back, staring up at the ceiling as if looking for divine inspiration. I lift my gaze and watch her for a moment, and eventually she looks back down and stares into my eyes.

"How did you get past Calvin?" she wants to know, and her words remind me of playing video games as a child, having to defeat the boss on the final level. I smirk at the memory, and immediately have this desire to share this piece of my childhood with her.

"You make it sound like this is the final level of Super Mario or something," I begin, "and he's the boss you have to defeat at the end before you run up the stairs and rescue the princess."

She twists her lips involuntarily into her own smirk.

"Well your face is still in tact so he either doesn't know you're here or you talked him round," she replies, and I feel the need to defend him, and let her know she has him to thank for me being here. Or not thank. I haven't quite worked her out yet.

"Actually, it's sort of down to him I'm even here at all," I begin.

"What?"

She looks confused.

"I didn't know where you'd gone," I explain. "Your friend Callie said you'd left but hadn't gone home, but wouldn't go into details. I pressed her on it but she wouldn't give anything away. I looked on Twitter and there was nothing, so I tried Facebook and saw your brother had tagged you here, with a reference to Where Do Broken Hearts Go. I could see it on the map so I started driving here and on the way I called the driver who took you home from the airport and got him to tell me the postcode and house number."

Her eyes widen more and more with each word, and by the end of this her mouth is hanging open with surprise.

"Why?" she asks breathlessly.

Seriously??

"I told you," I say, a little impatiently. "We need to talk."

"It's a lot of hassle to go to just to talk to me," she remarks. "We can talk on the phone."

Well, we could if you'd answered, or called me back. And maybe I think you're worth the hassle.

"You wouldn't answer," I shrug.