Trace of Innocence | Sweet and Sour (Book 4)

Chapter 22

(No Control | Holding Me Ransom - 22 - Escape From The City)

I don't reply to Jess's message after that - to be honest I'm overwhelmed by disappointment and my mood plummets. I spend the following day hanging out with Kendall but I can tell that even she is reaching the end of her tether with my irritability as she becomes snappy towards the end of the evening and heads off home earlier than expected. Jeff occupies me the day after and we spend the afternoon at his house lounging by the pool with Glenne, and then on Monday when I speak to Mum she tells me she thinks Jess left some earrings in the bathroom the last time we were at home, and that Gemma has offered to text Jess and return them.

My heart gives a lurch at the thought of Gemma seeing Jess, and immediately my head is filled with ideas of things to say, questions to ask, messages to pass on to Jess through Gemma.

"Is that OK with you?" Mum is asking.

"What? Yeah, yeah of course," I reply. "When will she be speaking to her?"

"I don't know, she didn't say," Mum says. "I presume you haven't heard from Jess since the other day?" (I already told her about Jess's text.)

"No," I mumble. "I don't know what else to do. She seemed to be thawing a little, but then she shut me down again. I don't know what I did wrong."

Apart from cheat on her and break her heart; I know, I know.

"Just give her time, sweetheart," she says softly. "She's probably still angry and upset. Just take things slowly and give her space."

"She's got five thousand, three hundred and seventy eight miles of space," I grumble, and there is a beat of silence before Mum asks, "Have you measured the distance?!"

"I may have been on Google Maps," I admit.

"Just try and put it to the back of your mind for a while," she advises. "I'm worried that all this is making you ill. Have you been eating properly? Sleeping well at night?"

"I'm alright," I sigh.

"I don't think you are," she says gently. "I'm looking forward to getting you home in August and cooking you a few good meals."

"Yeah I'm looking forward to that too," I reply, with sincerity. The thought of my own comfy bed at Mum's house is far more appealing than a lonely, empty house in London. It will be good to hide from the world for a few days. 

"Will you be flying into Heathrow or Manchester when you come home?" she asks.

"I haven't arranged it yet," I reply. 

"Come straight here," she almost begs. "Spend the entire week with us - just let me look after you."

It's really tempting.

"I probably will," I tell her. "I'll speak to Grimmy and the others in London to see what's happening and then I'll book my flight."

...

I try and follow Mum's advice and attempt to occupy myself with other things over the next couple of weeks. I resist the urge to interrogate Gemma over the conversation I know she has had with Jess over the earrings, instead deciding to have faith in my sister and believe that if there was anything to report, she would tell me.

We complete the Canada shows (apart from one date coming up in Toronto after the break) and the subsequent US dates all have at least one rest day in between. It is stressful being around Liam as his arguments with Sophia intensify, and Louis is trying to work things out with Briana for the future, in between organising hosting a ball in London for a kids' charity called Believe In Magic (a PR stunt organised by Modest to promote Louis as a good potential father) so he spends a large portion of his time backstage on the phone to his solicitor and Modest. Niall keeps me company on the Playstation, the ping pong table and in the gym, and keeps the conversation neutral and away from women - except when he is winding me up over Megan, the air hostess. One particular source of amusement for him is when he catches me comforting her on a flight because her mum has been taken ill, and teases me mercilessy when I get up out of my seat to speak to the head stewardess to request that Megan has a few days off to spend with her family, on full pay. I get a tearful yet grateful smile from Megan, and a crude gesture from Niall that I won't divulge, but that seems to involve the idea of Megan thanking me in a rather inventive way.