Page 40 of Mark

Yet, not only is her sister with her ex-boyfriend, but they are getting married too. If it wasn’t for wanting to sit outside to eat breakfast, I might not have heard them arguing. Her sister was goading her the entire time. It wasn’t until the guy showed up and Freya’s sister clocked him that she turned the tables. Shewantedher fiancé to think Freya was the problem. Her calculated move didn’t go unnoticed though. Hayden had been seconds away from intervening, but then Freya’s nan showed up, putting them all in their place.

Instead of going over though, I sit down on the lounger next to Mum, taking the sandwich she pulls out of her bag.

“Where’s Dad gone?” I ask before taking a huge bite out of the sandwich.

God, that’s good.

“He’s dealing with Max,” she replies, handing over a small piece of a sandwich to Sunday.

“What did he do now? Is it about breakfast?”

I grimace thinking about this morning. Max went back for thirds at the buffet—it could have been his tenth but I stopped counting after his second time going up. Another guest was late arriving for breakfast, and when Max took the last sausage, he didn’t say anything. Not until one of the cabin crew approached Max and told him he had already had breakfast. Multiple breakfasts. The guest overheard and tried to take his food.

I walked off once the guest threw his egg at my uncle.

She meets my gaze. “No. He won’t let anyone on the mechanical bull in the games room and kids started attacking him.”

“Rather Dad than me,” I mutter.

Her gaze drifts over my shoulder. “You should go see if she’s okay.”

“Who?”

Her lips twitch. “Freya. Your neighbour.”

“We aren’t friends,” I mutter. “You shouldn’t be friends with her either. She spent all my money remember.”

“I was the one who pushed her to do it,” she lies. “She didn’t want to spend it.”

I snort. “Yeah right.”

“It’s true. If it wasn’t me who talked her around, then Hayden must have. Because I promise you, she didn’t want to spend your money.”

I glance over my shoulder, my gaze running over her long legs. She’s back to being engrossed in her book, a look of pure concentration on her face.

“Still doesn’t change anything. I told you she tried to break into my flat. Her cat actually did and then she had the nerve to accuse me of stealing it. She’s obsessed with me, Mum.”

“Sweetie, she already explained she was moving furniture when she fell into your flat. As for the cat, it could have gotten in when you left that morning. What else was she meant to think when she found him lying on your sofa? And you did steal her doormat.”

My lips open and close, then open and close once more. “Oh my god, you’ve been speaking with her,” I accuse. “She’s gotten into your head.”

“She’s a lovely woman, Mark. Maybe if you stopped accusing her of being obsessed, you would like her too.”

“I doubt that,” I growl.

“Doubt what?” Madison asks, sitting down beside me.

“He doesn’t think he’ll like his neighbour,” Mum replies.

“Why?” Madison asks, her nose scrunching up. “She’s pretty cool.”

“Not you too,” I groan.

She snorts. “Admit it, you are attracted to her.”

I grab the other half of the sandwich. “Not likely.”

Madison lets out a wistful sigh. “We’ve been hanging out with her nan, Maya, in the casino. She reminds me so much of our nan.”

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