Page 84 of Pillow Talk
He’d turned to look at Shona, pondering her question.
‘Why wouldn’t we be?’
Neither she nor Anni had answered.
After a while, he’d said, ‘I hope we’ll always be friends.’
Chapter
Fourteen
Shona stopped in front of the shop. It was close to closing time and she knew it was the quietest time of the day.
She looked up at the sign. It had faded a long time ago but her father didn’t want to upgrade it. Dad was afraid of change. But now she knew why.
She entered the shop and immediately spotted Drake.
‘Shona, I’m so happy for you. We’ve heard all about your business,’ he enthused.
Shona was afraid she’d start crying if she spoke, so she nodded.
‘He’s in the back office,’ Drake said, without her even asking about her father.
She smiled her gratitude and made her way there. Her dad was sitting at the desk, leaning back with his eyes closed.
‘Dad?’
His eyes flew open. ‘Shona! Are you okay? Has something happened?’
The same reaction as her mother…
‘I’m okay. I came to see you, to talk,’ she said.
‘Do you need help with the business? Your mother said the location is perfect.’
Shona sighed. ‘Dad, I’m not here to talk about shops and businesses. I’m here to talk about us. Why didn’t any of youcontact me when I left?’
Her father swept his hand over his face.
‘Because I didn’t want you to change your mind. I instructed Aru and your mother to give you time. I didn’t want you stuck here,’ he explained.
‘At first I thought you were forcing me to be here but then someone…’ She pushed the thought of Sen out of her mind… ‘Someone offered advice that made me realise that I wasn’t forced to be here.’
Her father looked away.
‘Dad, please look at me.’
He turned to her. ‘Shona, I wanted you to be happy. You’re happy. It’s okay now,’ he said.
Shona shook her head. ‘It’s not, Dad. You’re not happy. Mom’s not happy.’
He didn’t answer.
Shona walked to the desk and put down her bag.
‘Does this shop bring you joy?’
He didn’t answer.
