Page 13 of Shattered Union

She frowns at me. "What do you mean?"

My heart breaks for this kid.

"Remember, I told you about Mam watching me play volleyball? Well, that was something I was good at. Do you do after-school stuff?"

She tilts her head to the side and her lips purse before she blinks and shakes her head.

"Okay, is there something you want to do?"

She grins. "I've always wanted to do dancing. But I never went when I was younger," she confesses with pink tinged cheeks.

I shake my head. "It's never too late to start. Why not talk to your parents and see if they can find somewhere for you to go?"

Her smile is bright and blinding. "That would be so cool," she breathes.

"When you have a show, or whatever the hell they are, I want a ticket. You're gonna be a superstar."

The smile doesn't leave her face. "You bet."

Three hours later and I'm finished with my work and Chloe has talked my ear off. "Where are your parents meeting you?"

She glances at her phone and nods. “Outside the shopping centre. Justin will pick me up in fifteen minutes."

"Come on then," I say, getting to my feet. "I'll walk you back."

I pack up my laptop and the schedule I printed out and move toward the office, Chloe trailing behind me. "Mam," I call out as I walk past the staff room. "Will you pop that up for me?" I ask, handing her the schedule. "If you need a lift home, I'll be leaving in a few minutes."

Mam nods. "That'll be great, baby, your dad's running late."

"Okay, let me put this away, we'll walk Chloe over to the shopping centre to get picked up and then we'll go home."

"Perfect."

"You okay?" I ask Chloe as we leave the pub. She's gone quiet, and it bothers me. I had coaxed her out of her shell where she was non-stop talking, and now she's back to being timid and shy.

She shrugs. "Yeah, just tired."

As we approach the shopping centre, I see a black SUV parked up out front.

"That's Justin. Thank you," she whispers, throwing her arms around me. "I had a good day, you're the freaking best."

I smile down at her. "My pleasure, honey, now don't forget, I want an invitation to your show when you join the dance classes."

"Promise." She grins at me before turning to Mam and hugging her as well. "Thanks for lunch."

"Ah, sweetheart, it was my pleasure. You know where we are. Don't be a stranger," Mam tells her.

"Bye," Chloe says with a small wave as she walks toward the SUV. A man climbs out of the driver’s side and walks around the vehicle and opens the door for her to get in. His gaze on me and Mam, scrutinising us as he waits for Chloe to get in.

"Bye," Chloe says and gives us one last wave.

Mam links her arm through mine as we walk toward my car. "Did Mav buy you a new one?"

I scoff. "Mav, buy something for anyone but himself? Come on, Mam, you know better than that."

She presses her lips together and nods. "Wishful thinking, huh? So, what's your plans for this weekend?"

"Sorting out plans for the new pub. I leave for London tomorrow, and I'll be gone for a week, maybe two."

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