Page 47 of Silver Tears

Milly chats about her shift at the shelter and beams when she tells me they found homes for two of the dogs today. She is dedicated to her passion, which is saving and caring for animals.

We drop Charlie off at home, before making the drive back to Hawk Bay. All the way home, we chat and tease each other. I enjoy being around Mills. I drop her off at the end of her driveway and she thanks me again for looking after Charlie. It’s only about the hundredth time today she’s done so.

* * *

It’s getting dark when I arrive home, but I notice my father’s light on in his study when I pull up. I should feel a sense of comfort arriving at the only home I have ever known, but all I feel is a suffocating sense of burden and expectation. My parents love me, I know that, but they are driven by the family traditions and the power they hold over the Bay and its inhabitants. My dad is never off the clock. I have some happy memories though, days out to theme parks and the beach. They weren’t very often because of my parents’ busy careers, but they made time for us and each year we holidayed at the family villa in Lake Garda.

I enter the house as quietly as I can, hoping to grab a snack from the kitchen and make it to my room without being noticed. Creeping past my dad’s study as quietly as I can, I grimace when he shouts to me.

“Son, is that you?”

Damn. Sighing, I pivot on my heels and open his study door.

“Ah, it is you. Good, come have a seat. We need a chat, son.”

He sits there behind the family heirloom desk that has served generations of Collings men. He’s in a T-shirt and joggers, which is in stark contrast to the formal feel of this room.

“Had a good day?” he asks me, as I take a seat opposite him, feeling like I am about to start an interview for a job. My father is a good-looking man. He takes pride in being in top physical shape, working out every day. You can hardly notice the few greys that are appearing in his blond hair, even if you look closely.

“I did, thank you. You’re working late.” I drum on the arm of the chair with my fingers, and he frowns at the action, making me stop immediately and hold my hands together in my lap.

“Your eighteen now, son. A man. And with that comes a level of responsibility and expectation. We’ll announce your sister’s engagement to Rafe, soon and with Archer and Eliza’s wedding coming up, that just leaves you.”

A cold ripple of dread runs through my body. No, not yet. I’m not ready. My mind immediately flicks to Mills. Why it does, I do not know. It’s not like what we have is real, it’s all just a ruse. A means to an end, so to speak.

“However, I don’t feel you are ready for that step just yet,” Dad says, closing his laptop. “You still show a level of immaturity that the others don’t. However, I have been informed of something that disturbs me.”

I can’t help the look of relief that crosses my face when he says I’m not ready for a marriage of alliance. Thank fuck for that. “Oh, and what might that be?”

It can’t be that he has found out what me and the boys have been planning, surely. We have been extra careful.

“I’ll come straight out with it, son. Are you dating the youngest Silver girl?”

I blink. This I was not expecting. “I am,” I reply. There’s no point lying. He already knows it to be true.

He frowns, leaning back in his large leather office chair, observing me. The need to squirm under his scrutiny is hard to resist, but I fight it and remain composed.

“You know how we feel about the Silver’s,” he states flatly. “They are not one of us, son.”

I smile. “Relax, Dad. It’s not like it’s serious. I’m just having some fun, enjoying myself, before I do my duty to my family.”

“Are you fucking her?” Blunt as ever. Dad doesn’t waste time dancing around a subject. In some ways, I respect him for that.

“Not yet,” I reply, “But—”

“Not yet?” he repeats, leaning forward in his seat and placing his arms on the desk in front of him. “You’re dating her, and you haven’t fucked her yet? Remember, son, don’t mix feelings with sex.”

I scoff, rolling my eyes. “Give me a break, Dad. I’m not stupid. I’m just enjoying the chase. Once I’m bored, I’ll move on to the next girl.”

He nods, reassured. “Just don’t get her pregnant. The last thing we need is her getting her claws into you.”

I bob my shoulders. “Relax. I know to wrap it up. I’m not stupid. Can I go now or was there anything else?”

He shakes his head, already concentrating back on the computer screen in front of him. “You may go. Pop in and say goodnight to your mother, please.”

“Of course,” I say as I get to my feet and leave the room, eager to get away. I close the door behind me and release the breath I had been holding in. I smile to myself. Deep down, I’d been terrified of the day when he called me in there to tell me they’d found a match for me. Naturally, it would be someone that would bring more wealth and power to the family. Someone loyal to the Aces or desperate to become a member of the society. I am free. For now, anyway. But even I’m no fool. The clock is ticking. I can only hope that we can achieve our plans before my family commits me to some dim-witted girl for the rest of my life.

I head through the house, knowing I’ll find my mum in her studio. She paints. I think if she’d had any choice in her own career, she would have chosen her art. It’s her calling. She’s never happier than when she is in her art studio creating. I pause in the doorway, smiling. She hasn’t noticed me yet. Mum has her painting dungarees on, and her mid-brown hair is tied up into a messy knot on top of her head. There’s a smudge of paint on her nose. She’s busy concentrating on the easel in front of her, brush poised and ready.

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