Amanda woke up from gentle touches on her face. Opening her eyes, she saw Brian, who hastily removed his hand with an embarrassed smile.
“Sorry, I didn’t know how to wake you up, Sleeping Beauty”.
She looked out of the window. The sky was clear, there was no trace of the storm.
“It’s okay. Your hand is probably numb from holding me, you haven’t moved at all while I slept?”
Amanda quickly pulled away from him.
“Nah, it’s alright. I also got some shut-eye, don’t worry”.
“How long did I sleep?”
Brian looked at his watch.
“About an hour and a half. Do you feel refreshed?”
“I definitely feel better than before. What about you?”
Brian shrugged.
“I learnt to fall asleep in any conditions in the army. 2 hours is more than enough for me”.
“Well, then, I think it’s time to go. I hope everything will be okay with the car”, she laughed, “with our luck something may happen again now”.
“Don’t jinx it”.
They moved back to the front seats and Amanda started the car. The engine roared to life and they drove away.
“Phew, do you need to go to the precinct now?”
“Not exactly but I won’t use you as my taxi driver”.
“That’s good, I would charge you your monthly salary”.
“Will you go home after we arrive in the city?”
“No, I will go to my parents, they ordered a new dress for me, for the press conference. I need to try it on”.
“You don’t know what it looks like?”
“I found out that I’m attending the event only yesterday. Of course I didn’t even know about the dress! I don’t know why Mum didn’t inform me in advance”.
“These are Capiano ways, you’ve lived with them all your life, haven’t you learnt anything?”
“There are enemies for you, Brian, for me they are my parents, first of all. And I love them. Yes, they may not be the most conventional ones, but you can’t choose your parents, right?”
“Yes, you are right. You have just said the most well-known thing and are proud of it as if you solved the Hodge conjecture”.
“Ugh, spoilsport. But I’m not offended, I know it’s just the way you talk”.
“I can shut up but then you will get bored and start a conversation yourself. You are such a chatterbox”.
“Fine. As much as I hate to admit it, you got it. When I’m driving for a long time in silence, I’m bored out of my mind. That’s why I always have the radio on. By the way, why isn’t it turned on?”
She wanted to push the button but Brian caught her hand.
“So you often drive alone?”
“Well, in my car, yes. But I’m never alone in my Dad’s car, there are always a driver and at least one bodyguard. Why?”
“Nothing. I just thought that you have thousands of friends whom you always have sleepovers with”.
Amanda rolled her eyes.
“Sleepovers are for teenagers. We’re all grown ups. Besides, I don’t have a lot of friends here, in Moon Chasm. I studied abroad, most of them were left there”.
“Don’t you miss them?”
“No, we keep in touch, sometimes by video call”.
“You never thought of leaving here and settling somewhere else?”
“Brian, this is my home and my legacy. I’m not just some snotty empty-headed brat from a rich family. I must continue taking care of Moon Chasm”.
Brian winced. Amanda repeated his own words from that day when they quarreled at Jameson’s. He hurt her so much then.
“I’m sorry for my words then. It was unfair to you”.
“You used more adjectives but I remembered only these two. And you already apologized”.
“Apparently, it wasn’t enough. You’re still offended”.
“Only if subconsciously. But I will not let it out on you”.
“I’d rather you would, at least you won’t bottle it up inside”.
Amanda pushed the brake and sharply turned her head to him.
“When did we trade places? Why do you talk like my therapist?”
“Look at the road”, Brian gently took her hand and put it back on the wheel, “maybe I started understanding you better”.
Amanda nodded with a smile and started driving again. In 20 minutes they arrived at the precinct. She noticed with frustration that she didn’t want him to leave.
Ugh, when will he get out of my head! This isn’t what I should think about!
“...When will we meet again?”, Brian’s voice sounded right at her ear.
“Huh? You are still here?”
“I never take French leaves. Not my style”, he smiled.
“Umm, I think in a couple of days, tomorrow I’ll be prepping for that conference and I guess you have enough on your plate apart from Nocturnal Phoenix…”
Brian nodded dejectedly. He knew she was right. But he hoped that she wouldn’t want to avoid him.
“You…”
“Hey, lovebirds, what is it you are so seriously discussing in the car and not at the PD?’, suddenly somebody knocked on the window and Sean Lloyd’s laughing face appeared in front of them.
Brian quickly moved away from her and opened the door.
“We’re not discussing anything, just setting the next meeting”.
“For five minutes?”
“Mr. Lloyd, we were just saying goodbye”, Amanda poked her head out of the window.
“Amanda, I’ll call you later”.
“Sure, see you”.
She drove away still hearing Sean’s laughter.
“Well, that was awkward”, she thought.
****
“So, my prediction is coming true”, Sean said, clapping Brian on the shoulder, “I’ll go tell Emma she lost me 10 bucks”.
“Sean, that wasn’t what you think”.
“Yeah, of course, I’m old enough to be mistaken in such things, don’t worry, your secret is safe with me”.
“Whatever”, Brian sighed, “just don’t tell anyone else. I don’t want rumours to spread”.
“Okay-okay, my lips are sealed”.
“I just don’t want anyone to think I got smitten by Capiano girl and tell her all the police secrets”.
“Oh, your reputation of a cold iceberg won’t be damaged just because you spend time with an attractive girl”.
“I’m going to work, have a good one, Sean”, he said quickly and hurried to the PD’s entrance.
Sean has said almost the same phrase as he told Amanda in the car. “Your precious reputation”. What did he mean by that? He didn’t know himself. He just blurted it out without thinking. At that time the only thing he wanted was for Amanda to quietly sleep in his arms. When she finally did and her body relaxed, he could have easily left her there and searched the car but he didn't. He couldn’t bring himself to betray her trust. She was so vulnerable at that moment. For some time he watched her, gently caressing her hand until he dozed off himself. When he woke up she was still asleep. Brian didn’t lie when he said he didn’t know how to wake her up. Or, rather, he did know, but didn’t want to do it roughly. If they were in a relationship, he would have kissed her awake but they weren't, so his options were limited. Brian was afraid she would jerk back from his touch but it didn’t happen. Moreover, she even remembered that he had his hand on her shoulders and asked whether it had gotten numb. Though to tell the truth, he wasn’t hugging her shoulders but her waist, she just didn’t notice that.
Having approached his desk, Brian shook his head. He should do some real work, not daydream about this girl. His gaze fell upon a pen. Not a pen, but the pen. The one Estela gave him. And again the feeling of guilt consumed him. Capianos are to blame for their deaths as much as he is, and now, instead of redeeming himself, he is attracted to their heiress! It is so messed up… He tried to make himself hate her, despise her, or at least resent her! But he couldn't… He cared about her almost against his will…
****
Amanda was looking at herself in the mirror. Her new cocktail dress turned out to be amazing. Its milky colour matched her skin and silver swarovski sequins were shining in the semidarkness.
“Do you like it?”, Margaret asked, entering the dressing room, “Ammabelle used the best fabrics and materials”.
“I love it, it’s wonderful, Mum. You have impeccable taste, as always. What do you think about accessories? I can’t decide between emerald and sapphire sets”.
“I say go with sapphire, mine and your father’s outfits colour scheme is deep blue, so it would be symbolic if your jewellery matched us. You are our daughter and heiress, after all”.
“That’s a great idea, Mother”.
Amanda hurried to her vanity table.
“How about this? Should I add the bracelet or earrings and a necklace will be enough?”
“I think they will be enough. You’re not a Christmas tree, dear”.
“My thoughts exactly. So is the Town Hall ready?”
“Yes, the journalists have their scripts, Darrell wrote his speech, the hall is decorated”.
“Okay. You got it all covered as always, Mum. How do you manage to do all that?”
“The same way you manage to do everything about your diner. Don’t be so surprised - of course your dad and I follow your progress. You have the potential of making a chain of diners. Your concept is new and unique, people love such things”.
“Do you really think so?”
“I have always been honest about your ventures. Remember the scandal I caused when you refused to become a chemist?”
“I do”, Amanda giggled, “Dad tried to hide from you in his office because he didn’t want to be caught in a crossfire”.
Margaret laughed.
“Yes, for all his tough exterior, he can become a teddy bear when it comes to me”.
“You really know how to toy with men. I still consider the trick you played with Darrell a masterpiece”.
“Don’t sell yourself short. You aren’t bad at it yourself. You just lack experience”.
Amanda sighed and put her jewellery away.
I wonder if Brian would like this outfit. Ugh, when will I stop thinking about him?
“Do you think Myles will like this dress?”
“Are you sure it’s Myles you wanted to ask about?”
“Mum!”
“Sorry”, she laughed, “when you think about a man you like, you always have the same expression in your eyes. It was like that with all your boyfriends”.
“Mum, you have met only three of them!”
“In person, yes”.
“What?!”
“Darling, you were so young, your father and I couldn’t help but send someone to look out for you”.
“So Peter and Jasper…”
“Yes, but only until you turned 19”.
“Oh, God, this is so embarrassing! What if they noticed…?”
“Your bodyguards are professionals, no one could possibly notice them”, Margaret chuckled, “especially not teenage boys. But Sam, the one you dated for a year, proved out to be… not the one who you thought he was. It’s good that you broke up. Why did you, by the way?”
“I noticed his unhealthy interest in our family’s affairs. So I decided to play it safe and told him I had found another guy. Kevin was glad to help me out”.
“Kevin? That hotel owner you went to school with?”
“Yes, that’s the one. He needed someone to invest into his hotel, so I donated a small sum from my account in exchange for him to pretend to be my boyfriend”.
“I’m proud of you, my girl. Especially since you managed to do this alone with no one knowing. And you were just 23”.
“But what did you find about Sam?”
“Jasper got the evidence of him spying for your father’s competitors. They almost succeeded in snatching that contract from under our noses”.
“I’m glad I could help. But I take it that if I didn’t break up with him, you would have done something about it?”
“Of course. Capianos always protect what’s theirs. But we digress. That detective, Davis, is he useful to us?”
“I’m not sure yet”, Amanda started carefully. If she says there’s nothing to gain from Brian, Margaret may make Evans remove him from the case and he will be devastated. If she says Brian is the well of information, she may put him on a leash and follow his every step.
“He did get a lot from the archives and we talked to a very suspicious person. However, he is a detective, not a forensic expert. Though even they don’t know everything”.
“I see. So you say you need more time?”
“Exactly. It’s only been two days”.
“Nocturnal Phoenix kills every week, we can’t let them do this again!”
Margaret jumped up from her seat and started pacing the room.
“Speed up the process! Where the hell have you spent half a day today?!”
Amanda remembered pounding rain and Brian’s gentle embrace.
“We went to that witness who lives outside the city and then there was a big storm. It was too dangerous to drive, so we had to wait it out”.
“The weather was fine today”, Margaret looked at her suspiciously.
“Are you accusing me of lying?”
“No, there’s nothing easier than checking your words”.
She took out her phone and opened the weather forecast.
“Hmm… Fine, I believe you. Accidents and unforeseen circumstances happen. Anyway, you’re ready for tomorrow. Now you have some free time. The press conference starts at 6 pm but we need to be at the Town Hall at 4. You hear me? You will take your dress with you and put it on when the event starts. Are we clear?”
“Yes, Mother”.
Margaret left. Amanda looked in the mirror again.
I will not think about him! I’m wearing this dress for myself and for Myles! For my plan to work, he should like it, no, he should admire ME in this dress! He’s not like Brian, an attractive woman in expensive beautiful clothing is enough for him to become talkative. Brian requires more work… Ugh, again! What’s the matter with me?!
She finally put off her dress and changed into her everyday clothes.
I will work on my diner and then read something about getting rid of obsessive thoughts. ARE they obsessive, though? Yes, definitely. They prevent me from working. I will think about my love life once this business is finished. We won’t have a reason to spend time together then anyway… It will pass… Of course it will...
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