Before December

Chapter 7

I carried my breakfast tray and empty coffee cup downstairs, following the faint sound of voices until I reached the kitchen. James was sitting on one of the stools at the island while Celeste stood at the sink washing the last of the dishes from breakfast. They both looked up when I walked in and greeted me with easy smiles, and after the way the morning had started, something as simple as that felt comforting.

I walked towards the sink and said, "Let me help you."

Celeste smiled. "No need, dear. It's what I'm paid for, after all."

"I know, but I can still help."

James glanced between us and apparently decided to intervene. "How about we go for that swim before you two start fighting over the washing-up?"

I gave Celeste one last look, which she returned with a smug smile, before admitting defeat and following James into the garden. He reached the pool first, pulled off his T-shirt and tossed it onto one of the chairs.

"You coming or what?"

"Give me a second!"

He laughed and dived straight into the water while I took off my shorts and tank top and left them beside his clothes. I still wasn't entirely sure how old James was. He seemed younger than Theodore somehow, although maybe it wasn't age at all. James was simply easier to read, more relaxed and open, while Theodore constantly seemed to have some invisible wall around him that made it impossible to know what he was thinking.

I dived into the pool after James and surfaced with a gasp as the cold water hit me.

"Refreshing, huh?" James laughed.

"That's one word for it," I gasped.

"So, tell me something about yourself."

I narrowed my eyes. "Like what?"

"I don't know. Anything."

I wasn't sure what he already knew about me, and I definitely wasn't ready to start with anything serious, but James seemed to notice my hesitation.

"Okay, easy one. Favourite colour?"

I stared at him. "Seriously?"

"What? I'm building up to the difficult questions."

"Blue."

"Predictable."

"You asked!"

He laughed and moved on to favourite movies, music and food, and somehow the conversation became easy after that. We spent the next half hour asking each other increasingly random questions, and I found myself enjoying how normal it felt. For a little while, I didn't have to think about why I was in England or what I was supposed to do next.

Eventually, curiosity got the better of me. "Can I ask you something?"

James gave me a suspicious look. "That sounds dangerous."

"It's not. Well... maybe."

"Go on."

I hesitated. "What were you and Theodore arguing about this morning?"

The change in him was immediate. His shoulders stiffened and his smile disappeared, which made me regret asking almost straight away.

"If you don't want to tell me, it's okay," I said quickly. "You hardly know me."

"It's not that. It's just complicated."

I nodded. "Then forget I asked."

He gave me a small smile, and I changed the subject before the awkwardness could settle between us. We started talking about school instead, although that only reminded me that I had no idea what was going to happen with mine.

"I'm seventeen," James explained. "I'm in sixth form, going into my second year in September. Then hopefully university."

"What do you want to study?"

"Sports science."

"That makes sense."

He frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"

I gestured towards the pool. "You jumped in here like you were training for the Olympics."

James laughed. "What about you?"

I rested my arms against the side of the pool. "I don't really know anymore. I would've been going into twelfth grade when school started again."

"Would've?"

"Yeah."

He didn't question me, but the way he looked at me made it obvious he was waiting for an explanation. For some reason, I found myself wanting to give him one. Maybe it was because he'd spent the morning treating me like a normal person, or maybe saying some of it aloud to Celeste earlier had made it easier.

"My parents and my little sister died in a car accident."

James's expression changed immediately, but he didn't interrupt. He simply listened while I explained that Uncle Will thought coming to England would be better for me than staying in Los Angeles alone, and that everything here was supposed to be temporary until I turned eighteen.

"I'd rather be back home," I admitted. "In the house I grew up in, around people I actually know. Everything here feels borrowed."

"I'm sorry, Lydia."

There was sympathy in his expression without the uncomfortable pity I'd been dreading, and somehow that made it easier to breathe.

"Thanks."

James rested his arms on the side of the pool beside me. "For what it's worth, England isn't completely terrible. You've barely seen anything yet. You need to get out of this house, go places, meet people and actually give it a chance before you decide you hate it. You know, test the waters."

I looked around at the pool.

James grinned. "Pun absolutely intended."

I groaned.

Before I could respond, a huge splash of water crashed over both of us. I spluttered and wiped the water from my face while James spun around, his relaxed expression disappearing instantly.

"Theo, you prick!"

Theodore surfaced a short distance away looking entirely too pleased with himself.

"What are you going to do about it?"

James's jaw tightened. "I'm done, Theo. Seriously. You need to learn what boundaries mean."

Without waiting for an answer, he hauled himself out of the pool, grabbed his shirt and headed towards the house. I watched him disappear before turning back towards Theodore.

"What is your problem?"

Theo frowned. "My problem? He's the one with the problem."

"He's obviously angry with you."

"No kidding."

"I don't even know what you've done, but judging by this morning and that little performance, I'm guessing it's definitely a you problem."

Theo stared at me before giving a humourless laugh. "You really want to know?"

I hesitated because part of me did, although a bigger part suspected I was going to regret the answer.

Theo began moving towards me through the water, and something about the look on his face made me turn towards the steps. Before I could get very far, he moved alongside me and leaned closer, clearly enjoying the chance to throw his own accusation back at me by invading my space for once. My breath caught and my heart started pounding, but curiosity kept me where I was as he lowered his voice beside my ear.

"I f****d his ex."

My eyes widened and I turned towards him, momentarily forgetting how close he'd managed to get. Of all the explanations I'd been expecting, that definitely hadn't been one of them.

I shook my head. "Okay. I take it back."

His eyebrow lifted.

"It is definitely a you problem."

I swam towards the steps and climbed out of the pool, reaching for the chair before remembering I'd left my towel upstairs. Then I noticed Theodore's folded over the back of the chair.

I glanced towards the pool. He was still watching me, and a smile tugged at my mouth as the solution presented itself. I grabbed his towel and headed inside.

By the time I'd changed and freshened up, I'd almost forgotten about stealing it. It was hanging over the back of my chair while I stood in front of the mirror trying to make my hair behave when my bedroom door opened and Theo stormed in.

"You stole my towel."

I glanced towards it and shrugged. "Borrowed."

His eyes narrowed. "Give it back."

"Ask nicely."

He let out a humourless laugh and stepped towards me. "You really don't know when to stop, do you?"

"Funny. I was thinking the same thing about you."

I held my ground, even though every sensible part of me was telling me to stop winding him up.

"Give me the towel, Wild."

"What's the magic word, Theodore?"

His jaw tightened. "You're enjoying this."

"Maybe."

He stared at me for a long second, and every sensible part of my brain told me this was probably the point where I should stop winding him up. Naturally, I ignored it.

"Don't test me," he said quietly.

I folded my arms. "Or what?"

His mouth curved into that infuriating grin. "Keep pushing and you'll find out."

I rolled my eyes. "Was that supposed to scare me?"

"No." He reached past me, snatched the towel from the chair and slung it over his shoulder. "It was supposed to be a warning."

"A warning about a towel?"

"About stealing my stuff."

I laughed. "You stole my peace and quiet this morning. Consider us even."

For once, Theo didn't have an immediate comeback. The brief silence felt like a victory, but the returning grin on his face told me I probably shouldn't celebrate too soon.

"This isn't over, Wild."

"It's Lydia."

He opened the door, then glanced back at me. "Oh, and Lydia?"

"What?"

"Next time you want something of mine, don't bother asking, coz the answer's no."

I grabbed the nearest pillow and launched it at him, but he ducked and disappeared into the hallway laughing.

"Asshole!" I shouted after him.

"Invader!" he called back.

I slammed the door, although I could still hear him laughing. "That guy seriously needs to get off my case," I muttered before checking my reflection one last time and heading downstairs to meet Mrs Henderson.

The nerves started at the top of the staircase and grew with every step. Technically, we'd already met, but considering I'd been barely capable of standing and had thrown up over one of her sons within minutes of arriving, I wasn't sure that counted.

Celeste was waiting in the hallway and seemed to read my expression immediately.

"You'll be fine, dear. Mrs Henderson is lovely."

I gave her a weak smile before heading into the kitchen.

Mrs Henderson stood beside James with both of his hands in hers. The moment she noticed me, her smile grew and she crossed the room with her arms open.

"Lydia! I'm so sorry this is the first chance we've had to speak properly. I had an emergency at work and had to leave much sooner than I'd planned."

She hugged me before I could work out whether I was supposed to hug her first.

"It's fine," I said awkwardly, suddenly finding the floor interesting.

Mrs Henderson pulled back and held me gently by the arms. "It's not fine, but we'll fix that. How are you settling in? Have the boys been good?"

I almost laughed. "Yeah. They've been fine."

There was absolutely no chance I was telling her that one of her sons appeared to have made irritating me his full-time summer hobby.

I cleared my throat. "And I'm sorry about the way I arrived. I was nervous about meeting everyone and I—"

"You don't need to apologise."

"But—"

"No." Her expression softened. "You had a difficult journey and you've had a lot to deal with. We won't mention it again."

Something in the way she said it told me she wasn't talking about the flight, and I was grateful that she didn't say anything more.

Mrs Henderson clasped her hands together. "Right. I've booked us a table for dinner tonight so everyone can get to know each other properly. Your father should be home within the hour," she said, glancing towards James. "The reservation is at seven, so everyone needs to be ready by six-thirty."

Then she turned back to me. "Lydia, I've asked Celeste to put a few dresses on your bed for tonight. I managed to do a little shopping while I was away."

My eyes widened. "You bought me dresses?"

Her smile grew.

"You really didn't have to do that."

"I know," she replied. "I wanted to."