Page 119 of Never Tell Secrets

“I like her hips,” I said around a mouthful of muffin.

“Me too.” Damien nodded, giving Keira a shit-eating grin.

“So do I,” Alfie agreed and Keira looked like she was about to choke. Alfie shrugged and muttered, “I’m being supportive.”

“You have great hips, Keira,” Maia piped up, her voice small but sweet.

Keira looked at all of us before bursting out laughing.

The rest of the meal passed with a string of near misses. Damien did an excellent job of distracting Keira’s parents butAlfie was surprisingly quiet, despite how much attention Laura paid him. His seemingly indifferent gaze sharpened at every slight jibe towards Keira.

As much as I tried to keep their focus too, I couldn’t help but keep drifting back to my best friend who seemed to be shrinking by the second, no matter how stoic she tried to appear.

She reached for a third danish and her mum tutted. “Another danish, Keira? Are you sure?”

“You won’t hold onto a man like Damien for very long if you keep eating like that!” Richard let out a half-laugh, a joke that wasn’t quite a joke.

“I’m not trying to hold onto anyone, Dad.”

“Well, I’m just trying to look out for you, Keira, love.” Her mum offered her a simpering smile that reminded me too much of Angie. “You don’t have Lola’s metabolism, you need to take better care of yourself.”

Alfie looked at me and I shook my head, willing him not to say anything. He frowned, his hand slipping away from my thigh.

“She looks good to me,” Damien cut in, not bothering to wear a smile this time.

“Mum,” Keira muttered, “it’s just a danish.”

Laura huffed, turning up her nose at her daughter. “Suit yourself. But I’m just saying it for your own good. You don’t have Lola’s natural talent and you’ve never been all that bright, your best asset is your appearance…such as it is.” She ran a critical eye over her daughter and my jaw clenched. I wanted to launch myself across the table and stuff the damned danish down her throat.

“Mum…” Keira pleaded, willing her to shut up. Her face was bright red. I silently willed her to tag me in and let her mum have it but as always, she didn’t.

“Love, you’ve never been particularly pretty but you could be more attractive if you took better care of your diet and?—”

I winced as Alfie straightened next to me. He had always had the ability to dominate a room without words or actions, it was in his energy, his eyes and he used that now. Placing his cutlery on the left side of his plate, he fixed a cool eye on Laura.

“I’m finished.” Alfie’s tone was razor sharp, bringing silence to the table. Everyone stared at him except for me. I leaned into his space, wanting to be in the eye of the storm, not in range of its rage.

Laura blinked, the tension she’d caused glossing over her head. “Of course! I’ll just clear that plate away for you. Lola, I hope you enjoyed your breakfast.”

Keira’s parents set about clearing the breakfast things, silence falling over us as they disappeared inside. The silence was broken by the screeching of Keira’s chair as she stood and stalked away from the table, disappearing around the side of the house. I knew where she was going. A quiet nook in the garden, hidden from the house with nothing but the ocean as far as the eye could see.

“Excuse me.” I stood but Alfie stopped me.

“I’ll go.” He rose from his chair. I stared at him–what was he doing? “You aren’t the only person I have to rebuild a bridge with.”

When Alfie returned twenty minutes later, I was relieved to see him still in one piece. I left Damien and Maia at the table and rushed over to him.

“She’s fine,” he said, answering my unspoken question.

“How’s the bridge?”

“Damaged but functioning.” His tone was clipped, cold.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“Nothing. I have to get back to work.”

I slipped my hand into his, keeping him from going anywhere. I studied his face, searching for the problem. When I found it, it was so obvious I was angry I hadn’t realised it before. “It can’t have been easy watching Keira be treated like that.”