What about you?

Part Thirteen

Mason had watched the whole interaction whilst hearing about the almost downfall of his whole business world via the phone at his ear. And he could honestly say there was only one of the situations that he was really concerned about. He silently gestured a ‘she’s ok’ in reference to his mother to his Aunty, then agreed to fax some information to Brandon asap. It was long minutes before he hung up the phone and literally ran after Kate.

There was no sign of her in the corridors, or the downstairs reception when he got there, so he ran out into the street. In the distance at an almost running pace he saw her, just about to disappear from view.

He’d never run so fast, his lungs felt like they were imploding, the cold air assaulting his body with every snatched breath. He knocked into at least a dozen people, each time registering amazement that so many people were suddenly up and about so early on a Sunday morning. Rounding the corner, he slowed a little then again spotted the flash of her red coat between two parked trucks. He’d closed on her considerably. Again at a full pace run, he crossed the street and was rewarded with the view of the back of her just a few yards away. He could barely breathe, his whole body screamed at the abuse it was suffering, but he needed to talk to her, needed a chance.

                “Kate, stop...please!” He gasped as he closed on her.

She stopped dead and then turned slowly to look at him, and the expression on her face, the pain, the hurt and the devastation almost cut him to the core.

                “I tried to talk to you...” he could barely string half a dozen words together because of his breathlessness. “I wanted to explain...”

Kate snarled at him, “explain? Talk to me? Just when exactly?” She sighed, going from angry to resigned, “I knew it was all too good to be true.”

As she turned to walk away he saw red, reaching out and he grabbed her upper arm, “don’t just walk away Kate, for god’s sake! That’s all you ever do is leave!”

She stopped and looked at him, hating that she was so transparent. All she wanted was to run home, throw herself on her bed, and rue the fact that she’d opened up to him, that someone had finally got close enough to upset her life, her balance. Instead, she was in the street, in the worsening rain, facing him as her heart felt like it was breaking.    She’d spent so long protecting herself from this, from other people, from pain. How had he got past her defences? How had she let this happen?

“Ok Mason, let’s talk. Did you come to the wedding purely to find out who I was? Did you stage it all? Is this another ploy to discredit me? I know Peter’s father never thought I was good enough for him. Is this him still thinking I’m not good enough from beyond the grave?” Mason stuttered in amazement, but now Kate was in full swing, “I have done everything to please the bloody Wightman’s, and now I have THIS! You worming your way in to my life, for what reason Mason? What do you get out of this? And why the hell are you doing it?”

He was still floundering, he hadn’t expected this, had no idea that this relationship was so precarious. Suddenly he was speechless. How the hell could he answer a question on a subject he knew nothing about?

                “I don’t know anything about that...”

                “Typical!” she snapped trying to walk away again but once more he restrained her.

                “You asked me a question! What do I get out of this? Time with you! Don’t you see that? It’s all I want. Why am I doing it? Because I haven’t felt so alive in the last ten years. All I need is you to believe me, to trust me.”