The realization made Theodore feel strangely uneasy. But he knew that look.
It's the same look he had every time he went out in public, pretending that nothing was wrong.
Should I ask her?
He laughed as his words echoed in his mind.
Would he tell a stranger his problems if they asked him?
And what if he was just overthinking it? Dead parents did not necessarily mean that she had a bad life. Living parents could do way more damage.
Maybe her boyfriend cheated or something.
"Why are you staring at me ?" Shayna asked, her cheeks fully red. Her eyes widened dramatically.
"Are you thinking of sleeping with me ?"
Theodore choked for what felt like the umpteenth time that evening.
"No!" his voice came more high-pitched than he intended.
"Why not ?"
Shayna looked almost sad.
"You don't think I'm pretty ?"
"You're way too drunk ", Theodore realised. " You need to go home."
"Yeahh?", Shayna's head drooped slightly, " Ok, then. Let's gooooo."
Theodore reached into his pocket and pulled out his car keys, relieved.
He had barely finished a bottle and a half of wine over the course of the evening, and with his alcohol tolerance, he doubted it would make much difference.
Under normal circumstances, he probably wouldn't have thought twice about getting behind the wheel. Then his eyes landed on Shayna, who had suddenly started murmuring things under her breath, which almost sounded like her trying to curse a voodoo doll.
He stared at her for a long moment before letting out a quiet sigh and slipping the keys back into his pocket.
If he crashed the car, he'd only kill himself. If something happened to the girl, he'd probably spend the rest of his afterlife in hell with the crazy woman.
No way on earth am I risking that.
"So, where do you live ?" Theodore asked, smiling at her antics.
Silence followed by a load of gibberish.
Okay, then.
He walked the completely wasted Shayna out of the bar.
Outside, the night had settled comfortably over the city. The streets glistened from a drizzle, reflecting the glow of signs and tired streetlamps. Somewhere in the distance, a siren wailed briefly before fading into the darkness.
Shayna finally looked up, as if happy just to breathe normal air.
Theodore smiled.
"Yeah, me too ".
His gaze softened as it landed on the woman. Despite her unflattering clothes and her drunk behavior, Shayna was an attractive woman.
"Hey, are you there ?"
"Hmmm..."
Now she decided to be quiet?
"Ok, can you tell me where you live ?"
"That way ", Shayna pointed, a drowsy finger in the direction of a dumpster.
Not left with much choice, he grabbed her hand and started walking in the direction she had pointed.
"Do you have a girlfriend?"
"No", Theodore said, his eyes turning to Shayna's sunken cheeks, "Why do you ask? "
"I don't want her to make any assumptions about me. I'm not that kind of girl ."
"What kind ?" Theodore asked, surprised at himself for conversing so freely.
"To sleep with other people's boyfriend. Even if they're hot. "
"I'm hot ?"
"Not just quite ", Shayna laughed, "But you're getting there. "
"Have you ever dated anybody ?"
"No."
"Good for you. " Her voice had lowered again.
"Not even liked a girl ?", Shayna asked again, after a moment of silence.
"Not yet ", Theodore replied, sighing," Most women lose interest once they get to know me."
"Why ?", Shayna asked, genuinely surprised.
"My life's a mess ", Theodore said, despite himself," People, these days, have enough problems of their own. They don't want to share others."
"And I respect that".
Shayna understood. Years ago, as a lonely teenager with hormones, she had wanted love and care too, but her circumstances had made her extremely distrustful and cynical.
She would never want to bring anyone she loved into her mess either.
"You seem less drunk now ", Theodore observed.
"So, you're gonna leave me alone ?"
"No.", Theodore said, surprised by his own firmness, "I'm just happy that you'll know where to go now."
Shayna smiled in reply.
For several minutes, they walked without saying a word. The breeze was soft, and apart from the occasional sound of dogs howling, it felt quite silent.
Theodore stopped suddenly.
"Are you sure we're heading in the right direction ?"
This place was Winston's Enclave, probably the most expensive gated society in the entire Glasgow. Beautiful mansions lined the streets, owned by actors, CEOs, politicians and the occasional billionaire who preferred privacy to publicity.
And probably some of "their" lot.
"Yeah. "
"You must be sugar mommy rich ?"
That's supposed to be a compliment?
"You thought I was poor ?"
"Not poor...but not a billionaire either?! ".
"I'm not a billionaire ", Shayna corrected him.
Oh yeah, her boyfriend was loaded.
"You just wanna stand here or what ? ", Shayna chuckled.
The neighborhood was long, expensive and quiet. It housed 50 mansions, where each house seemed determined to outdo its neighbors, with floor-to-ceiling windows, private gardens and enough outdoor lighting to illuminate a small airport. The place looked less like a residential neighborhood and more like a location pulled straight from a luxury real estate advertisement.
Theodore had been through these gates more times than he could count. Not all of the residents were still alive.
He could probably afford a house here himself if he took out most of his savings. Fortunately, Theodore was far too stingy for that. He had spent years earning that money. Handing it all over for a slightly larger living room and a pool felt like borderline madness.
"I think this is the one ", Shayna announced confidently.
This mansion was comparatively one of the smaller ones in the neighborhood, but still gorgeous. The pool almost looked like molten diamonds from the outside, and the garden was breathtaking.
"You think ?" Theodore joked.
"I haven't been here long ", Shayna replied, "Cut me some slack."
"What do you even work as ?"
"A lousy tech job."
Not a complete lie.
"Wait, you're rich, and you work in tech ? ", Theodore almost squealed. "You're basically living the dream."
"Wish I could wake up from it."
Theodore looked in her eyes again and noticed it.
The same exhaustion, which almost left him wondering....
"I'd rather we not tell each other our names ", Theodore said, and Shayna felt a sigh of relief.
"I couldn't agree more ", Shayna said, making Theodore raise his eyebrows slightly.
"Not that I don't like you, but..."
"I get it", Theodore said. He stopped, his eyes falling on Shayna's moonlit face. For a moment, he had nothing to say.
"Thanks for giving me a good night ", Shayna whispered slowly.
"Don't curse my name during the hangover ", Theodore smiled as he walked off slowly.
Today really was a good day.
Her phone started buzzing again.
Jinxed it.
But to her pleasure, it wasn't Lucas.
It was Rebel.
Rebel Grey had been her only friend for a long time. An orphan who was badly abused by her own adoptive parents, she had run away from home at a young age and ended up running into the wrong kind of people.
That was where she had met Shayna.
And they had been ride or die ever since.
"You bitch ?!", Rebel yelled from the other side, "You changed houses and didn't even tell me ?"
"How did you find out ?", Shayna smiled.
"I went over to your house. And found a bloody naked guy in your room ."
Oh, yeah.
"Sorry", Shayna laughed, "Between this fucking moron and the corporate shit, I didn't get the time. Do you want to come over now ?"
"I could if I wanted to," Rebel snarled. " I'm in Greece."
"You went on a vacation without me ?" Shayna said, pretending to sulk.
"I'm not a traitor like you," Rebel said, though laughing alongside. "Mairi is getting married to Dmitri Vassalis ."
"Wait, as in.."
"Yeah, " Rebel said, "I was shocked too. Apparently there was a one-night stand ."
"So ?" Shayna said, "A girl can't fuck around for one night ?"
Shayna felt mad at the news. Mairi Fraser was a Scottish mafia princess, distinctly bold, lethal and frankly, a source of inspiration for women in organised crime.
Her getting married off for business connections had to be a crime.
"I've been appointed for her city. But I'll be back in Glasgow tomorrow. The engagement will be here only."
She waited a moment as if waiting for Shayna to say something.
"Ok, fine. We'll both go see her tomorrow ".
"I knew you'd agree ".
"We have to. She's our boss bitch ", Shayna chuckled. " I'll see you tomorrow, then ."
"You better ", Rebel warned before cutting the call.
Great. Now I have to meet that piece of shit in person tomorrow.
Shayna slipped her phone back into her pocket and looked up at the mansion.
Tomorrow she would have to attend an engagement party she didn't want to attend, meet people she didn't want to see and oversee an engagement she didn't approve of.
On the bright side, it possibly couldn't get worse.
Shayna paused.
"I really need to stop saying that."