What Goes on Tour(44)

"You don't have to give any details." George thrust a piece of paper at Adrian.

It was a brief statement that basically said nothing new. He screwed it  up. "The reporters won't stop if it's only a few details. They can smell  a story here."

"I want to say something."                       
       
           



       

Adrian and George both stopped and stared at Kate.

She put her hands on her hips, readying herself for a fight. "I want to tell them the truth so they go away."

No way. There wasn't a chance in hell Adrian was exposing Kate to any more reporters. "This doesn't concern you, Katie."

"It does too!" Kate shouted. "I've been stuck in this room for days now.  I'm sick and tired of it. I want to go out. I want to see more of  Brisbane. Why won't you tell them to go away?" She finished her speech  with a sob.

Adrian's heart bled. He constantly felt like he was failing her. "I know it's hard on you, kiddo. I'm sorry."

"Can I speak to the reporters?" Kate asked, glancing back at Libby with hope.

"No. They'll lose interest soon." Adrian prayed he was right.

"I hate them, I hate them both." Kate stormed into her room and shut the door with a bang.

Adrian swore softly. This whole situation was the hardest on Kate. He  hated the fact she couldn't go out, but his first priority had to be her  safety.

Libby walked over to him and ran a hand over his arm. "Why don't you let  her write a statement? It might make her feel better, even if she never  gives it to the press."

Adrian scowled. "I'd rather not encourage her." If he let her write it, she'd want to release it.

"Are you sure?" Libby pushed.

No, he wasn't, and that was the problem. He didn't know what he should  do. "Yes, I'm sure," Adrian snapped. "I know what I'm doing." He stood.  He had to get away. To George he said, "We should get going." He grabbed  his bag and walked out without another word.

He couldn't deal with this now.

He needed time to think.

Time to cope with this out-of-control mess his life had become.

Time.

***

Libby stood where she was, her body frozen in response to Adrian's  words. She'd never seen Adrian's temper but there it was lashing out at  her.

She felt ill. Not about what he'd said but how he'd reacted. He doubted  himself, doubted what he was doing, and she'd questioned him, bringing  up his insecurities. She knew it from the tone of his voice, the way he  hadn't looked at her when he replied and the slump of his shoulders as  he walked out.

She needed to apologize.

The last thing she wanted to do was make him doubt his decisions.

She picked up her cell phone and dialed Adrian's number, hoping he wouldn't be too mad to answer.

It went straight to voicemail.

Libby left a message apologizing and hung up.

Letting out a breath she went to the kitchenette and poured a glass of  water before knocking and letting herself into Kate's room.

"You want to talk about it?" Libby asked.

Kate was sitting on her bed, ripped magazine pages scattered around her.  "They're both stupid liars. It's Emily's fault I can't leave the room.  If she hadn't started this, Grandpa Hart never would have known who  Uncle Ade is. Why can't I say something to the media? Why can't I tell  them the truth about Grandpa Hart and Emily? It's not fair."

Libby let Kate rant and handed her the glass of water and some tissues. She understood Kate's anger and frustration.

Maybe if Kate talked to Emily she could convince her to stop speaking  with the media. Emily had been Kate's nanny, after all. She knew some of  what Kate had been through.

"What would you say to the media?"

"Emily's a stupid liar."

Libby suppressed a smile at the vehemence of Kate's words. "How do you think that will make Emily feel?"

"I don't care. She hasn't cared about me."

How could she phrase this so Kate would understand? "I think if you said  that it might make her sad and a little angry. If someone made you  angry would you stop what you were doing?"

Kate opened her mouth to respond and then paused. "Probably not," she admitted.

"When you were angry with me, what made you change your mind?" Libby asked.

"You understood what was wrong and tried to make me feel better."

Libby smiled at her. "What would make Emily feel better?"

Kate thought about it and then screwed up her nose. "I don't think Uncle Ade will want to kiss her."

Libby chuckled. "No, I think you're right. Didn't you see Emily after she quit?"

"She came to say goodbye."

"And what did you say to her?"

"I said goodbye and wished her a good flight." Kate paused. "She asked about you and I said you were wonderful."                       
       
           



       

"How do you think she might have felt about that?"

"She might have been jealous." Kate opened her eyes wide. "Do you think  it's my fault Emily said all those lies?" Kate asked in a small voice.

"No! Not at all." Alarmed, Libby put an arm around Kate. "You aren't  responsible for other people's actions. Emily chose to do what she did  for her own reasons. What you need to think about is what you could say  that might make her think about how you're feeling."

"Should I lie?" Kate asked.

"No. Of course not. There must have been some things you did with Emily that were fun."

Kate considered her answer. "I did get to read a lot of books when she was my nanny."

It wasn't a lot to work with.

"Do you think if I emailed her and told her that she would stop lying?"

Libby hedged. "You'd better ask your uncle." She'd put her foot in it enough already.

"I'll write something down." Kate got up, snatched her notebook and started writing.

Libby hoped she'd done the right thing.

If only there was a reporter who would actually ask the tough questions and get Emily to admit the truth.

A light bulb went off. Libby examined the idea from all sides and  couldn't see how it would fail. Checking the time, she calculated the  difference and then dialed.

"Piper, I need a favor."

***

Adrian walked into his hotel room, but instead of heading for the  bathroom, he went in search of Libby. She was packing up her laptop at  the dining table.

He'd felt like a jerk all evening. He hadn't meant to snap at her, but  the house arrest was getting to him. He was second-guessing all his  decisions and to have Libby disagree with him made him third-guess them.

He wasn't sure how to get the media to leave them alone.

Libby's voicemail message, which he hadn't got until after the concert,  showed she understood, but he felt as though he was walking on  eggshells. Any wrong step and he'd crush the lot.

Libby looked up as he walked over and gave a cautious smile. "Hi."

"Howdy." He stopped next to her and saw the concern cross her face. "I'm  sorry for snapping at you earlier." He sighed. "This whole situation is  getting to me."

Libby took his hand. "It's getting to us both. I'm sorry I made you doubt your decision."

He breathed out in relief. It meant so much that she understood. "How's Kate?"

"We talked about it. She'd like to send Emily an email, but I wasn't sure if you'd want her to."

Adrian frowned, trying not to be defensive. "What did she want to say?"

"She wants to thank Emily for being her nanny and ask her to tell the truth."

That was a surprise. When he'd left, Kate hated Emily. Libby had said something to change her mind. "What did you say to Kate?"

Libby looked down for a moment. "Initially Kate wanted to tell Emily she  hated her, but I explained it might make Emily worse. So we decided to  try the carrot method instead of the stick." She waited for his  reaction.

It was better than Kate talking to the media, but an email could be  forwarded on to anyone. "I'll think about it." He'd check what Kate  wanted to say tomorrow.

There was still a distance between him and Libby, both literally and  figuratively. He wanted to bridge it. Stepping forward he pulled Libby  into his arms. "I'm sorry for earlier."

She smiled at him. "I know. It's all right."

It wasn't. He'd lashed out at her, not with fists but with words. In his  experience they could be equally damaging. The bruises his father gave  him had faded but the words  –  the accusations that he was useless and  that he was the reason his mother left  –  stayed with him even now.

Adrian wanted to show Libby how much she meant to him. He wanted to hold  her all night. He appreciated her support and was sorry for his  actions. "Will you stay tonight?"

"Until the morning?"

He nodded. He hated it when Libby left in the middle of the night, as if  they had something to hide. As long as they were up before Kate, it  wouldn't be a problem.