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c o l l a   p a r t e

[It.] : A player should double another's part.

 

THE SILENCE THAT ensued was wrought with tension of the thickest, most dangerous kind. I could almost hear the seconds on the clock tick by, and with every second that passed, we seemed to be digging a deeper hole for ourselves. Kaden seemed completely frozen in his spot, his mouth agape as his mother's words registered themselves in his head.

"What?" He blurted at last, as if he couldn't quite believe it.

I felt my breath lodge itself in my throat. Both Adelaide and I were silent, until I felt her nudge me forward. Instantly, my brain kicked in and I swallowed hard. Based on what I'd gathered from the files, Evangeline was an aspiring model. She had to be all sorts of confident and sexy.

With the best sultry voice I could possibly muster, I broke the silence. "Hello, Kade," my throat felt unusually dry, and he automatically turned in my direction.

"Evangeline," he began carefully, pushing himself off the window-seat completely and scrambling to his feet. He was no longer elegant and agile on his feet; he stumbled every so often, his hands feeling the furniture around him as he made his way towards me. "How're you feeling?" He asked, the concern plain in his voice. "The doctors said you had some minor injuries."

"I'm alright," I said, reaching out to steady him. My fingers curled around his strong forearms, the sleeves of his shirt wrinkling under my firm grasp. I tried to ignore the fact that the last time I had been so close to him was four years ago and that I had promptly fallen in love with him thereafter, even though the mere thought of that sent my heart racing.

Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I stared up at him and wished that I could see his forest green eyes. "What about you, how're you feeling?"

"I'm fine," he murmured. His hands gripped my elbows firmly and he pulled me closer. I could feel the rough callouses on the tips of his fingers as he grazed them across my skin gently, but firmly, nonetheless, as if he were trying to confirm my presence through touch alone. "A little blind," he let out low laugh that sounded somewhat bitter, "but all in one piece."

"That's good," I breathed, drawing back a little when his fingers slipped up the slope of my neck and curved themselves against my cheeks lightly. He seemed adamant on mapping out the contours of my face and I knew that I couldn't let him. Not yet, at least. It was far too risky a move. "Kade, I – "

"Hold on," he hushed, tugging me gently towards him again. I tried to keep my distance and a frown slipped onto his face. "I just – I just really missed you, that's all," he told me softly, and I found my resolve weakening. "Come here."

Reaching forward, he slid a reassuring arm around my waist and he was just about to pull me into another embrace when Adelaide's voice came from behind us, loud and clear and firm.

"Kaden."

Kaden's head shot up and he fell a quick step back. "Bloody hell, woman," he sniped at his mother, "are you still standing there?"

"Clearly," she replied dryly, sending a pointed look my way. "Evangeline has to get back to work. She can't stay for long."

Kaden inclined his head in my direction. He seemed faintly disappointed, if the sudden downward sloping of his shoulders in resignation was any indication at all. "Alright," he said, a tight smile on his face. "Thanks for visiting. I'm glad you're fine."

I gave his hand a small squeeze. "I'll come back to visit you again," I said softly, against my better judgement, hoping that his mother wouldn't hear it.

Adelaide had actually done me a huge favour with her words and I knew what she was thinking – the quicker I got out of this, the better. Kaden had clearly bought our ruse and it was for the best if I kept my distance from him, so that when the time came for me (Evangeline, really) to break up with him, the heartbreak wouldn't hit so hard.

But it was Kaden Bretton. I felt an odd sting in my heart each time I saw or heard about him. On the news, in the magazines, whenever Parker casually brought him up. And seeing him in real life did nothing to assuage the sting – if anything, it made it all the more hard-hitting. I couldn't quite fathom why.

Perhaps it was the fact that I'd gotten so much closer to him, only to know all this time that he was someone I couldn't have, ever.

And so, pushing aside all the nagging doubts and rational bits of common sense left in me, I closed the gap between us, drew my arms around his lean waist and hugged him quickly. Just for fleeting moment or two. I caught a faint whiff of soap and a scent that was purely him. It was all too familiar.

Drawing back before he had the chance to return my hug, I forced a bright smile onto my face even though he couldn't see it at all. "Goodbye, Kade."

"Bye. I love you," he added quickly, the words leaving his lips so easily it seemed like just another usual greeting.

And none of what I said next was a lie:

"I love you, too."

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I couldn't help but notice the immense look of relief in on Adelaide's face when I stepped out of the room. She nodded at me and pulled the door shut behind us before turning to the man stood outside guarding the door.

"Make sure he doesn't enter the sitting room downstairs, Edwin," she said to the man.

He looked so dour and stern that I couldn't help but smile brightly at him. All I got out of him was a slight nod of acknowledgement. Clearly, the Brettons discouraged all forms of interaction among the staff. Kaden must've been bored out of his mind stuck in there.

I followed Adelaide down the flights of stairs to the sitting room, where Parker and Nolan were. They both of them were sipping on wine as they engaged in a hushed conversation, but the sound of us entering the room made them glance up immediately. Nolan grinned at me while Parker knitted his eyebrows in concern. I nodded and he smiled in relief.

"Well," Adelaide began, as she closed the door behind us and locked it for good measure. She headed over to the large desk in the corner of the room and settled down into the leather-vested armchair. She glanced at me, her eyebrows knitting faintly. "Were you waiting for an invitation, Isla? Take a seat."

I blushed and sat in the chair opposite hers, ignoring the amused sniggers from Nolan, who was so far proving to be an obnoxious prick I couldn't help but like. He was thoroughly entertaining, that was for sure.

Pulling out a brown envelope from the desk drawer, Adelaide pushed it across the table towards me. "You did unexpectedly well," she said, a tight smile glossing her lips, "well enough for my son to buy it, at least." I could almost feel the surprised stares from Nolan and Parker behind me but I ignored them and focused on the matter at hand instead. "This is your contract. You will be paid a generous sum at the beginning and when the month is over."

I frowned. "Mrs Bretton – "

"If my son's eyesight recovers before then or if our cover is blown, you will still be paid in full on your last visit. But you will not see him any longer than a month – I will make myself explicitly clear on that. We cannot risk Kaden becoming any more attached to Evangeline than he already is. What we saw earlier was worrisome, to say the least, and we must break his attachment as soon as we can."

I couldn't disagree more. I hadn't seen the slightest bit of emotional attachment exhibited by Kaden ever, at least not in the news or on interviews. He had all the poise and confidence in the world, a steeled mask that had only perfected itself over the years since I had last seen him. Watching his concern for me was heart-warming, to say the least, even though I knew it wasn't meant for me but for Evangeline.

Nevertheless, I held my tongue and took the brown envelope from Adelaide. For a moment, there was nothing but the sounds of paper crinkling as I studied it. The contract's contents were drawn up neatly, wrapped with an extravagant bow – a very, very handsome reward that made my breath hitch in my throat at the sheer amount. Threefold of this current amount and I could give my brother a run for his money.

The thought of that made a tiny smile slip on my face, which Adelaide promptly misinterpreted and asked, "I assume the amount is to your satisfaction?"

"Oh, no, that isn't the issue," I said quickly and she frowned. "To tell you the truth, I don't want or need the money."

"I highly doubt that's the case," she replied briskly. Under the light of the sitting room, I noticed that her eyes were a faint green, not as dark or intense as I remembered Kaden's to be, but it was obvious where he got his green eyes. "Your father owns a garden centre he set up two years ago and business has never quite picked up. He still appears to owe the bank quite a large sum of money, part of which may be attributed to the debts your uncle raked up, after having burnt his fingers playing in the stock market quite recently."

Her words rained down like ice shards amidst the silence. I was well aware that Parker and Nolan were still in the room. The atmosphere was stiff and tense, but Adelaide didn't seem to notice. When I frowned slightly, she simply let out a tight smile.

"We tend to do a quick background check before hiring anyone in this household."

I bit my lip. "That is pretty much the situation in my household. But I really can't accept your offer, tempting as it may be."

"Really, Isla, save your poor man's pride for another time because – "

"It's not a matter of pride," I returned quietly. "I just want to help Kaden. Is that so hard to believe?"

Her eyebrows knitted together at my words and for a moment, I braced myself, wondering if she was going to say something snarky that would completely throw me off. Fortunately, Parker's voice broke the silence a moment later.

"Mrs Bretton, I think it's best if you keep your money," he sounded amused and he calmly walked over to us, a glass flute still in one hand. "Or Isla might just feel insulted and walk out of here. Then you'll be left without an Evangeline."

"Are you threatening me, Mr Collins?"

"Hardly," but the smile on Parker's face had an edge to it and he laid a comforting hand on my shoulder. "Isla's on the same boat as me and Nolan. We genuinely do want to help Kade because he's our friend. It's as simple as that, really."

I saw something like resignation slip onto Adelaide's features and, after what seemed like forever, she gave a small nod. "Alright," she acceded and I exhaled. "I will amend the contract appropriately because some confirmation is still required, even if money is no longer in the equation. I'll take my leave first, let Edwin know if you need anything," she added and nodded at us. "Mr Collins, Mr Mortez, Isla."

I watched her leave the room, still feeling rather amused that she called me by my name instead of addressing me the way she did the other two men. Perhaps it had very little to do with proper terms of address, and everything to do with my social status.

When the door clicked shut behind her, Nolan let out an exaggerated sigh of relief. "That went well," he mused. Parker and I turned to look at him. His eyes were bright and he grinned widely. "Now who's hungry?"

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We referred to the plan as Playing Evangeline, which was as its namesake stated. But it seemed to trivialise the death of a girl who was clearly so wonderful.

Evangeline White never even had a funeral. Her death was so surreptitious that the Whites simply sailed out in their yacht and buried her ashes in the sea. It had been done two days after the accident. Not a single word of it had been leaked out to the press and no one apart from the small group of us knew about it.

Two days after my first visit with Kaden, I asked Dad if he would drive me out to the coast where Evangeline's ashes were scattered at. It was more than an hour's drive away, but I used that time to explain everything to him. Dad was more than understanding, perhaps far more so than Parker, since he had always known about the feelings I had for Kaden. I never kept anything from my father.

"What about Evangeline's parents?" Dad asked, when we had arrived at the coast. The day seemed overcast and windy, with dark clouds threatening to consume the blue sky overhead. We were standing at the highest point we could find – the peak of a nearby cliff that had been safely barricaded for tourists. At that moment, however, the place was empty. "Considering their social status, they'd want their daughter to be sent off the conventional way, don't you think?"

"Actually, that's the last thing they want," I said, as I remembered the conversation I'd had with Nolan and Parker the other day. They hadn't known much about Evangeline. The Whites had always been notoriously private.

"Evangeline was found with traces of drugs in her blood during her autopsy, and she was the one behind the wheel," I added, picking at the old paint on the surface of the barricade. The green flakes slipped off piece by piece, carried away by the gentle sea breeze. "Imagine what the press would think if she was the one having put Kaden's life in danger. That'd just bring unnecessary bad publicity to the Whites."

"It's a pity, though," Dad acknowledged quietly and I wholeheartedly agreed with him.

Much as the mere thought of Kaden loving Evangeline stabbed a painful glass shard through my heart, Evangeline's fate seemed absolutely devastating even to me, a complete outsider.

I let out a heavy breath, before turning back to Dad. "Do you think Evangeline would hate me? If all those theories about the afterlife are real, I mean," I added, when he shot me a puzzled look. "If her soul was still somewhere and she could see everything that was happening perfectly. Do you think she'd hate me? Because it seems like I'm trying to – to take over everything that she was."

"Frankly, if the afterlife exists, I think Evangeline would be more concerned about adapting to her new life than worrying about you and her boyfriend," he began, chuckling when I reached over to punch him on the arm.

"That's just morbid."

Dad laughed before sobering up. "If Evangeline truly loved Kaden, I should think that, no matter where she is now, she would be happy for him. And she would be glad that you're there to fill the void she'd left."

I quirked a brief smile at his words. "Thanks, Dad."

"Anytime," he returned warmly, reaching forward to give me a comforting pat on the back. "I'll leave you to pay your respects."

"Alright," I echoed faintly, watching him make his way down the steps. Soon, he was out of sight and I was left alone on top of the cliff, alone to my own thoughts.

Bracing my arms on the barricade, I turned to gaze out at the sea, watching the waves hurl themselves against the rocks with abandon and the seagulls swooping high and low like dizzying, gravity-defying circus artistes on the trapeze.

I wondered if there was Evangeline in every bit of the landscape, if she was there in the rocks and the sea and the misty salt in the air. She'd been put to rest here, after all. Would I come to know of this place as Evangeline's Coast in the future? Would Kaden ever come to this place and feel a cold sense of longing and nostalgia, even though he'd never know whom it was for?

Taking a deep breath, I tasted the salt on my lips and shut my eyes. When I spoke, my voice was a mere whisper carried away by the wind.

"Goodbye, Evangeline White."

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I went to visit Kaden the next day. Nolan drove me there this time round, since Parker was busy with work and couldn't take the day off. But he too had a meeting to attend.

And so, after pressing a swift kiss to my cheek since Parker wasn't there to stop him, Nolan left me standing on the front steps of the Brettons' beach-house, a dazed smile on my lips and my cheeks flushed red.

Edwin, who was apparently the butler of the household, led me into the house. "Mrs Bretton isn't in," he informed me, when I asked where Adelaide was. "But she sends her regards and asks that you keep her updated on the situation."

"I will,"my voice was light as I followed him up the stairs. I couldn't help but sneaksideway glances at Edwin, whom I found thoroughly fascinating, if only becauseI hadn't ever seen an actual butler in real life before. He had silvery wispsgreying his brown locks of hair and I wondered how long he had worked for theBrettons. The question slipped out before I could stop myself. "So how long have you been working here?"

He paused and turned to me, shaggy eyebrows rising high up on his forehead, and I immediately blushed. "My apologies. That was blunt."

To my greatest relief, he chuckled and dipped his head briefly. "It's quite alright. I was hired a year before young Mr Bretton was born, and have been at his service ever since."

"That's a long time," my mouth fell open after I did some quick calculations, "twenty-five years, then?" He nodded and I smiled brightly. "If this were a wedding, it'd be a silver jubilee. Congratulations."

He smiled back, although it seemed rather subdued, as if he was reminded of propriety while being in the Bretton residence. When we reached Kaden's room, I waited patiently as he knocked on the door and announced my (Evangeline's) arrival.

"Send her in," came Kaden's voice, sounding rather distracted.

Edwin gestured me in and I entered, after waving a quick goodbye to the good butler. The door shut gently behind me and I turned to face Kaden, only to realise he was sitting by the window once again. His face was still turned towards the windowpanes and I wondered why he kept looking in that direction so intently when he couldn't see a thing.

"Evangeline," he greeted, turning to face me slowly. He pushed himself up and began stumbling his way over towards me. Almost instinctively, I found myself crossing the room to guide him. "I'm surprised you came," his words made me stop in my tracks. He sounded almost annoyed. "You didn't answer when I called you. Several times, in fact."

"I was busy." The lie swept so swiftly past my lips that I surprised myself.

His lips were pressed in a tight line. "Try again, sweetheart. You've always picked up the phone before."

"I – " my mind fumbled for another excuse that I could concoct within a split second. And suddenly, the answer came; clear as the break of dawn. " – my parents didn't want me to speak to you, and I – "

"How many steps away am I from you?"

I blinked at his abrupt question. Doing a rough estimate based on the pace with which he had walked so far, I began carefully, "about four, I believe, give or take."

With a nod, he covered the distance between us with four precise steps, as I had told him. His hands automatically reached out, latching onto my shoulders before he pulled me to him. With the same, exact movements he used the previous time, he slipped his fingers up my shoulders and up the slope of my neck.

I felt it this time – what I had refused to let myself feel before, because Adelaide had been in the room. But now she wasn't, and I felt skin tingle from his touch, as though he'd lit all my nerve-ends on fire. His fingers brushed my cheeks firmly, a calculative twist on his lips. And that was when I realised he was going to familiarise himself with my features.

"Hold on," I quickly drew back, worried that the ruse would be up the moment he did just that. "Kade, I – "

"Stop talking," he muttered, pulling me gently towards him again and stealing the words from my mouth with a searing, numbing kiss.

How could I even begin to describe what it feels like to kiss the man you're utterly, irrevocably in love with, only to remember, clearly and painfully, that all this was just a ruse?

The only word I could think of at that moment was bittersweet. It wasn't a deep kiss by any means. Our tongues stayed chastely in our mouths; his lips simply pressing against mine with well-skilled ministrations, light nips and sucks that made my sanity slowly slip away, far out of my reach. His fingers held me by the waist firmly, which was just as well, for I couldn't trust my knees to support me.

I yielded – not that I put up much of a fight, any fight, to begin with – and drew my hands up his chest, clutching his shirt between my fists. At the back of my mind, all I could think of was how this, this was something from a dream, and I had waited for it forever. It was that nagging thought alone that spurred me into action and I eagerly returned his kisses, sinking into the feel of his hot lips against mine, fleeting but fervent and wonderfully addictive.

He unexpectedly pulled back, his cheeks flushed and breathing irregular. I was certain I looked the same way. For a moment, the room was completely silent, save for our ragged breaths and the stale surprise in the wake of our kiss.

"Well," he said at last, the huskiness in his voice drawing an involuntary shiver from me. "You are definitely not Evangeline."