Re: The woods
Oh, Neil didn't give a fuck if Sam's dad thought he was so clever, roping some clueless rich guy into a seemingly inescapable web. Maybe his parents had allowed Lou to be taken back, so concerned with reputation and public opinion, but not him. He'd rebelled against that part of his upbringing a long time ago, and now, he just didn't give a shit. Apathy had its perks. "Sounds fair," he said easily, because that was like pocket change to him, and right, yeah, none of this was real.
As for Iris, he nodded, even though his eyes narrowed ever so slightly at the way he referred to his own daughter. "I won't be bringing either of them back, so don't worry," he told him. "I don't pull shit like that." Not like his fucking parents, at least. He doubted that Tess' husband gave a damn either way, but he saw what Sam's dad was doing, trying to push for more, to see just how badly he wanted her. Well, he could play that game. And by playing, really, all he was doing was coughing up exactly what was asked for. "If that's what it'll take, then fine. Deal."
Part of him knew he was never going to be able to look at Lou the same after this, if he could even look at him at all, and fuck, that smile melted a part of him that hadn't thawed in a long, long time, and had only begun to soften after he'd met Sam. "Yeah," Neil said, trying to disguise his emotion with gruffness. "I mean it." By then, he realized this was what life would have been like for them without Sam, and hell, her presence must have made things a lot better, but at what cost to her?