by Bay, Louise
“What have you got there?” I asked as she stuffed whatever she was reading into her bag.
I dipped to peek at what she was looking at. “Columbia University?” I asked, reading the title of the booklet just before she put it away.
“Oh, nothing, just some research. Ready?” She linked her arm through mine and we ascended the pale stone steps to the entrance.
Violet picked up an information leaflet from the dresser in the hallway. “Where should we start?”
I nodded, indicating that we turn right into the library-dining room. As she stepped into the room, Violet tipped her head back and turned three hundred and sixty degrees, taking in the blood-red walls stuffed with paintings and sculptures and the glass bookcases on either side of the room. “It’s wonderful. Like he could still be living here.”
“They have dinners in here sometimes. It’s all served by candlelight just like it would have been when he was alive.”
“Sounds romantic. You’ve been?” she asked.
“Yes, although it was a thing chambers did, so it wasn’t romantic.” Having dinner here with Violet would be romantic, though. Eating dinner by candlelight would be nice—perhaps I should suggest it sometime. I continued to watch Violet’s reactions as she took in the room. I couldn’t keep my eyes off her. It was like being with her energized me, filled me up, and I didn’t want to spill a drop.
“What are your plans for this weekend?” I asked as we made our way out and into a cramped study that was nothing more than a through room. Perhaps I could take her to dinner somewhere nice, somewhere she’d think was romantic.
“I told you, my brother and sister are coming over from the States with all their kids.”
“Oh that’s right. For Thanksgiving.” I wouldn’t see her for the whole weekend. “You’re not in London, right?”
“I have four days of vacation,” she said, squeezing my arm, then releasing it and walking ahead of me as the corridor got narrower.
“Four days?” I asked.
“This place is crazy,” Violet said, ignoring my question.
We were surrounded by exits to different routes, doorways, corridors, steps into smaller rooms.
“It’s like Alice in Wonderland or something,” she continued. “Yes, I’m going up to Woolton on Wednesday night.” She grinned. “Darcy’s cute; she’s doing candied yams, cornbread—the whole nine yards.”
“Sounds good. You looking forward to seeing everyone?”
Her eyes widened and she patted me on the lapel. “Of course. I never thought I’d say it, but I miss my sister.”
My gut tugged at the thought of her having fun without me. At the idea of not seeing her for four days. “You’ll come back humming the Star-Spangled Banner.”
“If you’re lucky, I’ll come back wrapped in one.” She winked.
I pulled her toward me. “You could dress up tonight.” I dropped a kiss on her lips. My nights were increasingly spent with Violet. More and more often, I ended up at her place when I left work and I was staying over more frequently. It was where I wanted to be.
When I pulled back, she looked at me as if she wanted to say something but was stopping herself. “What?” I asked.
She shrugged and turned away, heading deeper into the house. “You could come if you want. I mean, I know you’re too busy, but if you wanted to, just for an evening, you’d be welcome.”
I swallowed. She was inviting me? Away for the weekend, to meet her family?
“I don’t expect you to say yes. I just thought . . .” She gazed up at the wall covered in trinkets that Sir John had collected on his extensive travels. She was trying to avoid my eyes.
I had a lot of work to do. A huge amount. But the idea of being with Violet and away from London had me mentally planning how I could rearrange things. “Maybe I could,” I replied.
“It will be crazy. I don’t expect you to say yes. I just—”
“I want to come, Violet.”
She turned to look at me, finally. “You do?”
I hated that she was so surprised—that she assumed she wasn’t important enough that I’d make the time. But she had no reason to react in any other way. Work always came first. “Yes. I probably can’t come for the whole weekend, but maybe for Thanksgiving itself.”
She stopped and looked at me as if she hadn’t heard me right. “But that’s on a Thursday.”
“You sound surprised,” I said as if she had no reason to be. She wasn’t the only one who could tease.
She burst into laughter. “I have no idea why. I mean, you’re forever slacking off work.”
“I’m seizing the day, Violet.”
She slipped her hands around my waist, and I pulled her toward me. “I’d like that,” she said quietly, almost as if it were a confession. And my chest expanded, as if I’d scored a victory. Surprising Violet, making her happy, felt like the biggest achievement in my week. I’d never experienced anything like it outside of the law.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Violet
The dining room at Woolton had been set up buffet style so we could eat dinner when we liked, but we were all too busy talking and catching up and we had to save ourselves for a Thanksgiving feast tomorrow anyway. Even though there were only six of us and the kids, it seemed as though the entire house was full. As much as I complained and bitched about my brother and sister, I couldn’t ever remember being so happy to see them.
I stood with my arm around Scarlett’s waist. “You look fantastic, Duchess,” I said.
She giggled. “Don’t call me that. It sounds like you’re trying to be down with the kids.”
“I’ve called you worse.”
“True. So how’s England? I haven’t heard from you this week.”
“I’m enjoying it.”
“Well you look fantastic. I love this dress.” She glanced down at my bottle-green, silk dress. “It’s a bit of a departure from your normal boho thing.”
The dress had been a gift from Alexander. I’d told him to stop buying me stuff, but he’d said that since he’d bought me the skirt, the retailer was following him around the internet with ads of things he thought I’d like, so he kept clicking. And I enjoyed how he always noticed when I wore them.
“That’s what love will do,” Darcy said.
“Stop it, Darcy. You know I don’t believe in that shit.” David had taught me that love really was blind and I’d taken my blinders off.
“I’m really hoping to catch a glimpse of this guy while I’m here. Any guy who’s managed to hold your attention for longer than a week intrigues me. I’m going to come to London for the day and rock up to your work when you least expect it.”
Darcy frowned and my stomach churned. I hadn’t told Scarlett Alexander was coming tomorrow. Darcy knew, obviously, as she’d suggested it and had to know numbers for lunch tomorrow. I’d fully expected Alexander to drop out because of a last-minute work emergency, but so far nothing had come up, which was making me a little nervous—this wasn’t like him. I didn’t know what was scarier—Alexander showing up, or Alexander blowing me off.
“You won’t have to wait until next week,” Darcy said, interrupting my thoughts. “We all get to meet him tomorrow.”
Open mouthed, Scarlet turned to me.
“I’m not sure if he’ll make it,” I said. “I did say it wasn’t definite, didn’t I?” I asked Darcy. It would be humiliating if he didn’t come now people knew. “He’s working on a huge case. He said he’ll try, but I’d be surprised if he can spare the time.” I released Scarlett and picked up my wine glass.
“Don’t have so little faith,” Darcy said. “You originally thought he’d never even consider it. He’ll be here.”
“You’ve never met him,” I replied. “How would you know?”
“Just a feeling.” She took a sip of her wine, grinning around the glass.
“This is big news, Violet,” my sister said.
“It’s really not.” The last thing I wanted was for everyo
ne to make a big deal out of this. We might have been dating a few months, but because Alexander was so busy and we both knew it was a temporary thing, it wasn’t that serious. It couldn’t be.
“Have you said ‘I love you’?” Darcy asked, stirring up trouble.
“No! It’s not like that.” I doubted Alexander had even told his wife he loved her. He wasn’t that guy, and I wasn’t that girl. We were just hanging out. Enjoying the moment.
“You’ve been together months though, haven’t you? I’ve never known you to be with a guy this long. You must like him.”
“Of course I like him. I mean, he’s a moody, brooding asshole at times but—”
“Who’s an asshole?” Max came over, with a plate overflowing with food. He must have heard the word asshole and assumed we were talking about him.
“Her boyfriend,” Scarlett said.
“You’re dating, Darcy?” Max grinned.
“No.” Scarlett nudged him with her elbow. “Violet.”
“What? You have a boyfriend?” he asked, looking at me as if I’d just told him I’d decided to donate a kidney. “A British guy? I can’t handle any more British blood in this family.”
Oh my God, Max was fast-forwarding to the birth of my children. “Will you guys stop making a big deal about this? He’s going to think you’re all crazy when he arrives.”
“What, he’s coming to Woolton?” Max asked.
“Tomorrow,” Darcy said.
The girl was dead to me after this weekend. She was spilling all my secrets.
“Are you pregnant?” Max asked.
I rolled my eyes and turned to leave this group to top up my wine.
“She’s not pregnant; she’s in love.” Scarlett grabbed my arm. “You’re not pregnant, are you?”
“No, I’m not pregnant, and I am definitely not in love. How many times do I have to say it?” I wished I’d never invited him. The whole thing was going to be a horror show. Except that I didn’t really wish I hadn’t invited him. I was excited that he might be coming, that he was giving up work for a few hours to spend time with me. I wanted to show him around the house and take a walk with him around the lake, wrapped up in our coats and scarves. Kiss him looking over the croquet lawn.
“You guys have to promise that you’re not going to act like freaks.”
“We’ll be fine. We won’t tell him he’s your first boyfriend since college and the only guy who’s ever made your eyes light up when he’s mentioned.”
“Scarlett, please. And anyway, he knows all about David.”
“You told him what happened?” she asked.
“Well, yeah.” It wasn’t a big deal that I’d told him, was it? I didn’t want to keep things from him and after the Gabby debacle I didn’t want him keeping things from me.
“About the business?” Scarlett asked.
I nodded. “Yes, I said. He knows.”
“Wow.” She took a sip of her wine, trying to disguise her smile.
“There’s nothing ‘wow’ about it.”
“Well, I hope he’s not an asshole,” Max said.
“Then I’m afraid you’re going to be disappointed,” I replied.
“Well, if he puts a foot wrong—” Max’s chest expanded and I rolled my eyes.
“He can’t be an arsehole,” Darcy said. “Not if you like him as much as you do.”
“Who said I liked him that much?”
“Has he signed his divorce papers yet?” Scarlett asked.
“The asshole is married?” Max asked, his mouth full of food. He swallowed. “Jesus, Violet. You’re involved with a married man?”
“Thanks, Scarlett,” I said, shaking my head. “Yes, he’s signed his divorce papers, and he’s been separated from his wife for over three years.”
“I don’t like the sound of this guy,” Max mumbled.
“Well, you two have a lot in common. You’re both workaholic assholes, so you should get along just fine.”
I wasn’t really sure Max and Alexander would get along at all. I’d never really seen Alexander interact with anyone other than me in a non-work public setting. But he was a good man. He might be brooding and moody, but that was just a cloak. When you got to know the real Alexander, he was decent and kind. I hoped my family could see that. I wanted them to like him because he was the first person in a long time that I’d cared about. And I wanted to be right about him. I wanted them to see what I saw in him. It was as if Alexander represented a new Violet—a woman who’d moved on from the scars of her early twenties. And if it turned out I was wrong about him, then what else was I wrong about?
I just hope he didn’t cancel. Not now.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Alexander
For the second time in three months I was driving into the country for Violet King. When she’d left chambers on Wednesday, she hadn’t complained that I wasn’t leaving with her. And she hadn’t asked me how long I’d stay, or even if I was sure I’d definitely make it. She just took each day as it came.
I’d found that the lunches we spent together didn’t impact my workload as much as I might have expected. In fact, our stolen moments invigorated me, leaving me more efficient after time away from my desk. It made me yearn for more time with her.
I turned up the gravel driveway the map indicated. The Duke of Westbury’s estate was beautiful. Violet King was full of surprises.
As I pulled up in front of the house, the door opened and Violet came tripping down the steps. I was only just out of the car when she threw her arms around my neck.
“You made it,” she said, more delighted than I could have hoped for.
“I said I would, didn’t I?”
“And you never say anything you don’t mean.” She pressed her lips against mine and I pulled her in tighter.
“This is a beautiful place,” I said, scanning the gardens. “Capability Brown by the looks of it.”
“Yes, we should take a walk down to the lake, but after lunch, which will last the whole day. So tomorrow. If you’re going to stay?”
“I’ll stay if you’ll have me.”
She tilted her head. “I really like you,” she said.
I chuckled. “I really like you, too. Now come and help me with this,” I said, opening the back door. I handed her two paper bags.
“What’s in here?” she asked.
“I didn’t know what to bring, so some booze for the adults and toys for the children.” I closed the door and went ’round to the boot and pulled out my weekend bag. “What?” I asked as she stood there, her brow furrowed.
“You brought the kids gifts?” she asked.
“Don’t get too excited. It’s just a few things I ordered online. I have no idea if they’re age appropriate.” I nodded toward the door. “Let’s get in; it’s freezing.”
“That’s sweet of you.”
I chuckled. No one had ever called me sweet before.
“Everyone’s getting ready for lunch, so I’ll show you up to our room.” Violet set the gifts on a side table. As we climbed the stairs, a shriek echoed through the walls and a door slammed.
A petite girl with long brown hair bounded down the stairs to meet us in her stockinged feet. “You must be Violet’s boyfriend,” she said, sticking out her hand. “I’m so happy you’re here. I’m Darcy.”
“How do you do?” I asked, taking her hand. “Thank you for inviting me to your beautiful home.”
She lifted herself up on her tiptoes and then set herself down again. “It’s a total pleasure. I think giving thanks is such a wonderful idea, and I’m so pleased we have another person from this side of the pond around the table. We’re usually overrun!”
“Yes, these Americans are taking over,” I replied.
“I’m just popping down to see that everything’s running smoothly and that Mrs. MacBee hasn’t had a stroke. Make yourself at home, and let me know if I can get you anything.”
She bounded down the stairs and we continued to make our way u
p.
“You’re so charming,” Violet said, kissing my cheek.
“You have no idea what I’m capable of when I try,” I replied, swatting her bum.
She laughed. “I’m enjoying finding out.”
Violet was at her most beautiful when she was laughing.
“This house is so creaky. The floors, the walls, the doors. And the beds.”
“Sounds like we’ll have to get creative,” I replied. “What time’s lunch?” I’d missed sleeping next to her last night. Even though we’d not been staying over at each other’s place until recently, I’d gotten in the habit of creeping around in the dark when I got up in the mornings, so it had felt odd to be able to have the light on and the news in the background as I padded around my hotel room.
“We don’t have time,” she replied, slapping my hand from her backside. “You’re not a fast fuck.”
“Good to know where I am on your scale, but we had to be pretty quick that first time, in the office.”
“Sorry, I didn’t mean—it was a compliment.”
“Hey, lighten up. Live in the moment,” I teased.
“God, you’re annoying.”
I bent and kissed her head as we arrived at a large oak door.
“This is us,” she said.
I tried not to smile at the label. I hadn’t been an us in a long time. I wasn’t sure I’d really ever been an us before. With Violet, us was new. But it was the right description.
When we got in, I dumped my bag and took my jacket off. “Come here,” I said, holding my arms out. I needed to feel her warmth, to enjoy the way her body fit so perfectly against mine.
“How was your conference call?” she asked, sliding her hands around my waist and putting her head on my chest.
I exhaled and tightened my grip. “Good. I’ve left Sebastian a list of stuff to get on with. I’m delegating. Are you proud?”
“Very,” she said. “And pretty blown away that you’re here.”
A loud knock at the bedroom door interrupted us.
Violet groaned. “That will be my sister.”
I released my arms and Violet went to answer the door while I slipped my jacket back on.
