by Amy Crook
"Very good, sir," said the courier, giving a bow and scampering off just as Alex's phone rang again.
"Are you dying?" said Alex into the phone, closing the door.
"Er, no?" said Smedley.
"Then I don't care, it can wait until tomorrow," said Alex. "I've got my second Courtship date tonight and I can't afford to bollocks it up."
Smedley chuckled. "I was just calling to let you know Armistead's been chastised by my boss for calling you after the extra effort you put forth to clear the crime scene for our men."
"Oh, that is the best news I've had all day," said Alex, letting himself enjoy the mental image for a moment. Then his call waiting beeped, and he sighed. "Gotta go."
"Tomorrow," said Smedley, hanging up.
Alex didn't even bother to sigh as he clicked over to Victor. "So, you'll be needing the car, then?"
"Oh, bloody hell, yes, is it even available?" said Alex, resisting the urge to beat his head against the nearest hard surface.
"Of course it is," said Victor. "He'll be there at half past six, unless you need more shopping?"
"No, well, I should be fine unless Henry says I need to be wearing something the girls didn't make me buy," said Alex, giving up on the idea of a self-induced concussion and settling for another cup of tea.
"Right, half six and you'll call back if you need it sooner," said Victor.
It was Alex's day to be hung up on, he thought, staring at the phone until the screen went dark.
The kettle whistled, and he made his tea right in the mug with an extra bag for good measure. He had the feeling he'd need it.
He'd barely managed a sip when the phone rang again, Henry with an update that he was on his way and would dress Alex himself.
"I am grown man and can dress myself," said Alex, but he was speaking to no one.
Some days, he hated his life.
Knowing the sort of places Henry favoured, Alex got out the glowing cufflinks and cravat pin set, finding that the gentle glow wasn't too flash in the daylight. He changed into a pair of good silk pants and belted his robe tight, then deactivated the wards that kept his family out of his bedroom, since he wasn't about to trot his whole wardrobe out into the main room.
Fortunately, Henry approved of black far more than his sisters, and soon enough Alex was dressed in an icy blue shirt that went well with the glowing accessories, black trousers, black jacket and no cravat at all. The open collar of his shirt made his neck seem graceful and gave his throat an enticing length, the blue and black setting off his colouring quite well.
"You do clean up all right," said Henry, putting the cravat pin through one jacket lapel in a manner that seemed rather rakish to Alex. "Victor's driver has your destinations, of course, but you'll be eating at Nihon, which is the trendiest place right now. Then there's drinks at the Gin Joint, which is totally not trendy because the people who love it don't want it spoiled, including me."
Alex wondered if he ought to feel honoured or completely afraid that he was basically getting one of Henry's famous whirlwind get-her-in-the-sack dates without having to actually go on it with Henry. "No dancing, I hope?" he asked.
Henry laughed. "I remember, though you do like that boring ballroom stuff?" he said, looking relieved when Alex nodded. "The Gin Joint has no dancing, but once it gets late enough you'll take him to the Starlight Tower; they stop serving dinner and open up the floor at eleven for ballroom dancing. It's very romantic," said Henry with a leer.
"I'm not trying to get laid, Henry," said Alex. "Is there anyone besides the usual I have to tip?"
Henry nodded. "The maitre d' at Nihon, the doorman at the Gin Joint, and the bandmaster at Starlight, give them each one of these," said Henry, pulling a small stack of his own calling cards out of his pocket, each of which had at least one hundred-pound note clipped to it. "They're all expecting you, and this will let them know you're my brother."
Alex relaxed with a sigh. "Thanks, Henry, I don't know what I'd have done without you."
"Just promise me you won't wear that coat," said Henry, gesturing to the bloodstained greatcoat, "and I'll still take it out of you later."
Alex chuckled. "I promise, I've got a good coat in here somewhere," he said, fumbling in the hall closet until he produced his proper cashmere coat, the fabric still in perfect condition despite his haphazard storage, thanks to spells just as good as the ones on his shoes. "Father's doing."
"Christmas before you told us all to sod off, wasn't it?" asked Henry, taking it out of his hands.
"Just so," said Alex, transferring the necessary possessions from his other coat while Henry was conveniently holding it. "Should I wear a watch, or is that too old-fashioned for this look?"
"The girls made you get a silver one, that should be all right, Fauna was telling me you're all attached to your new bauble," said Henry, lounging in Alex's favourite chair. "The club boys like to show off their fancy magic watches, so you won't seem out of place."
"Good," said Alex, fetching it and looking at the face. "Bugger, well, good thing you approve of my outfit, I'm nearly out of time," he said, snagging Julian's wrapped gift. "Victor's man will be here ay moment. He pocketed his mobile, double checked that the bribes were in their own pocket, his wallet was full and included Victor's credit card, and the kettle was off.
"That's my cue to go," said Henry, swinging his feet to the floor. "Don't forget, you owe me."
Alex laughed humourlessly. "You'd never let me, dear brother."
"Too true," said Henry cheerfully, letting himself out.
Alex thought about redoing the bedroom wards, but his pocket buzzed, and this time it was the driver telling him it was time to go.
Alex spent the drive alternately fidgeting and doing calming exercises, interspersed with the occasional text message exchange with Smedley about the various items they'd catalogued at the crime scene.
By the time they pulled into the long driveway at the St. Albans estate, Alex had almost managed to calm his nerves. He put his phone on silent and pocketed it as he got out of the car, feeling a bit like his skin fit wrong in all these new clothes, without even his regular greatcoat to comfort him. Even Godfrey's familiar sneer was no comfort, and it took Alex a moment to realise why -- this would be his first meeting with Julian St. Albans where he knew Julian wasn't being magically coerced into liking him.
Another deep breath and Alex threw on his most annoyingly charming grin. "Evening, Godfrey. I've been called up to bat, apparently," he said.
"A poor substitute," said Godfrey, but he ushered Alex inside anyway. This time he was led to a small sitting room just down the hall and told to wait.
A quick check of the clock told him he was actually slightly early, so he took off his coat, remembering too late that he rarely wore it not just because of the style but because there was something off about the fit that he kept meaning to get fixed. It was too warm in the room, anyway, a cheerful fire in the grate and what proved to be spiced cider steaming on the sideboard, as though it was deep winter instead of merely a nippy autumn evening.
Perhaps Julian got cold easily, thought Alex, taking off his jacket as well and letting the heat of the fire soak into his own skinny frame.
"I don't think I've ever seen you in so little clothing," teased a familiar voice behind him, and Alex whirled to see Julian St. Albans in the doorway looking positively edible. He, too, had gone for a more modern cut of clothing, slim trousers and a close-fitting sweater in a pettable-looking golden brown that brought out the highlights in his hair.
Alex hoped his blush wasn't too obvious and tried to be casual as he grabbed his jacket. "Well, I wouldn't want you to think I was hiding from you," he teased, doing a little twirl before slipping the jacket back on.
Julian laughed. "Rumour was correct in this case, you do have a very nice," he smirked, "seat."
"And not a horse in sight," said Alex, choosing to hold the ill-fitting overcoat on one arm instead of embarrassing himself with it. Som
eone raised to good tailoring like Julian would notice the flaws, and Alex was better off cold than looking shabby in this case. "You're showing excellent form yourself tonight," he added, offering Julian his arm.
"Oh, I should get my coat," said Julian, moving past Alex and through the room to the coat closet Alex hadn't even noticed, the door set to blend into the moulding. A dark brown coat matched the trousers perfectly, and a cheerful golden scarf went with it. "I hate to be cold," he said, making a face.
"So I see," said Alex with a chuckle. Well, at least he'd deduced one thing correctly tonight. "I'll endeavour to keep your warm tonight, then."
"So, what did you manage to conjure for us, with so little warning?" asked Julian, leaning into him.
"Your gift, for one thing," said Alex, handing him the gaily wrapped package.
"Ooh, I do love this part," said Julian, sitting with the box in his lap and grinning like a little boy. His fingers were precise as he untied the ribbon and pulled off the top of the box, however, very adult in his desire not to spoil anything. "Oh, Alex, they're lovely," he said, when he saw the trio of little panels.
"This one made me think of you," said Alex, pointing to the painting of edible mushrooms clustered against an old tree, "and then I spotted the apples, so I had to find a third."
"This one's perfect," teased Julian, picking up the painting of the cat and butterfly. "You looked just like this the day I met you, cranky but trying not to make me fly off."
"And you're the one that turned my butterfly blue," said Alex, reminding him of the silly trick he'd done at the Courtship banquet.
"So I did," said Julian, tucking the painting back away and putting the box and bow to one side. "Don't worry, it's safe here."
"I wasn't," said Alex, offering Julian his arm once again. "I know it's safe here in your home."
Julian smiled, charmed. "Of course," was all he said, as he took Alex's arm.
Alex let out a quiet breath and led him to the waiting car, glad that at least one thing tonight had gone correctly.
"Why don't you put your coat on?" asked Julian curiously.
One thing.
"I'd forgotten it's in need of tailoring," said Alex, unable to think of a suitably polite lie. "It's warm enough in the car, anyway, and the driver will bring us right to the front of the restaurant."
"True," said Julian, getting inside.
Alex missed the chance to admire his seat, and then mentally smacked himself. Winsome though Julian might be, he wasn't for Alex to be admiring, other than as a means to an end. He joined Julian in the car, sitting back with a grin. "Since I'm being disgustingly honest," said Alex, hoping this wouldn't blow up in his face, "I feel I should tell you that I didn't really arrange tonight, my brother did."
"Henry or Victor?" asked Julian, eyes dancing with mischief.
"Henry, he's the one with the connections," said Alex, cocking his head as if he could somehow hear what Julian was thinking.
Julian chuckled and wiped his brow in mock relief. "Oh, good, Victor's got a reputation for being terribly boring."
Alex laughed. "And Henry quite the opposite, I bet."
"Ooh, does this mean I'm going on one of the famous Benedict knicker-melting dates?" asked Julian.
"Why?" asked Alex, trying to school his face to innocent inquiry. "Do you wear knickers?"
Julian laughed and Alex with him, and Alex felt something inside himself unclench just a little more. Julian might not be bewitched any longer, but he wasn't totally immune to Alex's brand of charm, either. "You won't be finding that out tonight, it wouldn't be proper."
"Speaking of proper, whose spot am I stealing and why?" asked Alex curiously.
Julian chuckled. "Caught on to that, did you? Willoughby had to cancel at the last minute, his sister's just flown in from the continent with some ridiculous princeling on her arm."
"Oh, dear," said Alex, though he found it very interesting that any of the candidates would cancel right after the spellcaster was murdered. "Well, I'm glad I could fill your otherwise empty evening," he said, kissing the back of Julian's hand.
Julian looked pleased about that, as well. "Where are we going, do you know?"
"Nihon, for dinner," said Alex, pleased when Julian looked impressed by that.
"Ooh, your Henry is good if he got you in there with no notice," said Julian. "I've never been, it's not Cecil's sort of place."
"I have no idea if it's mine or not," said Alex, "though I am aware that it's very trendy at the moment, which means I'll probably stick out like a sore thumb."
"Your clothes are fine, anyway," said Julian, quite boldly slipping a finger into Alex's open collar and making Alex's eyes go wide and his breathing shallow.
Alex had never been one for casual touching.
"I, ah, had my family's fashion advice, and the clothiers there to overrule it when they tried to choose unsuitable colours," said Alex, catching his hand and kissing the fingertips. His skin felt terribly sensitive, and he was fairly certain that Julian hadn't intended to get quite the reaction that his touch had wrought in Alex's body.
It had been far too long since Alex's last liaison.
Julian blushed fetchingly, as if he could read the inappropriate reactions in Alex's face and deduce their meaning the way Alex read magical cues. "Well, you look quite fine," he said, touching the lapel pin, which responded by glowing just a little brighter.
"Not as fine as you," said Alex, giving in to the urge to stroke just the backs of his fingers over Julian's cheek. "There's a reason half the aristocracy is fighting for your hand, beyond boring ambition."
Julian laughed, and it was delighted and sexy at once. "You find ambition boring?"
"Dreadfully," said Alex, forcing his hand to drop away, so he wasn't touching Julian anywhere. He berated himself mentally for missing the contact.
Julian's eyes narrowed. "Then why are you here?" he asked.
Alex chuckled. "I'm fairly sure it's not on to ask that of your suitors," he said, then looked away and up at the ceiling, trying to find a truth that would work here. "I suppose the simplest way to say it is that I'm here for you."
It was true, because it was Julian who wanted, needed more than anyone for Mandeville's murderer to be caught. To be stopped before more people died, before he could recover from the failure of the spell he'd put so much time and effort into cultivating and try something new. Something worse.
Julian smiled. "I'm not sure that's entirely true," he said, touching Alex's cheek with his fingertips so Alex would look back down at him. "But I'll take it."
The kiss that followed was as sweet as it was unexpected, and Alex couldn't have stopped from kissing back any more than he could have lied about why he was there, not really.
Julian's lips were soft and warm, narrower than Alex's lush, wide mouth, both stronger and more pliant than Alex was used to. Despite having initiated things, Julian quickly gave up control, letting Alex cup his cheek, change the angle, slip his tongue out to taste the softness of Julian's mouth. Julian let out a soft sigh when the kiss ended, eyelids fluttering open as he said, "Perhaps you're here for me after all," he said with a shy smile.
"Aren't you enough?" said Alex, and thankfully that seemed to be just the right thing. If it hadn't been, Alex supposed, he could always go for more kissing.
The car slowed to a stop before Alex could follow that line of thought any further, and then they were outside a very trendy restaurant indeed.
Alex was right, he stood out, but he wasn't sure it was all that bad, considering the crowd vying for Julian's hand and heart.
CHAPTER 14
In Which We Have Dinner, Drinks and Dancing
Alex got out first mainly because he was closest to the door, but it also gave him the chance to offer Julian a hand, to tuck his hand in Alex's arm as they walked toward the tall glass doors. Alex stopped, sighed, and said, "Just a moment," turning back and flagging down the car so he could get a few essentials -- like the card-and
-bribe-money bundles -- out of his overcoat.
At least he'd remembered before they got inside.
"Sorry about that," said Julian, brandishing his wallet and then slipping it in the inner pocket of his suit jacket instead. "I forgot I'd put it all in the coat."
"Am I so very distracting?" asked Julian coyly.
Alex gave the only response he could. "Yes," he said, tucking Julian's hand in his arm and palming one of Henry's cards as the doors swung open untouched.
"Mr. Benedict, Master St. Albans, so good to see you," said the maître d', shaking Alex's hand and smoothly accepting the bribe, then taking Julian's coat and handing it off to the waiting coat check girl. "Your table is ready."
"Thank you," said Alex, getting an odd look from the elegantly-dressed man before he led them off to their seats, a perfectly good table, not the best but not shoved near the kitchen doors, either.
Once they were seated, Julian grinned. "Maîtres d' are a bit like fairies," he said, "they don't really like to be thanked except with gifts."
Alex laughed. "I'll remember that," he said, opening his menu. Nothing had prices, and a glance told him that was true of Julian's as well, which was an interesting choice. It reinforced the feeling that one had to be part of a special class to even get a table here, one that Alex disliked intensely, despite being one of those people on the inside.
"What do you think is good?" asked Julian, snapping him out of his reverie.
Alex forced himself to focus on the menu, which seemed to consist mostly of small plates that one could try in sequence. "I expect it's all ridiculously delicious," said Alex with a chuckle.
"I like that," said Julian. "Ridiculously delicious."
In the end, they ordered an altogether random assortment of things and let the waiter pick the wine, and Alex didn't mind one bit given the delighted expression on Julian's face. "I don't know that I've ever had someone so willing to just try things out," he said.
Alex shrugged. "Why not? It's not as though any of it will be bad, and if it is, we'll pay for it anyway and then go get takeaway curry or something."
