by Sofia Grey
He glanced at her and pulled a face. “Like you said, it sucks. I’m not happy about the situation—with her and Marcus. I don’t know where I stand.”
Rico finished his call when they entered the kitchen. Anger lined his face, and he shoved the phone in his back pocket. “More problems in the office. Someone is really screwing us over.” He slipped an arm around Sylvie’s shoulders and dropped a kiss onto her temple. “Let’s go.”
He pulled her close outside, and she snuggled into his body. Alex dawdled behind, scuffing leaf mould with his boots.
“Is Alex okay?” asked Rico. “He looks off.”
“I think it’s all this crap with Marianne staying in London. Marcus is there too.”
“Yeah, I spoke to Marcus. He’s at the office now.”
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“Spoil my weekend with you? No way.”
They were soon at Kate’s house, eating her delicious cookies and drinking coffee. Jordan and Rico disappeared together, to talk about TM-Tech stuff, leaving the others in the kitchen. Sylvie sat on the floor and picked up Ted. She tickled him and made him squeal with laughter, then did the same with Poppy.
“Suze. Suze.” Poppy clapped her hands in delight and reached up to be tickled again.
Alex watched, from where he leaned against the table. “What does she call you?”
“Somebody told her my name was Sizzle”—she gave Alex a mock-stern look—“but she can’t manage that, so she calls me Suze.”
“I think they’re here.” Kate came over and scooped up Poppy on one side and Ted on the other. Alex held out his hand, to drag Sylvie up, and they all trooped outside. Rico and Jordan talked to three guys busy unloading bags from a black SUV.
“Look.” Alex bumped Sylvie with his shoulder. “Beemer X5. What do you reckon?” His grin was infectious.
She giggled, and then whispered, “Definitely a Pimp-Mobile.” This was the first time she saw him smile today, and her heart lifted.
Rico beckoned them forwards. “This is Sylvie, and Alex. Guys, I’d like you to meet Jack, Antoine, and Tanner.”
She shook hands with each of them and said her hellos. She guessed they were all ex-forces—well built, with cropped hair and tattoos visible on their arms. They laughed and backslapped with Rico, were respectful towards Jordan and Alex, and incredibly polite to her, Louisa, and Kate.
They dumped their bags in the attic room and set off to tour the property with Jordan and Rico.
Rico insisted Sylvie stay indoors with the others, and she felt grateful. It was cold outside again. Louisa seemed brighter and had put on some makeup. She chatted with Alex, doing a passable imitation of a conversation. It had to be said though, Alex looked like one of the living dead today. Not only did he appear not to have slept in days, but he looked defeated. Sylvie wished she knew what to do, to cheer him up. The flash of humour outside had been just that. Over in seconds.
Kate insisted on Sylvie, Rico, and Alex staying for lunch, but it was a subdued meal. Jordan also looked tired and drawn. After they ate, Alex cleared his throat and said he had an announcement of sorts. Everyone turned to look at him.
He fiddled with his crumpled paper napkin. “It’s to let you know I’m going back to work after Christmas. We’re going to start touring again, early in the new year. Frankie, our manager, is finalising the dates. It’s all going public next week.”
It was such an exciting thing to say, but it looked more as though he delivered a death sentence. Sylvie had a bad feeling about it, and glanced at Rico, to see his puzzled gaze.
Kate spoke first. “So is this good news or bad?”
Alex dredged up a smile, but it looked thin. “Depends on your perspective, I suppose.” He hesitated. “I have to attend a press conference on Tuesday.” He glanced at Sylvie, and then back to Kate. “Can Sylvie stay here that day, rather than being on her own?”
“Of course.” Kate smiled at Sylvie. “You’re always welcome here.” She turned back to Alex. “Is it only for the day?”
He shrugged, and then ran a finger around the collar of his black T-shirt. “I might not be back until Wednesday. These things often run on for hours.”
“If you’re coming back on Wednesday, we may as well travel together,” said Jordan. “We’ll be coming back in the afternoon, for the Thanksgiving weekend.”
Sylvie could stay quiet no longer. “If you don’t want to tour again, why are you doing it?”
He stared at the crumpled napkin in his hand and crushed it tighter. “I feel as though I hid away for long enough. When we played at the party, I remembered the buzz, the high I used to get from performing. I’m bored with doing nothing all day. I’ve too much time on my hands.”
Something didn’t ring true. “But your writing? What about all your new material?”
“I can still do that. I’m used to writing on the move.”
An awkward silence fell around the table, until Jordan said, “I’d say congratulations, but you don’t seem that happy. Why don’t we wish you all the luck in the world?”
There was a faint smile again. It took a while to arrive, though, and it wasn’t particularly convincing.
* * * *
Marcus spent most of Saturday salvaging hardware from a water-damaged datacentre, in a frustrating repeat of the weekend before. One thing was for sure—it couldn’t have been staged by Pete Tandy. He was still in custody and had revealed little. Nevertheless, it was too much of a coincidence to be an accident, which meant there was another insider involved in this mess. Either that, or Pete Tandy was innocent. There was no point in dragging the others back early, so he worked through it with Marianne and Aiden, and called Jordan and Rico to update them.
By six in the evening, they were all exhausted and left for the day, leaving a small army of workers to continue through the night. This time, the second floor could be dried out more or less, in order to get a skeleton network up and running by Sunday. For the moment, systems were down again. The insurance people would have a field day. He doubted they’d cover this second incident, and that increased his simmering headache. Days like this, he was tempted to throw in the towel. If he quit TM-Tech, where could he go? If Thaddeus was pissed at him and spread the word he wasn’t up to the job, his career options were limited.
Sick of everything, he took Marianne back to his apartment. It was a far cry from the George V, but a damn sight more luxurious than her place. After a bath and a pizza delivery, they fell into bed, too tired to do more than kiss and cuddle.
“I hate to make plans, since everything seems to get wrecked at the last minute, but are you doing anything tomorrow?” He nuzzled her neck as he spoke.
She stretched out against him, their bodies spooned together. “Sleeping sounds good. What were you thinking of?”
“Sleeping. Maybe just staying here in bed.”
“Uh huh.” She yawned.
He gathered her closer. “It was a clusterfuck today, but it was easier having you with me. We’re good together.” Marcus hesitated. “You know, I’m going to ask Louisa for a divorce. When I’m free again, will you marry me? I love you, Marianne.”
She stilled, and her breathing seemed to halt for a moment. When she spoke, her voice was sharp. “Marry you? Isn’t it a bit early to think about that?”
That stung. “Does it matter how early it is? I told you I want to be with you. I thought you felt the same.”
There was a tired sigh from her. “It’s late, sweetie, and I am so tired. Can we please talk about this another time? This is too big to think about at the moment.”
His mind whirled. It was a big question, but one he thought she’d answer without thinking. Jordan’s words flashed through his brain. His taunt could be true. “Are you going to break up with AJ?” He hated himself for asking. He sounded like a teenager. “If you’re having doubts, tell me now.” He caressed her body and nipped the back of her neck, as he knew she liked it.
She moaned and rubbe
d against him. He knew her body so intimately. Could drive her to one orgasm after another and leave her begging for more. He’d win her over. Whatever it took.
* * * *
Alex made an excuse about getting back to the studio, and slipped away from Jordan’s house before the others. He sat in his favourite chair and stared into space. The press conference was on Tuesday, and from that point on, it’d be like a roller coaster. He’d be unable to do anything until the ride finished. The media would be all over them—all over him, in particular. Any idea of privacy would be impossible. They’d re-examine his life in the most intimate detail. He cringed at the prospect.
If it was only a case of rehearsing some numbers, playing a few gigs, and then going home afterward, like at Kate’s party, it’d be fine. But this juggernaut?
His heart was heavy, but this was his only option for sanity. He needed to immerse himself so thoroughly he didn’t have time to think about Sylvie.
Alex thought back to the conversation he had with Jordan, about Maz. Was she still involved with Marcus? Jordan told him what he knew. Marcus had plans to divorce Louisa and have a permanent relationship with Maz. To Jordan’s knowledge, she and Marcus were spending the weekend together.
Alex hated putting Jordan on the spot, but it gave the excuse he needed to be heartbroken and mooning around. Nobody would suspect his heart was broken over Sylvie.
Last time Event Horizon toured, he fell off the wagon in a spectacular fashion. His flirtation with drugs continued. Could he resist them both this time? Did he even want to? The temptation of sinking into a bottle of vodka was incredible. Booze had been his friend, always there to prop him up. A constant in his life.
It was with a sense of resignation that he walked up to the kitchen and dug out the bottle of vodka he opened when Maz was here. Although he’d poured himself a glass that night, he’d tipped it down the sink.
There was no reason to hold back now.
It wasn’t cold, but half an hour in the icebox would take care of that.
He slowly poured a generous measure of the spirit, before shoving the rest of it in the freezer, alongside sliced bread and frozen peas. One sniff, and he flew straight back. One hesitant sip, and he felt it sear the back of his throat. One gulp, and the fire ran along his veins. That was better. For some reason, his vision was blurring. He rubbed angrily at his eyes, then walked slowly down to the studio, to stare into space again.
Alex heard Sylvie and Rico coming back a few hours later. He’d already taped a polite notice to the closed studio door—Recording in session. Please stay away. Their footsteps approached, paused, and then receded. He raised a silent glass in a toast to them. The vodka, slightly chilled now, was down there with him.
He managed to hide in the studio all day Sunday, emerging only when he received a text from Sylvie to say Rico was about to leave. Alex hadn’t slept in his bed for a couple days, showered or changed, and he noted their worried looks at his rougher-than-usual appearance. He plastered a smile on his face and stepped forwards, to say goodbye to Rico.
They shook hands, and then Rico clasped his forearm and gazed at him. “You okay, Alex?”
He fell back on his story. “This business with Maz and Marcus—it’s fucking with my head.”
“She’s not worth it, man.” Rico was sympathetic. “See you Wednesday? You’re still travelling back up here with us?” Alex nodded, and Rico said, “Good luck with the press conference.”
Sylvie was tenser than usual when Rico left. She disappeared to her room without speaking, and Alex shuffled back to the studio. She was stressed like this when she first arrived at his place, only a few weeks ago. It seemed much longer. Was it possible to fall in love in a matter of weeks? Well, Syl had met and fallen for Rico very recently, Jon and Anita met, made a baby, and got married. Perhaps it wasn’t so rare after all. There was Kate, too. She mentioned a short relationship with Jordan before they married.
None of this helped.
Alex sipped the last of the vodka. He made this bottle last two nights, which was something of a record. Would he go out for more tomorrow? Or try to lay off it before the press conference? It would be easier to cope with, after a few stiff ones.
He didn’t remember falling asleep, but jerked awake, shocked and disoriented. Was that a noise upstairs? A clatter of footsteps. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end.
Angry his reactions were dulled by alcohol, he almost collided with Sylvie, who was running upstairs in a frenzy. He followed. This time she ran along the landing, opening all the doors and muttering under her breath. Was she looking for Rico?
Alex slipped an arm around her shoulders, and guided her to her own room and back into bed. She was frozen again and restless, still muttering as she tossed and turned under the duvet. He slowly reached for her hand. Over and over, he told her she was safe and could go back to sleep, and eventually she quieted.
Christ. This was tearing him apart.
Half an hour later, she was awake and sobbing again, after the same nightmare as before. He was ready this time. Alex heated her some milk while she spoke haltingly to Rico, and then he reassured Rico that she’d be fine. Sylvie ended up sleeping in the studio, curled up in the chair with a blanket wrapped around her, while Alex watched over her all night.
* * * *
Marianne’s body was exhausted, but her brain spun in circles. While Marcus slept, she tried to force herself to switch off. To relax and enjoy the feel of him wrapped around her.
He wanted to get married.
Funny how she didn’t see this coming. She’d been so blinkered by her obsession with AJ, she didn’t consider Marcus for a serious relationship.
She’d have liked a little notice. A warning. Nobody ever proposed to her before, and she always imagined it would be a romantic moment. Not necessarily the full-blown drop-on-one-knee version, but something a little more than a quick conversation in bed. Out of nowhere.
She’d hurt his feelings, and it made her feel bad. Did she want to marry him? If she put everything else aside, the answer was simple. A resounding big yes. Factor in all the issues, and it wasn’t so clear. He needed to divorce Louisa. He had a child. There’d be custody decisions. Marianne would become a stepmom. Christ. She never wanted kids. Did that extend to stepkids? Where would they live? Could she still work for him? That was unlikely.
And then there was AJ. She’d dreamed about a relationship with him for so long, it stunned her to realise she didn’t want it now. She needed to let him down gently. Dumping him by text or email was not an option. That meant another trip to Rhosneigr. She groaned silently at the thought.
She needed a little time to get used to the idea. To see herself in the role of the new Mrs. Reeve. After all, divorces weren’t quick. It wasn’t like he was talking about tying the knot in a few weeks. Was he? No, that didn’t make sense.
When he kissed her awake in the morning, she was convinced she hadn’t slept at all. If he started pressing her for an answer now, she didn’t know how she’d react. Probably not favourably.
To her surprise, he didn’t mention it. Instead, he pampered her. Called out for good bagels and coffee, and brought her breakfast in bed, along with a giant stack of newspapers and glossy magazines.
“I’d like to go shopping today,” he said, as he fed her a piece of bagel.
For an engagement ring? He wouldn’t be that presumptuous. “What kind of shopping?”
“The fun kind. Wear a skirt and no panties.”
He meant the naughty kind. After buying some expensive French lingerie for her, they went for lunch at an exquisite bistro, and rounded off the afternoon with a trip to an upmarket sex shop, for an assortment of toys.
Marriage wasn’t mentioned, and Marianne felt puzzled. Was he waiting for her to make the first move? Either way, she needed to figure out how to break up with AJ first. She sent him a text as she and Marcus headed back to her apartment in a cab.
Hey. We need to talk. Are y
ou coming to town again soon?? Otherwise I’ll come up to Wales. Maz x
Jordan would be back this evening, so Marcus was officially moving in with her. It was exciting and scary at once.
AJ replied soon after.
Coming to London on Tuesday. Meet me at the Savoy, noon.
She showed the text to Marcus. “I guess he figured it out.” The idea of upsetting him left a bad taste in her mouth. “I didn’t want to hurt him. I thought we had a future together.” It made her wonder. How must Louisa feel, having lost Marcus? Marianne looked at him—her lover—at his thick blond hair and twinkling blue eyes. The man she couldn’t bear to lose.
“You’re my future now.” She caught his hand. “I’m sorry for how I reacted when you asked me to marry you. You took me by surprise. If you ask me again, I promise you’ll get a better response.”
“I should hope so.” He tugged her into his arms. “I shouldn’t have sprung it on you. I wasn’t thinking. Let me get everything straight with Louisa, and then I’ll ask you again. Properly.” He stole a kiss. “Happy?”
“Perfectly.”
* * * *
So many extra people are called into the TM-Tech offices at the moment, it was the easiest job ever to wheel in another trolley load of equipment. Because I wore overalls and a hard hat, a fake ID clipped to my lapel, nobody questioned my right to be there.
The original datacentre was my target, in the depths of the tower block. You want to cut a tree down, you chop the base. I hid my explosives with care, ensured they were obscured amongst the boxes and cupboards, then returned to admire the latest damage I caused on the second floor. For the past week, I’ve been in the building every day, familiarising myself with the layout, the fire escapes, and the lockable offices.
I even saw my hated enemy briefly, on Monday morning. He marched through the lobby, flanked by his usual minders—a corporate flunky and his tame gorilla, Rico Sanchez. I should have disposed of Rico when I had the chance. I kept my face averted as they walked past. Rico recognised me before, and with only days to go, I won’t let my plan get derailed. His irritating little girlfriend distracted me that night in the alley. If I see her again, I’ll make sure she pays for it.
