He grabs my bare arse cheeks and I grind against him. His groan reverberates in my mouth, taking my last ounce of conservatism. I roughly undo the button of his jeans and he pulls the hooded jumper over my head, uncovering my naked body.
‘I’ve missed you,’ he whispers.
I don’t let myself think of anything: not why we’ve been apart, not how I’ve felt in that time, and not how I truly feel about him. I yank him towards me and kiss him fiercely. He lifts me and shifts us so that I’m sitting on the island. I wrap my legs around him, pulling him into me, feeling his length beneath his jeans. He strokes his hand through my wet hair and I kiss him harder. I can’t stand it any more. I want him. I need him.
He leans me back to lie on the island and slips off his jeans. I feel bereft in the brief seconds it takes for him to climb on top of me. Supporting his entire weight with one strong arm and tracing the contours of my body with his other, he places his lips on mine and pushes his hand between my legs, first cupping me then moving his fingers inside. I groan with desperation.
‘God, Scarlett, what are you doing to me?’
My eyes widen. Exactly what you’re doing to me, I hope.
My hips rise towards him and I dig my nails into his back. He resists me at first then in his own time, he lowers himself. He’s inside me. My breathing deepens with each thrust of his body, my muscles clamping down on his stiff shaft. My impulse to push back against him increases and I feel myself move slowly to a heady euphoria, a place I’ve longed for, where there’s no one and nothing else.
He drives and rotates simultaneously, stiffening further. He’s almost ready. Squeezing my legs tighter around his waist, I push my hips up until he’s so deep, he reaches the end of me. I’m lost in him. Out of my own head. All his.
Another gorgeous grind and his name leaves me as we climax together.
He collapses onto my chest and it’s my turn to stroke his hair as his body trembles.
‘I’m sorry,’ he says when we eventually dress. ‘I didn’t mean to?—’
I pull his chin to look at me and gently kiss him. ‘Now, salmon gets my vote,’ I say.
‘Salmon it is,’ he says, unsmiling.
We eat dinner on the sofa, probably the most informal we’ve been together, and it’s remarkably comfortable. Gregory dims the lights low enough that we can see the stars in the sky and occasional red flashes of aeroplane lights flying by, going in and out of Heathrow and London City airports. He pulls the glass coffee table closer and plants his bare feet on top of it, then wraps an arm around me and pulls me into his side. I don’t want to ruin the moment, I could stay in this moment forever, but I have questions he needs to answer.
‘I need to ask you some things.’
He sips his wine. ‘Okay.’
‘Let’s start with the note. You said there was a note and that’s how you knew to come to the hospital.’
He takes a deep breath, bracing himself, then moves towards the window, his hands resting in his jeans’ pockets, his bare back tense.
‘Do you remember the first time you stayed here?’
A half-smile rises on my lips. He glances over his shoulder but his face is serious. My smile fades.
‘That night, during the night, someone tried to tamper with the apartment alarm.’ He glances back at me but I don’t react. ‘It’s not the first time someone’s tried something. Money and power can attract a lot of animosity. Jackson checked the stairwells, lifts, ground floor and there was nothing. The concierge hadn’t noticed anyone coming into or out of the building. Then he checked the basement.’
Gregory turns to face me, shaking his head. ‘I honestly had no idea, Scarlett.’ Turning back to face the outside world, he continues, ‘There was pen or paint – I never saw it – on the window screen of the Mercedes. It said… it said, “Accidents Happen”.’
I swallow a lump in my throat. ‘He meant my dad.’
‘We didn’t know for sure. God, I should’ve realised that he knew who you were and got Jackson to step up security right after we closed the deal. He used to be in the forces, then the police, and has a lot of friends still there or ex-cops who do similar work to him. So, the next day, he put two men on my mother. Williams wasn’t interested, said he could handle himself, although I think he’s wanted the opportunity to come face to face with my dad since we were boys. And you, well, I just… I didn’t plan to let you out of my sight anyway and with Jackson here, I didn’t think anyone else was necessary.’
‘That’s what you were talking about when I interrupted that morning.’ And that’s why you wanted to take me away.
‘Yes. Fuck, I could kick myself.’
I rise from the sofa and stand by his side, looking out at the bright city lights again. ‘What about the note?’
‘He went a step further when we were at Chapel Down. He must have walked straight into the building. I don’t know why or how… Part of me wonders if he wanted me to find out and stop him but…’
‘The note, Gregory, tell me!’ I snap.
‘He posted a note under the door of the apartment. It said, “Tell your girlfriend to stay strong”.’
