Lord M would be delighted.
Tears stung behind her eyes as she turned to Gabriel. “I wouldn’t have managed this without you.”
“You’re joking, right?” He grinned from ear to ear. “I’d have never done this withoutyou. Without your knowledge and your stories.” He placed both hands on her shoulders. “Don’t you know, this is the kind of project I’ve been dreaming of all my life. And it wouldn’t have happened without you.”
His hands squeezed her, and the next thing they were in each other’s arms, hugging fiercely. “Thank you,” he said.
“Thank you, thank you, thank you,” she said.
He pulled her hard against him for a moment before one hand came up to the back of her head, fingers tangling in her hair. His cheek pressed to hers, his beard silky soft, before he slid his face slowly back and his mouth brushed the side of her ear, her jaw, her cheek. He was so close, his breath warm on her own lips.
They both paused on the edge, foreheads touching. Now noses touching. And again, they paused, either hesitating or savouring the slow progress to a point of no return.
A knock on the door.
They sprang apart, knocking a chair over. It fell to the floor with a clatter.
Gabriel bent down to right the chair just as the door opened and Liam walked in.
And stopped in the doorway, looking awkward.
Was it obvious?
“We finished the book,” she rushed to explain, her voice breathless.
“Oh?” Liam shifted from one foot to the other. “That’s good. Isn’t it?” he asked uncertainly.
“Of course. It’s not just what Lord M asked me to do; we’ve exceeded his expectations.”
Liam cleared his throat. “Nicole wants you.”
Pierre looked towards Gabriel, but Liam explained. “You, too.”
“Me? Both of us?”
A ribbon of worry curled through her.
“Yes, and she said immediately.”
Twenty-Five
Nicole always summoned people, and she always made it sound urgent, Pierre tried to reassure herself. This was nothing new.
Still, she followed Liam feeling like a schoolgirl caught sneaking into the tuckshop. She didn’t even dare catch Gabriel’s eye as he walked down the stairs with her.
“She’s in the conservatory,” Liam said as they reached the ground floor, then he hurried away as if he really didn’t want to be part of whatever showdown was coming.
Just before they reached the conservatory, Gabriel looked around to make sure no one was in the hallway, then caught Pierre’s elbow gently. “We need to talk,” he said quietly. His eyes held hers.
She nodded, there was no time for more. Already, they could hear Nicole’s voice all but shouting.
“How can you do this to me?”
They went in to find her pacing up and down the length of the conservatory, her phone to her ear.
“There’s nothing wrong. He’s making it all up to screw me.” She listened for a couple of seconds then interrupted whatever the other person was saying. “We had an agreement.” She had reached the far glass wall and turned. When she saw Gabriel, she waved him over.
“Can’t you at least negotiate on my behalf? You’re supposed to protect me from this kind of thing.” Again, she listened for a second, but all the colour had drained from her face. “What?” she shrieked “Are you serious? So, who is there to defend me? You – you – you,” she stammered. “I’ll take you to court.”
