‘Do you even want to get married?’
‘Of course,’ Savannah gasped. ‘But what we did—’
‘Cheating on me with my brother?’
She nodded, her face pale. She was so delicate and nervous, and he realised he’d never been attracted to her – he’d thought she was the perfect woman, but she wasn’t, not for him. For Liam, probably, but not him. ‘We didn’t want it to be for nothing. We wanted to show you and the rest of the world that we did it for a reason. That we love each other – otherwise, we never would have done what we did.’
‘You should have talked to me. Told me you were unhappy. I would have understood. But instead, you started dating Liam behind my back! Whether you thought it was over or not, neither of you spoke to me about it. You just did whatyouwanted, like you always do. Neither of you cared how I felt. Hell, none of this family gives a shit how I feel!’
This was what he’d always burned to say. The betrayal and pain he felt was because of how his family had behaved towards him, not because of any love he’d had for Savannah.
‘We never talked much about anything! You were so focused on setting up your play in London, while I was building my career in LA. We never once discussed anything, not properly. We just told each other our separate plans and got on with it,’ Savannah said defensively, but then she sighed miserably. ‘We were never going to work together. But, you’re right. I should have ended it sooner. What I did was unforgivable. But I still want you to know that I’m sorry. Not for falling in love with Liam, but for how I treated you both. Liam is devastated about it. Please, I understand if you can’t forgive me, but please talk to him.’
Turning to face her, he said gently, ‘I do forgive you, Savannah. We were never right for one another, I see that. But Liam is my brother. I trusted him to have my back. And now everyone expects me to just get over his betrayal of my trust like it was nothing. I’m going to need time to forgive him. I know I will in the end. Just, don’t ever cheat on Liam – that’s one thing I could never forgive.’
Her chin wobbled.
‘Don’t cry!’ he pleaded, removing her hand from his arm and giving it a gentle squeeze before releasing it.
She gave him a watery smile. ‘I love him so much.’
‘Then I’m glad, because he really loves you, too.’
To his surprise, he meant every word.
After they’d eaten lunch, Ellie seemed a little brighter about the bikini incident.
‘I can’t hide away for ever,’ she said resolutely, before wincing. ‘But maybe not the pool again just yet. Actually, you know what?I’d like to learn to cook something. The meals here are so lush, do you think your chef will give me some recipes?’
‘Erm… probably.’ He couldn’t even remember the name of his parents’ current chef.
‘That curried lobster dish we had was fantastic. I wonder if I could recreate it with king prawns for Mark’s birthday. He’d love it.’
‘Doesn’t he like lobster?’
Ellie rolled her eyes. ‘Our wallets don’t like lobster.’
‘Ahh, sorry.’
Ellie merely chuckled, unbothered by his stupid statement.
They walked into the kitchen and found the chef humming to herself. She looked to be in her mid-thirties. Her dark skin contrasted against the crisp chef’s whites and her hair was wrapped in a colourful headscarf.
When she noticed them, her brow wrinkled in confusion. ‘Is there a problem, Mr King? Lunch today is a buffet in fridge one. I was told no formal dining.’
Alex immediately raised his hand in reassurance. ‘No, no problem. Lunch was as delicious as always… Alyssa.’
The tension in her face evaporated and she rewarded him with a grin. He relaxed as well. He hadn’t been a hundred per cent sure of her name, but surely she would have corrected him if he’d been wrong?
‘Hi, I’m Ellie,’ said Ellie, going over to shake Alyssa’s hand with the bright and easy manner that he always found so refreshing. ‘Your food isamazing.I know you’re very busy, but I was really hoping you could give me the recipe for that lobster dish we had the other night? My brother would absolutely love it, and I really love trying to cook new dishes. Only if you don’t mind?’
‘Of course I don’t mind.’ Alyssa dismissed her worry with a wave of her wrist. ‘I’ll write it down for you right now. Unless youwould rather try making it? I’m preparing the dishes for tonight and Mrs King requested that dish again. She said one of her guests loved it.’
‘Guilty as charged.’ Ellie held up her hand. ‘And I would absolutely love to make it.’ She turned to Alex, her eyes shining with enthusiasm. ‘You can go do your own thing if you’d prefer?’
Honestly, if she’d asked him to go dumpster-diving naked, he would have said yes. Her smile was like an aphrodisiac, and he could never deny her anything.
‘Sounds great.’
