OLLIE
Archer had effortlessly navigated the maze of one-way streets to park in the middle of the city. Leaving the car, he steered us to a pedestrian area, where he turned to me. “I’ll see you back at the Great Hall in an hour. If that isn’t long enough, I can bring you into town again, or you could get the bus—it goes past the house.”
He wasn’t offering me the use of his car, which I was relieved about because I’d failed my test four times, and I didn’t want to confess that to him. “Thanks,” I said. “Er, where’s the Great Hall?”
He put his hands on my shoulders and turned me around to see the stone building towering over us witha sign outside sayingThe Great Hall. “See that big building just there?”
“Oh,” I said. Maybe I should have been embarrassed, but all I could think of was his large hands holding me. I imagined I could feel their warmth even through my jacket.
“So whatisthe Great Hall? Other than a great hall.” I was desperate for him to keep holding me, to keep talking so I could hear that deep, slightly growly voice so close against my ear.
“The Hall is the only part of the mediaeval castle that’s still standing. It’s where King Arthur’s Round Table is.”
Surprised, I turned in his hold. We were inches apart, and as I looked up into his face, his eyes were darker than usual and intent on—was he looking at my mouth?
If he was, that didn’t last long. He took a step backwards as he said, “Not the real Round Table, of course. It’s a thirteenth-century fake.”
“Does it count as a fake if it’s that old?”
But the moment between us had gone, and he couldn’t wait to get away from me.
“An hour,” he said, and strode off, long coat swinging.
ARCHER
No matter how tempting Ollie was, Icouldn’t.I had to make his visit a success.
And now I had to introduce him to the family. Most of them were solid and sensible and wouldn’t tattle to an outsider, however personable and easy to talk to. But Chris and June? I didn’t trust them an inch. They’d say anything if it showed me in a bad light, and all the better if it was to an outsider. If they did the unthinkable and left the family to set up a rival branch of the Talbots, they could talk Ollie round. He’d tell his family how wonderful they were, and not only would I have failed to hold my family together butthey’dbe seen as the realTalbots.
Not for the first time, I wished my father was still here. Everyone loved Dad. Everyone except his bank manager, which was why we had so few original paintings left at the Court. If Dad were still alive, Chris and June wouldn’t even be thinking about splitting. They’d never forgiven me for taking over the headship when I was so young.
None of this was helping me decide how to handle our meeting later. I headed for a coffee shop. Maybe a triple espresso would get my brain working.
OLLIE
The hour flew past. I didn’t have time to look for the best shops, so I went into a department store that my mum favoured for socks, undies, and a thick wool jumper. I looked at the priceand promptly put the jumper back. A fleece would do the same job for a fraction of the cost.
I needed jeans. Quitting that store, where I’d been the youngest customer by about forty years, at last I found some decent shops. I bought some dark rinse low-rise jeans that lookedawesomeon me and picked up some tops, making sure I had a mix of full-length and crop tops to cover all eventualities.
Maybe not all my choices were practical for staying in a freezing, old mansion and digging the garden, but I had to look my best. All the more so after Archer had—had hereallybeen looking at my mouth earlier? I didn’t usually miss a trick when it came to other guys’ signals, but he’d stalked off straight afterwards as if he couldn’t stand my presence an instant longer, so I wasn’t sure.
I wanted him to like me. Isowanted him to like me. Even if he didn’t want to bang me, I wanted him to approve of me. Oh, sod it, who was I kidding? I wanted him to like meandto bang me.
My need to get Archer’s attention led me way off-script when it came to shoes. The moment I saw them, I had to have them, even though I couldn’t afford them. Stunning boots in black leather with a Cuban heel that made my arse lookamazing. I’d liked being shorter than Archer when he’d been behind me, holding my shoulders, but when I’d turned to face him, I could have done with the extra couple of inches the heels gave me. It would make it so much easier to reach up and kiss him.
I couldn’t do that. I knew I couldn’t. If nothing else, Jack would crucify me.
But I bought the boots anyway.
* * *
When Archer parked outside the fourth house, he looked weary. I wasn’t sure how old he was. Originally, I’d thought mid-thirties, but having seen that stern expression lighten when he laughed over the stolen chip, I thought he was some years younger than that.
Now, he looked old and careworn. He rubbed his hand through his hair, a gesture I hadn’t seen him use before and which looked unexpectedly uncertain.
“This is the last stop,” he said.
I wasn’t sorry. All the Talbots I’d met so far had been more welcoming than I’d expected, perhaps because their head of family was looming protectively over me, but the sheer number of dragons had become overwhelming. I’d never remember all their names.
