My jaw clicks as I grind my teeth together harder at the sound of him calling Colin his.
“I said he was innocent when I met him,” I add, lifting my fresh glass to my lips. “I never said he stayed that way.”
Colin’s eyes narrow at me as the table grows tense with silence.
Eventually, he responds. “We did have fun in our younger days. And he was aterribleinfluence, but that’s what I wanted…at the time. I was living a sheltered existence until I met Declan, and he cured me of it. We had our fun, but we were young. And those days are over.”
“What a pity, Shakespeare,” I reply over my glass.
“Don’t call me that,” he says without hesitation. His tone is still warm and playful, but I can sense something more beneath it, which means he’s hiding his contempt. I suspect he’s still cross with me for what happened last time we saw each other.
“Speaking of fun…” Pierce says as he waves down the waiter for another drink of his own. “This manor of yours has a bit of a reputation.”
“Pierce!” Colin snaps, turning toward him.
The American only laughs as he rubs Colin’s back. “What? I’m just curious.”
Sitting up straight, I set my whisky on the table. “That was a long time ago,” I say, wincing at the idea that my brother’s infamous sex parties have made such a splash that people from as far as America have heard about them.
I don’t say anything as Pierce commandeers the conversation, a bright, amused smile on his face. “Let’s just say I’ve heard this manor used to be known for events very different from weddings.”
“That was when my brother lived here,” I mumble, my fingers squeezing the glass in my hands.
“That’s enough,” Colin says, growing more and more uncomfortable.
Then his gaze meets mine, and I have to bite back my smirk, because as humiliating as it is to hear some stranger talking aboutmy family’s dirty secrets as if they’re nothing more than gossip, it is worth it to see that bashful expression on his face again.
As we stare at each other, I wonder if he’s also remembering the year we came to Barclay. The year he nearly witnessed one of those parties himself. The year everything fell apart, and what happened between us that night.
For a moment, a hint of nostalgia-like pain lances my heart, and I wince as I take a drink of my whisky to dull the ache. Perhaps I missed Colin more than I thought.
He was my best friend for nearly a decade. Of course I missed him.
And sure, there was a time when we acted more like lovers than friends. But that’s all it ever was. If I ever considered having romantic feelings for Colin Shelby, those days have passed. They were a mistake that would have ended badly.
So now, he’s getting married, which is a good thing.
And I will make sure of it. I’ll be here to ensure that every step of this wedding goes off without a hitch so that I can win this bet and finally have this house to myself the way I want.
I’m not about to let an old romantic entanglement mess that up now.
* * *
After lunch, I leave the couple to get settled in their room. They’ll be staying for the week, and we have rooms for some of their wedding party as well once they arrive.
I’m thankful once again for the space between my quarters and theirs.
When I hear the familiar click of my sister’s heels on the floor, growing closer to the library where I’m hiding, I say a silent prayer that she doesn’t find me.
“There you are!” Anna says from the doorway when she spots me. She scurries closer, finding me slumped down in the large upholstered chair with my legs propped up on an old ottomanand a glass of whisky resting on my lap. “Are you hiding? What’s wrong? How did it go this afternoon? Did you ruin it already?”
“Anna, for fuck’s sake, calm down.”
“What happened?” she asks, a bit more relaxed.
“Nothing happened,” I reply with a slur, taking a sip of my drink. I’ve lost count of how many of these I’ve had today—at least three at lunch. “I gave them the bloody tour, and now they’re getting settled in their room. Everything is under control.”
“Thank God,” she says with a sigh as she rests against the desk. “Are you drunk?”
