***
I’m still thinking about the pancake encounter hours later at the speakeasy, The Velvet Arrow. The candlelight gives the room a romantic glow, and I can’t help but wish this were a real date.
The concierge sent a beautiful, beaded dress to our room for me. Its style is perfect for the speakeasy vibe. The concierge also sent up a black pinstriped suit for Jack, making him look like an old-time gangster. I love it, but he hates it.
“Relax and enjoy yourself.” I take a sip of my drink, which the waitress calls a Gin Rickey. “You look hot in that outfit.” I smile over the rim of my glass, savoring the surprise in Jack’s eyes. This is only my second drink, but I’m such a lightweight that it’s already going to my head. “Dance with me, Jack.” I stand, holding out my hand. Reluctantly, he takes my hand and leads me to the dance floor. His arms rest on my hips as we sway to the music. I run my hands up the front of his suit, then behind his neck. I rise onto my toes, pressing my lips to his ear. “You know what else I want from you, Jack?”
He clenches his jaw, his eyes locked on my mouth. His head lowers, closer and closer to my lips. Our lips are almost touching when his phone vibrates against us. “Sorry, but I have to answer this.” He steps back and pulls his phone from his pocket. I can only hear his side of the conversation, and even though he doesn’t say much, it seems serious. He ends the call and then puts his phone back in his pocket. “We need to go back to the hotel now.” There’s an urgency in his voice that makes me obey.
He laces his fingers through mine, leading me through the crowded bar and out onto the city streets, where a car is waiting for us. Back at the hotel without so much as a goodnight, he ushers me into the hotel room and down the hallway to my bedroom. It takes me a while to fall asleep, wondering what could have been so important on that phone call we had to rush back to our hotel room.
It's only a few hours before I find out exactly what that phone call was about and how it would change my life forever.
eight
Jack
“What do you mean,my parents hired a couple of guys to attack Ember last night?”
I waited until this morning to tell Elsa about my phone call last night. I wanted to make sure I had all the information before I told her. As soon as I hung up with Trace, I woke her up, had her eat those damn pancakes she loves so much, and finally told her about her parents.
“According to Trace, two guys tried to assault Ember last night.”
“Is she okay?” The need to hold Elsa in my arms and tell her everything will be okay grips me hard. Pushing those feelings down, I tell her everything I know.
“She’s fine. A little shaken up, but Trace is with her.” I don’t tell her that Trace told me he’s claimed Ember as his own. That’s Ember’s story to tell. “The guys who attacked her were arrested. They spent the night in jail, but first thing this morning, they were bailed out. Reliable sources identified the people who bailed them out. It was your parents.”
I calmly wait for the hysterics or, at the very least, tears from Elsa now that she knows the truth about her parents, but I don’t get either. “Honestly, I’m not surprised. They’ve never been loving parents. Our maids and butlers were more like parents to us than our own. It’s always been about the family business. Even the invitation to the Valentine’s Day Ball is all for show. The Frozen Flame collection is the only thing they care about. I believe they staged the attack to draw more attention to the Ball tomorrow night. Ember and I are both supposed to be there, each wearing a piece from the collection.”
“That’s it. The Valentine’s Day Ball. We can set a trap for them there.”
***
After spending the next four hours on the phone setting the plan in motion, Trace and Ember arrive at the hotel room. Elsa and Ember embrace like they haven’t seen each other in years and rush off to Elsa’s bedroom after we fill them in on the plan.
“Do you think the plan will actually work?” Trace paces the length of the room. “I don’t like placing Ember in danger.”
“They won’t be in any danger. Besides, Riker and Hollander will be there if things get hairy.”
“What time do their flights get in?”
“They should be here no later than two in the afternoon. Just enough time to set the plan in motion.”
“If anything happens to Ember, you’re a dead man. I don’t care if you’re one of my best friends. Ember is my heart.”
“Don’t worry. I feel the same way about Elsa.”
“So, you’ve talked about what happened that night? Did she tell you why she pretended to be Ember?” He peppers me with questions, not giving me a chance to answer.
“Not, exactly,” I finally answer when he stops to take a breath.
“You, my friend, are royally screwed.”
Don’t I know it.
We spend the rest of the day working on our plans for tomorrow night. The girls come out of Elsa’s room long enough to eat some of the pizza Trace ordered. Since the suite has four bedrooms, I jokingly assigned Trace and Ember each their own room. But Ember took me seriously and put her things in her assigned room. Trace gave me a look like he’s ready to kill me for suggesting they sleep apart. In the end, I’m pretty sure I hear Trace sneaking into Ember's bedroom in the middle of the night to claim his woman, which I wish I could claim Elsa as easily.
One more day and I can.
