Henry turned back to me. His cheeks were flushed, his lips moist, and his eyes dusky with the desire that had overcome him. He didn’t speak, kissing me again instead. This time, the kiss was slower, less urgent—he couldn’t possibly rejoin the guests in the ballroom with an erection, after all. The thought of how outraged the people in their fancy designer gowns and tailored three-piece suits would be if Henry strolled through the ballroom like that made me giggle. That would be a true distraction from his dad’s misdemeanours.
“What’s so funny?” Henry asked, smiling as though simply seeing me happy was enough to make him happy too.
I grinned. “Nothing. Forget it.”
“OK. But do you know what I won’t forget?” His face was so close to mine that I could feel his breath and the hum of his words on my face.
“What?” I asked curiously.
“That you, my angel, didn’t object to your new nickname.”
“That wasn’t really possible with your tongue in my mouth.”
He shrugged. “Well, it’s too late now to veto it.”
I placed my hands on his chest and stroked the silky material of his vest. “That’s OK. If you kiss me like you just did, you can call me whatever you like.”
Henry inhaled sharply before breathing out with control, as if summoning every last shred of willpower to fight the urge to kiss me again. “I’ll bear that in mind. But duty calls, unfortunately,” he said, pulling his coat off my shoulders to go back inside. “How about you head up to your room? I’ll stay for another hour, shake a few more hands, and then I’ll join you and we can fulfil your pizza-and-film fantasy?”
I smiled. “That sounds perfect.”
“See you in your room in an hour.”
I nodded eagerly, grateful for the escape he was offering me. I wished I could be a better date, but under the circumstances, our plan seemed for the best. He pulled me close and kissed me one last time before pressing his lips to my temple. “I won’t be able to think about anything else for the next hour except kissing you again, angel,” he murmured against my skin before releasing me.
I left the ball with a wide grin.
38
Henry kissed me!!!
Message from Kate to Grace
Henry
My dad glared at me reproachfully for the rest of the night, as if he’d caught me in bed with five sex workers, and not just kissing Kate on the balcony. He probably would have preferred the sex workers, as at least they would have vanished from my life without a trace—and with the discretion my money would have bought—after a few hours of fun. Kate, on the other hand, would stay for as long as she wanted, and my dad knew it. Judging by my mum’s disapproving glare, which followed me around the ballroom, he had already told her.
I ignored them. They were the last people on earth who had any right to pass judgement on my love life. It still infuriated me how they had treated Kate. She may have no money and be different from Olivia and the other women I had dated before, but we weren’t living in the eighteenth century. There were no rigid social hierarchies left requiring us to uphold appearances. Andeven if there were, it wasn’t Kate who was sullying our family’s reputation—it was my dad. Not that he could see it, blinded as he was by his own ego.
I would have loved to leave the ball with Kate, but it wouldn’t have made a good impression. I had to be seen mingling, though my thoughts never strayed far from Kate. How could I have believed, until so recently, that I had the willpower to be just her friend, when every part of my body ached to be close to her? It was ridiculous.
To my frustration, what was meant to be an hour of handshaking became two, then three, and I was still nowhere near Kate. I was trapped in conversation after conversation, and it felt almost deliberate—as if my dad had conspired with his golf buddies to keep me away from her. Every time I attempted to slip away, someone reeled me back in.
I kept Kate updated, letting her know it was taking longer than planned. Just after midnight, she messaged to say she was going to bed, and that I could get her room key from reception and let myself into her room. It made me happy that she trusted me so much, but I hated that I had let her down. And as much as I loved The Darlington and wanted to save it, I couldn’t help but wonder if it was worth the sacrifices I was making for it.
I finally left the ballroom shortly after 2 a.m., even though the party was still in full swing. The band had stopped playing two hours ago, and the DJ—alternating between playing rock classics and hip-hop—had gradually driven away my dad’s friends. There was no one left to stop me from leaving. I picked up the spare key for Kate’s room from reception before making a detour to my penthouse apartment, where I changed into my T-shirt and joggingbottoms. A dull pain throbbed at my temples. Massaging my head, I weighed up whether the pain was enough to warrant another pill, but decided against it. I had taken one just before the ball to make sure I got through the evening, and besides, it would be impossible to sleep if I took one now, and I wanted nothing more than to fall asleep next to Kate. She had kept me sane in the last few weeks, and after the commotion of the last few hours, I craved the calm she brought me.
In my socks, I padded to Kate’s room on the first floor, unlocked her door, and slipped in. The only light came from the reading lamp, which cast a dim glow. Kate was already in a deep sleep, her eyes closed and her breathing shallow. There was a book open on the mattress beside her, as if she had fallen asleep while reading. I placed it on the bedside table and turned off the light. The room was instantly plunged into near-total darkness. I could see only faint outlines cast by the moonlight filtering through the curtains. Kate let out a soft sigh and shifted slightly, but her eyes remained closed. She looked peaceful, somehow even more beautiful than she had been in her stunning dress at the ball. I knew I shouldn’t reach out and brush my fingers lightly across her cheek, but I did it anyway—I couldn’t help myself.
“Henry?”
“Yes, it’s me.”
She let out a contented sigh and smiled gently, revealing her dimples. “Finally.” Without opening her eyes, she reached out a hand for me—an unspoken invitation I couldn’t turn down.
I slipped under the duvet to join Kate, and she nestled up against me. I wrapped an arm around her. She was warm, and the fresh, floral smell of lavender enveloped me. I buried my face in herhair and inhaled deeply. My body relaxed next to hers, the tension of the last few hours without her finally melting away.
“Goodnight, Snowflake,” Kate mumbled drowsily against my T-shirt.
