Soft, discreet knocks come from the door. I head over to check. A uniformed hotel concierge smiles. “The extra bedding you requested, sir.”
I start to tell him I didn’t ask for it, then decide it might be for Max. She tends to get cold easily. She acted like London was freezing, and Japan’s probably not much warmer, especially at night. “Thank you.”
He smiles and places them on the bench at the foot of the bed. “Do you need anything else, sir?”
I shake my head, and he leaves. I turn my attention back to my phone as another text pops up. My intestine knots:Czarina, the nickname my brothers and I gave our grandmother.
–Czarina: We need to talk about what’s being reported. It isn’t seemly.
Is anythingseemlyto Grandmother? The Mother Abbess fromThe Sound of Musicis more laid-back than my grandmother, but that nun didn’t have a son like my father, much less one who married a woman like my mother.
–Czarina: Why are you ignoring my messages?
–Czarina: Did you block me?
–Czarina: It’s improper to block your grandmother.
Not answering. If I do, she won’t stop. And right now I just don’t have the energy.
–Finn: Why does Czarina want to know if you forgot your phone?
–Gideon: Lol. She wants me to hack into your phone and unblock her.
Just like her to ping Gideon, since he’s into tech. Except he’s an angel investor who likes to fund promising startups, not a programmer or hacker. But to our grandmother, they’re all the same thing.
–Me: I didn’t forget my phone—obviously. I’m just ignoring her.
–Xavier: Not the best idea. She’s going to make you pay.
–Silas: Not if he takes care of the problem first. Sue the woman for defamation.
–Me: I already have Jeremiah working on it.
My brothers send a bunch of emojis showing approval. A partner from Huxley & Webber, Jeremiah Huxley is one of the scariest legal sharks on the planet, and probably more of a parent to me and my brothers than our own parents. Every time somebody needed to talk to our parents, they were referred to her.
“Whatever you do, don’t get caught. But if you do, call Jeremiah,” Mom and Dad told us since we were old enough to understand.
–Xavier: As much as I admire her way of dealing with this sort of mess, it’ll work better if you have a girlfriend or fiancée.
–Silas: Somebody steady and nice. Presentable. Like Max.
My mouth flattens. There wasn’t even an instant of hesitation when she turned me down. What if she were single? Would she have given it more consideration? Or would she still find me not worth the effort? Would I be able to offer anything that would make it worth her while?
She might think that I just don’t know how to be a boyfriend. It’s no secret I haven’t had a serious girlfriend in years. Not that I live like a monk—it’s just that I never bothered to invest in relationships. There’s no point when they just fizzle out and end for reasons that have nothing to do with me.
–Me: Already asked her. She turned me down. There’s a boyfriend. The kissy kind.
–Liam: Don’t you normally kiss boyfriends?
–Me: Wouldn’t know. Never had one.
–Finn: You know, I heard that there’s some kind of festival or something going on in Tokyo. Maybe you can take her there to thank her for all the travel and overtime.
The suggestion’s very much like Finn. He prefers to reward his assistant periodically with gifts geared toward experience, like restaurant vouchers or a stay at some quaint Napa bed-and-breakfast.
–Me: Not sure if she’ll be in the mood to spend more time together. We’re stuck in the same room.
–Gideon: No way. I thought you said she has a “kissy” kind of boyfriend.
