“Thanks,” Everly said with a nervous smile.
“You’re very welcome,” he replied, and he felt the arm of Jennifer tighten possessively around his elbow.
Once everyone was out, he turned to Jennifer.
“I just need to let the staff know we’re leaving,” he said, noticing her pout deepen. “You head down the stairs with the others and let them know I’ll only be a minute or so, would you please?”
Jennifer reluctantly unwrapped her arm from his and shimmied out the door. Edward took a lungful of air, unaware, until he’d done so, that he’d been holding his breath. He relished the quiet and stepped back to the pieces of art that hung on the wall.
He stopped at Everly’s self-portrait, releasing in a flash of idiocy why he’d recognized her the moment he’d bashed her gently with the gallery door. There had been two pieces of work which had left him unable to convey his feelings, one of them a bronze sculpture of a baby, its thoughts and feelings spewing from its head in a mass of other materials; and this beautiful face, a face which spoke a thousand feelings through those magical eyes. How could he not have put two and two together when he’d first laid eyes on the real person?
His fingers gently stroked the cheek of the portrait. He was aware he was committing a terrible sin, touching the artwork, but Edward just couldn’t help himself. The oils felt sharp and cold under his finger-tips, nothing how he imagined her real skin to feel.
A rush of air moved behind him, making the hairs on his neck point to the ceiling. Edward spun around and was mortified to see Everly in the doorway.
“I’m just… I won’t be a moment,” he spluttered, pulling his hand away sharply.
Everly didn’t reply. She didn’t make a move to leave, either. Edward didn’t know what to do.
“Everything okay?” she said, loudly enough to project her soft voice across the gallery. “The blonde woman, I think her name is Jennifer, she said you might need some help and that I was to come back up to check.”
Maybe she didn’t see me touch her painting. The thought flickered through his mind and Edward willed it to be true.
“No, I’m okay, thank you,” he said. “I asked Jennifer to let you all know I would only be a couple of minutes, perhaps she misunderstood me.”
“Perhaps.” Everly said, still standing in the doorway. “Well, if you’re sure there’s nothing I can do, I’ll see you downstairs.”
She smiled, her cheeks dimpling with the gesture, and Edward’s heart did a triple flip. What was happening to him? Why on earth was this woman sending him all sorts of crazy? Half of him wanted so much to give in to the feelings and see where they took him, the other half wanted to hide away until she flew back home, and he would never have to see her again. Feeling this way was scaring him, he didn’t like to lose control in any way. There was also the added fact that he would be her mentor and patron for the next few weeks, and he was sure a relationship would be frowned upon by all those who mattered.
A relationship? What on earth was he thinking? That word alone sent cold shivers down his spine. Ever since he’d had his heart broken, he’d vowed never to fall in love again. Why was he letting this American girl bend his rules? He needed to get back down to the group, get them settled in their temporary new home, then head back to his apartment for a cold shower and a run on the treadmill—that would sort him out and set his mind straight again.
With one final glance at the portrait in front of him, Edward said his goodbyes to the staff clearing the empty glasses and headed down the stairs to the waiting winners.
5
The air was bitterly cold now that the sun had disappeared. Everly pulled her collar up around her neck and hoped that it wasn’t a long walk to the house. She was excited to see it, although she had been very happy in her dorm room. It was just how she’d imagined a dorm room to look like when she was first thinking about going to college. As it was, Everly had stayed at home with her parents because she hadn’t wanted them worrying about paying for accommodation as well as tuition fees.
Her small room had a bed, a desk, and a wardrobe, and she’d shared a bathroom with a couple of others. The few books she’d brought with her, a scented candle that reminded her of home, and a teddy that she hid beneath the blanket every morning in case someone should come in and see it, were all she needed to make her room feel homely. The dorms were part of London University and Everly had felt, for the first time in her life, like she was an adult.
It was amazing, having the freedom to paint and draw whenever she’d wanted to. Most evenings she’d headed out with some pencils and a sketch pad. Londoners hadn’t even taken a second look at her propped on a park bench drawing the naked winter trees, or the smokers stood shivering outside the bars, or the workers huddled against the cold making their way home after a hard day’s work. Back home she knew there would be little to catch her attention, and if she did spot something worth sketching she would be questioned by every passer-by, because it was a small town where everybody knew what was going on—and if they didn’t, they asked. It was lovely, the close-knit community of Colby, but it could certainly be stifling on the days that Everly felt the need to be alone.
“Hi,” a friendly voice interrupted her thoughts. “I hope you don’t mind me coming to chat, it was getting a bit stuffy in there. I’m Rory, nice to meet you.”
He pulled a bobble hat down over his red hair before holding out a hand for Everly to shake.
“Everly, nice to meet you too.” She smiled at him. “Yes, I was getting a bit hot in there, but now I’m wondering if I made a mistake.”
Everly held up her hands to Rory, her fingertips had turned a deep shade of purple.
“Not used to the cold?” he asked, his eyebrows knotted at the sight of her hands.
She shook her head. Rory zipped up his large fleece coat, which practically drowned him in soft looking coziness, and fished around in his pockets.
“Here,” he said, holding out a pair of large, navy, wool gloves.
Everly was taken aback.
“Oh, but what about your hands?”
“My pockets are big and warm enough for me,” he said, thrusting his empty hand into his pocket up to the wrist. “Please.”
He pushed the gloves toward her and Everly conceded to his kindness. They felt warm against her numb fingers and came all the way up past her wrists, which helped stop the cold breeze from blowing up her jacket sleeves.
“Thank you, that’s so nice of you,” she said, wriggling her toes in the sparkly shoes so they too would warm up.
“I can guess which painting was yours,” he said, tucking his other hand in his coat pocket. “It was amazing. You’re very talented.”
Everly blushed, glad of the darkness.
“Thank you. How about you? What did you do?”
Rory started to answer but was muted by the gallery doors swinging open. The rest of the gang bustled out into the cool air, the street lamps turning their steaming breaths into halos. Everly studied Edward as he stepped down onto the sidewalk, momentarily taken by him and unable to draw her eyes away. He was unaware that he was being watched and seemed deep in thought—shutting his eyes for a second and taking a deep breath. He seemed suddenly vulnerable, and she wondered what was going through his mind. She had the urge to wrap her arms around him and help him shut out the world.
Back up in the gallery, Everly had seen him staring at her portrait. She’d thought, for a moment, that he was actually touching it, and she had hoped then that he wasn’t having second thoughts about her winning potential. He had looked so deep in thought, so concerned. She had kept her mouth shut for fear that he was going to change his mind and demand that she fly back home on the first plane back to Kansas.
His eyes flashed open and caught Everly looking, but she didn’t avert her gaze. It felt as if they were the only two out on the sidewalk, the others blurring to oblivion, and all of a sudden Everly wasn’t cold anymore.
“Yeah, it took
me a long time to figure out what to do but I got there eventually, even if it was by the skin of my teeth.”
“I’m sorry, what?” Everly realized that Rory had been talking and she felt terrible that she had missed it.
“The baby?” he said.
Everly wracked her brains to try to work out what he meant. She felt like there were tiny little fireflies flitting around inside her head.
Think brain, think.
“Oh yes, the baby!” she said, angry with herself for her rudeness. “You’re the sculptor.” She tried to concentrate on Rory, dragging her eyes away from Edward. “Your work is startling. It made me question the brief in such a positive way. Really awesome, well done.”
This time it was Rory’s turn to blush.
“I think we’re heading off.” He nodded in the direction of the young Duke, who was busy rounding up the winners. Everly took the opportunity to sneak another glance at Edward, her face heating as she did, her stomach twisting with excitement.
“Yes, come on,” she said, thankful for Rory’s kindness. “Let’s join the others and try to stay warm in numbers,”
They moved up the sidewalk to the rest of the group, who were chattering amongst themselves. Everly felt the biting cold in every cell now, her bones aching and her skin numb. She tried to quieten her teeth, which were chattering loudly thanks to the shivers that wracked her body. Edward looked over at her with concern.
“Here,” he said, shaking off his large waxed Barbour jacket and placing it over her shoulders.
Everly had to concentrate really hard to keep her knees from buckling under her, and it was nothing to do with the weight of the coat. It was deliciously snug and heavy around her shoulders. She pulled it tightly around her, close to her face, and she could smell his aftershave, spicy and warm. Her eyes sprang with tears at the thoughtfulness of his gesture, and the intense emotions that he stirred in her.
Rory gave her a look that made it perfectly clear he could read her thoughts. He leant a bit closer.
“He is quite something, isn’t he?” he said, with a flash of a wink.
Everly tucked her chin into the coat and pretended she hadn’t heard him. The last thing she needed was someone teasing her about a crush that she wasn’t even sure she had. Rory wasn’t letting her off that easily though, and he nudged her gently in the ribs until she looked him in the eye. His face lit up with a wry smile.
“Okay, I guess he’s alright,” she whispered, wishing he’d stop looking at her so knowingly.
“Alright? He’s more than alright.”
Rory didn’t have a chance to elaborate on his own thoughts about Edward as Jennifer stomped forward in her towering heels. She looked furious, the expression sitting uneasily on her strikingly attractive face.
“I don’t think he should have done that,” she said to anyone within ear shot, including Edward himself. “That’s clearly picking favorites, and that’s not fair for all of us who are actually prepared for the winter weather.”
Everly started to slip the warm coat from her shoulders to give it back to Edward. The last thing she wanted to do was upset anyone. She gave it a tug but it wouldn’t move. Turning her head to see why, Everly saw Rory behind her pining it to her shoulders.
“Don’t give her the satisfaction,” he hissed, glaring at the woman.
Everly now felt like she was stuck between a rock and a hard place. She wished she’d been more prepared for the freezing weather. But the reality was that it never got so cold back home, she hadn’t had the need for a coat so thick, or gloves, or the bobble hat which was now also looking very tempting on top of Rory’s head. Everly also hadn’t realized exactly how expensive London was going to be. She had looked to buy herself some essentials to keep warm, but there was no way she could afford to get anything in the shops she’d visited. The warmth that Edward’s jacket had given her was fast wearing off as everybody turned to look in her direction.
“Come on, everyone,” Edward shouted to gather everyone’s attention. “Let’s get in the warm and then we won’t need to worry about who’s wearing whose clothes.”
Jennifer smiled coldly and Everly heard her whispering something about whose clothes she’d like to wear. The other man in the group, whose name Everly wasn’t sure of yet, sidled over to Jennifer and asked if she’d like to wear his jacket. Everly watched as the woman looked him up and down and promptly nodded her head. Despite the fact she looked perfectly toasty in a huge faux fur coat that made her look like a bear, she pulled the suit jacket over her and strode back to the front of the group, leaving the guy shivering in his shirt sleeves.
They all followed Edward as he walked with purpose up to the end of the road and around the corner. Everly had walked this way from the gallery to the tube station every night since arriving in London. She had often looked up at the houses along this very road, peering in the windows as she passed trying to catch a glimpse of the people who lived inside. Sometimes, on her way back to the dorm rooms, she’d see clearly into the brightly lit rooms from the dark street. The townhouses looked immaculate, lined up like soldiers with white uniforms edged with black iron trim. Neat sets of steps led to each front door.
Edward stopped at a house half way up the street and athletically climbed steps to the door. Unlocking it, it swung open to reveal a well-lit hallway that looked immensely inviting. Jennifer bounced up the steps, closely followed by the older woman in glasses whose name Everly hadn’t managed to catch yet. The shivering shirt man followed behind. Rory held his hand out to Everly and they walked up the steps together. Everly was glad of the support as the numbness in her feet had spread almost through to her ankles.
The heat blasted from the front door with a welcoming embrace—almost as warm as the smile on Edward’s face as he ushered them inside.
“Welcome,” he said as Everly walked past. “Please, make yourself at home.”
Everly looked at him and noticed the flush in his cheeks and the sparkle in his burnt umber eyes—which were almost exactly the same color as the teddy bear she had hidden under the covers of her dorm bed, she realized. He looked back at her and their eyes met, once again held by a force that Everly couldn’t describe. She felt her heart race as he studied her, looking for something.
“Get that door shut would you? It’s letting in a horrible draft.”
Jennifer’s loud voice broke the spell, and Everly shuffled in to let Edward close the door behind her. He squeezed past her to get back to the front of the group, now mingling around the huge hallway, and the breath dropped right out of her as his muscular body pressed against hers.
It isn’t a crush, she told herself. But who was she kidding? This had to be the biggest crush she’d ever had. And past the excitement of that thought, and past the joy of the evening, she felt a sudden sadness.
She was a poor American girl. He was a Duke.
Of all the people to have a crush on, she’d picked the one she could never, ever have.
6
Edward silently cursed Jennifer’s interruption as he stepped past Everly to push the door shut. He’d been so distracted by the look they had been sharing that he’d barely noticed the cold.
Still, he thought as he locked the door and made his way into the house. Jennifer was right. I need to focus on what I am supposed to be doing.
He really had no idea what was going on between himself and Everly, but he hoped that he wasn’t imagining the looks she had been giving him. A horrible thought niggled at the back of his brain: his parents would not give in to such fancies as their son dating an artist with no heritage or family history. Plus, she was one of his students now, and that was against every rule the university had. Edward tried to ignore the fire that Everly had lit in his belly, concentrating instead on the faces of the winners as they took in their new surroundings.
They looked flabbergasted, and he knew why. He had inherited this property from his father, and it had been one of his favorite places to stay in London. It was
Georgian, set over three magnificent levels. The hallway was set with a black and white tiled floor—original tiles which had been brought back to their former glory by the builders Edward had hired to renovate the place. A grand mirror placed strategically over a console table doubled the space and drew visitors’ eyes to the wonderfully high, ornate ceilings.
A large, white door to the right led to the living room, with huge bay windows and comfy sofas. There were bookshelves lined with some of Edward’s favorite reads, and a wood-burning stove which was already crackling. The heat it gave off reached all the way out to where they were gathered. Stairs led up the second floor, but the room Edward wanted them to gather in was the kitchen.
He walked past the stairs to his left and through another door, this one boasting stained glass in greens and blues which let the light stream in when the sun was out. The door opened into a large room that ran the whole width of the house. A huge, well-equipped kitchen occupied the left-hand wall, shiny white cupboards and chrome appliances gleaming. An island dotted with stools ran down the middle of the room. The right-hand side of the room was taken up by a huge oak table, almost like something found in a castle’s banqueting hall. It seated ten comfortably and was situated in front of a wall of windows which slid back to reveal the garden. They were shut tight tonight to keep the warmth in and the cold night sky where it belonged.
The murmurs of his guests announced their shock and wonder at the space, making Edward smile. A warm feeling spread through his body as he watched them open the kitchen cupboards and run their hands over the marble work surfaces. Everly didn’t join the others in admiring the kitchen, but instead made her way to the sliding doors and looked out over the garden. He’d turned the outside lights on and the trees twinkled with fairy lights, the pathways illuminated by rows of uprights glowing softly. She was the only one who had taken off her shoes, and Edward admired her thoughtfulness.
My Dashing Billionaire: A Clean Billionaire Romance (My Billionaire A-Z Book 4) Page 3