And she was more than just her perfect face. She had shown Edward kindness and compassion, and she had set alight a flame in his heart that hadn’t burned there for a long time. Dread gripped him when he remembered the conversation he’d had with his parents only that morning, but he shook it away with force. He wouldn’t allow anything to spoil this night.
No. Everly was the very definition of perfection. Even when she had been hurting, she’d still looked out for him, asked after him, made sure that he wasn’t hurting too. How had he been so lucky to end up with her beside him? A nervous bubble popped in his stomach. He really hoped she would enjoy what he had planned for her tonight. He had gone out of his way to make sure everything was extra special, and even though he was a member of the Royal Family, it had taken some doing.
“Oooh look,” she squealed, a tinkle of a laugh escaping her lips. “I didn’t know you guys had a Carroll’s here in England. I’ve always wanted to go to the one in New York, but I’ve never been able to afford to get there.”
She was pointing to the grand department store, its windows still full of Christmas cheer. Edward smiled.
“Yes, Christian and Merry Carroll came to our family home for Christmas last year, a truly lovely couple. I’ll take you on a tour of the store when you’ve finished your artwork. I don’t want to have you out in the middle of the day when you should be working.”
She turned and smiled at him, a cheeky glint in her eye. They both knew what had happened earlier when he distracted her from her day’s work.
The car weaved its way through the city, and Everly watched the excitement through the window. Shoppers made their way back to the Tube, and groups of people gathered outside pubs and restaurants, wrapped up tight against the cold night air in hats with pompoms, gloves, scarves, thick coats, and winter boots. Edward hoped that Everly would be warm enough during the quick dash from the car to where they were heading. He’d make sure that Matt stopped right outside.
“Did you manage to leave the house without causing too many raised eyebrows?” he whispered as they flew by Regent’s Park.
“Oh yeah, no-one really cares,” she said. “I often head out at this time to sketch, anyway. There was only Rory and Alison at home when I left. They were sitting down to watch some awful television program that they love. Lots of shouting involved… on the program, this is, not Alison and Rory.” She studied her hands for a moment, frowning. “I’m sure they didn’t notice that I don’t have my sketchbook with me.”
Soon the park gave way to yet more busy streets, and the car crawled along.
“Terrible traffic tonight, sir,” Matt said through the speakers.
Edward sat up straight, aware that he was sitting too close to Everly, leaning in to her. He didn’t want Matt telling his parents where he’d been, and who with.
“No worries, Matt,” he said, smiling so hard it was hurting his cheeks. “There’s no rush. It’s just a research trip.”
The last thing he needed was for Matt to start asking questions.
“Right ‘oh, sir,” Matt replied, before setting his eyes once more on the road.
“How does anyone get anywhere in this city in a car?” Everly said, her breath steaming up the window. She drew a little heart in the steam and rubbed it away quickly.
“With patience,” Edward said, laughing. “It’s not long now.”
It wasn’t. After a few more minutes the car began to slow, then drew to a stop. Edward glanced at Everly, and once again she stole his breath right from him. Her face was a wonder, a sight he never wanted to forget.
Everly’s mouth fell open, and once again she wished she’d made more of an effort. She really did love this jumper, though. It was the only piece of cashmere she owned, handed down from her grandma to her mom, then from her mom to her. It was so soft she could snuggle in it all day and night if she didn’t have to take it off to wash it. And it was hand wash only, too, which was always a nightmare.
Edward had made himself look utterly divine this evening. He was wearing jeans, too, but dark ones, and a white shirt so crisp Everly wondered if she was at risk of poking an eye out if she went too near. The date—if this really was a date, she couldn’t quite believe it was happening—was amazing so far. Even the car was like something from a movie. Everly had never been a huge car fan, but she could tell an expensive one when she was in it, mostly because she hadn’t had to kick the door to loosen the latch, or wind down the window from the outside, which were quirky features of her parents’ battered pick-up. This was a Rolls Royce, and she’d wager it cost more than her house back home.
But the leather seats of the car, the chauffeur, the working windows, and even Edward, all paled into significance next to the wonderful building they had stopped outside. It was huge, classically grand. Six white portico pillars held up an ornate pitched roof. Everything was a rich, clean, white color, as though obstinately ignoring the dirty traffic fumes around it. What looked like a glass orangery sat to the side of the wonderful building.
Everly hadn’t even noticed the men leaving the car until her door was opened. She was leaning so hard against it that she nearly fell onto the sidewalk. She took Edward’s hand and stepped lightly into the cool air.
“Have a good evening, sir, madam,” Matt said as he closed the door behind Everly and climbed back into the car.
“Thanks, Matt,” said Edward. “See you here afterwards.”
The car pulled away and Edward held out his arm for Everly to take, which she did, with glee.
“What is this place? It’s not your home is it?”
She faltered a little, unsure if she wanted to be alone with Edward in his home on their first date. Not that she didn’t trust him to be the complete gentleman, she just wasn’t sure it was proper etiquette. But her fears were soon allayed when she heard Edward chuckling beside her.
“What?” she said, pretending to be annoyed.
He looked at her with his gorgeous, deep, chocolate brown eyes, his hair falling over his forehead where it had escaped the gel. He squeezed her arm in his, then led her to the enormous front door.
“No, this isn’t my house.” He lowered his voice as he opened the door for his date. “I may be royalty, but my title would not stretch to something so grand, right in the heart of London. That luxury is saved for the Queen herself.”
Inside was as opulent as outside. Everything was resplendent in golds and rich reds. It was brightly lit, and straight ahead was the most ornate staircase Everly had ever seen. It rose from the ground in glorious marble and split halfway up, each half curving onto a balcony. Everly felt as though she had walked into a dream.
“This, my love, is the Royal Opera House.”
Everly held in a giggle. Had he really just called her his love? She felt nervously excited, butterflies flitting around her stomach, and she was glad she hadn’t eaten before she came out.
“I’m wearing jeans,” she whispered, looking around at the opulence and grandeur. “So are you. What will all the posh people say? We’ll get thrown out. Well, you might not, seeing as you’re royalty, but I will. Edward!”
“What people?” he smiled down at her, his face full of compassion.
Everly took in his words and looked around. He was right. What people? The building was utterly silent and still.
That’s weird, Everly thought. I hope we’re not late and everyone has gone in already. She hated being late to anything. She thought back to the last time she was late and her heart leapt. It had been the night she’d met Edward, the night he’d opened a door into her. She looked up at the man whose arm she had and wondered how she could have been so lucky to be here with him tonight. Especially considering that they only met a few days ago.
The world works in mysterious ways, she thought, a smile spreading across her face.
“You look sublime when you smile.” He stroked her cheek, then caught himself and grimaced. “It’s really hard being secretive!”
An older man
in a red suit with gold trim practically skipped up to the couple and offered them a broad smile.
“Your Highness, madam,” he bowed and Everly giggled again. “Please, follow me.”
He led them up the staircase and to the balcony on the right. When he opened the door to the auditorium, Everly’s breath was once again swept from her body. It was bigger than any gallery or theatre Everly had set foot in before, everything dressed to perfection in golds and reds. She felt intimidated at her smallness, but Edward seemed to sense this and squeezed her arm in his again. He was so thoughtful. And they most certainly weren’t late, as they were the only people here.
The small man bowed again and left them to it.
“Is this like one of those backstage tours where we get to see what goes on behind the scenes?”
Everly was excited at the prospect of seeing the workings of an opera house, but Edward shook his head.
“Nope,” he said, grinning like a child.
He dropped Everly’s arm and started walking in-between a row of comfy looking chairs about six rows back from the front. Smack bang in the middle of the stage he stopped and proffered Everly the seat.
“Best view in the house,” he said, taking the chair next to her.
The lights dimmed and the orchestra began to tune up. Everly hadn’t even noticed them, she’d been so enthralled at the sights. A shiver of anticipation ran down her arms, and as the Opera House sank into a welcome darkness, she felt Edward reach over and take her hand in his.
19
A tear trickled down Everly’s cheek and splashed onto her jeans as Violetta collapsed dead on the stage. She wiped the rest away the best she could with the sleeve of her jumper as La Traviata came to an end.
The house lights rose, and Everly got out of her seat and clapped as loudly as she could. It sounded weird in such an empty auditorium, but there was no way she wasn’t going to show her appreciation.
“That was the best date ever!” she gushed to Edward when the curtain had fallen for the final time. “How wonderful to see an opera. But to see an opera at the Royal Opera House, when we have it all to ourselves, and with such beautiful company.” She sat down before her legs could give way beneath her, looking at Edward. “How can I ever repay your kindness?”
Edward laughed, looked around to make sure they were on their own, then leaned forward to kiss her on the nose.
“You’re the absolute sweetest, Everly. You don’t have to repay me, I love doing things that put a smile on your face.”
Her hand reached up to stroke his cheek, his long dark stubble soft beneath her fingertips. He leaned into her and kissed her, strong and meaningful, and her toes curled up in delight. She kissed him back, her lips tingling with the taste of him. His hands reached up and ran through her hair. She felt as though her whole body was on fire.
“Everly,” he said as he pulled away. He looked suddenly serious, and Everly felt as though her seat had been pulled away from under her, panic rising in her chest.
It’s over, he was going to say. I can’t do this anymore.
Please, no, she pleaded.
“Everly,” he said again, taking her hands in his. “I need to know that you aren’t going to expect this kind of date going forward. The strings I had to pull…”
His voice tapered off as a smile appeared on his face. Everly swiped at his shoulder, softly so as not to really hurt. She laughed, the sound of it bouncing around the room.
“You mean person, you,” she said, relief flooding her body. “I thought you were going to break it off with me.”
Edward looked hurt.
“You need to be more confident in yourself. The last thing I want to do is hurt you. And I’m so very sorry that I made you feel like that, if only for a second.”
He kissed the back of her hand.
“Let me make it up to you with some food.”
“Food certainly makes most things better,” she said, jumping out of her seat and skipping along the row to the aisle. He caught up with her and they walked arm in arm back through to the foyer.
“Let me tell you a secret,” he said, as they rounded the stairs and made their way back down. “There’s a Royal Box, here at the Opera House, but I don’t think the view is as good as where we were just sitting. It’s to the side, you see, and the other boxes cut off half of the stage.”
He tapped the side of his nose knowingly. The small man reappeared, bustling into the foyer with two menus in his hand. He held open a door and Everly walked through into what must have been the orangery attached to the side of the building. Windows looked out over Covent Garden, and through the curved glass roof the sky twinkled with stars. It was deserted here too, and they sat down at a table overlooking the quiet streets. Suddenly the whole room was awash with colors—purples and pinks splashed across the ceiling, oranges ran down the walls, a light show that danced energetically between the tables. It was magical, and Everly once again felt like she was going to pinch herself and wake up back in her dorm room, or even back in Colby. Things like this just didn’t happen to her.
“Will you be wanting the wine list?” The small man appeared by the table, holding out the menus. Edward took them but shook his head to the wine, and the man turned on his heels and left them alone. Edward handed Everly one of the menus, but she couldn’t take her eyes from him.
“Thank you,” she said eventually. The silence between them had been comfortable enough not to break.
“No, Everly, thank you.” He put his own menu down on the table and gave her his undivided attention. “There were so many reasons for you not to want to come here with me this evening. The need to keep it secret, Madame Baudelaire, your work, the fact I’m your mentor…”
“I think maybe you should stop listing reasons now, Edward, I’m getting cold feet.”
“My family.”
Everly looked at him with worry etched on her face.
“Your family?” she asked, “Why, what have your family said?”
Her good mood was shifting slightly. Work and friends were fixable—family less so. She carried on speaking, the silence less comfortable this time.
“I know Madame Baudelaire said I’m not right for you, because of my… my class, I guess. But have your family spoken about me? Have you already told them? What do you mean?”
She knew she was talking too fast and too much, but the question was so big in her mind that nothing else would fit.
Edward looked at the table cloth for what felt like an eternity. Everly bit down on her lips to stop herself from talking, a metallic taste flooding her mouth.
“There’s something I need to tell you.”
He looked back up at her, his chocolate eyes brimming with tears. Everly didn’t want to hear what he had to say, but at the same time she couldn’t wait for him to say it—just to get it over with. The waiter re-appeared, but took one look at Edward and scuttled away.
“When I was nineteen, I met a girl.”
That wasn’t what she had been expecting, and despite it being a decade ago a horrible jealously leapt into her belly.
“Her name was Lacey. She wasn’t who my family wanted me to be with, but I was so stubborn I decided to ask her out anyway. In a lot of ways, you remind me of her.”
The corner of his mouth broke into a small smile.
“My family were livid—my parents, I mean. There’s only me and my parents. Of course, there’s the wider family, and if you go far enough, the Queen, although I’m sure she was never informed. But my parents’ anger was enough to make me feel like I’d broken their hearts. I wasn’t sure what to do. On the one hand was this girl who I… I thought I loved, on the other was my mother, whose love I thought was unconditional. They threatened to disown me, cut me off, cut my inheritance off. Of course, back then I was naive and arrogant and didn’t care. I thought I could make my way in the world without their wealth. I was reckless, and after three years I asked Lacey to marry me.”
Everly took
a sharp intake of breath. She didn’t want to hear anymore. She shook her head at Edward.
“I’m sorry,” he said, looking down at the table. “This isn’t the nicest of conversations, but bear with me. It’s important because of who I am. What I am.”
He picked up his cutlery and started fidgeting, drawing circles in the tablecloth with his fork prongs.
“The date was set, we had everything organized on the cheap. A few nights before, my mother came to visit me in the small apartment we were renting to try and talk me out of the marriage, but I didn’t listen. I sent her away. It’s one of the only times I’ve ever seen mum cry, and it makes me feel shame all the way down to my toes to remember it even now.”
He took a deep breath and continued. Everly felt as though she was going to burst with disappointment, but she couldn’t work out why.
“Then, the night before the wedding, as one last romantic treat while I still had access to my funds, I took Lacey out for dinner at The Gantry. It’s a posh restaurant with a waiting list as long as the Queen’s reign. I don’t know why I did it. There had never been any reason to flash my wealth. Maybe it was an insult directed at my parents, who knows.”
He sighed, screwing his eyes shut and shaking his head.
“But that night, as we were leaving, a man on a moped skipped a red light. There was a truck coming the other way so he flipped onto the sidewalk and… He hit her. Lacey died on the spot. He was drunk. He walked away with a twisted ankle and a broken arm.”
Everly’s eyes widened.
“Just like that, she was gone. I had nobody else to turn to, so I went home. My parents welcomed me. Mum felt awful at how low I became. I didn’t leave the house for months. My father was just pleased I was back and hadn’t sullied the family name by going through with the marriage. He was utterly heartless about the whole thing.”
Everly leant over the table and took the fork from Edward’s hand, placing it down softly on the tablecloth. She took his hands in hers, trying to offer support in the only way she could. What she really wanted to do was leap over the table and wrap him in her arms.
My Dashing Billionaire: A Clean Billionaire Romance (My Billionaire A-Z Book 4) Page 11