Gavin nodded gravely. “Carter’s right. We have to wait.”
Natasha made a sad face. “Sounds like we don’t have a choice.”
“You don’t,” Carter said, his voice softer. “So find someone else to date. We have to make it look like Gavin’s rejected you for Molly. That’s the best route to take that would be believable for the perps.”
“Can I tell our close friends about what’s happening, then? We all know we can trust them and they can help with our cover, especially with me fake-dating someone else.”
“There’s merit to that,” Carter said cautiously. “But please don’t think you can tell them everything and anything, or you’ll end up putting not only yourself but other people in danger.”
“I know.”
“Carter,” Gavin said. “There’s still a couple of hours before we need to check out of here. Would you mind leaving me and Tash to discuss a few things alone? Then could you pick her up at eleven? Maybe bring her a big hat or wig or something.”
“Fine. And I thought I’d get to enjoy this breakfast,” Carter muttered.
“You can take the croissant with you,” Natasha said with a cheeky grin.
Carter rolled his eyes, took the pastry and headed for the door. “See you later.”
“Later, bro. And thank you,” he said sincerely.
“For what? I might still deck you if something happens to either of you because you can’t keep your hands off my sister.”
“I said it was my fault,” Natasha said.
“Oh, don’t worry. You’re in trouble too. But I’m sure Gavin won’t mind copping all the heat,” Carter retorted, opening the door.
“Hey, you know you love me too,” he called out with a snicker.
Carter snorted and shut the door behind him.
“Well, that wasn’t so bad,” Natasha said.
“Only because deep inside he’s happy to see us together,” he said, walking towards her. “But just because he took it reasonably well doesn’t mean the situation’s not serious. It is.”
“I know that,” Natasha said softly, placing both hands on his cheeks. “You’ve been dealing with threats from this Biggs guy since Amber disappeared?”
He nodded, his heart instantly beating faster from her affectionate touch.
“I can’t even imagine what you’ve had to put up with all these years,” she said, curling her arms around him and resting her head in the crook of his neck.
He held her tight and breathed in deeply, their embrace like a calming balm to his nerves. But that was exactly what he shouldn’t be doing—relaxing his guard. If he kept on succumbing to Natasha’s magnetic pull and throwing caution to the wind, he might find it hard to hide his feelings for her in public. The eyes always told the story, and the way he looked at her could get them in trouble if he wasn’t careful. He might regret the repercussions for the rest of his life.
“It’s probably best that we don’t see each other until after next weekend,” he said.
Natasha looked up at him. “I know that you and Carter are keen to not take any risk with my safety. But can’t we wear disguises so we can see each other?”
He stared into her beautiful eyes. Could he really stay away from her again indefinitely? “If this operation doesn’t go according to plan, then yes, we’ll consider that.”
“But not this week?”
“Apart from working with my clients during the day, I have to work on this case almost every night as part of the build-up for the weekend. So I won’t have time, unfortunately.”
“You mean you’ll be spending lots of time with Molly?”
He nodded, feeling a pinching in his heart at the sadness in Natasha’s tone. “But I’ll call you as much as I can, okay? Or at least text you if calling is not possible.”
“Okay,” she said with a resigned but understanding smile.
He cupped her face and kissed her. “Do you want to have breakfast?” he murmured against her lips.
“No, not breakfast,” she answered, pressing herself against him.
He took her hand and led her to the bedroom. They still had some time together before they had to go back to being friends. He was going to make the most of it.
*****
Gavin walked into the restaurant with Carter, instantly spotting Natasha with Cassie and Marilyn, already seated at a table near the window.
He repressed a sigh, pushing down the disappointment that subdued his glee at seeing her again after a long, hard week.
“Hey, guys,” Cassie called out to them, waving. “Glad you both can have lunch with us today.”
He grinned at the girls, noticing that while Natasha was smiling, she looked less cheerful than the other two. No doubt it was from the discouraging outcome of the weekend operation he’d texted her about just before they got there.
“How’s it going, girls?” he asked, kissing Marilyn on the cheek first as she was closest to him. He greeted Cassie next before landing a peck on his girlfriend’s cheek and sitting next to her.
Girlfriend. He was ecstatic he could consider Tash his girlfriend again, but disheartened that they had to continue to hide.
“Where’s Molly, Gav?” Cassie said loudly. “I thought she was gonna join us?”
“No one but us is within hearing distance, babe,” Carter piped in, kissing his fiancée on the lips before sitting down. “And you don’t need to talk so loud. You’ll just attract more attention.”
“Sorry. I just wanna make sure, like you told me to,” Cassie said, her eyes darting surreptitiously to her left and right.
“You do make a promising undercover detective, Cass,” Gavin teased. “Ever thought of becoming one? I’m more than happy to give you a trainee position while keeping your pay at financial controller level.”
“Oh, would you?” Cassie said with exaggerated delight.
Carter snickered. “Don’t even think about it.”
“We’re lucky this place is still not busy,” Marilyn said. “But it will be in about fifteen minutes, when the lunchtime crowd starts arriving. So we better talk about serious business before that.”
“Hey, cheer up, Tash,” Carter said.
“I’m fine,” Natasha answered, putting on a wide smile.
Gavin sighed deeply, wanting to hug her to him. But even if there didn’t seem to be anyone suspicious around them, he shouldn’t take the risk.
“You have to be able to handle this, Tash,” Carter chided.
Cassie elbowed Carter. “She is handling it. She’s been doing what you’ve told her to do, but you can’t expect her not to have any emotional reaction. And it’s only with us that she’s being open.”
“Thank you, Cass,” Natasha said, sending a glare to her brother.
Gavin reached for her hand under the table and stroked it with his thumb. “Hey, I know how frustrating it’s been. But we’re ramping up our efforts, even if this weekend’s aftermath was extremely disappointing.”
“I know that,” Natasha said quietly, smiling up at him.
“I did have reservations about the operation happening too early. I’d argued with the police that we weren’t giving the baddies enough time to make them feel comfortable enough to launch whatever plan they were concocting. But they didn’t want to listen to me because they’re under pressure to produce a result. Even so, this weekend still laid a good foundation for future operations. Things are still on track, even if the outcome we want is delayed.”
“We just have to be patient, don’t we?” Natasha said with a sigh.
He squeezed her hand.
Carter cleared his throat loudly. “Let’s all order, guys. I’m starving. What do you feel like having, babe?” he asked Cassie.
He pulled his hand from Natasha’s lap and grabbed the menu, getting Carter’s warning.
“Gavin?” someone called out from behind him.
He twisted to face the caller. Oh, no. Of all people, it would have to be one of Amber’s cousins. “Helen, hi.�
��
“Hi! How are you? It’s been years!”
He gave Helen a polite smile. “Yeah. I’m fine, thanks. You?”
“I’m okay, too. You know, I’ve been meaning to see how you’ve been doing. A few times I’ve thought about giving you a call.”
“Thanks. You still work around here?” he asked to lead the conversation away from anything too intrusive.
“Yes. Not far from here. Hey, I’m glad to know you’re doing well. Some in our family are still so affected by Amber’s disappearance. It’s not something you simply forget, even if you get on with your life.”
He smiled sympathetically. What could he do or say? From the little he knew of her, Helen thrived on drama and gossip, so best not to encourage a long conversation.
Helen’s gaze moved to the other people on the table. “I’m sorry to interrupt, guys. I was just so surprised to see Gavin after such a long time. Would you introduce us, Gavin?”
He hid a sigh. “Sure. This is Natasha, Marilyn, Carter and Cassie. Guys, this is Helen.”
“I’ve met you before,” Helen said to Carter.
“Possibly,” Carter said.
“Gavin’s best friend. The electrician.”
Carter’s lips curved in a small smile. “You have a good memory.”
Helen laughed a tad flirtatiously. “I’ve always thought you were hot. So are you taken now, Carter?”
“As a matter of fact, yes. Cassie here is my fiancée,” Carter answered, putting an arm around Cassie’s shoulders.
“Oh, lucky you,” Helen said to Cassie. “What about you, Gavin? Any of these two pretty ladies yours?”
“No,” he answered with a laugh. “They’re just my friends.”
Helen made a sad face. “I hope you’ve moved on. It’s been years.”
“Don’t worry about me. I’m fine.”
Helen patted his shoulder. “Any time you need another person to talk to, call me. Or I’ll call you. I still have your number. Anyway, I better get back to my table over there. And Gavin,” she said, looking at Gavin with serious eyes, “I’m glad you’re okay.”
“Thanks,” he murmured.
Helen went back to her seat, and the five of them stayed quiet for a few moments, checking the menu.
“Who was that?” Natasha asked when Helen was out of earshot.
“Amber’s cousin,” he answered.
“Oh. Were they close?”
“I don’t think they were that close. Amber used to always want to avoid Helen. I think you can guess why.”
“She probably has her sights on you now that she knows Carter’s getting married,” Marilyn said, her lips twitching.
He pretended to shudder.
Cassie laughed. “Hey, if Molly’s not available on Saturday night as your date for my birthday dinner, you know who to call.”
He rolled his eyes. “Sure. Speaking of your birthday dinner...” He turned to Natasha. “It’s better if you go there with a date too. One possibility why Biggs has decided not to take action this weekend could be you.”
“What do you mean?” Natasha asked.
“They might have picked up on the fact that we’re trying to bait them, and they might still have an eye on you. So please go there with a date, just to be safer.”
“Okay, I’ll find someone,” she said flatly. “Who do you guys suggest?”
“Simon? Derek? Tristan?” Marilyn said, nominating the unattached bachelors in their circle.
“Hmm,” Carter murmured. “You can’t tell them what’s going on, though. Remember that only the people who already know about Biggs’ threat can know what else is going on. So that means the five of us, Jade and Lucas, Lexie and Rick and Erin and Brad only. Not that we don’t trust anyone else, but we simply can’t keep giving away confidential information if we don’t have to.” Carter threw a warning glare at Natasha.
“Don’t look at her like that,” Cassie said. “I opened my big mouth too, remember?”
Carter made a face, giving Cassie a kiss on the temple.
“I can’t ask any of our single friends to be my date, then,” Natasha said. “They’ll think I have the hots for them, especially since they’ll be at the party too. But don’t worry, I’ll ask someone else.”
Gavin stared at her. He wanted to ask who, but refrained. How could he exhibit jealousy when he was the one who said she had to go to Cassie’s birthday with a date?
Natasha was an incredibly beautiful, sweet, caring woman who wouldn’t have a problem getting dates—dates who had no baggage and who could wine and dine her in the open, giving her the attention she thoroughly deserved. Attention he didn’t know when he’d be free to shower her.
God, he could only hope Natasha wouldn’t get sick of the situation they were in, especially when he didn’t know when it would end.
CHAPTER TEN
Natasha waved to Erin, Brad, Lexie and Rick, who were already waiting at the long table for twenty at the fancy Italian restaurant where Cassie’s intimate birthday party was being held. It didn’t look like Gavin and Molly had arrived yet, and she was both relieved and disappointed. While she couldn’t wait to see Gavin, she wasn’t at all keen on watching him play boyfriend to Molly tonight.
She navigated her way through tables, glancing to make sure that Benjie, the cute and funny guy she’d chosen as her date for the night, was right behind her. He flashed her a smile as he followed her towards the far end of the dining room.
Benjie was her best choice. From what she could tell, he was less into her than the client who’d asked her out for coffee last week. She did tell him that while she’d asked him to accompany her to tonight’s dinner, she was most definitely not looking for a boyfriend. Benjie had assured her he was cool with that, especially since there was a free meal involved. She hoped he truly meant it. Last thing she wanted was to deal with another Leo on top of everything else.
Speaking of Leo, she hadn’t even returned the messages he’d left, apologising for his behaviour on the night of their break-up. She should at least text him to say there were no hard feelings so he could move on.
“Hey, peeps,” she said as they reached their table, blowing her friends a kiss. “This is Benjie. I used to work with him at my old job.”
The four warmly greeted Benjie, introducing themselves.
Erin motioned for her to sit on the chair next to her as the others made small talk with Benjie.
“Hey,” Erin whispered. “I caught Benjie ogling you from behind a few times when you were making your way here.”
“Oh, really?” she asked with dismay. “And there I was thinking I picked the right guy for tonight.”
Erin shrugged. “Don’t worry. He’ll probably make tonight more convincing if somebody’s watching.”
“I guess,” she said with a sigh, just as the rest of Cassie’s guests started to arrive.
She was greeting Marilyn when her heart skipped a beat, then raced. Cassie and Carter had turned up. And behind them was Gavin—holding hands with Molly. Ugh, she’d forgotten how pretty Molly was.
“Watch your face,” Marilyn whispered in her ear.
She sent her friend an embarrassed but grateful look. Gosh, the party had only just started and she was already slipping. Shaking off her jealousy, she went to hug Cassie, radiant in a blue sheath dress. “Happy birthday, Cass. You look stunning!”
“Thanks, so do you,” Cassie said with a grin.
“And you don’t look so bad yourself next to your birthday girl,” she teased her brother.
Carter’s response didn’t register to her as her attention was caught by a pair of smiling brown eyes. She left Carter to greet Gavin.
“How’s it going?” Gavin asked casually, giving her a peck on the cheek.
That was all? He didn’t even let go of Molly’s hand to give her a hug. She forced her disappointment back down and shut the lid on it.
“This is Molly,” Gavin was saying. “Molly, Tash.”
“We’ve kinda m
et before,” Molly said, smiling.
“Yes, we have,” she said, returning Molly’s smile. Miss Detective was friendly enough, although why she had to hang on to Gavin in a too-possessive manner, she didn’t know. Was there a need for that?
“Introduce us to your date, Tash,” Carter interjected.
“Oh, sure.” She looked for Benjie, grateful for Carter’s nudging. She shouldn’t wallow on Gavin and Molly being a convincing couple. In fact, she had to get her act together and pretend she was happy to be here with Benjie, who was hovering behind them.
“Benjie, meet the birthday girl,” she said.
“Happy birthday, Cassie,” Benjie said. “Thanks for having me at your party.”
“Thanks, Benjie. Good to see you here,” Cassie responded.
“And this is my brother Carter.”
“Great to meet you, Carter. Natasha’s told me so much about you.”
Her brows rose. All she’d ever told Benjie about Carter was that he was her older brother and that he was marrying the birthday celebrant. Funny how some people felt the need to lie just to have something to say.
“And this is Molly,” she continued, keeping the smile on her face, “and Gavin.”
Benjie shook hands with the two, and Natasha couldn’t help noticing that Gavin was squinting slightly at Benjie, and his smile had gone tepid. Ha! Suddenly, she felt much better.
She walked back to her seat to let the newcomers greet the other guests, with Benjie following her with a hand on the small of her back. Ah, what else could she do but let him take small liberties. He was here as her date, after all. And besides, Gavin had been holding Molly’s hand!
“Thanks again for inviting me tonight, Natasha,” Benjie said as they settled on their chairs. “I’m so glad you called me.”
“Sure,” she said blithely, about to make a comment to remind him that he shouldn’t read anything romantic into all this. But the words froze in her throat when she realised that Gavin and Molly wouldn’t have a choice but to sit themselves right across from her and Benjie. They were the only empty seats left.
The Unforgettable Ex (Captured by Love Book 5) (Volume 5) Page 8