My brother crossed his arms and for one second it seemed he was angry until he said, “Aye. It’s nice to not be addressed by the bloody English titles down here.”
Stephanie’s face reddened like she understood his undertones and said, “Charlie reminds me that I’m American, which is nice.”
We walked farther into the lobby, as Logan asked Stephanie, “Did you forget who you were?”
Stephanie squeezed my hand and said, “I might have, but it’s nice to live in the present these days.”
Hopefully forever , since the past didn’t need her, no matter the passion she had for it.
Logan blinked and stared at me for a moment as he said, “Because my brother makes you happy?”
Stephanie flipped her flower pendant and said, “Yeah. He does.”
I stepped in front of her to break the moment between my brother and her. The last thing I needed was for anyone else to interfere. I held his gaze and said, “Don’t do this, Logan.”
Stephanie stepped around me and asked, “Don’t do what?”
This was on me. She needed the truth. We both did.
Logan said, “I’m deciding if you love my brother, and I think you do.”
She covered her mouth, then curled her arms around her waist as she asked, “Is it that obvious?”
“It’s true?” Caroline asked, clearly the stoniest of us all right now.
Stephanie blinked and stared blankly at me. “What’s going on?”
I patted my brother on his shoulder.
This wasn’t how I planned to talk to Stephanie, but it seemed this was our moment of truth. For now, I said, “We’ll talk about the bank later.”
“Very well,” Logan said.
I ignored my speeding heart as I said, “Stephanie needs to know about the bet.”
Her face paled. “What bet?”
I hoped she wouldn’t be horribly embarrassed. I’d already shown her the information I pulled on her the night we met. I just hadn’t explained why.
So I shoved my hands in my pockets and said, “Logan said he’d only invest in my bank idea if I proved I was stable, and to do that I needed to bring home proof I was in a real relationship he’d approve of.”
Her eyes darted between us as she pointed to her heart. “So I’m exhibit A.”
Lies wouldn’t get me the truth, and I needed to know the real Stephanie. So I nodded. “In a manner of speaking.”
She pivoted and practically ran away as she raised her voice to say, “I’m going to our room now.”
Right. She’d avoided confrontations in the past. It was foolish of me to think she’d change now. I waved to my brother as I hurried after her, calling over my shoulder, “Logan, I have to go.”
She wasn’t that far ahead. She slid her key in the door and opened it when I turned down the hall.
I slowed a little since she couldn’t disappear on me in the next thirty seconds, and I needed a plan.
If I went in and told her I wanted her for real, then I’d never know. Not really. I opened the door and saw she was changing into the clothes she’d worn yesterday. She finished with the pants as I asked, “Stephanie, what are you doing?”
Her eyes looked glassy, like she was about to cry, and she said, “I’m booking my train ticket back to London.”
I stood in front of her and tried to get her to meet my eyes. We needed to be adults now. “I told you because I want you to forgive me.”
She put her hand on my cheek. For a second I thought she’d forgiven me, but then she said, “Forgive you? No wonder you let me move in with you. I was easy pickings.”
She let me go and put on her shoes. “That’s not it, Stephanie. I was starting to have real feelings for you, so I wanted you to know the truth.”
She massaged the back of her neck and said, “Look, it’ll be fine, Charlie. I’ll just move in with my friends and you won’t have to see me again.”
I waved behind me to the couch. This wasn’t how I wanted this to happen. “Stephanie, please sit for a moment.”
She shook her head as she asked, “Why the hell should I?”
Because she made me believe I might have her in my life forever. I held my hands up, palms toward her, to show her I didn’t want to fight as I said, “Because you cared a little about me.”
Her hands curled into fists, but she marched toward the sofa as she said, “That was before I knew I was a bet.”
At least she’d listen to me. It was a start. I followed and took the seat next to her, but she inched away as I said, “Fine.”
She hugged her waist and wiggled her feet as she said, “This isn’t easy for me.”
I propped my forearms on my knees and said, “I need to explain.”
“Then hurry up. My train leaves soon.”
Strike for her. My skin twitched, but I waited silently till she looked at me, and didn’t blink as I said, “I’m used to women doing whatever I want them to because of my money.”
A tear spilled over and trickled down her cheek, but she swiped it away and said, “I wish you didn’t have a dime, because you’d be able to see the truth about me.”
That she might actually love being with me and it wasn’t about what my money might do for her, but that seemed too far out of reality, even for me. I whispered, “Part of me wishes I could believe that.”
She frowned. “What are you saying?”
I swallowed and hoped she would understand every word I said next. “I told you about the bet because I want to know if you’re as true as you seem.”
She pressed a fist to her chest. “That’s not an excuse.”
True. I nodded my head. “I fucked up, but I’m still not a hundred percent sure of you, either.”
She scooted forward on the couch like she was about to get up. “What did I do?”
I shrugged. I had more money than most countries in the world. I reached for her hand, but she snatched it away before I even managed to say, “Nothing at all. It was Willow and every woman after her. I was wondering if, when we get back to London, we might start over.”
She jumped up and started to edge toward the door. “What do you mean? Am I fired?”
I followed and stood in her way, so she wouldn’t be able to escape. “Keep the job. The app is a good idea, but I’m talking about dating.”
She pivoted like she wanted to hide tears as she asked, “What do you mean?”
Her small laugh broke something inside me, and I was even more on edge as I said, “I want us to start over. Take it slow.”
She faced me, and her face was pink but free of tears as she said, “Right. Because you want to soften the blow to your ego because I’m leaving.”
She tried to step around me to get her bag next to the door and leave but I said anyhow, “Because I need to know if you’re real, so when we get back, will you…date me?”
She faced me for a second and shrugged. “We’ll see, Charlie. I’m still too upset to make any decisions.”
I stepped closer and realized her warmth sent shockwaves of awareness through me when I said, “Look, I already set up an apartment for you in your name.”
She waved the idea away. “I don’t want it.”
I reached for her face and my lips tingled with the need to kiss her even though I knew it was absolutely inappropriate. I swallowed and said, “It’s done, whether you chose to use it or not. It’s paid for a full year. I thought if we slowed down, you’d need a place to stay.”
She lifted her chin. “I am not a charity case.”
“No, you’re not.” I took her hands for a second. “Stephanie Steel, you might be the finest woman I’ve ever met, but I need to be sure.”
She squeezed my hands then let me go. “I’ll think about it, Charlie. Now I’m going to go catch the train.”
Without another word, she picked up her travel bag and slipped out of the room. My chest was hollow. This wasn’t how I intended to tell her and test her. I had a different plan. But if I didn’t let her g
o, I’d never know whether she just wanted my money or if she actually loved me.
Chapter 15
Stephanie
I followed the movers’ address to where my furniture was stored, and two hours later I was still there.
Maybe I should have gone to Sophia’s and slept on her lumpy couch tonight, but I needed time on my own.
Where no one judged me or tried to sway my opinion.
With six sisters, I was used to sharing, but living on my own taught me how to value my own thoughts without needing approval. So I stayed, and after a shower, I texted my friends my address and opened the wine bottles.
I needed to forget Charlie. I should never have fallen in love with him. I knew better, right from the start. And hanging out with friends was better than staring at myself in the mirror and singing with an open bottle in my hand to drown my sorrows.
I heard the laughter in the hall and checked to make sure my T-shirt wasn’t stained and my face was clear of tears. Then I opened the door, waved them in, and they all crowded in and were glancing around when Sophia asked, “You moved again?”
The chandelier in the dining room was a bit much for my usual...well, less affluent tastes, but the white with a slight blue tinge warmed up the place. As they finished filing in, I closed the door and took one last look around a flat that honestly was big enough to host a Jane Austen-style house party. “I am probably going to leave London soon.”
Charlotte hugged me and said, “I thought you were living the dream life.”
She meant Charlie. I grabbed the bottle of wine and brought it to the table where we’d have our Regency pretend. But instead, I slumped in my seat and said, “There is no dream.”
Amelia brought the wineglasses she must have found in the kitchen and said, “This apartment is posh.”
My friends were the reason I could survive this. Soon, I’d have to call my sisters and tell them Charlie Grannd and I weren’t going to happen. I uncorked the wine and said, “Wine night was delayed, but I’m glad you’re here now.”
Amelia handed out the glasses while I poured, and she asked, “When does Charlie show up?”
I stopped pouring as I glanced around the room and said, “It’s just us girls.”
I poured again and, once everyone had a glass, Sophia asked, “What happened? While I normally don’t go for Scottish guys, even I’d have made an exception for that man.”
I let out a sigh. It was somehow easier to tell my friends first than family. My sisters meant well, but they usually just made me wish I had someone who cared about me the way their husbands did about them. “He…made a bet with his brother he could get me to fall in love with him.”
Sophia’s tone grew hard. “Seriously?”
“Yeah.” I sighed and sipped my drink.
Charlotte looked like she was about to cry for me. “And now it’s over?”
I took her hand and held it. The one thing I’d learned from Richard is not to hold on to someone if they want to go. Even staying in this apartment was temporary, but I clinked glasses with her and said, “This is the pity apartment he set up in my name. I guess he felt bad about it.”
Sophia, ever the warrior, asked, “How did you find out?”
I sipped my wine, which made speaking a little easier and said, “He told me.”
Charlotte smiled and said, “That’s something. At least he didn’t lie.”
I slumped in my chair and spoke to my glass. Ann had once been part of this group of friends, and she went behind my back for who knew how long. I shook my head and said, “He still lied and let me believe he was available when he wasn’t.”
Amelia laughed and stood up to get another bottle for us as she asked, “So he was more like Frank Churchill or John Willoughby?”
I called out from behind her, saying, “We’re still comparing the men in our lives to Jane Austen novels?”
Sophia pointed to the living room, and we all stood.
Charlotte said, “We all agreed Richard was more like Mr. Collins in the end.”
I shook my head. “That’s still awful.”
Amelia made noises in the next room like she was scrounging around, then appeared in the doorway holding up a bottle for our approval.
Sophia slumped on the sofa like this was her place and said, “You finally agree with us on that one.”
I finished my glass and said, “Fair enough. Richard is a Mr. Collins type, but if you’re asking me about Charlie…I guess he’s more like Frank Churchill. When confronted, he didn’t lie, and there’s no scandal, though I really hoped he was maybe a sexier version of Colonel Brandon.”
Frank Churchill had never given Emma any real promises, and his scandal was that he loved another and just flirted with Emma a little. In the end she had to forgive that. On the other hand, Willoughby flirted but ultimately chose to marry another for money, which seemed to me more of a lie, because he did more than a little flirting.
None of this mattered. I took a deep breath. I wanted stability. I didn’t care if he was slightly older like Colonel Brandon, but right now the Colonel was the hero of my dreams. Someone who loved me unconditionally and cared deeply about my well-being and happiness.
Amelia returned and poured the second round as she said, “With Darcy’s wealth, clearly.”
Fuck. Charlie had more money than even Darcy, but Darcy was all proud and arrogant. No. I didn’t want to change my answer about what I needed, so instead I held my glass up for a refill and said, “People would think we’re all nuts the way we always go right back to Jane Austen, like her books actually solve everything. Not all men fit in these boxes.”
“I suppose not.” Amelia said.
Sophia asked, “Are you still going to build that app? Because honestly, I’d like nothing better than to live in that simpler world instead of this one.”
Right. In the morning, I’d have to figure out my next move. I touched my mother’s pendant and wished I had some idea of what she’d tell me to do. “I don’t know. I probably need to find a new job and quit.”
Charlotte asked, “So you can’t forgive him for this?”
Sweet Charlotte would forgive him. I know her, but I stood up like I’d give my friends a pledge and even pointed to the ceiling. “No. If Charlie showed up right now, I’d tell him…I hate him.”
“I understand.” Charlie’s voice carried in the house. “I don’t blame you.”
I almost spilled my drink as I plopped it down and said, “Fuck me. I didn’t know you were here.”
Charlie nodded. “That was clear.”
I waved at my friends and said, “Everyone, give us a minute, okay? Charlie, please come out on the balcony.”
He waved at my friends and said, “Good evening, everyone.”
He had no right to come here. I told him I needed time. I really should have slept on my friend’s couch, but all my stuff had already been delivered here, so I followed my boxes and settled in. I figured I’d get one night, but as I closed the door behind us and the night air of London chilled my skin, I asked, “What are you doing here?”
He handed me the black bag from the jewelry store and said, “I meant what I said about dating.”
I just stared at him and the bag in my hand. Then I offered it back. “I don’t know yet.”
He shook his head and moved closer, and the air around me now tingled as he said, “Okay, I can see you’re busy tonight. I mostly stopped by to give you a present and ask if you’ll meet me for lunch tomorrow.”
Tomorrow was the Jane Austen museum night where we had planned to attend in costume. And probably the last event in my life as I know it. He probably didn’t remember, but I shook my head, even though he said lunch.
I wasn’t ready to sit with him at all, so I said, “I can’t.”
My heart whispered that Charlotte might be right about forgiveness. I stilled as he asked, “Dinner, then?”
I’d never see him again if I followed through on what I said. He seemed uncomfor
table, and part of me hoped we’d somehow work through this.
Yeah, I had “sucker” written across my forehead in big, bright letters, but I said, “Fine, but take this back.”
He put his hands in the air like we were playing hot potato and he didn’t want to get scalded. “It’s for you.”
He’d said he needed to know the truth about me. I took a deep breath and said, slowly and carefully, “I. Do. Not. Want. Your. Money.”
He kissed my cheek and my skin bloomed as he said, “Jewelry is a way for a man to show his interest. It’s been that way for ages, even in Jane Austen’s world.”
Damn. This was bad. I ached to throw myself in his arms, but I hugged myself instead and said, “Okay, we can have an early dinner, but I’ll need to leave at eight.”
He massaged my arms and said, “We’ll see if I can change your mind.”
Probably not. I was likely only staying in London another day or two, but I said, “It’s pretty set.”
“I’m used to getting what I want.” Then his lips met mine for a moment and I forgot everything.
I was his, if only I was sure he loved me. As he let me go, my eyes misted, and I hoped he didn’t notice.
Charlie waved at my friends and let himself out.
I took another second to breathe then went back inside. Once the door closed, Sophia said, “So you’re having dinner before the museum?”
My eyes widened. They all knew I was weak. Butterflies went crazy in my stomach as I asked, “You were listening?”
Charlotte pointed behind her and said, “Your window’s open. We couldn’t not hear you both.”
Heat scorched my cheeks. “I see.”
Amelia scooted to the edge of her seat. “So open it.”
My mind was blank as I retook my seat. “Open what?”
Charlotte nodded toward my hand and said, “This jewelry that shows interest.”
The bag handles in my hand suddenly felt heavier, but I shook my head. “Doesn’t matter.”
“Yes, it does.” Sophia said.
I sighed and opened the black bag and took out a diamond necklace. This seriously would be suitable for an evening at Buckingham Palace itself.
Scottish Seducer: Opposites Attract: Jane Austin fangirl and the Scottish Billionaire (Steel Series Book 6) Page 9