by Geneva Lee
By the time, Belle reappeared in the room, I was fully dressed. “I need to go into the office. I’ll drop you off.”
“Is anything wrong?” she asked, grabbing her purse.
Only everything.
I kissed her forehead. “No. Everything is perfect.”
Smith insisted on driving me to my lunch date with Edward. He coasted through the streets of London, blaring the Rolling Stones. When we reached the restaurant, he put the Bugatti in park and leaned in for a kiss.
“Behave yourself,” he advised me.
“I think you prefer it when I’m bad.” I left him with that thought as the valet opened the door for me. I swayed my ass saucily as I climbed out, knowing he was paying attention. In the bedroom, he held all the power. Outside of it was a different story. A fact I was prepared to show him at every possible convenience. The uniformed man looked distinctly disappointed that he wasn’t going to be parking the sports car.
Considering Smith hadn’t relented on letting me drive it, I understood his pain.
The dining room was crowded with the afternoon crowd, popping in to grab an early tea or a late lunch, but I spotted Edward’s friendly face from across the room.
Edward set down his menu and rose to greet me as I neared him. Grabbing both of my hands, he studied me for a moment. “You’re glowing,” he accused. “Tell me that’s a new skincare regime.”
“No.” I smacked him in the shoulder as I sat down. “I spent the night with Smith.”
I reached for my glass of water, shrugging like this was no big deal. Edward tipped his glasses to the end of his nose and shook his head like a disappointed schoolmistress.
“I can’t help it if I have needs.”
“Needs which you denied for months,” Edward reminded me as he perused his menu. “Then you picked the biggest todger out of the bunch and shagged him.”
“I think Philip qualifies as the biggest todger.” In fact, I knew he did. “Especially after yesterday.”
Edward opened his mouth to beg the story out of me as the waitress appeared. I took my time ordering, having recently discovered the impact of being forced to wait for satisfaction. By the time she hurried off with her notepad, he was drumming all ten fingers on the table.
“Story. Now,” he demanded.
“It’s not much of a story.” I pressed my index finger to the tine of my fork until a prickle of pain shot across the tip.
“Don’t be coy with me, woman,” he warned me. “I have access to people that can find out.”
I snorted at this, trying to imagine sweet Prince Edward pulling such a corrupt move. He wasn’t the type. His brother, on the other hand, would already have someone following me. “But then you wouldn’t get all the good details like how I felt and what went through my head.”
“What?” he pressed. “Why were things going through your head?” He pushed his glasses higher on his nose, looking as if he might explode any moment.
This really was kind of fun, but since I was still sorting through my own tangled emotions about the last twenty-four hours, I supposed I needed to come clean, particularly if I wanted his insight. Or, at the very least, a sympathetic ear.
“Philip showed up outside Smith’s office yesterday.”
Edward groaned and leaned back in his chair, scanning the room as if every patron in the establishment would simultaneously groan along with him. “I bet that went over well.”
“Smith didn’t see him,” I clarified. “Not that it mattered.”
“Oh?” His voice peaked on the word.
“Let’s see. The abridged version is that he made a mistake, and he wishes he could take it back, but Pepper lied to him.”
“How shocking,” Edward said in a dry voice. “I swear those two deserve each other.”
“I couldn’t agree more. Then he kissed me, and I felt nothing.”
“He kissed you?” Edward repeated.
“Apparently I’m very desirable all of a sudden.” I wanted to tell him more. About the kiss. About Georgia’s threat and Smith’s reaction. But something held me back.
“You’ve always been desirable.” The reaction reminded me of Smith.
“Smith does that, too,” I said without thinking. “Gets on my case when I’m being hard on myself.”
“I’ll admit I like him a little more hearing that,” Edward said, somewhat grudgingly.
“Me too. I think I might be getting in over my head,” I admitted. “Our relationship is moving so quickly that I feel like I need to grab something and hang on.”
“Sounds like you’re falling in love.”
I scoffed at this, shaking my head. It was way too soon for that, but my chest tightened a little as I considered it. “That would be terrible, considering my best friend hates him.”
“Maybe he’ll win over Clara,” Edward teased. “But in all seriousness, if you care about him, he must have some redeeming qualities.”
“He wants you and David to have dinner with us,” I told him, waiting to gauge his reaction.
“Sounds like he’s falling in love, too. Or at least he wants to be a significant part of your life.”
“Maybe.” It was all I could commit to for now. Although I suspected Edward was right. “I made the mistake of believing a man wanted that before.”
“Philip was a prat. He never deserved you.”
I raised my water goblet in toast to this. “That is definitely true.”
Our food arrived a few moments later, and conversation shifted to talk of wedding plans.
“When are you going to set a date?” I’d been prodding him about this for months, adopting the philosophy that if pressure could turn a lump of coal into a diamond then I could exert enough force to see that Edward finally made it down the aisle.
“If only UK law applied to everyone equally.”
I speared a Brussels sprout on my fork and waved it around. “Correct me if I’m wrong but isn’t Alexander the one who grants permission in this case?”
“Yes,” Edward said with some hesitation.
“Than I don’t see what the problem is. He’s going to say yes.” I had no doubt about that. Both Alexander and Clara seemed as anxious as I was to see the two happily married.
“It’s more about the court of public opinion.” He held up a hand to stop me from interrupting him. “I know this is modern times, and there’s been very little backlash. If it was my father’s decision, it would obviously be a no-go.”
“But it’s not, so why are you waffling?” I abandoned my food altogether and stared him down.
“David went from being my secret to being in the public eye so quickly that I’m not certain he knows what he’s getting into. You’ve seen what happened to Clara in the last year,” Edward reminded me. “I don’t want to put him through that.”
“You should have considered it before you popped the question, because that man is already picking out baby names.” I’d seen how David’s eyes had lit up when he held Elizabeth in the hospital. He was ready to be settled with a family of his own. “And Clara was the victim of a psycho and bad luck.”
“Alexander thinks there’s more to it than that.” Edward’s voice lowered conspiratorially. “He’s been investigating what happened at the wedding.”
My blood turned to ice. “I thought he dropped that.”
“This is Alexander we’re talking about. Clara is his world. Come on, Belle, there’s no way Daniel could have acted alone, and until we have answers, all of our lives are on hold.”
“Does Clara know about any of this?” My thoughts, which had been muddled for most of the morning, now came into precise focus. My best friend was home with her newborn baby while the people who’d tried to hurt her were still loose. “Or it possible Alexander’s just being overly paranoid?”
“Not this time,” Edward said in a grim voice. “Without knowing who was behind it, I can’t risk another royal wedding.”
“Elope,” I advised. “Give David his we
dding, and stay off the radar of whoever is behind this.”
“I think David would like that idea even less than having to wait. You’ve seen his wedding planner.”
I had, in fact, contributed to the bulky binder of ideas David had been storing since the proposal.
“Take it from someone who knows both of you. David wants to marry you. He won’t care how, and if that means giving up a dream wedding, he won’t even blink.” I continued, admitting something that I hadn’t had the courage to before, “I wanted the dream. The dress. The party. The exotic honeymoon. I was so blinded by the perfect wedding and what I thought would be the perfect life that I didn’t realize I’d chosen the wrong man.”
“Speaking of the wrong man,” Edward murmured, his gaze shifting past me. I followed his line of sight in time to see Philip and Pepper sitting down a few tables over.
It was as if I was looking into a carnival mirror. A year ago it might have been me being seated with Philip. Now the leggy blonde at his side looked like a sexed-up version of myself. Pepper was dressed in an ivory top with a black tulle skirt that was too short to be in good taste. Whereas I’d cut my hair, she’d kept hers long, styling it into the long waves I knew Philip preferred. Philip nodded noncommittally as she told him something, her hands gesticulating wildly as she spoke. The diamond on her left ring finger caught the light, sending dazzling sparkles shining off of her. I had to admit that I enjoyed knowing that he was looking for an out.
“Don’t you own that outfit?” Edward asked, sounding as unimpressed as I felt.
“You’re confusing the skirt and the man,” I said dryly. Although, in all fairness, I’d never owned either of them.
“I guess the engagement is official.” Edward kept his tone even, obviously not wanting to add salt to the wound.
“He admitted as much to me yesterday. I told him he was getting what he deserved.” I swiveled back in my seat, pressing a hand to my nauseated stomach.
Edward’s eyebrows knitted together, creasing his smooth forehead. “You okay?”
“Yeah. I just feel like I have some unfinished business there.” I knew I did. I’d spent the last half of a year wedging open the door for Philip to return. Yesterday I’d shut it, but now I needed to lock it permanently.
Edward shifted the conversation back to lighter topics, but even though I tried to relax, I could feel the two of them at my back. When I caught Pepper heading to the loo out of the corner of my eye, I stood.
“Excuse me a moment.” I didn’t wait for him to object. He had to have seen her get up, given that he was facing their table, but if he was going to stop me, I didn’t give him the chance.
Pausing at the door, I said a silent prayer that no one else was in there and pushed it open. Walking to the sinks, I dug my lipstick out of my purse and applied it, scanning the mirror until I saw her heels in one of the stalls. I took a deep breath and waited. My stomach flipped over when I heard the toilet flush.
Now would be a very good time to run. I ignored the little voice warning me away. I wasn’t running any more. Not from this anyway.
Pepper emerged from the stall, smoothing down her puffy skirt and froze when she caught sight of me. I smiled wickedly into the mirror and pivoted around to face her.
“Imagine running into you here.” I dropped the tube of lipstick back into my purse and glared at her.
She crossed to the far end of the sink and turned on the tap. “If you’re planning to break my nose again, I should warn you that this time Philip won’t be able to talk me out of a lawsuit.”
“I’m not, but seeing as I have my own lawyer now, it would be an interesting case.” If anything, I didn’t want to break her nose, I wanted to break her neck. Not because of what she’d done by wrecking my engagement but because of the havoc she’d inflicted on the people I cared about. She needed to be taught a lesson. The trouble was that I’d tried to teach her that lesson on multiple occasions, including the time when I slugged her. Some bitches never learn.
“That will come in handy when I break your nose, I suppose.” She talked a big game, but I saw her hands shaking.
“Lovely ring.” I couldn’t help but notice it was much smaller than the one Philip had given to me. I supposed when you gambled and lost, you don’t place as much money on the next bet.
“We’re getting married this winter,” she informed me, her voice taking on the catty tone she’d perfected through years of terror.
“I can see that. Cold-blooded people normally prefer chilly weather. Less jarring,” I added.
This was going exactly as I’d imagined it would, but not how I had hoped. I’d gotten in my shots, now it was time to say what I came in for.
“Actually, I followed you in here for a reason,” I began.
She picked up a paper towel from the basket and dried her hands. “Of course, you followed me. I don’t know how to spell it out to you, but Philip belongs to me now. Please refrain from stalking me over it.”
“Just like King Albert belonged to you? Or Alexander? You’ve certainly owned a string of men. At least this one is pretending you have a future with him.” Damn it, I’d fallen right back into her petty trap. Squaring my shoulders, I refocused on my purpose for being here. “I wanted to thank you. If I hadn’t caught you with Philip, I’d probably be married to the wanker right now—and I’m guessing you know how boring that would be.”
“He never would have married you,” she said, bypassing my jab at her fiancé. “You never would have married him.”
“Then I guess I would have been thanking you either way,” I said serenely. “The thing is that, until recently, I didn’t know what a little man Philip was in every way. Now that I’ve experienced a real man, I know how deeply unsatisfied Philip made me.”
“Perhaps the fault lay in you. I don’t have the same problem.” She tossed her hair over her shoulder and took a tentative step toward the door.
She might not have learned not to provoke me, but she clearly feared being in proximity to me. I tallied that as a victory.
“There was one other thing.” This is where I was going to lower the bomb I hadn’t intended on dropping. “Since technically you did me a favor by ridding me of Philip’s dead weight, I think I should return the kindness. Do you know where he was yesterday morning?”
Pepper’s jaw tensed but she shrugged. “I don’t have to keep tabs on him. He’s completely loyal to me.”
“Then you’d be surprised to hear he came to see me at work. He told me about your engagement and about how you lied about being pregnant.”
“I didn’t lie,” she snapped, blinking away sudden tears. “I lost the baby.”
As much as I hated Pepper Lockwood, my heart sank for her. Maybe a child would have forced her to grow up and see life outside of her own needs. “I am sorry to hear that. But you should know that he asked me to come back to him.”
“Liar!” she shrieked.
I barely had time to duck before the basket of paper towels whizzed over my head. “And then he kissed me.”
I was grateful that there was nothing else she could throw within reach. As soon as my words sank in, she straightened up and shot me a nasty look.
“You can lie all you want, Belle. I’m marrying Philip and you can’t stop me.”
“You have my blessing,” I told her. “I’ve felt for a long time that you two are truly meant to be. I only hope you don’t destroy everyone that gets in your path.”
“Then might I advise you to stay clear of me.” She ran past me and vanished out the door, leaving the truth hanging in the air behind her.
When I rejoined Edward at the table, he gave me an interested look.
“Whatever you said to her did the trick, because they left in a hurry,” he informed me.
“I said what I needed to say.” I left it at that. Edward knew all the details. He didn’t need me to fill in the gaps.
“Well, half the restaurant heard what you said to her, because she was scre
aming it at him. It was quite the floorshow. I almost applauded.” A smirk carved across his mouth, and he lifted his glass this time.
I tapped mine against it, appreciating the celebratory clink. Placing it back on the table, I smiled.
“Do you want dessert or was that sweet enough for you?” he asked.
“More than sweet enough,” I confirmed, “but let’s get dessert anyway.”
Edward kissed my cheek as we exited the restaurant, then hastily looked around. “Thank God, Smith isn’t here.”
“I told him there was nothing to worry about,” I said as I shouldered my purse, feeling the vibration of an incoming text message. As Edward headed the opposite direction, I pulled my mobile out.
SMITH: All afternoon i’ve been thinking about your brown sugar.
I smiled at the lewd reference to this morning’s unorthodox breakfast and our musical shower.
BELLE: Don’t start me up or you won’t be getting any work done this afternoon.
I kept the phone in my hand as I headed toward the Tube. Smith might not like the idea of me taking public transit, but it would be ridiculous to hail a cab to get all the way to my flat. Before I could make it underground, another message arrived.
SMITH: Have a little sympathy for the devil and come into the office.
I shook my head. The man was insatiable, a trait I found I really appreciated. Dashing off one more text, I hit send before descending into the station.
BELLE: I promise later there will be satisfaction.
As I swiped my Oyster card, I realized I’d lost my connection and shoved the phone back into my purse. There was something soothing about taking the Tube, and I settled into my seat, studying the other passengers. Mums trying to keep their toddlers from toppling over when the car banked hard. Tourists trying to decipher an Underground map before they missed their stop. Teens listening to music, completely oblivious to the world around them. And a couple shamelessly making out in the corner.
That was something I couldn’t imagine doing with Smith. Considering how far he’d already taken me, I hadn’t thought there was a limit. Still, just seeing the pair go at it made me smile.