by Debbie Mason
“We’ll share.” He reached for the circular-shaped pastry and brought it to her lips.
“It’s Gorgonzola and mushroom,” she said, and took a bite. She closed her eyes, savoring the light-as-air pastry, the sharp tang of the full-bodied creamy cheese, and the chewy texture of mushroom. It was almost perfect. Something was missing though—that intangible ingredient. She opened her eyes to the missing ingredient in her own life.
Holding her gaze, he gently wiped the corner of her mouth with his fingers. “You missed a bit.”
Out of habit, she licked the corner of her lips. His eyes darkened, and his nostrils flared as he tracked the movement. He cleared his throat. “This is wasted on me. I’m not a fan of blue cheese, even Italian blue cheese,” he said, his voice gruff as he brought the half circle to her mouth. She had to tip back her head to look at him. They were only inches apart. She took it from his fingers, and they lingered on her lips.
Afraid he’d move away if he saw the depth of emotion in her eyes, she closed them. She wanted to wrap her arms around him. She wanted him to…
“What’s this one?” He held the small bundle between his large, blunt fingers.
“Spicy sausage and potato.” Her voice was husky, barely a whisper.
“I’m not sharing.” He watched her as he put it in his mouth and slowly chewed. His Adam’s apple moved in his throat when he swallowed.
She brought her fingers to the corner of his mouth. “You missed a little.” She fed him the flakes, barely a crumb. He sucked the tip of her finger into his warm mouth, and she shivered. Without breaking eye contact, he took her hand, gently nipped her finger, and then brought it to his shoulder. “Why did you say you’re done thinking about me?” he asked, placing her other hand on the opposite shoulder.
A groan escaped from between her lips, not only because he’d remembered what she’d said, but also because there wasn’t a whisper of space between them now. Every inch of his hard, muscular body was pressed against her. “Because you’re making me pazza.”
His lips curved, the dimple showing up in his cheek. “How am I making you crazy?” His voice was both gentle and rough.
“I don’t know what you want from me.”
“No?”
She shook her head. “No.”
“Would it make it easier if I show you?” he asked, moving his hands to frame her face.
She nodded, her eyes drifting closed.
“Open your eyes, Ava. I want you to see me when I kiss you. I want to look into your gorgeous eyes when I have my mouth on yours.”
She did as he asked. Her knees softened, going weak at the heat in his indigo eyes. She clung to his shoulders, releasing a tiny sigh of complete and utter joy as he lowered his mouth to hers. His lips were…
“Master Griffin, I…Oh, my apologies for the interruption.”
With a low, frustrated sound in his throat, Griffin stepped back from her and lowered his hands. “What is it, Jeeves?”
“Your father’s waiting for you in the study. He received word from Doctors Without Borders that the hospital Master Finn is working at in Central Africa was attacked by armed rebels. There are casualties.”
Colleen paced the study behind Colin and Kitty, who sat in the chairs across from the desk. Kitty was wringing her hands, her face pale. “Griffin will get through to his friend. He’ll find out what’s going on, what’s happened to Finn,” Colin reassured his mother, rubbing her shoulder.
Griffin sat behind the desk, holding a phone between his shoulder and ear at the same time he typed on the computer. Colleen’s fears eased somewhat watching her great-grandson take control. He had a way about him, their Griffin did. As the oldest, he’d always looked out for his brothers and got them out of their scrapes. Just like he was doing now. His watchful eyes moved to his father and grandmother and then to his brother, who was standing by the window with Sophie.
The person he’d been holding for must have returned. Griffin responded to whatever was being said in a calm and even voice. No indication on his face that anything was wrong. It didn’t mean that there wasn’t because Griffin was good at hiding his emotions. Even as a lad he’d been hard to read. He was different than his brothers that way. He took after his mother in looks, his father in temperament. Griffin had been the serious, responsible one, and Ava had been the only one able to bring out his lighter side.
It was a shame their moment had been ruined. He could use Ava right now. Jasper had driven her home after delivering the news.
“Thanks, call as soon as you have anything else.” Griffin hung up the phone. “It looks like most of the staff and patients managed to escape. But it’ll take them at least a few days to get someplace safe. The rebels are still in the area, so they have to be careful. Good news is there’s a Special Forces team about a hundred miles north of there. I’m working on a way to reach out to them. But if we don’t have a definitive answer as to Finn’s whereabouts in forty-eight hours, I’ll be wheels up. I’ve got a couple friends who’ve offered to come with me.”
The last thing Colleen wanted was for another of her great-grandsons to fly off to the war-torn country. Griffin wouldn’t be deterred though. As they all knew, once his mind was made up, there was no dissuading the lad. If anyone could find Finn and ensure his safety, it was Griffin.
Once he’d finally persuaded everyone to head to their beds, Griffin got back to work on the computer and phone.
Colleen parked herself on the corner of the desk. “If I’d known how the night would turn out, I would have let you get some sleep, my boy.” She’d kept him awake half the night yelling in his ear. Instead of telling Griffin that Ava needed him, this time she’d told him he was hungry, ravenous. Worked as well as any food commercial on TV.
Shame no one else could hear her. She was beginning to wonder if it had something to do with her suite of rooms in the tower. Griffin had heard her there, but nowhere else. She’d have to get Jasper in there to test her theory. Badger him into giving her memoirs back. Though it wouldn’t do a whole heck of a lot of good until she learned to hold an object in her hands. She really needed to work on that.
An hour later, Griffin called the family to relay an update that alleviated some of their fears. A UN security force had met up with the convoy and were escorting them to safety. As Griffin made his way to his room for some much-needed sleep, Colleen started on her rounds of the manor. She’d just passed by the bar when the front door creaked open and someone crept inside.
“What are you up to, Gaston St. John?” Colleen murmured, following him through the great room to the dining room. He looked over his shoulder before entering the kitchen. Colleen walked through the door…and him. A satisfied smile curved her lips when he shuddered.
He walked to the long counter where a lone pastry sat on the baking sheet. Picking it up to examine it, he took a tentative bite. “Oh my God,” he moaned, and took another bite. Licking every last crumb off his fingers as he made his way to the cooler, he opened the door, staring openmouthed at the trays of hundreds of perfect pastries under clear wrap.
“There’s no way the old battle-ax made them herself. The pastry is perfection,” he said without a trace of an accent. Fisting his hands in his hair, he turned in circles, looking around the kitchen. He stopped midturn. “I should have known.” He raced to the counter. Flinging Ava’s brace across the room, he pulled out his phone.
“Yes, I know what time it is. I’m at the manor. We have a problem. I came here to check on Brunhilda’s hors d’oeuvres. Helga, I’m talking about Helga. You know, our fall guy. Anyway, Ava DiRossi must have decided to play Helga’s fairy godmother and made the pastries for her. If the rest are as incredible as the one I just ate, they’re going to get rave reviews from the bridal show’s attendees.”
He winced and held the phone from his ear, counting to ten under his breath before he said, “I tried. That Italian Nigella Lawson wrecked that plan too. Ava, Ava DiRossi. She swooped in and saved the guests
from food poisoning and then had the nerve to try and give me a lesson on cooking mussels. I…What? Get rid of her? That’s a little extreme, don’t you…Give me a minute.”
He opened the cooler and moments later started to nod. “All right, I have it. You’re lucky you hired a genius, Paigey. Did I tell you…All right, all right, take a pill. Here’s the new plan. Ava was upset I took her job, so when the attendees get sick on her hors d’oeuvres, I’ll suggest to the Gallaghers that she did it to get me fired.”
He nodded. “Thank you, I sometimes amaze myself. Okay, I’ve gotta get to work and get out of here before anyone comes in. I think I’ll sleep in today. Whatever.” He rolled his eyes, laughing when he disconnected. “Little do you know, Paigey. I’d do this job for free. The Gallaghers are going to pay for what Colleen stole from me.”
Chapter Thirteen
Psst, Ava.”
At the frantic whisper, Ava put out her arm to stop the door from sliding shut and stuck her head outside the elevator.
“Hurry, I have to talk to you, and no one can see me.” Erin waved her over, furtively looking around the second-floor hallway.
She wasn’t surprised that Erin didn’t want to be seen with her. Ava was persona non grata at the manor. Even Kitty, who walked around with a perpetual smile on her face, had given Ava the side-eye when she’d arrived for work. Given that the family was worried about Finn, Ava had tried not to let the slight hurt. The same as she did when she felt the staff’s accusatory stares stabbing her in the back. She couldn’t believe they were falling for Gaston’s lies, taking his side over hers.
Sophie had woken Ava up with the news this morning that every single one of the pastries she’d slaved over had been destroyed. According to Gaston, upon learning that he’d found her fillings bland and had doctored them up, she’d destroyed them in a fit of jealous rage. And now they were scrambling to replace the hors d’oeuvres in time for the bridal fair’s opening this afternoon.
When Ava pointed out the holes in his accusation, Sophie assured Ava that she believed her. Ava wasn’t so sure that she did because Sophie had refused her offer to help and had given in to Gaston’s demand that she not be allowed within ten feet of the kitchen or dining room. Sophie had even suggested she take a few days off until everything calmed down. Ava refused. She thought it would make her look guilty, and she needed the money.
She dragged the service cart out of the elevator, parking it alongside the wall. Erin peeked her head around the corner. “Hurry, I left the new waitress they replaced you with alone.”
So it looked like Ava could kiss her waitressing position and tips goodbye. Which would make it harder to pay back Griffin in a timely fashion. She should probably start looking for a second job. She worked to keep the hurt and frustration from showing on her face as she rounded the corner.
Erin grabbed her arm, half dragging her to the nearest guest room. Then Erin nearly strangled her by sliding the passkey Ava wore around her neck into the door.
“The room’s not occupied, is it?” Erin asked as she turned the handle.
“A little late to be worrying about that now,” Ava said, following the blonde into the room. “What’s going on?”
Erin closed the door and then pulled a sheaf of folded papers from her bra. “Sorry, I couldn’t let anyone see me with them. Helga let me in on her secret. I offered to recopy them, but she wanted you to look at the recipes first. She doesn’t trust Gaston.” Erin looked at Ava. “We don’t believe him, you know. Helga says he probably smashed the pastries. She says not to worry; she’s going to fix him.”
“You tell her to keep her head down and do her job. I’m fine,” Ava said, a nervous catch in her voice. With Ava’s luck, she’d be blamed for whatever retribution Helga cooked up for Gaston. Ava unfolded the papers and scanned the recipes, looking up to find Erin studying her.
Her head cocked, Erin said, “You do look fine. Better than fine, actually. Your eyes are shiny and your skin’s all glowy. If I didn’t know better, I’d say you look like a woman—”
She cut the younger woman off before she could say that Ava looked like a woman in love. Which of course she was, and had always been, and it hadn’t done much for her looks the past decade. No, if she was glowy, it was because of her hope that maybe, just maybe, they were going to get a second chance. That hope had gone a long way in making the whole situation with Gaston bearable. A hope she wasn’t ready to share with anyone just yet.
“Anger will do that, you know,” she said to Erin while walking to the desk.
Ava pulled out the chair and sat down. “Once we rewrite the recipes in large print, Helga won’t have a problem with them. I can’t believe he’s serving such mundane fare to the attendees though.” She flicked the recipes with her fingers. “Mini cheese balls, egg rolls, and pigs in a blanket are not going to earn the reviews we’re hoping for. Does Sophie know what he’s sampling?”
“Between what happened with you and Liam’s brother, she seems a little distracted.”
Ava bowed her head and picked up a pen. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Nothing happened between me and Griffin,” she said, her heart beating a little faster. If Griffin told his family about them, that was huge. It meant their almost-kiss hadn’t just been a blip. He really was…
“You and Griffin? No, I meant what happened with you and Gaston, and then what happened to Finn. Sophie says that he’s safe, but they don’t know if he’s injured. They’re hoping for more news soon.”
Ava berated herself for getting her hopes up and thinking of herself and Griffin when his brother was in such a precarious position. “Yes, that was good to hear at least.” Griffin had started his job with the Coast Guard this morning, so Ava hadn’t talked to him yet. Sophie had shared the news when she’d called.
Ava held out the recipe for pigs in a blanket to Erin. “The ingredients all check out. It’ll go faster if you copy one.”
Erin joined her at the desk. Feeling the young woman’s gaze upon her, Ava looked up from scanning the mini-egg-roll ingredients. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Don’t take this the wrong way, but are you sure you didn’t grab someone else’s uniform?”
Ava self-consciously tugged at the front of her maid’s uniform. The black buttons that lined the front of the dress were straining at her chest and hips. “No, it’s mine, but I need a new one. I’ve gained weight. My neighbor and my aunt drop off pastries every morning. I can’t seem to stop eating them.” It was getting out of hand—her weight gain and her aunt and Dorothy.
She knew they were trying to make up for the part they’d played in sending her father away. Even though she’d told them she’d forgiven them, they obviously didn’t believe her because they’d both shown up on her doorstep again this morning while Ava was having a cigarette after receiving Sophie’s call. It was either that or eat a tray of cinnamon buns. She’d had two when she was explaining the situation with Gaston to her aunt and Dorothy. Given their reaction, Ava should have kept her mouth closed. She prayed they didn’t show up at the manor today.
“Tell them to drop them off at my place. I can’t gain weight no matter how hard I try.”
“Enjoy it while it lasts,” Ava said as she stood up. She handed the recipes to Erin. “You shouldn’t be worrying about your weight. You look great though.”
“Thanks, but I’d rather be curvy like you.” Erin smiled and held up the pages. “And thanks for these. Helga really appreciated your help, you know. She tried to get a petition started among the staff to…” Erin grimaced. “I’m sure it’ll blow over as soon as the bridal fair is over. Everyone knows how important it is to the manor. Are you going to stop in after work?”
Until today, she’d been looking forward to the fair. “As long as Gaston won’t be there, I might.”
“You should be okay. The waitstaff is taking turns doing the tastings.” She glanced at the alarm clock on the nightstand. “Yikes, I better run.”
/> As Erin hurried off, Ava took one last look around the room. The manor was almost at full occupancy for the weekend. Satisfied everything was in its place, she closed the door and headed for her service cart. The elevator doors opened, and one of the other maids stepped out.
Trudy had been the only staff member who hadn’t snubbed her this morning. Ava frowned when the other woman turned to pull her cart from the elevator. “The rooms have all been done on this floor, Trudy.”
The other woman wouldn’t look at her. “Jasper asked me to check to make sure…” Her apple cheeks flushed, Trudy lifted a shoulder and mumbled, “Sorry.”
“It doesn’t matter.” Only it did, a lot. Ava worked hard and took pride in her job. Today was no exception. It hurt that Jasper had asked someone to check up on her. He never had in the past. The other staff would hear about it.
Forcing a small smile for Trudy, Ava let her pass before pushing her cart onto the elevator. The box of red-foiled chocolate hearts on her cart called to her. They were putting them on the guests’ pillows in honor of the bridal show and Valentine’s Day, which had been three days earlier.
Ava looked down at her uniform’s straining buttons and pushed the tower floor button.
She’d reversed the order of the rooms and had done Griffin’s first thing this morning, hoping to catch him before he left for work. He’d already gone. She’d spent more time than normal cleaning his room, lingering over his pillow, breathing in his scent, comforted just by being there.
The elevator jerked to a stop, and she got out. Doing her best to ignore the chocolates’ siren song, she left the cart outside Colleen’s suite and entered. Griffin wasn’t there. She sat on the edge of the bed, feeling jumpy and out of sorts, hoping the room and thoughts of Griffin worked their magic again. They didn’t, and five minutes later she couldn’t take it anymore. She got up and walked to the French doors that opened onto the balcony. Maybe the brisk sea air would clear her head.