by Briggs, Jo
Grey bit his tongue to stop himself from retorting something unkind to Richard. He understood Richard was only trying to make sure he considered all his options, especially since he wasn’t used to Grey actually allowing himself to care for women in the long term.
“She is not that kind of person, she clearly has money of her own to be renting such a large villa herself. She knows I’m rich, but hasn’t asked anything about me. She’ll not let me pay for her at all when we go out.” Grey replied smoothly.
“Do you know anything about her so that we perhaps could get her investigated, so at least I know what I’m dealing with if the case arises?”
“Just that her name is Indi. One of her grandfathers has a title, and the other owned a successful horse breeding ranch in America.” Grey knew David was only doing what he ordinarily would do ask for him to do when he let someone new into his life, but it still made him feel dirty and unworthy now that she had entrusted him with what her parents had put her though. “Whatever findings you do get, I don’t want to know about unless really crucial.” Grey spoke firmly, he knew he was already half in love with her, and had started conjuring up scenarios that once his obligation to Caitlin was out of the way, he would seek her out, and introduce her properly into his life.
“Very well. I hear Caitlin has been threatening to fly out and see you. Be careful she does not discover your little love nest.”
“She would be hard-pressed to as we’re off to Florence in a couple of hours, and there is nothing of Indi’s at my place, I always stay over at hers.”
Closer - Indi
“Honey, where are you?” Indi could hear Grey calling to her from the lounge.
“In the bedroom panicking.”
She could hear his laughter coming closer. In just three weeks of being together, he’d become quite used to her panicking over not finding the right outfit to wear. She always would try on about three or four things before settling on the right one, usually the first one she’d tried on.
“What is wrong?” He questioned, smiling as he leaned up against the doorframe, drinking in the sight of clothes half in her suitcase and half out. She was still dressed in her underwear, a black lace, all in one body, her hair tied loosely in a bun, with some of the shorter wispy curls hanging free, framing her cheeks.
“I just don’t know what to wear, since you won’t tell me where we’re going!” She cried dramatically.
Chuckling, Grey moved into the room while Indi continued to lean over the bed, mumbling incoherently as she debated which outfits to place in the suitcase. Coming up behind her, he slid his hand suggestively over her bottom. “I would be quite happy if you simply wore this outfit all evening.” He teased.
“Grey!” She chided impatiently.
“Babe, just think summery and comfortable.” He continued caressing her bottom as he stood behind her. His hands glided up from her bottom over each side of her hips as he pressed himself against her so she could feel his growing hardness as he leaned over to kiss her neck and nibble her earlobe in a way he knew she loved.
She let out a whimper, despite her irked patience. “Grey, we don’t have time,” she tried to reason with him.
“The taxi is not going to be here for forty-five minutes, and it wouldn’t matter if we kept the driver waiting for a few more minutes after that. I need you right now, it’s been ages since we made love.” Grey grumbled, continuing to rub his hardness against her bottom to emphasis his point.
“Ages being all of the five or six hours!”
“I can’t help it if I want to touch you constantly.”
“I know darling, I enjoy you wanting to touch me, but can we not wait till we get there rather than having to rush?”
He sulked, “I suppose.”
“Aww, poor baby, I’ll make it up to you later you know that.” She turned to face him fully, and stood up on tiptoe to kiss him as if to seal her promise. “Now let me sort out the rest of my suitcase in peace. Why don’t you go and read the paper, or something.”
“Ok, I’ll call you when the taxi arrives.”
Left alone, Indi managed to finish the task of selecting a few short and long dresses, flat and spiked heeled shoes, and a bathing suit, all neatly placed within her Louis Vuitton luggage. She dressed in a short turquoise one-shoulder dress that was embellished with a pattern of six shooting stars drifting from a central point downwards, made up of beads.
Indi pulled out the long extendable handle of the case, brought it out into the foyer, and went into the large open kitchen/dining area where Grey was seated at the breakfast bar reading one of the English papers that they had picked up the day before.
“Where is your case, Grey?”
“Over by the sofa. Are we over our panic now?” He left the paper, and came over to embrace her. “You look lovely.” His eyes drifted over the short dress admiringly, as his wandering hands exploring her softness beneath the dress suggestively.
“Yes, the suitcase is packed, and ready to go.” She replied, dismissing his other remark without a response, as she knew it only would encourage him to initiate kissing her again, something she didn’t want to get into until they were on the train. This caused Grey to frown at her silent rebuttal of his compliment. “Indi, is something wrong?” He reached for her chin, and brought her face up so her eyes would look at his.
“No, I’m fine, Grey. I simply don’t want to start something that may be interrupted by the taxi arriving, and I don’t like keeping people waiting as I find it rude.” Indi explained.
Grey raised an eyebrow and shrugged. “I’m sure he wouldn’t mind; he gets paid extra for just sitting there, and I always tip well.”
“I just don’t like keeping people waiting, it’s discourteous, even if they are being paid for the privilege.” Her tone was sharper this time, irritated by his casual dismissal of her own opinion on the matter.
Grey stiffened at the criticism, he’d never been at the receiving end of Indi’s sharp tongue before, and he didn’t know how to react. He was afforded a reprieve of having to consider a reply as the taxi signalled its arrival with a small burst of the horn. He silently collected his own suitcase and followed Indi out into the foyer, where she already had her own case.
As she glanced at him over her shoulder as she opened the front door, he wore a stern expression as he looked straight ahead, avoiding any eye contact with her. She sighed inwardly, thinking that the beginning of the surprise would be ruined if he maintained such a stern exterior, just because she’d censured him for not considering that another person’s time was just as valuable as his.
There was stony silence between them throughout the taxi journey. All the time, he wore an unreadable expression on his face.
As they drew up outside the train station, Indi could take it no longer. “Grey? Are you going to speak to me, or shall I just turn the taxi around, and go back to the villa while you continue on to wherever we were heading.”
His eyes flashed with dark clouds disrupting the calm molten silver within them. “I’ll speak to you on the train.” His voice was monotone, but she could tell a storm was brewing.
Indi rolled her eyes in frustration and replied, “Fine.” This was the first time she had refused him of anything and his reaction had surprised her. He was acting like a spoiled, sulky child. Surely people had said no to him before?
Grey just looked at her disdainfully but said nothing. He slipped on his trademark sunglasses accessory before exiting the vehicle. He always wore them when they headed out in public to deflect the obvious signs of his identity were to any potential paparazzi or adoring fans nearby. They had been extremely lucky so far with only one known photographer snapping them as they exited from a restaurant, but Adam had managed to convince him to hand over the film for a sufficient sum of money.
After the driver had helped them remove their luggage out of the boot, each of them dragged their own luggage along silently. Since she’d no idea where she was heading, she traile
d behind him slightly as her shorter strides were no match for his longer ones.
On the busy platform was a sleek train, with many carriages. As they walked, she could see the first class signage on the first few, before the second class began. There was a large monitor showing all the trains due in, and their destinations, so she could work out where they were heading, once she could see what platform number they were on. She could see Grey was heading towards Adam and Hayden, who she’d become used to accompanying them on their excursions around the island.
“Hi again,” Indi said as the two men smiled and nodded at her, before turning their attention back to their employer.
“Have you had the train looked over?” Grey asked.
“Yes, I spoke to the station master who gave their approval to allowing us to board it to check over the rooms beforehand. They were quite pleased to be having such a VIP travelling on their train, so they were glad to oblige.”
While the men were talking, Indi took in her surroundings, noted the platform number, and moved slightly away from them to view the large monitor she’d seen earlier. So, they were heading to Florence. Grey had chosen well. She’d been to Rome and Venice before but never there. She was secretly pleased that he’d taken the time to take her to some place new, and felt some of her earlier anger dissipate. Maybe she’d been too harsh.
She was still deep in thought, when she felt someone touch the small of her back lightly, at the same time she felt the warm breath against her ear as Grey spoke against it. “So you’ve discovered the surprise destination?”
She turned around and met his gaze. “Yes, thank you, it’s a perfect choice.”
He smiled slightly and nodded.
“I’m sorry about before,” they both blurted out in unison. Grey stepped closer and ran his fingers lightly over her mouth before he kissed her hard, which she returned eagerly. “Come let’s go aboard, and talk properly.” Separating, he slid his arm around her waist and guided her back through the crowded platform and onto the train. He showed her into a cabin that seemed to be one of the premier cabins, it was decked out to a high level of comfort, with large armchairs, and table off to one side.
“We can convert it into two beds for tonight,” he explained as he sat down on one of the large seats. “We have our own attendant in this car, who can serve us drinks and some snacks in here, or we can go into the restaurant car later if you want. I had tried to get a cabin with our own bathroom, but it seems they don’t have them on this route.”
Indi smiled coyly as joining him on the seat, half facing him. “Single beds?”
He nodded apologetically, turning more to face her, and took one of her hands in his. “But, I’m sure we can snuggle up together in one for a few hours. And, the hotel in Florence certainly has a double.”
“Grey, I don’t mind sleeping in a single if you’re here with me.” She assured him softly, their earlier argument put to the side as she leaned forward to nuzzle against his chest.
“I thought we should talk through this tension before we head off. I want to give you a true idea of what my life is like with my wife, and in general, which is why I appear not to care about other people at the time.”
“Okay.” She lifted her head off him, and turned in her seat, to listen in earnest to what he’d to say.
“I am sure it comes as no surprise that I lead an opulent lifestyle, but that wasn’t something I attained via the music. It is something I was born into. My family is beyond wealthy, more than the largest public limited company. As the oldest of five, I am the one that each of the others turns to in time of crisis. Even though I am not technically heading up any of the companies owned by my family. I still get daily phones from people who are running them for my input. I am always the one that has to negotiate when our father makes their life difficult. I’ve more responsibility than one person should have, and that is what makes my time exceedingly precious. At times, I take for granted that people will just wait around for me to be ready, and I accept that I come across as pompous because of this, to people who don’t truly know me.”
Indi gazed at him, her mouth slightly ajar as he spoke. He had already divulged he had problems with his father, but she had not begun to imagine this kind of pressure. This man sounded almost as calculating and uncompromising as her own He squeezed her hand slightly as he continued.
“As mentioned before – my sister was harassed by a man we knew extremely well. She had a stalker for months beforehand, unbeknownst to us, it was him all along. It ended in him kidnapping her. Endless hours of counselling couldn’t help her come to terms with what happened. Even now, three years later, she still has nightmares. She became the shell of a person she was before: uncontrollable, anti-authoritarian drug taker. I blame myself; if I had paid attention more perhaps the kidnapping could have been averted.
“My goodness, I didn’t realise that had happened.” A cold shudder went down Indi’s back as she came to the realisation that her own case could have so easily ended in kidnapping, as well.
“The majority of it was kept out of the papers at the time and they caught him within a few days of her being taken. He has been in prison ever since, but is due to be up for parole in only three years.”
“You asked me yesterday why I have changed between that first introduction and now. Before this holiday, I was holding people at arm’s length. I wanted to uproot from London to hundreds of miles away just so there would be no chance of ever running to him once he was released, but my counsellor helped me realise that I couldn’t let him win, and needed to learn to face my fears and let myself trust people again.” Indi’s voice wobbling as the stark reality of how close she could have come to something more serious took its toll on her senses.
Grey looked down at her in dismay, and pulled her into his chest tightly seeing the tears welling up as she spoke. “Don’t cry honey, you never have to be scared of him ever again.”
“How you can say that when we won’t even be in each other lives once we leave here.” Her sobbing becoming persistent, as the realism of not being able to have Grey protect her long term, truly hit her.
“I may not be in your day to day life, but I will still make sure you’re safe. You just need to make contact with the name I gave you last night as soon as you are back home. He will take care of everything.” He tried to soothe her by running his hand repeatedly over her hair.
“But won’t it be costly to have someone protecting me?”
“Don’t you worry about that. The bills will come to me personally rather than the band or family. No one would need to know.”
The idea made her feel that she always would be an undisclosed facet to his life. Not just a holiday fling that turned into more but his kept woman. A sense of sordidness washed over her as her already heightened emotions moved from distress to wrath as she pushed herself away from his embrace and walked to the other end of the cabin out of his reach. “You make it sound as if I will be your dirty little secret.”
“No, that isn’t what you are at all.” He made a move to grab her as she moved away, but Indi was too quick.
“Don’t touch me.” She said firmly, her eyes full of hurt. “I-I thought with all the gifts and these surprise trips you had actually started to care about having me in your life.”
“I do, but it is complicated.” Grey said as Indi noted the inward struggle in his countenance.
Indi looked away and rolled her eyes. “Which means what? You care enough to pay for some security but not for -.” In the end, she couldn’t bring herself to finish the sentence. She was making a fool of herself, they had entered into this as a no-strings fling, so he wasn’t doing anything different to what they had agreed upon.
Grey stood up and began walking closer, but held his hands up in a gesture of surrender as he pleaded, “Ok, I won’t touch you but please hear me out.”
Indi remained quiet and just waited.
He stood in front of her, ever so close that she could feel his
breath against her hair as he stood up taller than her. “You aren’t just a secret fling to me, Indi. I have grown to care about more than I thought possible in such a short space in time, but there are – things, family things I need to sort before I can bring you into my life properly and show you off to the world in a way you deserve.” His voice was heavy with emotion as she watched his eyes brimming with sincerity.
“But I would have to be hidden away until then?” She whispered, reaching out to palm her hands against his hard chest signalling her willingness to consider his plan.
“You could still meet other members of my family that I trust if that would make you feel more at ease?” He leaned in and began to kiss away her half-dried tears.
“I would like that.” Indi said before closing her eyes as Grey began devouring her mouth with his.
Later on, after cleaning themselves up and changing into different outfits, to dine with Adam and Hayden in the restaurant car. The meal went by pleasantly; she soon gathered that, despite them actually being in Grey’s employ, they were actually remarkably close friends with him, as well. She discovered for the first time that Adam and Hayden were members of the same corps section as a cousin of Grey’s who headed up the band security.
They laughed and joked at his expense about stories of their nights out with him, his cousin Richard, his friend Charlie, and them before his marriage.
“I don’t think I’ve seen him this happy in a long time.” Hayden had observed when Grey had left them alone with Indi for a few minutes. “You are clearly beneficial for him.”
“I think he is equally good for me too.” Indi replied wistfully as she sipped at her wine, unaware that Grey had heard what she said. “I’ve never talked some much to one person about my inner thoughts before, saving me lots of time in therapy,” she joked, she enjoyed her chats with the men when Grey disappeared off to sort out some business from time to time.
“Just let me know where to send the bill.” Grey said drolly as he retook his seat, and kissed her cheek.