He put his elbows on the table and rested his head on his hands, tugging his hair with his fingers.
“In the end, it was me who had to wait for him. When he came downstairs, he blushed. His shirt was untucked. He never walked around like that. He bustled me really fast into the car. It was as though he couldn’t wait to get out of there. When we drove home, he asked me not to tell Bella, his fiancée.
“‘Tell her what?’ I asked.
“‘That I even looked at another woman,’ he answered. ‘Let alone…just don’t say anything.’
“I was disappointed though. My upright, twenty-five-year-old brother was as flawed as me. I’d bragged to everyone about how he’d just won a seat in Parliament and was going to be Prime Minister one day. I was proud of him. Less proud that he’d cheated on Bella, but all those young models, gorgeous faces, perfect bodies—he was tempted and he fell.
“I was woken by a phone call an hour after I’d crawled into bed. Saul told me Evan had killed Tania Savage, the girl he’d fucked.”
Summer gasped. “Oh my god.”
“Saul said he could fix it, that I wasn’t to worry, that the police would likely want to interview me along with everyone else who’d been at the party but I needed to wash Evan’s clothes so there was no link back to him. Saul said he was sure Evan hadn’t meant to kill her, that it was a freak accident, an injury to her head. He said before she died Tania told him that Evan pushed her away. She hit her head on the bedside table. Saul went to the bathroom to get a cloth and when he came back, she was dead. He told me everyone’s lives would be wrecked by a trial and that he was doing Evan a big favor and by default, doing me one too, and Evan would be better off never knowing what had happened.”
He gave a heavy sigh. “I snuck out of my room and found the washing machine already on. I recognized Evan’s chinos and blue shirt swirling in the water. I think that was one of the worst moments of my life because it meant Evan knew he’d done something bad. But not that he’d killed her. I couldn’t believe he could have acted the way he did and known she was dead. I lay awake all night wondering what to do. Was my brother a killer? I didn’t believe it. But I knew even if he wasn’t, it would ruin him. But a girl had died. Someone’s child. Someone’s sister. Oh god.”
“Poor girl,” Summer whispered.
“Tania’s body was found the next day under a footbridge close to where she lived in Surrey Quays. I lied to the police and said I had no idea what had happened to her. They never spoke to Evan. Saul told the police Tania had left before Evan arrived. When it made the papers, I made sure Evan didn’t see the one he usually read. If he saw the news in another, he didn’t tell me. Tania was just starting off as a model. She wasn’t well-known. Her death didn’t make the front page.”
Summer wrapped her hands around his wrists, pulled his hands down and held them. “That’s a big secret to carry round. Have you ever talked to your brother about that night?”
“No. I should have because that was what drew me into quicksand and I’m still sinking.”
He had to tell her everything before the remains of his courage trickled away.
“Saul didn’t do anything for a while. I had modeling work all over the world and began to build a reputation so that more and more companies asked for me. I was making a lot of money for me and for Saul. For about nine months everything was fine—and then Saul told me he wanted me to fuck his wife while he watched. I didn’t think I’d heard him right but I had. Little by little, the demands grew more outrageous. He wanted to suck my cock, for me to suck his cock, his friend’s cock, to fuck me, for me to fuck him. And on it went. I fell deeper and deeper. I couldn’t say no or he’d reveal what really happened to Tania and that would bring down Evan, ruin my life and that of my family.”
She clutched harder at his hands. “Jai.”
“I go where I’m told, do what I’m told, and I hate myself. I take too many pills, trying to make life bearable. I spend a lot of time wishing I was dead. You have your list of clouds; I have my list of ways to die. Then I met you and I thought—this is where my life begins. But I’ve fucked that up too.”
Summer moved her chair next to his and wrapped her arms around him, pulling his head into her shoulder. She just held him. The panic and anxiety flooding his body began to recede. His heart rate slowed, his breathing quieted. When he sat upright, she kept hold of his hand. He glanced at the café’s employees who were studiously looking in any direction but his.
“So there you have it. My fucked-up life. The sex slave of Saul and Marta.”
“They’re monsters. She thinks she can just turn up when she likes, do what she likes and that you can’t object? That they can cover up all sorts of crimes and blackmail their meal ticket for years and then sleep at night?”
“She doesn’t think it, she knows it. You asked me if I was in relationship and I lied to you.”
She gave him a little smile. “No, you didn’t. Married, engaged, girlfriend. I wasn’t including blackmailer and victim.”
Jai could feel hope blossoming in his chest.
“You can’t carry on like this,” she whispered.
“I have no choice. I’m their whore.”
Summer glared. “No, you’re not. You’re a good man. A kind man. But a misguided one.”
“Aren’t you angry?”
“I’m fucking furious, but not with you, with them for what they’ve done to you. I feel desperately sorry for the girl who died. I want to be furious with your brother, but does he even realize what he did?”
“I can’t talk to him about it.”
“That means no. He fucked a young girl at a party, pushed her away—if you believe Saul—and then walked off without checking she was okay? Does that sound like him?”
“No. Not at all. But I was seventeen. Drugged up, drunk and already in over my head. By the time I realized Saul had an ulterior motive, it was too late.”
“Because you hid the fact that she died from Evan, you didn’t give him a chance to tell his side of the story, and you played into Saul’s hands. You need to talk to your brother.”
“It’s too late now because I’ve made things worse. Saul doesn’t even need to ruin Evan directly. All he has to do is release videos or pictures of me doing…stuff. You can imagine the headlines. Evan’s chance of ever being party leader would be gone.”
“If he did cause the girl’s death, even accidentally, maybe he doesn’t deserve it.”
“Since that night, I’ve never seen him put a foot wrong. He loves his wife, his kids. He works really hard. Does a load of things for charity. He believes he can make the world a better place.”
“But something bad happened that night. Maybe he’s trying to atone for it. I don’t see why you should too.”
“I didn’t know what to do. I got trawled in gradually until I was too entangled to get out. Then I met you.” He reached to brush a thumb over her lips before he took her hand again. “I was going to tell you but then all that stuff with Doug came up. Then it was too late. Marta played her hand. I don’t want to do any of it anymore, but I need to talk to Evan first.”
“You should have talked to him a long while ago.”
“Yeah, well, I’m pathetic,” he mumbled.
“Don’t. We all make mistakes. And I’m not so sure that Saul would want to bring you down, even if you said no to the rest of what he wants. I Googled you. Did you know you have your own page on Wikipedia?”
He laughed.
“You make him a lot of money. Maybe more than any of his other models. He has the prestige of handling one of the world’s top models. He won’t want to lose that. If he threatens to go public about what happened at the party, your brother won’t be the only one in trouble. He will. What would he say if you threatened to tell the press what he’d coerced you into doing? I think you need to call Saul’s bluff.”
“I’ll talk to my brother.”
“Good. Now I need you to drive me to the police statio
n, and no, you’re not coming in with me. You really don’t need this on top of everything else.”
“Yes, I am coming in with you. I was there when you discovered what was in that bag of coffee. You’re not doing this alone.”
Summer wanted to wrap herself around Jai and protect him from the world. He was such an idiot. How did he know for sure that Evan had killed the model? Just because Saul said it was so, didn’t make it true. It was strange that Evan had washed his clothes in the middle of the night, but it didn’t mean he’d killed the girl.
A seventeen-year-old boy had been traumatized into believing whatever Saul chose to tell him. Just as a naïve twenty-five-year-old woman had accepted everything a conniving bitch had told her from Jai’s bed. Why hadn’t she waited and listened to Jai’s side of the story?
When they stepped outside the café, Summer pulled Jai into her arms and hugged him. They stood for quite a time, just holding each other. She was afraid to even let air come between them. Jai pressed his face into her hair and she could feel and hear his rapid breathing.
I want to make everything right in your world. I can’t mend you, but I want to understand and help you.
* * * * *
They went to Deptford Police Station, which was only a few miles away, though Summer made Jai take a roundabout route in case they were being followed. By the time they were inside, her heart had lodged in her throat.
Once she’d told the duty sergeant what she had in the bag, they were put in an interview room. Jai held her hand as she told her story from beginning to end—from when she was given the toy dog, to the moment the three assholes walked out of her flat. She put the drugs on the table. All ten bags.
By the time she’d been through everything again with two different officers, she was exhausted. She was told she couldn’t return to her flat for the time being but was finally allowed to leave, though there would be more questions later. She was all questioned out.
Jai pulled her close as they walked out of the building into a chilly afternoon. “Well done.”
“God, I hope they don’t cock it up. What if I end up with a whole load of pissed-off drug dealers out to get me?”
“Move in with me.”
She gulped. He didn’t mean forever, did he? Just for now.
“Was that too pushy? Sorry but you can’t go back to that flat. I’d never feel you were safe. I want to keep you safe.” He tugged her over to the car. “Which is also why you have to come to Paris with me.”
“Paris?”
He opened the car door for her to get inside. When he dropped into the driver’s seat, he groaned. “Tell me you have your passport with you.”
“As it happens.” She checked in her purse, pulled it out and stuffed it back inside. “You must never, ever, ever look at the photograph in my passport. Promise.”
He laughed as he pulled away from the curb. “You know that’s like offering me a plate of fish and chips and then whisking it just out of reach.”
“It’s hideous. The no-smiling thing meant I did something weird with my mouth and I look like a demented goat. Every time I have to show the damn thing, the officials do a double take. I expect yours is bloody perfect.”
“So you’ll come to Paris? I have to work tomorrow and there’s some sort of event in the evening, but we could have the day there before we fly back that evening.”
Leaving the country seemed a really good idea, though she suspected the police would have objected. Plus she’d hoped Jai would want to go and speak to his brother, but she did understand his reluctance. It would bring his life crashing down.
* * * * *
“No more, Jai,” Summer protested as he tugged her into another shop at Heathrow Airport.
She’d told him she needed to buy underwear and jeans and he’d gone mad with his credit card, refusing to let her pay.
“I’m going to pay you back for all this,” she said.
He put his mouth to her ear. “No, you’re not, and especially not for the underwear. That’s for me.”
“You’ll look very silly in it.”
He laughed. She wondered if he was on something, he was so high. They’d zigzagged from store to store, and she thought it was like taking an overexcited puppy for a walk. But she did need new gear. She’d bought virtually no clothes over the last eighteen months. She dumped her old jeans and top and sweater and wore the new clothes, but it was hard not to feel overshadowed by the gorgeous Jai.
Did she mind? A little. She’d always been comfortable in her own skin but she’d stepped into a world where how you looked, what you wore and who you knew were more important than a young woman’s life.
People approached Jai for his autograph or asked him to pose with them while they took shots with their phone. Jai was unfailingly polite, but she sensed his underlying annoyance. Attention from a few encouraged attention from even more, and finally he shook his head and they headed for the gate.
“How do you usually avoid all that?” she asked.
“Use the club lounge. I don’t get bothered in there.”
“Will it be a problem taking all these extra bags on board?”
A smile and a few words from Wonder Boy and they were quickly settled in first-class, bags stowed, champagne in their hands, bottoms licked. She sniggered.
“What?” he asked.
“You are so useful. Can you unblock drains as well?”
“Ha ha.” He grinned. “Nev does that. Shit, I can’t believe you’re here with me. Yesterday I thought I’d fucked everything up. Yesterday I did fuck everything up.”
“Would you have told me?” she whispered. “Was it on your to-do list after the laundry?”
He held her hand. “Yes. I wanted to. Except when was the right moment?” He kept his voice low. “‘Hi, my name’s Jai and I’m a sex slave.’ In ten years, I’ve not told a soul. I was scared of what you’d say, what you’d think. I want…”
“What?”
“I want a different life and I want it with you.”
He kissed her. A kiss that didn’t stop until a member of the cabin crew interrupted to tell them to put on their seat belts. They held hands as the plane accelerated down the runway and soared into the dark sky.
“Whereabouts is your office?” he asked.
“Canary Wharf. Well, the headquarters. The company has offices all over the world. They supply weather data to a huge range of businesses. The media, aviation industry, energy and utility companies—anyone really whose operations can be adversely affected by the weather. Like Santa Claus.”
He laughed. “So you could get there quite easily from Notting Hill?”
She hesitated.
“Don’t you remember what I asked you this afternoon? And I don’t mean whether I should turn left or right.”
“You want me to move in with you.”
“Yes, until we can find a place of our own. I know the house near the beach has to wait for a while but I want us to be together, just the two of us.”
“Jai—”
“I’m rushing you, aren’t I? Shit. Sorry. Think about it.”
“Okay.”
“Have you thought for long enough? What do you say?”
She couldn’t help laughing.
The smile fell off his face. “Maybe you ought to wait to see what happens with the mess I’m in. You might not want to come anywhere near me.”
“Yes, I’ll move in with you until we can find a place of our own.”
Oh god, I’m crazy. I’ve only just met you.
He opened his mouth but then closed it without saying anything. His Adam’s apple went up and down and he brought her hand to his lips and kissed her fingers. “I want to take care of you,” he whispered. “I don’t want anyone to ever hurt you.”
“I can fight my own battles.”
“I want to fight alongside you.”
“Will you show me your sword?”
He narrowed his eyes. “Later.”
“I hear
it’s a big one.”
“Nothing you can’t handle.”
Chapter Eighteen
It was just after eight when they arrived at the Shangri-La Hotel. The cab pulled through tall iron gates and stopped under an elaborate wrought iron and glass porte-cochere where a top-hatted doorman waited. Summer kept having to remind herself to snap her lower jaw into place. Two huge Chinese vases stood sentry at the door and when she and Jai walked into the reception area, her jaw dropped again.
“Sure this is a hotel and not a museum?” she whispered.
“Good evening, Monsieur Winter,” said the elegant woman behind the desk.
She knows him? Of course she does.
“Bonsoir, Marguerite. I have a guest with me. Miss Dey.”
“Good evening, Madamoiselle Dey.”
“Bonsoir.” Summer’s reply won her a polite smile.
Jai signed in, accepted the key and took Summer’s hand.
“Would you like to be shown to your room?” the woman asked.
“We’re fine, thank you.”
“This place is fantastic,” Summer said quietly as they walked away.
“I always stay here, courtesy of Fixx. It was built as a home for a relation of Napoleon Bonaparte. Wait until you see the room.”
There was plenty to look at before they even reached it. Marble floors, a spectacular sweeping gilded iron staircase that led to rooms with chandeliers, mirrors and more gilt.
“There’s a pool too, with clouds painted on the ceiling.”
She whined. “I don’t have a bikini.”
“We’ll buy one.”
He opened the door of the room and she stopped short. The blue-and-white room was stunning enough, but through glass doors ahead was a perfect view of an illuminated Eiffel Tower. Summer walked past their bags that had made it to the room before them, out onto the small balcony and gasped. Jai came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.
“What a breathtaking view,” she said.
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