9. Chapter 9
M r. Freckles’ sleek black body comes gliding across the railing of my balcony like he isn’t at risk of dropping eight floors.
He jumps down to the small glass table and stretches across the smooth surface, his tail swishing, his amber eyes regarding me through the balcony door.
Just like any other day, I cross from my kitchen and slip out onto the balcony, closing the door behind me, and scratch Mr. Freckles under the chin. He’s the best part about living here.
“You need to stop jumping balconies,” I murmur as he purrs obscenely loud.
My phone vibrates in the back pocket of my jeans, and I pull it out.
DEL
Lucas will pick you up on the way.
Be ready by 6:30.
I check the time—it’s five thirty.
Just got to do my hair and pick an outfit. I’ll meet him in the parking lot.
I pocket the phone and sigh, giving Mr. Freckles one last chin scratch. “Enjoy the sunset, buddy.”
I leave him to his evening sunbathing, wishing I could join him like I usually do, and head inside. I stop to straighten the couch cushions as I pass through the living space, then sigh and step back as I still can’t get them right. I haven’t been able to get them right since I moved in.
Honestly, I haven’t been able to get a lot of things in this place right. It’s a beautiful apartment and I’ve spent a small fortune of my trust fund furnishing it the way I want, but there’s still something missing. I can’t get it to feel like mine, like a home.
I forcibly turn from the couch and head for my bathroom, making a note on my phone to look for different furniture, then put it down on the vanity and begin to unravel the rollers in my hair.
It’s taken the whole week to talk myself into going to this dinner tonight for Matteo, and no matter the distraction, my stomach has been in knots all day.
I don’t know what to expect, which is what makes me nervous. Better yet, I don’t know how I’m going to react. It was the first time Del mentioned Matteo outright at the café on Tuesday, and I didn’t respond very well. Now I’m going to a dinner in celebration of him?
This probably isn’t the best idea.
No, I need to do this. I need to be able to say his name and talk about him as if he’s still here without dissolving into anxiety and sorrow. I, once again, hate that I’m put in this position in the first place.
I blow out a frustrated breath as I pull out the last rollers and then carefully brush out the curls. Once they’re smooth, bouncy waves, I spray it all with hairspray, clean up my bathroom vanity and then check my make-up.
I’ve gone for simple with long lashes, a small smoked-out winged liner and nude lip, which is all in place, so I apply some gloss and then pack it into my small handbag, along with my compact face powder, and leave the bathroom.
I place my phone on charge on my bedside table, then pull out an outfit for tonight—black leather mini-skirt, a pale pink long-sleeve top, and sheer black stockings that have little hearts on them.
My phone vibrates as I’m fishing out my knee-high boots from the bottom of my closet.
I rush over, thinking it’s Del, but ‘Mum’ flashes on my screen.
I almost let it ring out but swipe the screen to answer it at the last second. “Hey, Mum.”
“You’ve been avoiding me, Scarlett,” she says immediately.
I roll my eyes as I search my drawers for underwear. “I’m not ignoring you. I’ve been busy with school.”
She pauses for a moment. “Okay, well, have you spoken to Del?”
“I saw her on Thursday.”
“And?”
“And she’s doing well.”
She sighs into the phone. “Scarlett…”
I pause my search and frown at my phone. “If you’re asking if I’ve convinced her to not marry Enzo, then, once again , I’m never going to do that.”
“He’s twice her age.”
“So?”
“Someone his age marrying someone so young comes across as frivolous. What if she’s just a passing moment to him?”
I snort. “Enzo is the most decisive person I’ve ever met, and I was raised by you and Dad.”
“She’s nineteen ,” she points out.
“She’ll be just shy of twenty-one when they marry. Weren’t you twenty when you married Dad?”
She clicks her tongue. “He’s months older than me, not almost two decades. It’s not the same. What are people going to say about Del ?”
“When have you cared about what other people say?”
“I’m worried about her ,” she stresses. “Like I worry about all my children.”
I sigh. “Mum, Del is happy . She feels settled in her life for the first time. Ever . Do you want to take that away from her?”
“Of course not,” she sighs. “But—”
“Del isn’t me, Mum. She’s more than capable of knowing what she wants and how to handle herself.”
“Scarlett, honey.” Her tone is now soft. “Are you saying that you need help?”
“No,” I sigh. “I’m saying that if there is anyone who can handle Enzo Herrington, it’s Del.”
Mum sighs again. “She shouldn’t have to ‘handle it.’”
“Well, she is. Rather well, I might add.”
“I want Del to marry someone good for her. She’s been through so much in her life.”
“Enzo is good for her.”
“The Herringtons are a dangerous family.”
“And so are the Dragones,” I point out. “Yet you’re their lawyer and a family friend.”
“And I wouldn’t want her pursuing anything with Raphael, either,” she bites back.
I scoff. “You wouldn’t have that much of a problem if it was Raph.”
“Scarlett,” she reprimands.
“I need to be somewhere. Can we not have this conversation anymore?”
“Where are you going?” The ‘mum tone’ is back.
“To dinner.”
“With?”
“Del and Enzo.”
“Enzo the businessman, or Enzo the criminal?”
“ Mum, ” it’s my turn to reprimand. “Just stop, okay? We’re going to dinner in honour of Matteo.”
“Who proves my point about the Herringtons being dangerous by getting himself killed.”
I pause. We both do. She really just said that.
“Scarlett—”
“Goodbye.” I end the call, and the time lights up my screen.
And now I’m running late.
It’s six fifty when I lock my door and rush out of my apartment. Lucas is already in the parking lot, standing by a large black SUV, waiting ever patiently. As I approach, he opens the front passenger side door.
“Thank you,” I say as I practically dive into the car.
He dips his head as he closes my door, then circles to the driver’s seat.
I clasp my seatbelt as we drive out of the parking lot, and I take a minute to settle. “Thanks for picking me up. I hope it wasn’t out of your way.”
“You’re five minutes from the Herrington house,” he says without taking his eyes off the road. “Literally on my way.”
“Okay, good. Thank you.”
“It’s my job.”
“As a henchman?”
He turns to me for a second, the ghost of a smile brushes the burly guy’s face, before looking back at the road. “Exactly.”
I’ve never seen Lucas this…relaxed. He’s always in henchman mode when I usually see him, with dark brown eyes and a stern expression that tells you to fuck off without him having to say a word. He’s also super tall, built like a tank, and has a buzz cut, a combination that screams drill sergeant from hell.
He’s intimidating, which makes him a perfect henchman, but looking at him now, he’s actually kind of handsome. Like really handsome.
I turn my attention back to the road as we drive in a comfortable silence for a minute, navigating the quiet streets toward the Herrington mansion. As we turn into the street and slow as we approach the house, Lucas clears his throat.
“You know, if you want to learn to drive, I can teach you.”
I blink at him in surprise. “Really?”
He nods, face serious. “With the current circumstances, it would be safer if you went out with someone trusted.”
I nod. “That makes sense.”
“Plus, those driving instructors don’t know shit.”
I bark out a laugh before I can stop myself. “I have never heard you swear.”
Another ghost of a smile.
“I busted a tyre the last time I got behind the wheel,” I confess.
He looks at me, face serious. “If I can teach my daughter how to drive, I can teach anyone.”
I blink. “You’re old enough to have a daughter who can drive?”
He grunts an approving sound and unbuckles. “You have my number. Let me know.”
He gets out of the car, moving to open the back door as Del walks toward the car.
“Hey, babe,” I greet as she slides in. “Where’s Enzo?”
“Already there,” she says as she clips in her seatbelt. “Business stuff.”
I frown. “Today?”
She sighs, annoyance on her beautiful face. “I know. I told him, but…” She shrugs as Lucas gets back into the car and pulls into the street.
I turn to face the front, watching the world go by as I contain the seething annoyance in my chest.
I know we’re supposed to pretend Matteo is jetting around the world on some Herrington Global business, but this is his birthday with his family . The fact they all know, and just go about like he never existed, makes my blood boil.
The car slows, and I realise we’re already pulling into the alley behind Seduzione . Del’s door opens the moment the car stops, and Enzo’s hand appears in the opening.
She smiles, unbuckles, and takes his hand. I don’t wait for Lucas as I open my own damn door and get out.
Arm wrapped around Del, Enzo gives me a polite nod as he gestures for me to enter the restaurant first. I hold in the urge to punch him in his handsome face as I turn on my heel and walk in.