Chapter 39 #2
Nora looks so much like Rafe, and also so little like him, with hair the color of their mother’s but with the same green eyes. She has a sharp chin where his is broad, and a true smile where his is often hidden.
I think about the bruise under his eye that I covered up.
I think about the scar down his side.
We come to rest side by side at the bar, looking at the poker table across the salon, and the simplest little question slips out. I can’t help myself. Amber is off in the restroom and it’s just the two of us.
“What was your brother like as a child?” I ask her.
She laughs. “Are you looking for ammunition?”
“Ammunition?”
“I know you two fight like it’s foreplay.” Then she covers her mouth and laughs again. “Sorry. I’ve had a bit to drink. I know you two don’t like each other. Well, not officially.”
“Officially?” I ask.
She takes a sip of her drink to hide a smile and doesn’t answer.
“We’re learning to co-exist,” I admit. “Was he bossy as a child? I can see him being very bossy.”
“God, yeah. He always has been. But more so after we lost our oldest brother in the accident. And after our father passed a few years ago, Rafe became nearly insufferable with it. But he means well.” She smiles at me. “He would do anything for the people he cares about. Anything.”
My throat feels dry, and I take a long sip of my drink. “The accident,” I ask. “He’s only mentioned it once.”
“He doesn’t like to talk about it.” Nora’s eyes are so open, I can see the sadness in them. “None of us do. I’ve thought about it, sometimes. That we should talk about it more. For Etienne’s sake.”
“I’m sorry you lost him.”
She puts a hand on my shoulder. “And I’m sorry you lost your parents. No one should have to go through any of it.”
I have the oddest impulse to hug her. I don’t know if she’d like that so soon into our friendship, and my hand tightens around my glass to tamp down the impulse.
Amber returns. “We have to check out the lower deck. Come.”
“I’ll be there in a second,” I say.
“We’ll wait.”
“No, no, I’m going to grab some air. I’ll come down in a minute.”
Nora and Amber look at me for another few seconds, and I make a shooing motion and smile brightly. They head off.
I watch the poker game for a few minutes. Rafe’s total focus, even from here, feels like a terrifying thing. He and James sit silent and still, side by side. So unlike Alex’s sprawl in his chair.
I slip out of a side door onto the deck and find the spiral staircase that leads to the small top deck. It’s nearly empty, with only a few people chatting up here.
The wind is cool against my feverish skin, and around me, Monte Carlo glitters. It’s built upward along the tall hills, and we’re at the very bottom of the basin. It’s beautiful.
I feel a million miles away from everything I’ve ever known.
I take a deep breath and smile out at the dark night. I’m blissfully high on experience and novelty and friendship. On the feeling of Rafe’s brief, possessive kiss.
“I’ve never seen anyone smile to themselves before,” a voice says.
I turn to find a man leaning against the railing beside me. His hands are in the pockets of his all-black suit, and on his head is a black cap. I can barely make out his face.
“It’s a beautiful night,” I say. “What’s not to smile for?”
“You must drive Raphael mad,” he says with a dark chuckle.
I face him fully. “You know Rafe?”
“I do,” he says. It’s not the first time someone’s been curious about our marriage tonight. I can make out a dark beard and two eyes locked on me. He might be my age, I think, or a few years older.
There’s something unnaturally still about him. “Don’t tell him, but I think he likes being kept on his toes,” I say.
People usually respond well to humor.
But the man just runs a hand over his jaw. “Does he? That would surprise me.”
I look past him. There’s a skylight here, open to the party below. I can see the edge of the poker table and milling guests. “You’re not playing poker tonight?”
“I am,” he says. “I’m just not sitting at the table.”
“How does that work?”
He smiles then, a flash of teeth in his dark beard. “I’m sponsoring one of the players. Alvaro can’t say no to a game if the buy-in is covered for him.”
“Is that allowed?” I ask. Alvaro is the player they’re trying to beat. He’s the one who won Alex’s castle, and they need him to wager it again tonight. And then they need him to lose.
My heart speeds up.
The stranger looks back down at the skylight. I wonder if he’s been standing here for long, watching the game. “Everything is allowed at these parties,” he says. “That’s the only rule Viv lives by.”
I wet my lips. There’s something about his demeanor that sets me on edge. “Why would you sponsor a player who takes such huge risks?”
“Maybe I wanted them all here,” he says, and turns unreadable eyes back at me.
Who is this man? “When Alvaro has a good hand, he gets nervous. Happens every time. He checks and rechecks his cards, plays with his chips, taps his fingers against the table. I’ve played with him enough to see it.
He’s more comfortable with pretending to be strong than actually being it. ”
“Why would you tell me this?” My mouth feels dry. “You must know I’ll tell Rafe.”
“Consider it a… gift. To the wife of an old friend.” He looks back down at the skylight, and there’s something predatory in his gaze. “This reunion has been a long time coming.”
I follow his gaze. The table downstairs is as still and focused as it was when I left. People mill about nearby. As we watch, two women walk into view. A familiar brunette and a redhead.
“Reunion?” I ask carefully.
But his eyes are suddenly locked on Nora and Amber below.
His hand around the railing tightens, his knuckles turning white. He won’t look away from them.
I take a careful step back. I should tell Rafe this. I should tell them all about this.
He tears his eyes away from the window. The slyness about him has evaporated. There’s only coldness in him as he walks past me without a single word and disappears down the stairs.
I follow as quickly as I can.
He doesn’t head toward the poker table. He heads in the opposite direction, shouldering his way through the crowd toward the exit like he’s running from someone. I watch him disappear off the boat before I go to find the others.