Chapter 28
F resh out of a shower, Edward had just buttoned up his jeans when his bedroom door opened to reveal Briege standing there, looking more than just a little amused.
“Ohh, rather great timing on my part!” She smiled, her eyes drinking him in. “Don’t dress on my account.”
Edward grabbed his t-shirt from the bed but remembered it stank of smoke from earlier that morning. Huffing, he turned away from her to pull a fresh one from his wardrobe.
I really need to start locking that fucking door!
“Are you lost?” He turned to face her, feeling better now he was no longer half naked.
“What is your problem with me at the moment?” Briege came into the room, ceremoniously sitting– no, more like lounging– on his bed. “I’m getting some very hostile vibes from you at the moment.”
Edward crossed his arms across his chest, his look purposefully stern. “Briege, what do you want?”
“I want us to be friends, babe.” She smiled again, leaning back so her long hair hung seductively behind her. Granted, he used to love twisting it around his fingers to tug it whilst… No, he wouldn’t go there. “Don’t you miss us, even a little?” she purred.
“It was a fucking car crash. Why would I miss that?”
“Ohh, come on. We had a lot of fun.” She paused and focused her attention on his crotch area. “And some great fucking sex.”
The woman is insane.
“I think you’d best leave.”
“Is there someone else?” A dark look passed over her eyes. He used to call it the psychotic look, as it was always there right before she would lose the plot entirely. No, he definitely didn’t miss it , her , them – any of it.
“Leonard seems to think you’ve got something going on with the wedding planner.” She sniffed, her distaste evident as she turned up her nose.
The wedding planner? God, I hate him.
“Briege, whether I’m seeing someone or not is none of your or my brother’s business.
I’ve got work to do so if you wouldn’t mind…
Actually, I don’t care if you mind, you need to leave.
Now. Go do whatever you’re here to do for the wedding and let’s both do each other a favour and stay out of each other’s way. ”
For a moment, with her eyes dark and wild, he thought she was going to fly into a rage and launch herself at him, something that was common practice during their volatile relationship, but not today. Instead, a little smile crept onto her face.
“I’ll give you some more time, then.” She stood, straightened her skirt, and slowly walked towards him, her big brown eyes full of mischief and lust. He bristled as she stopped in front of him and he caught her hand as it reached up to touch his cheek, making her laugh.
“Oh, Eddie, you’re so uptight. Don’t you remember how good I was at making you relax?” And she was so quick, he had no time to react to her hand grabbing his crotch area, enough to make his cock twitch. His reaction made her smile.
“He certainly does,” she said, kissing the side of his mouth and giving his cock a slight squeeze through the denim.
“It’s not something that appeals anymore, Briege.” He took hold of her hand and pinned it to her side. “And believe me when I say, just because my cock reacts, doesn’t mean I intend to.”
Another storm brewed in her eyes, but after a brief hesitation, she blinked it away and smirked.
“We’ll see, babe.” She straightened her back, and, as if nothing at all had happened, left the room.
Edward closed his eyes and released a breath.
At one point, he’d enjoyed her forwardness and sexual mischief, but it was now a tired and overplayed act.
She was right, though. They had physically enjoyed each other, a lot– and if he was honest with himself, if it wasn’t now for Scarlett, he may well have even contemplated the idea of one more trip down memory lane, no matter how much she pissed him off.
But the thought made him grimace. He was better than that. And despite still finding her physically attractive, and clearly his cock did too, it was no longer something he wanted. At one point, he even believed he loved her, and since they had similar upbringings, it had made sense.
It had been different with Lily’s mum, who he’d met at uni and who was from a nice middle-class background.
They’d both been incredibly young; he was doing his finals, and she was barely a year out of graduation when she’d fallen pregnant with Lily.
The idea of being a lady captivated Natasha; but the estate, Edward’s commitment to it, the inescapable class system, and all its associated traditions annoyed her so much that she eventually left him for a solicitor from Aberdeen. Frankie.
Having watched his parents’ marriage crumble and failing miserably himself twice before– once with Natasha and then with Briege– Edward had been determined to not get emotionally involved with another woman.
The idea of upending his life only for it to all fall apart again was not something he’d been remotely interested in doing. That was until Scarlett.
But wasn’t she simply a combination of his exes? Although, he mused, she wasn’t anything like either of them.
Scarlett was full of life and love, even, it seemed, for the estate and all its inhabitants, not to mention how her enthusiasm for bringing the house back to its former glory in preparation for the wedding– it was contagious and intoxicating.
She also excited him, in more ways than one, and for the first time, possibly in his life, he felt a sense of peace– which seemed like a contradiction, but he was learning that two things could in fact be true at the same time.
Another stark truth was that he needed to keep Briege away from Scarlett. Briege was toxic, and Edward was more than a little aware that Scarlett’s recent experience with her husband had left her feeling vulnerable and cautious, something he was familiar with from his own experiences.
The exchange with Briege had left him feeling agitated and worse, horny .
The truth of it made his insides boil and his head roar.
He didn’t want Briege, of course he didn’t, but more than that, he didn’t want Briege to get even a whiff of his relationship with Scarlett– to do that he had to keep the two as far away from each other as possible.
He also needed to talk to his brother. A discussion about behaviour, boundaries, and maintaining distance was necessary.
He didn’t like that Leonard was sniffing around Scarlett, even more so that it was making her feel uncomfortable; and despite her telling him the opposite was true, he knew Leonard well enough to know he was up to no good.
Edward found his brother with his feet up, absorbed in his laptop, alone in the drawing room.
“Good morning. We missed you at breakfast.” Leonard glanced up at Edward before looking back at his screen.
Edward walked past him to the French doors overlooking the rear gardens. “I doubt that.”
Leonard let out a huffed laugh. “In good humour as always, I see.”
Edward put his hands in his pockets and sighed. “It’s difficult to find humour when you’re up to your usual shite.”
“Do tell, what game is afoot that I’m responsible for now?” Leonard closed his laptop and looked over at Edward.
“Why have you brought Briege here?” Edward finally turned to face his brother.
Leonard shrugged and smiled. “I told you– she’s sorted the catering for us.”
“There’s at least a handful of other companies that could have done that.” Edward narrowed his eyes at Leonard.
“Potentially none that could turn it around in such a short amount of time and to the standard we want. What’s wrong with Briege, anyway?”
Edward marvelled at how Leonard could keep such a straight face.
“You’re being a complete prick,” Edward muttered, shaking his head.
“Look, I’m sorry if it puts you in a situation, but as far as I was aware, it’s been over for years. I didn’t think it would be an issue. She’s a family friend, after all.” Leonard shrugged again and folded his arms across his chest, a glint in his eye.
“She’s a fucking car crash waiting to happen– as well you know, and you’ve done it to piss me off. The only question is why?” Edward’s tone was sharper than he intended, but he was quickly losing patience.
Leonard’s mouth twitched. “Why would I want to piss you off, brother?” He smiled and looked around the room. “Suppose it’s nice to have the estate all to yourself, usually. Appreciate it’s a big change to have so many people around you at the moment.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Just saying, maybe the pressure of all the social interactions is making you see things that aren’t actually there. Like my alleged intention to piss you off.” Leonard looked past Edward out onto the lawn, a smile playing at the side of his mouth.
Edward caught Leonard’s gaze and held it steady. “What have you been saying to Scarlett?”
Leonard couldn’t stop the grin that spread across his face and Edward knew he’d lost this one. “The sumptuous Scarlett. What wouldn’t I say, or, more to the point, do? Wouldn’t you?” He watched Edward’s fists clench before he quickly released them.
“Stay away from her, Leonard. I’m not playing. And keep Briege out of my way too. Understood?” Edward walked to the doorway.
“Yes, my laird. Understood,” Leonard responded, his tone laced with sarcasm.
Edward left the room, his breathing ragged and his temper rising. He was in danger of losing it with his younger brother on a level that wouldn’t do either of them any good.
He needed to see Scarlett, just to bring some inner calm back so he could get his ever-growing list of jobs for the day done. He knew she was making plans for the orangery so made a beeline for the side of the house.
On his approach, he could hear her humming. She probably had her earphones in, and he smiled at the memory of the first time he came across her– properly that is– after their first meeting, cleaning the staircase and bopping along to her music.