Chapter 26
Like a princess in her tower, ruling over the great hall, Lissie shouted goodbye and waved with both hands from the first-floor gallery.
I couldn’t help but laugh as I waved back at her.
When Will waved, she blew him a kiss.
He and Ethan had gathered the group traveling with us for final details. We would leave for London in three separate cars, and Ethan would ride back alone in the company helicopter.
A handsome smile lit up Will’s face.
“We’ll drive to the city in my car, Elle, just you and me. My brothers will manage the security logistics when we arrive at the hotel, so you and I can have dinner.”
I bit into my bottom lip to keep from squealing.
“Wait…is this…have you planned a date for us?”
His cocky wink made my stomach flutter.
“Yes. I’ll run some numbers later with Ethan, but first, I want time alone with you, baby.”
Will pushed a kiss onto my lips before I could say anything, picked up our bags, and went outside to bring the car around. He’d vowed to give me something close to normal, and he was doing exactly that.
He came to the door to get me and then tucked me into the passenger seat in his sleek black Jaguar. Wasting no time, he jumped in and sped down the ridge.
The scent of heaven’s woodland, his scent, drifted over to me.
Tracing my lips with my tongue, I thought about how well he kissed them.
As his stare burned into the side of my face, I moved mine from the fast-moving English countryside to him. And he looked amazing behind the wheel, driving like he did everything else—fully in command.
Through my eyes, I willed him to come to me.
He leaned over the console and kissed me, murmuring something about the color red.
“What?” I breathed.
He refocused on the road.
“When you’re shopping get another red dress.”
“Favorite color?”
“When it’s on your body it is. And as you know, that now belongs to me.”
I smiled. I wanted to belong to him. Body, heart, and soul.
“You’re quite full of yourself this afternoon, Will.”
A big, easy smile hit his face, but he kept his eyes on the road.
Settling deeper into his leather seat, he reached for my hand and accelerated.
We pulled up in front of an elegant little hotel located a few blocks away from Manchester Square.
Will opened my door but once I stepped out, he hesitated for a minute, allowing me to take in the streets of London.
A street sign caught my attention, and I let out a small gasp.
“Wallace,” I said.
The Wallace Collection Museum housed a significant art collection with originals by the some of the old masters and an eighteenth-century French exhibit.
An artist’s dream…one of my dreams.
The satisfied grin on Will’s face gave him away. He’d anticipated the moment.
“If everything goes well this week, I plan to take you through the museum.”
I touched his cheek and gave him an affectionate smile.
“No one has ever done anything so meaningful like this for me, Will.”
He pulled my fingers to his lips and held his mouth against my skin.
Several unexpected camera flashes went off from the opposite side of the street. Will wasn’t bothered by the intrusion, so I dismissed it as well.
The hotel’s doorman approached us.
“Mr. Hastings?” he asked.
Will nodded.
“The two cars behind me are with us as well.”
“Shall we park the cars for you?”
“Not this time. We’ll park and manage our bags. Thank you.”
The young doorman bowed his head and opened the door.
Joe Turner sprinted over from one of the other cars.
“Sir, I’ll park your car, so you can get Miss James inside. We’ll set up and see you later.”
Will rested his hand on my lower back and led me through stately columns into the red-brick building, a beautiful boutique hotel with a trendy restaurant.
After we passed through the door, Will paused and put cash in the doorman’s hand, but not for service…for his silence. They nodded at each other.
Then we crossed the lobby’s marble floor and entered a lounge styled in rich woods and earth tones. Will seemed to know his way around…he gestured for me to sit on a leather sofa.
“I guess you’ve been here?” I asked.
“Yes, this place belongs to one of our clients. It does quite well, so it gets busy. One of us will be with you all the time, even on our floors. No exceptions. No wandering.”
He pulled out his phone and read a text message.
“Our floors? What do you mean?”
“Ethan cleared the fourth and fifth floors. Sleeping rooms are on four, and five is one large suite that we’ll use as our private lounge.”
“Oh. Well, is all that necessary?”
He leaned in close and inhaled against my hair.
His voice dripped with the same deep, gravelly tone he used in bed.
“Yes, it’s necessary. Because I say it is.”
My breath quickened in response.
“Elle, don’t be con?—”
The server coughed to draw our attention, and Will turned on him midsentence.
“Chateauneuf-du-Pape and Macallan. Thank you. And don’t clear your fucking throat like that again.”
“Sorry, sir.”
Will’s focus jerked back to me.
“I wouldn’t have brought you otherwise. Don’t be concerned about the cost. I make quite a lot of money. It’s mine, and I like to spend it. Get used to it.”
“Occasionally, your arrogance is off-putting, you know.”
“Yeah.”
He had to agree, because his ego was too big for even him to dismiss it.
Our server returned to Will’s side with our drinks.
Will retrieved my wine and handed it to me.
“Taste it,” he commanded.
Then he studied my face with a raised brow, waiting for me to take a sip.
I did, and the wine tasted delicious. The alcohol content was higher than my usual, but he knew that when he chose it. I smiled.
“It’s really nice…and strong.”
Satisfaction lit up his face.
“Good.”
“Where are your brothers?”
He grabbed his scotch and sent the server away with a food order.
“They’re with Ben, inspecting rooms and setting up in the security office. My team will monitor the surveillance cameras inside and out and patrol the property while we’re here.”
It wasn’t normal for hotel guests to take over with their own security, but I knew not to comment…Will did whatever he wanted to do.
“So you’d rather see to my intoxication than check things out for yourself?”
He smirked.
“I’ll do that after I carry you up to bed.”
That masterful smile unmade me, sending shivers along my spine. My unruly body prepared for his, heat building between my legs. I slid my hand to his inner thigh.
He captured it and squeezed.
“You need to be careful, Elle.”
I nodded.
“I promise. But you’ve covered all the bases, right? And isn’t that part of your plan…to expose me to the public to gain allies?”
“I want to introduce you, not expose you. Christ, there’s quite a difference. I don’t like that it won’t be me protecting you. But you pushed, baby.”
“Will, if you don’t want me to go without you, I won’t.”
He kissed my forehead and tucked me beneath his arm.
“Go on, do your shopping. It’s time for Thomas to step up and see that I trust him.”
“Do you trust Ben?”
“I do, but it’s different. As close as we are, there’s no guarantee he’ll risk himself to the same extent as my brothers. Nor should he. Now enough of this. I don’t want to spoil our date.”
We laughed together out loud.
Even though I feared what was out there waiting for me, for us, my spirit was light, and my heart was filled with something I’d never known before or expected.
“I’m so happy it’s you, Will. I can’t imagine going through this with anyone else.”
He pressed his lips to mine.
“I won’t let you down.”
“I know,” I whispered.
“I’ll be tied up tomorrow and most of the following day. You must do as Thomas says. Promise me, Elle. I need to know you’ll be okay, and if you listen to my brother, you will be.”
“What will you promise me?”
He swallowed his whisky and held up the glass to call for another.
“Anything you want. Give me your word.”
I sipped my wine and stared at him, studying the intensity in his eyes.
“Give me your fucking word, Elle.”
That intensity warned me to obey him. It stirred something in me on a deeper level and reminded me that I was falling for a ruthless man with an obscure past—a man driven by the desire to have whatever he wanted at any cost.
The server was back with two more drinks, holding the tray near Will.
Will jerked his chin at the cocktail table.
“No more wine but keep the whisky coming.”
I still hadn’t given him my promise. I don’t know why I pushed him like that.
He took my glass and set it on the table.
“You will promise. You fully understand what we’re up against, so don’t fuck with me. I’ve left Ethan to run the company on his own for months, and I want to look into some transactions and see clients this week. I don’t want any avoidable distractions.”
What crossed my mind next took me by surprise. I looked at him from beneath my lashes.
“You promise me you’ll stay with me every night. I don’t care if you get back late. Just be there…with me.”
He nodded.
“That’s it?”
“No other women, Will.”
The bitter taste of regret filled my mouth…I was jealous. I fucking hated the way other women looked at him.
He was mine.
“What did you say?” he asked.
“It’s just that, umm, I know Ethan sleeps around when he’s in London.”
Will grinned.
“So that’s what you’re worried about.”
“Well, yes.”
That wicked grin stayed on his face.
“And you’re asking me if I behave like my brother.”
I snapped at him…he was pissing me off.
“I won’t have it, Will. It’s a deal-breaker for me.”
There. I had discovered one.
He jerked me against him, filled his hand with my hair, and kissed me hard, thrusting his tongue into my mouth, tasting me, possessing me.
My heart thumped wildly as I fell into his fierce kiss.
When we broke, he pressed his lips to mine a few times…gently sucking…so gently…then he loosened his grip on my hair and rested his forehead against mine. We stayed that way for who knew how long, all wrapped up in each other.
Nothing else existed.
A thought entered my mind, but I lost it before it made sense. Everything outside the space we shared became pointless as he held the back of my head to keep the contact between us strong.
It was an incredible, intimate moment.
He caressed my lips with his thumb and then kissed me softly.
We laced our fingers and rested our hands on his thigh.
“I swear…there’s only you, baby,” he breathed.