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Spoiling myself a little had turned into a full week of indulgence. For the first time in my life, I outspent the monthly income generated from the flat by staying on at Claridge’s. It was ridiculously stupid, given my only reason for doing so was the hope I’d run into my mystery man again. Six days later, I thought I had, but when I approached someone I’d only seen from the back, I realized it wasn’t him.
We’d flirted a bit, and he’d asked me to join him for dinner. I agreed and it was fun. I learned he was visiting from Spain, and while he was almost as hot as the man I thought he was, I just wasn’t feeling it. Our evening had ended with a sweet kiss at the lift without an exchange of contact information.
I received another ungodly hour text from Niven, saying my father had truly outdone himself at dinner the night before. Feeling guilty about not being there to run interference, I rolled out of bed, showered, then sent a message, saying I was on my way.
“I blame myself,” I said to Harper after Niven gave me the blow-by-blow of their dinner with my parents, then excused himself to take a call.
“Why?” she asked.
“I know my father. If I’d been there last night, he wouldn’t have pulled the stunt he did.”
“Whether he would have last night or not doesn’t matter. He would have eventually.”
“If I hadn’t been so caught up in”—I was about to say “staking out Claridge’s in the hope I’d find my mystery man,” but thought better of it—“my, um, date with a muy caliente Spaniard, I may have been able to talk some sense into Father.”
I thought about the words Miss Bardwell and I had spoken to one another, praying Niv didn’t break Harper’s heart but more worried that she’d break his.
I put my hand on her shoulder and looked into her eyes. “You’re so good for my cousin. I hate to think anything my father said would change your opinion of him.”
“Never.”
“My dad has always tried to control Niven, but you know as well as I do that there’s no man less likely to allow it.” I studied her. “He’s the most independent person I’ve known in my life, and yet, I sense his soul would be lost without you.”
“I don’t know about that.”
I shook my head. “Well, I do. I can tell by the way he looks at you.”
“It’s me who would be lost without him.”
“You needn’t worry about Niven. He’s invincible.”
She raised a brow.
“What?” I asked.
“He’d like to be.”
I seem to have lost track of the point of our conversation. “Now, I’m confused.”
“What made you use that word?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. I guess it’s just the way I’ve always seen him.”
I glanced up when I saw my cousin come out of the bedroom at the very end of the hallway and he appeared distracted.
“Eliza. You’re still here.”
“Niven, you invited me.”
“Right, right. Sorry.”
“Shall I come back some other time?”
“No. Now’s good.”
When he ran his hand through his hair and looked at Harper, I felt as though I was intruding.
“I’ll just excuse myself,” I muttered.