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“And worried sick about you.”
“I really fucked up this time. Of all the shit I’ve ever pulled, this was the worst.”
“I want to hear all about it. But when we’re face to face, and I can see that you’re okay. Just tell me where you are.”
“Paris,” Dori bit out. “With no passport. I can’t travel to England.”
“That’s a good thing because Alex isn’t in England,” Raphael reported. “I’m going to share my details as a contact, but first, give me the address you’re staying at in Paris. We’ll fly over and pick ye up.”
Dutifully, Dori recited the address of a Parisien hotel. “Do you own a plane, Raphael?”
“Pretty sure that’s the first time you’ve used my name, and no, I pilot helicopters. I’ll borrow one to fetch ye.”
“The slutty jumpsuit makes sense now, for fuck’s sake. By which I mean thank all the angels in Heaven. Alex, can I talk to you in private for a moment?”
I took the phone and moved away, Raphael and Valentine instantly getting into the flight distance to Paris and the logistics of the trip.
“I’m alone,” I told my friend.
“I’m guessing Scotland then? I’m happy for you.”
“Don’t be. Raphael is the one good thing in my life. The rest of it is crumbling to pieces.”
“Then we make a matching pair. That isn’t what I wanted to say. The king’s man has been ringing me. I didn’t answer; it’s not just you I ghosted, but everyone. I did listen to the last voicemail I got, though. He said I needed to tell him where you were. Thiswas only an hour ago. Darling girl, are you on the run? Did you leave that train wreck of a family behind at last?”
For the first time in what felt like weeks, I took a full and deep breath, the clean Scottish air clearing my brain of the noise that had been building with the pressure my family had piled on me. “I think I have.”
“Can’t wait to hear all about it. Tell your boyfriend I’m going to sober up. I’ve been drunk for a week, and travel sickness is a bitch, even in a helicopter. I’ll hit the health centre and sweat it out.”
“He’s not my boyfriend,” I said automatically, my gaze on him as he consulted his phone with Valentine and wrote something on a piece of paper.
Dori’s drawl of amusement brought me straight back to earth. “Right. Because a man in love wouldn’t risk everything, including his pilot’s licence, to illegally transport some idiot he barely knows and definitely doesn’t like across an ocean, just because a girl wants it. Love you. Hugs soon.”
He hung up on me, and I stared at the phone. I had him back, almost, and yet another reason to fall in deep for Raphael.
Yet a small warning played in my head, born from a couple of things he’d said or done, in amongst the hundred others to the contrary. He said he wanted to keep me, if he could, implying it wouldn’t be possible, then he hadn’t let me reciprocate in bed.
If I was certain of what I felt, of the terrifying, unstoppable want, I needed to get brave enough to ask him the questions that scared me. What about me was making him say no, when more and more, I needed a yes?
Chapter 26
Alexandra
Late afternoon brought an end to the hard work, and Mia and Daisy hugged me, thanking me for all I’d done.
“Come back any time.” Daisy slammed the boot of her car, packing away her cleaning goods. “Seriously, you’ve been amazing.”
“Shame we didn’t find the treasure.”
“There’s always tomorrow, and an uncountable amount of personal possessions still to work through.” Daisy gazed across the garden, where Raphael, Jackson, and Valentine stood with Ben.
The team leader had been pulled back in to finalise whatever plans they had come up with for Dori. I couldn’t wait to hear, and nerves crawled through my belly, not just for my hurting friend, but mainly for Raphael. He was risking a lot. Guilt won out over my emotions.
Daisy continued, “If Raphael is gone most of the day tomorrow, you can come here if you need somewhere to hang out. I don’t mean to work. You can just come for the chat.”
“I’ve actually really enjoyed today.”
“Really? Want a job?”