Page 19 of Mercury Rising

“Does he nag you like this?” Mercury asked as they walked toward the house.

“All the time.”

They reached the doorway.

“Eddie, the others are putting a movie on,” Nick said. “Once that’s done, I’ll thrash you at pool. Again.”

“You wish.”

Eddie made his way inside.

“He’s a great kid,” Mercury said once they were alone.

“Mercury, come with me a second.”

Nick led him onto the lawn, out of earshot of the house. Mercury suspected he’d done something wrong, although he had no idea what that would be.

“What’s the matter?” he asked. “Didn’t I make a good impression?”

Nick sighed. “You did. Don’t get me wrong. Please be careful about filling their heads with things. Brooke is now practicing her selfies and Olena and Anna are racking their brains about what they can promote.”

Mercury grinned. “That’s a good thing, isn’t it?”

“Telling them they can be influencers like you…it’s giving them false hope.”

Mercury shook his head. “I fail to see how. All you need is a phone, and they have better ones than I do.”

“You are Madeline Morrison’s son,” Nick said quietly. “Doors open for you wherever you go. Brooke, Olena and Anna aren’t going to wander into Harvey Nicks and get their choice of fancy outfits. You’re here to do a job, not upset things. You’d do well to remember that.”

Without waiting for a reply, Nick stalked into the house, leaving Mercury crushed. This was going to be a steeper learning curve than he’d expected.

Mercury watched Nick as he closed the door behind him. There wasn’t much between them in terms of age. Yet, Nick was an adult with real responsibility. A sting of shame burnt through Mercury’s system.

He would prove to Nick that he wasn’t the person he had obviously prejudged him to be. In fact, he would show the whole bloody world that there was more to him than fame and freebies.

CHAPTER FIVE

“I bet I’ll be the size of a house after all this,” Mercury said, reaching for a miniature chocolate brownie.

“Don’t worry. Once you’re free, we can go out clubbing every night until you get in your Armanis again,” Bobby replied.

Sunlight streamed through the windows of the restaurant. Another beautiful day in the city.

“We can go for runs if you like,” Jeannie said as she picked the smoked salmon out of a sandwich. “We can arrange something for when I’m back from Milan.”

She nibbled a tiny piece of the fish and looked at him expectantly.

“Fine,” Mercury said. “I might as well detox while I’m at it.”

As he took a sip of his champagne, he caught the other two grinning at him.

“Not yet,” he added. “When I’ve adjusted.”

“Is it as bad as expected?” Bobby asked. “I still can’t believe you were with Lotty when it all happened. How many shitty openings and red carpets have I been to with you and it all goes on at her watch.”

Mercury bristled. “This is serious, Bobby. I’m a bloody criminal. As well as being innocent.”

“Oh, you’re with us now,” Bobby replied. “Face it, you lost your temper and now you’re paying for being a naughty boy.”