Page 97 of Pervade Montego Bay

My fingers reached out to trace the ripples of gold in the marble wall, glistening beneath the dim lighting. “How long have you lived here?”

“Most of my life. I was born in England. Moved here when I was a boy.”

I still felt the heat in my throat from the rum. “Why did you move here?”

“You ask a lot of questions. I’ll be calling you Trevor soon.” He winked.

“Where are we going?” I winked back. “I’m allowed to ask that, right?”

“My darkroom.”

Xavier

Strolling around the lawn, I scanned the faces of the many guests in attendance looking for Emily, all the while trying to ignore the agonizing hole where my heart should be. James had eviscerated it yet again.

Sharing his pain would be unbearable if I didn’t know I’d be seeing Emily soon and wrapping my arms around her. She’d soothe my agony. I hoped my love would soothe hers. She’d be devastated to learn that James was pulling away from us. I’d believed that last night had meant something more to him.

I was angry with myself for failing to persuade him we were all deserving of a relationship. He’d closed down again, refusing to take that final step into loving us. He was a brilliant and charismatic man and that was why walking away was so hard. He’d always own a piece of my heart.

Mindful of the guests surrounding me, I tried to hide the fact that I was close to losing it.

These were good people—the best Jamaica had to offer. It was an eclectic crowd from different cultures who emanated a passion for life. Their love and respect for others made it feel like a privilege to be amongst them. These were the men and women who had donated to Louis’ great cause, helping the orphans on the island live in a safe environment and have a future they could be excited about. The fact that James helped him run the school proved yet again he had a gentle side.

There were already guests dancing to the Caribbean music, the steel drums bringing an energizing vibe to the party, along with the cocktails that were liberally flowing.

Emily would be easy to find in her eye-catching low-cut red dress. Our visit earlier to the Shoppes at Rose Hall had been where we’d found the stunning gown. For Emily it had been love at first sight.

Only one person other than her was able to distract me to the extent I could quiet my mind, and that was James. His doubt was excruciating.

A wave of concern hit me—there was no sign of Louis, either.

I headed back toward the house.

“Looking for someone?” asked a man with a creased cream jacket.

My gut clenched in alarm. He looked like trouble. He wasn’t staff and he’d not respected the dress code.

“If you’re looking for our host he went inside.” His shady eyes wandered over me.

“Thank you.” I gave him a cordial smile.

This was an invitation only event. We had security, so either he was supposed to be here and hadn’t gotten the dress code memo, or we had a serious problem.

“I’m Trevor, by the way.”

“Sorry, just got a text.” I whipped out my phone and pretended to type a reply. Instead, I discreetly took his photo. “Never a day off,” I threw in.

“What do you do?”

“Shipping.”

“Are you a friend of Louis?” he asked.

“Yes.” I answered truthfully, in case he’d noticed me staying here last week.

His scruffy hair and creased clothing hinted at a career that had him sitting in cars for long lengths of time—a journalist or private investigator, maybe?

“I’m looking for the loo,” I said.