She felt the familiar thrill race through her at the sight of Nate as she watched him move gracefully toward the house but she tamped it down and looked back to Fazire.
“Not now, Fazire, we’re in the middle of a bachelorette party.” This, too, was a lie.
Fazire looked from Lily, to Laura, to Maxine, to the champagne that lay in its ice bucket unopened, the glasses unfilled sitting around it. Then his eyes went back to Lily.
“I will not be denied. My room. Now.” Then he stomped out and she knew he very much wanted to float and a little bit of her deep down inside felt badly for him.
Lily got up and followed him then at the door, she closed it and turned back to Maxine and Laura.
Maxine knew the consequences of disobeying Fazire and her mouth dropped open in horror. Laura, who didn’t know, still looked a little frightened.
“Sweetling, you should go with him,” Maxie urged.
“No,” Lily answered.
Maxine and Laura looked at each other again.
“Daddeeeee.” They heard Tash’s joyful shout in the hall.
Lily went straight to the champagne and started preparations to open it, deciding that getting drunk, very drunk and soon, was the best possible course of action at this juncture.
Again, Maxine and Laura looked horrified as Lily ignored her imminent and supposedly beloved beyond reason husband’s arrival to the beautiful abode one that he’d provided for her, doing five years of work at Lily’s pace in two months and far better than Lily could have managed or afforded.
“Aren’t you, erm…” Laura said hesitantly, “going to greet Nathaniel?”
“He knows where to find me,” Lily stated with deep and false unconcern and then popped the cork just as the door flew open again.
“Yipeeeeeeeee!” Natasha shouted and ran across the room. “Can I have some champagne, Mummy? Please, please, please!”
Nate entered the room behind his daughter and Lily ignored him too.
Mrs. Gunderson sauntered in, jumped up next to Maxine and settled in for the show.
“Ask your father, doll baby, he might have something special planned for you tonight.” Finally, Lily’s eyes met Nate’s. “And he wouldn’t want to be delayed,” she finished with ill-concealed meaning that Nate was expected to come and quickly go.
Maxine and Laura’s heads swung to look at Nate as did Mrs. Gunderson’s, tale twitching expectantly. He was standing in his expensive, superbly cut, dark grey suit looking impossibly, unbearably handsome.
Tash ran to him and threw her arms around his hips, tilting half her body back and she cried, “Can I Daddy? Please, please, please!”
Lily watched as Nate’s hand settled on the crown of his daughter’s head and then slid down to stroke her cheek gently, all the while he looked down at her with a soft expression on his face. She steeled herself, too, against the warm rush that the sight made her feel.
She hadn’t seen him since she ran out on her tirade this morning. She also hadn’t heard from him and she didn’t care. This, also, was a lie, now she was lying to herself and she didn’t mind one whit (that, too, was a lie).
His head lifted and his eyes locked on Lily’s, or more to the point, skewered her to the spot.
“Of course you can have some champagne,” he said to Tash and Lily noted the intensity of his eyes but also that they were impossible to read. All she saw was that they weren’t blank or detached but burning.
Laura and Maxine (and Mrs. Gunderson) swung their gazes back to Lily.
“Of course!” Lily exclaimed, too loudly. “We’ll all have champagne. What a splendid, idea, Nate. You of all people know we have so much to celebrate,” she finished cattily and the ugliness felt foreign on her tongue.
Laura, Maxine and Gunny swung their eyes back to Nate but before he could respond, Fazire stormed in. He glanced at Nate, gave him a nod then he looked back to Lily.
“I thought I told you we were speaking in my room,” he snapped.
“Fazire, just in time,” Lily said, clapping with mock-delight, “we’re all having champagne before you and Nate and Tash go to Bath. It’s Nate’s idea. Isn’t he the bomb?”
Fazire blinked at her and Tash giggled, her daughter failing to read her mother’s sarcasm although everyone else certainly didn’t. Fazire’s gaze, too, went back to Nate.
Lily ignored everyone and extended her hand to her daughter. “Come on, Tash. Let’s get extra glasses.”
Tash skipped to her and her small hand closed around Lily’s and for the first time that day, Lily felt a modicum of comfort.
No matter what her life would bring, no matter what new horrors, she’d always have Tash and now Tash would have everything – a family, grandparents, a stable home (in a way) that was plush and posh, trust funds, horseback riding lessons.
Everything.
Yes, Lily decided, she would live for that.
And on that thought, her face softened and she gave her daughter one of her genuine, quirky smiles and she was so wrapped up in her misery, she had absolutely no idea the effect her smile had on the room particularly one of its inhabitants, the impossibly handsome one.
“Just a sip, my baby girl,” she warned as she and her daughter made to leave the room.
“Okay.” Tash was thrilled to have the decadent treat and was smart enough not to push it.
They met Victor on their way to the kitchen, he was on the ascent from the study. His eyes on Lily were kind and very, very worried.
“We’re having champagne in the sitting room before you all go to Bath,” Lily announced breezily as she walked right by him.
“Lily, can we have a quiet moment?”
“Nope. Champagne then you’re off. Not much time for chats,” Lily answered with a dazzling, false smile thrown over her shoulder.
Then she nearly ran to the kitchen and tried to pretend she didn’t see Victor’s face fall.
They had champagne and Lily felt acutely, even though, thankfully, it appeared Tash did not, the tension in the room. Everyone toasted Nate and Lily’s future. They all tried to be cheerful. Then, champagne drunk, Nate and Victor loaded the cars, Tash going to the Aston Martin and Fazire to Victor’s Jaguar.
Lily trailed behind Tash and Nate. She gave her daughter a hug and kiss and settled her into the car. Slamming the door with a wave and a blown kiss, she turned and nearly collided with Nate. Before she knew what he was about, his arm was around her, he stepped back, dragging her with him, one step, two, three until they were away from the car but still in eyesight of everyone and everyone was watching. Then his other arm went around her, he positioned them so his back was to their audience and Lily was shielded, shielded from everyone but Tash.
Then he kissed her.
It was a real kiss, not false, not fake, not demanding and greedy, a real Nate Kiss that took her breath away.
When he lifted his head, his eyes bore into hers, their intensity rooting her to the spot.
“You’ll be there tomorrow?” It was a question.
“Of course,” she answered automatically.
“No matter what, you’ll be there tomorrow?”
She was still trying to recover from the kiss but she thought she could hear fear in his tone. This, she told herself, had to be the champagne even though she’d only had one glass. She had no idea where he was going with this. His mood swings were enough to make her dizzy if his kiss hadn’t already done that.
“Yes, Nate,” she replied, digging deep and finding her shields, she threw them up, she did it on purpose and with grave determination. “I would never, ever, disappoint my daughter.”