Harper took another tartlet off the plate and waggled her eyebrows at Ruby. ‘I could say the same about you. Four days on a private Greek island with Lucas Rothwell seems to have agreed with you. So, when do we meet him?’ She popped the tartlet in her mouth and chewed with obvious enjoyment.
‘He’s not feeling very sociable at the moment,’ Ruby said, hoping her hot cheeks weren’t giving her away. ‘Weddings kind of freak him out, given how his parents married and divorced each other three times.’
How else could she explain why he wouldn’t meet them? She hadn’t told them he was blind, after his request for privacy.
But Harper had obviously picked up on something, for she leaned forward with a narrowed look. ‘What’s going on? There’s something you’re not telling us.’
‘Nothing’s going on,’ Ruby said, averting her gaze.
‘So how was it? The island?’ Aerin asked, her eyes wide with interest.
‘Amazing.’ Ruby took a parmesan sablé off the platter and put it on her plate. ‘The villa is gorgeous, and it has a wonderful infinity pool set in front of it, so most of the rooms on that side of the villa look out over it. The gardens aren’t fully grown, but they’ll be a showpiece once they’re established. There are several lovely beaches, and there’s a long private jetty and a pine forest that covers almost two-thirds of the island. I’ll show you photos later. But first we’d better run through the wedding programme.’
The less she talked about Lucas and the island, the better. Revealing too much of her relationship with him would mean revealing her feelings about him. Her friends had already warned her about losing her heart to a man who couldn’t commit.
Harper stopped raiding the platter to fix her gaze on Ruby. ‘So, did you sleep with him?’
Ruby was aware of the heat storming in her cheeks. ‘I don’t want to talk about it. Look, we have Delphine’s wedding in a day’s time and—’
‘You did!’ Harper said, slapping her own knee. ‘I knew you wouldn’t be able to resist him. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.’
Aerin had a look of concern on her face. ‘Are youstill...sleeping with him?’
Ruby blew out a breath. ‘We were only going to have a fling while we were on the island, but then we had to come back early for Delphine’s wedding, and now...’
‘So, that’s a yes,’ Harper said. ‘Well, I guess it’s your life and your heart and all that. But I can’t see it ending well—especially if he doesn’t want to be seen in public with you while you’re together.’
Aerin chewed at one side of her mouth, her gaze steady on Ruby. ‘You’re in love with him, aren’t you? I mean,reallyin love.’
Ruby let out another long sigh. ‘I tried so hard not to fall for him, but I guess I’ve always had feelings.’ She picked up her drink and stared at the contents for a moment before adding, ‘Not that he returns those feelings. We’re just having a fling, that’s all. That’s all he ever has—flings.’
‘I know the type,’ Harper said with an eyeroll, but then continued in a more compassionate and reflective tone. ‘It really sucks to fall for someone who’s unattainable. But sometimes I wonder if that’s what happens to former care home kids like us. The people we loved as kids didn’t love us the way we were supposed to be loved, so we tend to fall for men who are the same. Totally unattainable men who are not able to love us the way we want to be loved.’
Ruby frowned in confusion. ‘Are you saying you’re in love with Jack Livingstone?’
Harper rapid-blinked, like an animal sure it was about to become roadkill, and then she screwed up her face in distaste. ‘No, of course not.’
‘I think you’re both being a little hard on Lucas and Jack,’ Aerin said. ‘Not all playboys stay unattached for the rest of their lives. Look at my dad, for instance. He was a notorious playboy until the day he met my mum. Then he couldn’t get a ring on her finger quick enough, and they’re still as in love as the day they met.’ She gave a dreamy sigh and added, ‘Wouldn’t it be wonderful if all three of us could find a partner like that?’
‘Personally, I’m happy on my own,’ Harper said. ‘Call me hypocritical for working as a wedding photographer, but I don’t want the complications of fitting my life around some guy who expects his pipe and slippers brought to him each night.’
‘I think most men are a little more woke than that these days,’ Aerin said with a light laugh. ‘But seriously, Ruby...’ Her expression sobered. ‘Only you can decide what to do. But it seems to me a positive thing Lucas wants to continue the fling.’
‘I know... But, like Harper said, I’ve had a lifetime of getting my hopes up only to have them dashed,’ Ruby said. ‘Lucas has always been a closed-off sort of person, but he’s opened up about a bit of stuff over the last few days—about his childhood and his parents and their crazy relationship. And, to be honest, I too have shared things I’ve only ever shared with you two before. I kind of feel Lucas and I have got to know each other on a different level. A more intimate level.’
‘Yes, well...if you’re getting naked with him, it doesn’t get more intimate than that,’ Harper put in.
‘I think it’s more than that,’ Ruby said. ‘I feel more comfortable around him than ever before. And I think he does around me.’
‘Do you feel comfortable enough to tell him how you feel about him?’ Aerin asked.
‘I don’t know...’ Ruby chewed at her lower lip, wondering how Lucas would take it if she told him how she felt. Would he reject her as brutally as he had all those years ago? He had told her the rules—and yet he had changed the rules...a little. Only a little, but that fed her hopes. Or was she being foolish to hope his locked-away heart could ever be opened?
Opened toher?
Lucas was in his study when Ruby came in, just before dinner. She closed the door behind her with a soft little click. She approached his desk and, although he could only see the blurry outline of her body, he could see she was wearing a baby blue dress. He would enjoy taking her out of it later. He caught a whiff of her peony and tuberose perfume and his senses reeled.
‘Have your friends settled in?’ he asked.