Risking It All: London Calling Book Three (9 page)

Dominic wasn’t sure why it took so long for him to see and accept that. But if he and Bennett could be friends, perhaps there was hope for him and Nat. Oh, he knew he’d blown his chances with her. He accepted that—or tried to—no matter how painful.
 

But that didn’t mean they couldn’t be friends someday. Or at least, he could be
her
friend.

And if that meant finding out more about Sebastian Payne, so be it.
 

Dominic neared the pub where they were having lunch. He pulled the large brass handle and held the door for everyone to enter. There was a group of lively middle-aged women behind them, so he stayed put until everyone walked through, lightly fielding the women’s thanks. By the time he got inside, Bennett and Dev were seated. The host led him to their table.

They ordered and, after the server brought over wine for Dev and Bennett and an enormous iced water for him, he dove in to questioning. “Bennett, are you or Charles familiar with any of the Paynes?”

Bennett looked at him blankly.

“Sebastian Payne, in particular?”

Understanding dawned, then puzzlement. “Sure, we’ve met a few times. He comes from an old family, filthy amounts of money. I think there’s a title there somewhere. Earl maybe? I’m not sure.” Bennett narrowed his eyes. “Why do you ask?”

Devon’s lips pressed flat.
 

“Relax you two. I’m asking because that’s who Natalie’s gone to work for. At some private club over in Mayfair.”

Bennett and Devon shared a lightning glance before turning back to him. Leaning back against the booth, Devon raised her brows and tilted her head.
 

“So you’ve been checking up on Natalie?” Devon’s voice pitched higher than normal.

Thankfully, the pub was dimly lit because Dominic could feel a flush creeping up his neck. “Look, I wanted to make sure she was okay.” He shifted back to Bennett. “Turns out she’s working for this Payne guy.”

Bennett piped in. “I can’t say I know the man well, but everything I do know is perfectly legitimate. In fact, if I recall correctly, he doesn’t even indulge in vices. No drinking or smoking.” Bennett tapped his wine glass against Devon’s, grinning. “Proper, pedigreed, but pedestrian.”
 

“A man with enough money to burn who abstains from sin goes and buys a casino? That’s more than a little odd. Something’s not right.”

Devon interjected. “What’s bothering you about him, Dom? Or is this really about Natalie?”

His face felt hot. He pulled at the collar of his shirt in a vain attempt to loosen it. “
Of course
it’s about Natalie.” His voice seemed unnaturally loud. He stopped, taking a deep and deliberate breath. More quietly, he continued. “It’s about Natalie because I’m afraid she’s gotten herself mixed up with something,” he paused, “or
someone
who might be bad for her.”

Devon and Bennett both stared. He looked down at the table, fidgeting with his silverware. When the silence became awkward, he added, “I just think there’s more to Sebastian Payne than meets the eye. He seems like a man hiding secrets.”

Bennett barked in laughter, bringing Dominic’s head back up. Devon snorted.

“What?”

She looked at Bennett who pressed his shoulder against hers. Devon slapped a hand over her mouth.
 

Dominic eyed them both, at a loss.
 

Finally, Dev gave up what was clearly a fight. Clutching her sides, she dissolved into deep belly laughs. Bennett joined in while Dominic looked on in shock.

“
What?
”

It took her several seconds, but she finally subsided into low gurgles. Taking a deep breath, she dabbed at her eyes with a linen handkerchief from Bennett. “You, Dommie. I never thought I’d see the day, but Natalie’s got you tied up in knots, doesn’t she?”

He knew exactly what she was saying but coached his face into blank disregard. No way in hell was he laying his heart out for these two to laugh at him.

“I’ll take your silence as agreement.”
 

Dominic glared, but she only grinned in return.
 

“Honestly, though, you should hear yourself. Suspicious of a stranger because he seems secretive. It’s the pot calling the kettle black.” Shaking with laughter, she laid her hand over his on the table.

Put that way, Dominic couldn’t help but smile in return.
 

But inside, deep in his gut, he knew he was right. Something was off about Sebastian Payne. And he was going to find out what it was.

***

Natalie perched herself on the stone sides of Hyde Park’s Princess Diana Memorial Fountain to wait for her mother. It was a beautiful, peaceful place. When the weather cooperated, it was often loaded with children and parents, many shedding shoes and sandals to wade in the water. Today, with the sky overcast and rain threatening, it was far less busy. The sedate atmosphere suited Natalie.
 

Her mother was running behind, as usual. Natalie sometimes wondered what her father must be like for her to have turned out so differently than the woman who raised her. Mostly, though, she refused to think of him. He deserved no credit for any of the positive traits she carried. As much as her mother frustrated and baffled Natalie, at least she’d stuck with the job of being a mother. Unlike her father, who never married the mother of his first child and only visited when it suited his schedule, until he dropped out completely.

Natalie wished with all her heart she’d never visited him that one time, only to learn he’d left them to marry another woman and start a new family. One that met his social expectations and whatever else he’d thought he needed.

She pushed the thought away. Thinking of her father would spoil the time with her mother. On one hand, she credited her mother for being a present and loving parent. But on the other, Natalie blamed her for so much. Rebecca Enfeld wasted her life on a man who didn’t love her, let alone respect her.

Her mother’s inability to stand up for herself and demand better still smarted Natalie’s pride. Years ago, she’d sworn never to be like her—dependent and needy for a man’s affection.

Footsteps approached. Recognizing the slapping leather sound of her mother’s favorite sandals, she looked up. Today, Rebecca wore a tiered maxi skirt in indigo blue cotton. A button-down tunic in white hung down over her hips but was cinched in by a brown suede vest she’d fastened over it. Rather than her usual pin-straight bob, her hair waved in a sexy, tousled style. Another woman might have looked artificial, or as if she were trying too hard. A too-old bohemian gypsy that refused to grow up.

Not so with her mum. She looked utterly fantastic.

Natalie stood and smoothed her hands down her tweed pencil skirt, straightening it. Stepping closer, she allowed her mother’s outstretched arms to envelop her in a hug.

“Hi Mum.”

“Natalie,” her mother pushed her back to arm’s length to eye her over. She’d been performing the same maneuver as long as Nat could remember. “You look beautiful.”

Pleased despite herself, she smiled back. “So do you. Shall we walk?”

They were having late afternoon tea together, but first they’d tour parts of Kensington Gardens. Sticking to nature outings tended to ease the tension between them. Her mother loved flowers and plants, and especially the royal parks. Growing up, Natalie could recall endless trips and picnics. Her mother enjoyed perfectly tended grassy lawns as well as the flowers and topiaries of formal landscapes.
 

Once, they’d gotten lost in a boxwood maze. Rather than allowing Natalie to dissolve into tears or panic, her mother pretended they were lost heiresses to a secret throne, known only to the elves and faeries living within the labyrinth.

Natalie turned to her mother, smiled, and then linked their arms. “Do you remember getting lost that time? Rather than showing a hint of worry, you made it so much fun.”

“We were together, having a wonderful afternoon. There was nothing to worry about.”

“Were you ever concerned we wouldn’t find our way out?”

“No, because I had you. I knew if I could make a game of it, you’d relax and take us right out of there. Unlike me, you have a phenomenal sense of direction.”

They strolled past a small family laying out a blanket for a picnic. Two small girls, twins from the look of them, were helping their dad unpack a basket of food and juice boxes. Unaware she was doing so, Natalie turned her head to watch, even as she and her mother moved along. Suddenly, she felt sad, weighed down by the past.

“Natalie, is something bothering you? I haven’t see you this way since—”

A frown pinched her forehead. “Since when?” Expecting her mother to mention some past event from her childhood, she was all the more surprised at her answer.

“Since a year ago. After that man.”

Dominic. Natalie had mentioned him, in passing, on one of her visits during the time. Of course, Dominic hadn’t come along like she’d wanted. It was only much later that she understood why he’d wanted to keep them secret.
 

In the dark, just as she’d been to his true motives for being with her.

She tripped over a bump in the path, stumbling a little. Her mother laid a hand on her arm to steady her, but left it there even after she regained her footing. A need to talk and reconnect washed over Natalie.

“Mum, can we sit?” She gestured to a nearby bench.
 

“Sure, honey.” Her mother wrapped an arm around Natalie’s waist, leading her to sit down. Without bothering to check the seat, her mother settled in beside her. “Tell me what’s wrong. I could always tell when something was bothering you since you were a little girl. Talk to me like you used to.”

Again, Natalie was surprised and a little embarrassed by her own assumptions about the woman seated next to her. They were so alike yet different in all the ways Natalie kept track. “I’m lonely.” The frank admission caught her off guard, and she sighed.

Her mother patted her hand, listening.

“It’s Dominic’s fault, really. I’d just managed to get him out of my head when he came back again. Before it was the gifts, the notes. But I could throw them away and ignore him. Now, he’s here and I can’t stand it.” She raised her eyes to look into her mother’s identical blue ones. “I think of him all the time.”

Her mother smiled gently. “But that’s wonderful, Natalie.”

“No, no Mum. It’s not. It’s terrible.” She shook her head, desperate to get her point across. Maybe get it through to herself. “He’s not a good person. He’s not worthy of my thoughts.”

Her mother’s smile flattened out and she sighed. Quietly, she said, “Everyone is worthy of love, honey.”

“No Mum, they’re
not
.” She slumped on the bench, frustrated they reached this point so soon in the day. She was sick of her own company, but a desire to be alone swept over her. She was a mess. “Let’s drop it. We’ll never agree on this. You refuse to see I’m right.”

A pained expression swept over her mother’s face. “As you say, we’ll drop the subject for now. But someday, Natty, we’re going to talk about you, your father, and me. It’s years overdue, and my fault for putting it off.”

Natalie felt ashamed, like a child who said mean things in a temper. Her mother hadn’t referred to her as Natty since she was a small child. Back when they’d been so close. She blinked, hard. With false bravado, she rose, extending a hand out to her mum. “You always said tea makes everything better. Why don’t we give it a go?”

Rebecca tucked her hand into hers, joining Natalie as they walked across the park to a tearoom situated on the grounds. An old tradition, Natalie could remember sharing tea service at the Orangery since she was old enough to pour.

It turned out to be just the thing.

They enjoyed the rest of the afternoon, avoiding certain topics like the landmines they were. But later, as she dropped off her mum in the shared taxi, she was glad she took the time. She was more settled than she’d been for days.

Whatever feelings she’d once had for Dominic Martin were history. He killed them as surely as if he’d sunk a knife into her heart. And just because he was wildly handsome with enough charm to fill a continent did not mean she would be another of his conquests.

Not again.

No, she was immune.
 

With a sudden reluctance to return to Payne Manor alone, she told the taxi driver to drop her off at the casino instead. It was her day off, so she didn’t feel like working, but maybe she could talk Bas into grabbing a late dinner.
 

As she exited the cab, she noticed a woman standing in one of the club’s side exits, with the door open beside her. That was odd. As far as she knew, the side doors weren’t used anymore. Sebastian encouraged employees to use the building’s rear doors. He staffed a security guard, it had better lighting, and no one would have to worry about someone waiting around for them out front.
 

Natalie frowned. She didn’t have keys to anything other than interior rooms along with the front and back exits. Puzzled, she pivoted to approach the woman. Her back was turned, but Natalie could tell she was tall, slender, and possessed long chestnut brown hair. Dressed all in black, Natalie almost missed the man facing her from inside the shadows of the club’s dimly lit hallway.

As Natalie neared them, the woman must have heard her footsteps. She turned her head, angling it away so Natalie still couldn’t see her face. The woman reached up, pressing a light kiss to the man’s cheek. Then she turned and quickly walked away.

Something nagged at Natalie, a sense of familiarity. Intrigued but outpaced, Natalie gave up any thought of pursuit. Instead, it would be easier to see whom the woman was talking to. Stepping forward, she nearly had the man in sight when the door swung shut. Staring at it, she heard a key turning in a lock. A bolt scraped into place. She gaped, positive the man inside had to have seen her coming.

She couldn’t help but be reminded of Sebastian. He’d locked her out of his office in the same way just days before.