Dorian sat. He confessed to having more than one woman in his life, and I believed it. He was discreet, but he definitely had the playboy look about him. And he wasn’t nice. Dorian was as far from nice as you could get. He was arrogant and selfish and stuck-up and callous. And yet, the women seemed to love him.
Of course, I could only go by what he told me and what I heard via rumors, but servants generally knew everything that went on inside the places they worked and the one thing I had to my advantage was that people very often overlooked me, including servants. I’d been privy to many a conversation without the conversant knowing I was even present to eavesdrop.
Dorian was the very definition of an alpha-hole and it worked for him. It wasn’t fair. What did he have that I didn’t? He wasn’t any richer than I was and although he had a more obvious style than I did; I wasn’t ugly. I might need a haircut and to get a decent tailor so my suits fit better, but I got my share of admiring glances. So what was it about Dorian that made him so popular?
Dorian raised an eyebrow at me and I realized I’d been glaring at him. I smoothed my features and reached for my wineglass. I couldn’t wait for this damned dinner to be over so I could finally spend some time with Frankie. I needed to clear the air between us and the only way I knew how to do that was to tell her how I felt. Then she could decide if it meant the end of our friendship or not.
The one thing I knew, we couldn’t go on the way we were. I hated this stasis, and I needed it resolved. I couldn’t keep pretending…pretending to be in love with her when we were surrounded by everyone and then pretending to just be friends when we were alone. I felt like Julie Andrews in that old movie Victor Victoria. The fact was, I was in love with her and I couldn’t put that back in the box. Whatever happened, the relationship Frankie and I had before was gone. Now we had to decide what the future would look like. I really wanted it to be a future where she was in my life, as my wife, but if she really didn’t love me the way I loved her, then at least I would know and at least I could try to move on.
God, I hoped I didn’t have to move on.
Finally, dinner was over and people were getting up from the table and moving away and I reached out to snag Frankie’s wrist before she could disappear.
“Come for a walk with me,” I said, looking up at her with hope and desperation and pleading.
“Sure,” she said and then shot a look across the table to Dorian. “Feel like going for a walk, Dorian?”
I glared across the table to make sure Dorian stuck to the plan.
“Sorry Francesca, I have a date.”
Frankie looked at Sophia, but she was already retreating from the dining room, her head bent together with Meredith.
“Um,” Frankie said, looking at me like she really wanted to say no and escape.
“Come on,” I said, smiling casually, trying not to spook her. “We haven’t talked—just the two of us—for weeks. I miss you.”
She sighed and her eyes softened. “I’ve missed you too,” she said. She took one last look toward the others as they left the room and then turned back to me. “Okay. Let’s go for a walk. But not too long, I have a lot of work to do tonight.”
I got up from my seat and tucked her hand through my arm, my grin taking over half of my face. We walked out into the garden and I took a different route to the one we’d taken three weeks ago. We headed down the terrace stairs and I noticed how much the garden had grown since the last time we were out here together.
“You’ve been busy,” I said, my voice rougher than I would have liked.
“Yeah. It’s good, but yeah, busy,” she replied, keeping her gaze forward. “So have you.”
I grunted in agreement and we continued down another level before I spoke again.
“You must be nearly finished with your research,” I said.
“I really just need Jamie’s interview and then I’m done.”
I came to a stop beside a stone bench and sat, pulling her done to sit