at her. Even Alice had blackmailed him into giving her money, though he had no idea at the time why she needed it so badly. And now, he had the chance to write a check or make a wire transfer, and with a click of a button, Paul Smythe would be out of his life. Or would he?
He had a choice to make. Would he stick with his plan to tell Viola before Paul and risk that she’d still give Paul the paintings—and possibly expose his secret? Or would he surrender to Paul’s plan? Wouldn’t that be easier? Cleaner? Although, he had no guarantee Paul wouldn’t run his impetuous mouth just for the heck of it.
Besides, if he confirmed to Paul just how much he needed this, there was a chance Paul would dig until he connected the dots. “I’m not buying your silence, Smythe.”
“Well, that’s too bad. I’m sure Viola would love to know.”
“What would I love to know exactly?” Viola asked behind them.
Chapter Ten
No amount of daytime soap opera reruns could ever have prepared Alice for this. She squared her shoulders as Viola marched into the room, looking regal in a red gown adorned with golden beads.
“Viola. We were just talking about you. I discovered something I think you won’t be the least pleased about,” Paul started, his melodious voice smooth as satin. “Yet I can’t seem to hold it in.”
“Alice works for me as my nanny. Paul found out and was blackmailing me so you wouldn’t know,” Lorenzo said, his voice steady, but the stare he darted at Paul was deadly.
Tension crackled in the library.
A part of Alice encouraged him to tell the truth. Even though the truth was also painful. He had been clear in the bedroom, hadn’t he? Their relationship was temporary. Her stomach clenched. Well, no one could accuse the man of sugar-coating, that was for sure.
They all zoomed in on Viola, anticipating her reaction. The Italian woman narrowed her eyes as if trying to decide something in her head. Alice heard the sound of her own intake of breath. She knew Lorenzo would still pay her but worried for him. After he had told her what getting the paintings back meant… She shuffled from foot to foot.
“You lied to me,” Viola said to Lorenzo.
“Yes. I didn’t want the pool incident to overshadow the main thing. What’s important. I’m the best person to buy the paintings from you.”
“And you, Paul, blackmailed him.” Viola faced the British man.
Paul blushed, and for a moment his cheeks matched the color of his suit. “It wasn’t proper blackmailing. I was trying to get him to tell you the truth. I don’t think you should be doing business with someone who lies about something as basic as a relationship status. What else is he hiding? He already hinted to me he wasn’t forthcoming about his plans for the paintings.”
“And you, Alice? Anything to say?” Viola said to her.
Oh, shit. A wave of embarrassment washed over her. “I’m sorry. I went along with Lorenzo’s story.” Because a part of me wished it was true. But she couldn’t say it out loud, especially in front of Lorenzo. How humiliating would it be to admit to your soon-to-be-former-boss you’ve had an unrequited crush on him for months? And he never gave her a passing glance, even though she had been right under his nose. “What I did was wrong. If I could explain it to you in private—”
With a mocking laugh, Paul stepped forward, hands in his pockets. “Why not in front of all of us, Alice? Since we’re coming clean.”
“Some things are personal,” Alice answered, proud at the nonchalance in her voice. She kept her attention on Viola, whose blank expression gave nothing away.
Ugh. Viola probably hated her now, and how could she blame her? How could she expect anything else?
Viola tapped her heels on the polished floor. Paul opened his mouth to speak, but Viola lifted her hand, gesturing for him to be quiet. “My party will not be turned into a testosterone contest. Tomorrow morning I will talk to all of you, separately, and will announce my decision by lunchtime. If you want a shot at the paintings, I strongly advise you not to bring up what happened here or this subject during the party.” That was not a request.
With a sigh, Viola strode out of the room.
Paul followed right after.
“Should we go see what he’s doing?” Alice tilted her head in the direction of the door. “Maybe he’s