Page 34 of Jonathon, After All

Leo snorted in agreement, swiping his toothbrush and the toothpaste off the counter. “There’s no way,” he agreed. “They’re both married and in their sixties and seventies, I believe you said, and they’re far too professional,” he mused, then chuckled as he brushed.

“That would only leave Ms. Hormsby and Mr. Hawthorne,” she said, her brow rising as she stared him down through the mirror.

“It would,” he confirmed once he was done rinsing. He decided to skip shaving because Jonathon said he liked beards. “I’ll let you work out that little mystery, but in the meantime I want you to tell the housekeeper to send white roses to Mr. Hawthorne’s room and lilies to Ms. Hormsby’s every morning. Make up a story about being concerned that they’re homesick or something so she thinks you’re being thoughtful,” he suggested and dared her to nag him.

“Very well…” Sabine said slowly. “It’s just that you said that he was too young and too—” she started but stopped when Leo straightened and turned.

“Worry about the flowers, Sabine. What I do with Mr. Hawthorne or his aunt is not your concern.”

“Yes, dearest,” she said and left him to finish dressing.

That was when Leo should have acted. He should have warned Jonathon that she knew and Leo should have predicted that she would act to protect his reputation and his role as Margrave. She had been laser-focused on ensuring every aspect of the transition and Leo’s assumption ceremony went as smoothly as possible.

If he had stopped for just a moment and used his head instead of his heart and his cock, Leo would have guessed that she’d see Jonathon as a threat and would begin to gently extract him. That was exactly what Sabine had done, from the looks of things. Jonathan was neatly—surgically—removed from Leo’s life and he had barely noticed, with the exception of his own crushing heartbreak. But Leo had accepted it and did his best to move on, with Sabine’s assistance.

Leo would be absolutely furious if he were in Muriel’s shoes. She was Jonathon’s guardian and while she might not have been the most perceptive and vigilant when it came to his activities, it was obvious that she cared deeply for him. Leo had taken advantage of her trust and he felt an extra sense of shame and guilt as the car turned onto 72nd Street and the Olympia came into sight.

“No matter what Ms. Hormsby says or does, do not interfere. I deserve her condemnation and worse,” Leo said to Markus.

“We’ll see,” he replied with a dubious snort. “I’ll have a hard time finding work if it gets out that my last client was killed by a small, elderly woman with a cane and an apricot poodle.”

“I’ve never had the pleasure of meeting the poodle but the lady can be formidable,” Leo said and leaned to get a look at the Olympia’s facade. He had studied pictures and videos, but he was impressed by the classical architecture as the limo pulled up to the porte cochère, a blend of German Renaissance Revival and Victorian neo Gothic.

Leo was also nervous as the driver opened the door and Markus got out to scan for anything or anyone suspicious. “We’re good,” he said quietly, with a discreet flick of his fingers to signal that it was safe.

“That remains to be seen.” Leo climbed out, keeping his head down as he hurried inside, thanking the doormen as they passed. The building’s manager had been notified ahead of time and Markus had sent a small advance team to check out the building and monitor access to 6A.

“The flowers you requested arrived an hour ago,” Markus informed Leo as they stepped into the elevator.

Leo had recalled that lilies were Muriel’s favorite flower and had sent a bouquet with a handwritten note, apologizing and thanking her for agreeing to the meeting. He used the short ride up to the 6th floor to muster his courage and patience, prepared to flatter and grovel. And Leo crossed his fingers behind his back when the housekeeper showed him into a small yet stylish sitting room.

“I’ll let Ms. Hormsby know you’re here, sir, and see if she’s available,” the older woman said with a disdainful sniff as she left Leo.

“I see that my reputation precedes me,” he murmured to Markus as he went to wait by the window.

“So does hers,” Markus said and propped his shoulder against the mantle, settling in for a long wait.

The old dragon kept them in suspense for a quarter of an hour before stomping into the room, following a prissy, prancing poodle and leaning on a cane. “It’s about time you turned up, von Hessen” she said, glaring as she shook her head at Leo.

“My humblest apologies, madam. As I said in my letter, I would have come sooner—years sooner—if I had been made aware,” he said as he bowed and kissed her hand.

“Sooner?” She let out a belligerent grunt, echoed by the poodle as it curled up on a pink velvet cushion with her back to Leo. “All this time, I didn’t know what or who had snuffed out my sweet Jonathon’s light. But it was you. How could I have been so blind while we were at Schönbühel?”

“I believe you were investigating the butler, but I was blind as well and I made a terrible mistake when I let him go,” Leo admitted sincerely. He pressed a hand over his heart. “I will do whatever it takes to make this up to him.”

Muriel sniffed suspiciously, her face pinching as if she smelled something rotten. “Perhaps if you hadn’t snuck around and treated my nephew like he was beneath you,” she countered, stabbing Leo directly in his conscience.

“I never believed he was beneath me?—”

“Sounds like he was beneath you rather frequently, until it was time for you to be Margrave,” she said and batted her obscenely long, fake lashes, daring him to deny it.

Leo recoiled at the vulgarity of the notion. And the accuracy. “That was not my intention!” he snarled, then mumbled an apology as he ducked his head. “I care very deeply for your nephew—I always have—but I was warned about his age and the possible scandal and I allowed myself to be led astray. I truly believed I was protecting Jonathon,” he added quickly and pressed his hands together, pleading for her to believe him. “He had so much promise as an artist. I didn’t want my life and my responsibilities as Margrave to crush his future.”

“Crush his future?” she spluttered furiously as she squared up to him. “He should have been the next Whistler or maybe even as big as Warhol. I put my heart and my money into making that boy’s dream come true because he was brilliant. He had an incredible gift and he finally believed that he was special and worthy of love but you snuffed it all out, your lordship.” She attempted a bow and rolled her hand dramatically before tossing him a disgusted sneer. “You had better find him and fix this or I’ll take you down myself.”

“Madam,” Markus said pointedly, giving his head a tight shake. “There is no need to threaten Mr. von Hessen. He has ordered me to do everything in my power to find Mr. Hawthorne and I have every reason to believe that all will be forgiven once your nephew learns the truth.”

Leo cleared his throat, rubbing the end of his nose with a knuckle as his temper swelled again. “It’s fine, Markus.” He paused, silently berating Markus for disregarding his wishes and interfering. “We will hear Ms. Hormsby out and then we will lay ourselves at her feet and hope that she forgives me for my sins against her and her nephew.”

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