Page 44 of Reign of Psychos

“What if someone overlooks the terrace? Isn’t Buckingham Palace nearby? I don’t what the Royals catching a glimpse of my ass!”

Landon burst out laughing. “Sweetheart, the palace isn’t that close. Unless they have a telescope, your modesty is safe. But if you don’t feel comfortable taking a dip in the pool without a swimsuit, we can go shopping.”

I sighed. I was all shopped out lately. Eden had a genuine shopping addiction. She’d dragged me around all the best stores in Dublin.

“I’d rather get my hair cut,” I said, tugging on the strands around my ears. Eden had offered to cut it, but I hadn’t trusted her skills.

“Let me give Sergei a call. He does my mom’s hair when she’s down in London. I bet he’d fit you in.”

Two hours later, I sat staring at a brand-new me in the mirror of a very exclusive hair salon.

“Beautiful,” Sergei said smugly as he ran some product through my hair. The poor man had nearly had an aneurysm when Landon revealed I’d cut my hair with nail scissors. I didn’t think I’d donethatbad a job, but apparently, Sergei disagreed.

He ranted away for a good fifteen minutes while a young woman with silky smooth bangs and perfect teeth washed and conditioned my hair. Then he set to repairing the damage with a look of grim determination.

“Your mother is in town, yes?”

Landon looked up in surprise. “Is she?”

“She booked in tomorrow for a cut and color. Isla, too.”

“Oh yes, I’d forgotten!” Landon laughed with a breezy smile, but it was obvious he’d had no clue. I hated he’d fallen out with his family because of me. His father could go take a running jump off Tower Bridge, but his mom was lovely.

Landon covered the cost of my haircut, and we left. He steered me down a side street and across a small square lined with trees coated in frost. Everywhere sparkled in the cold winter sun.

A dog walker passed us tugging along a small terrier with a tartan collar. I stayed vigilant, always conscious of the fact Torrance could pop out of a bush with a gun in hand. Landon, meanwhile, seemed distracted and distant.

“Everything OK?” I asked eventually, pulling him to a stop in front of a bench. “You’ve barely said a word since we left the salon.”

Difficult emotional conversations were not my strong point, but if Landon needed a shoulder to cry on about his dysfunctional family, I was willing to try.

“No, not really,” he admitted. Landon was a consummate joker who rarely took life seriously. Seeing him so low made me want to wrap him in a hug, which was unlike me, as I was not a hugger. Eden did hugs. Awkward fist bumps, followed by strangled coughs and swift exits were more my speed.

He opened his mouth to say something, but then his phone rang. From the look of surprise on his face, whoever the caller was, it wasn’t someone he expected to hear from.

“Mom?”

22

Landon

Thea’s small hand in mine gave me a measure of confidence as we walked into Claridge’s Foyer and Reading room. Her curious gaze took in the sumptuous Art Déco details and shimmering mirrors, but all of my attention focused on looking for my mother and sister among the well-to-do patrons enjoying afternoon tea.

“I feel under-dressed,” Thea whispered as we passed two ladies dripping in jewelry and fur. Their gazes dismissed Thea while lingering on me.Snooty bitches.

“I prefer you under-dressed,” I quipped before I spotted my mother and Isla.

“Darling!” Mom cooed, pulling me close for a hug. Isla smiled at me before staring at Thea with interest. “Hello again, dear. I do like your new haircut. It suits you.”

Thea murmured her thanks and shifted awkwardly beside me. Once I’d introduced her to my sister, we both took a seat while my mother fussed over the tea and pressured us to take some sandwiches and cakes from the selection on the table.

“Would you prefer some champagne?” she asked Thea, always the consummate hostess. “I like the Claridges’ blend of tea, but it’s not to everyone’s taste.”

“No, thank you. Tea is fine.” She lifted the fine bone china cup and took a sip.

“Where’s father?” I asked, once we’d made small talk for a few minutes. Nowhere near here, I hoped.

Mom frowned. “He had a business meeting in Glasgow, so Isla and I came down on our own. I’m having a few tweakments at my favorite clinic on Harley Street, and Isla wanted to shop for the children.”

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