Page 54 of I Knew You Were Trouble

‘Kate—’

‘You’ve already helped so much…’ And he has. He may have shown up unannounced and dropped a bomb, as he said the other night, but I would much rather know about Jon now than have married him andthendiscovered I was one of three.

‘Will you think about it – me coming to Italy with you? Marie Maillot and I have already agreed to share our findings, so I’ll have access to all the information you require.’

I snigger softly. ‘Trust you to be alllogical,’ I tease.

‘It is my specialty,’ he quips.

He smiles and even though there’s a body of water between us, that smile warms me from the inside out. It also ignites an inferno between my legs. It’s a good thing I’m no longer on the Tube and safely ensconced in my flat.

‘I’ll think about it,’ I say.

Itdoesmake sense, him coming with me, but it may be difficult to concentrate on the core purpose of the trip if I’m constantly fantasising about Willem slipping his hand inside my knickers –extremelydifficult.

‘Ahem…’ I clear my throat, staving off the inappropriate thoughts. ‘So, um… I’ll let you know?’ I say, posing it as a question.

Ugh. I sound exactly like my fourteen-year-old self and not atalllike a mature woman with oodles of life experience. If this weren’t a video call, I’d roll my eyes at myself and slap my forehead.

Instead, I plaster on a bright smile and ring off before Willem cottons on that I am, in fact, a blithering idiot.

* * *

‘How was Amsterdam?’ Mina asks, popping her head into my office.

‘Good, yes! Productive,’ I say without thinking.

‘Productive?’ She steps inside, folding her arms across her chest, a furrow appearing between her brows. ‘I thought you were going away to have some fun. Oh god, Kate, you weren’tworking, were you?’ she asks with mock horror – at least Ithinkshe’s joking.

‘No, no, nothing like that,’ I say, forcing a laugh. ‘Sorry, I meant it did the trick – helped kickstart the healing process.’

‘Oh, good.’ She sits in the chair opposite me, a rare occurrence. Almost every time we meet, it’s in her office or a meeting room. She also has an odd expression on her face, which makes me uneasy. ‘And how’s your day going so far?’ she asks with a concerned head tilt.

‘Ah, good, yes. I got in early and put my head down, and I’m already caught up,’ I say brightly, hoping to reassure her that a day off hasn’t impacted my work.

‘I’d expect nothing less from you, Kate. As I told you last week, you at eighty per cent is far superior to most people at a hundred.’

It’s a nice compliment, but where is she going with this? ‘Thanks, Mina,’ I say with a smile. ‘Your confidence in me means a lot.’

‘Listen, I’ve been thinking…’ she starts, her expression hinting at something intriguing.

Ooh, maybe she’s broaching the possibility of me moving to Europe. We’ll be opening a satellite office later this year, and I’d definitely consider being part of the advance team.

‘Since you announced your engagement,’ she continues, instantly quashing my mounting enthusiasm, ‘I’ve had it in mind to gift you a fortnight’s leave for your honeymoon – so you didn’t have to use your holiday entitlement. As my wedding gift to you.’

‘Okay,’ I say. God, I’d rather be discussing pap smear results with Mina than my broken engagement.

‘And now that you’re no longerengaged…’

In a professional context, Mina Choi is confident and articulate, regularly conversing with some of the most influential people on the planet – billionaires, CEOs, magnates, and even heads of state. So why is she struggling to express herself withme?

And then I get it.

‘Oh, no, that’s fine,’ I say. ‘A very generous gift – thank you – but I’m not expecting you to honour it. Not now, and until thirty seconds ago, I didn’t even know about it, so…’

‘But that’s the thing. I’d like to give you the time off regardless.’

‘Really? But why?’ It’s rude of me to speak to Mina so abruptly, but I can’t fathom why she would want to give me time off for something that’s no longer happening.

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