Page 22 of Short Stack 3

Then I throw the phone to one side and look around in search of the wild-haired, big man who shared my bed last night. There’s no sign of him unless you count the scent of his aftershave on the sheets. I stretch and climb out of bed. After throwing on my sweats, I pad down the stairs.

As I approach the kitchen, I hear voices and shake my head.Whoon earth has he found to talk to now? I swear that Asa would find someone to have a conversation with if he was stuck in the middle of the North Pole.

Then I hear a familiar dry chuckle and the rich voice of one of England’s foremost actors. Or Gideon, as we’ve come to know him. I round the door and find the man himself sitting at the big kitchen table with Asa. They both have cups of coffee in front of them and turn to face me as I come into the room.

“Ah, two titans of the world of stage and screen,” I say lightly. “I’m so in awe of your talents.”

“You should be,” Gideon observes, his haughty voice spoilt by the tug of a smile on his lips. “You don’t get this far in the entertainment industry without a lot of pain and suffering.”

I blink. “And what was yours?”

“Well, once I had to go without my blinis and caviar on set because the delivery driver got caught in traffic.”

“I feel your pain,” I say gravely.

Asa grins at me. He’s wearing a pair of old jeans that cling to his long legs and a navy jumper. “I thought you might sleep all day.”

“I thought that bed was the point of this weekend, or did I misunderstand your mission statement, Asa?”

He winks. “No misunderstanding here.”

I punch Gideon on the shoulder. “Alright?”

He grins lazily at me. He looks a far cry from the man we first knew. Then, he’d been wound tighter than a clockwork toy. Now, he looks relaxed, his grey-flecked hair a tangle around his sharp features.

“I’m fine. I just popped in to bring you Billy’s Christmas present.”

“That’s nice of you,” I say, touched. Gideon isn’t exactly child-friendly. Whenever Billy talks to him, he gets a panicked look on his face, rather like the one Gabe usually wears. However, due to the fact that Gideon rescued Billy’s hamster once and appeared inOliver, Billy now adores him.

Gideon shrugs. “Don’t thank me. You know very well it was Eli’s idea.”

“Where is he? Not accompanying you on your home invasion today?”

“Hardly invading,” he says lazily. “I just pulled up my dinghy to your patio, and Asa invited me in for a coffee.”

“Is that a euphemism?” I pause. “Ooh, we have a patio?” I say excitedly. “Maybe we can have breakfast out there.”

“Not unless you fancy being wetter than a duck’s arse,” Gideon observes. “It’s wild out there today.”

I head over to the French windows. “Good grief, it is,” I say. Rain is pouring down, and gusts of wind buffet the boats and rattle the glass.

Asa chuckles. “And yet, I’m still sure that you’ve got something planned.”

I give him a sultry look. “I have alotplanned, Asa Jacobs.”

Gideon laughs and gets to his feet. “And on that note, I’m off. Eli’s on nights, so he should be home soon.”

“Shall we meet for dinner at some point?” I ask.

He nods. “Love to. Won’t it spoil your dirty weekend plans, though?”

I laugh. “Listen, we live in a house with a child. We’ve learntneverto make plans.”

Asa grins. “You’ll see if you ever have children yourself.”

Gideon screws his face up. “Not bloody likely,” he says promptly.

I smile at him. “I’m sure if Eli wanted them, you’d change your mind.”

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