Page 34 of Daydreamer
“But—” Vicky started, and Lottie leaned down towards her. “Ollie’s here, hun,” she said softly. “You’ll be good with him. You know that.” Vicky looked panicked for a moment, then glanced at Ollie, who was frowning at them both.
“Of course, I’ll sort you out, Vics,” he said. “Let the girl go home.” Justthe girl, not Lottie. I kicked him under the table, but he just shrugged at me. Lottie said a brief goodbye and made her escape.
“Okay, arsehole. Now that you’ve successfully acted like a prick, not for the first time. How about we talk about the Hyde Park development?”
Ollie was watching Lottie’s retreating back with a frown on his face. “What the fuck kind of coat does she think she’s wearing for this weather?” he muttered, completely ignoring me. I looked over my shoulder to see Lottie shrugging on an, admittedly thin, denim jacket. When I looked back at Ollie he was still frowning.
“Er, why the hell do you give a fuck?” I asked in surprise. “Given how much you dislike her, I’d have thought you’d be glad of the chance for her to freeze to death.”
Ollie barely acknowledged me. Instead, without a word of explanation, he shoved his chair back and strode after Lottie. We all watched as he blocked her way to the exit, causing her to run into him and nearly fall. His hands shot out to steady her before she could land on her arse but once she was upright he released her as if she’d burned him. They exchanged a few words then she dodged around him out of the double doors and we lost sight of them both when he stormed after her.
“What is his problem?” Lucy muttered.
“My half-brother is totally illogical when it comes to Lottie,” Vicky told us. “I’ve given up trying to reason with him.”
After a couple of minutes Ollie was back, looking windswept and pissed off.
“Vics, make sure she wears a proper bloody coat,” he said as he took his place back at the table. “She must be able to afford one on the salary you’re paying her.”
Vicky shrugged. “I don’t police what other people wear.That would be weird. You’re being weird. Stop being horrid to Lottie. Ineedher.”
Ollie sighed. “You don’tneedher, Vics. I just?—”
“Anyway, Felix’s right,” she said, cutting him off. “We need to talk about Hyde Park and there’s another opportunity that’s just come up from the Framlingham Estate.”
Ollie sighed and rubbed his hand down his face. He glanced at Lucy. “Luce, we can trust you, right? This is all confidential stuff, not to go any further.”
Lucy sat up straight in her chair, and I could feel her discomfort coming off her in waves. She put her hands on the table and went to stand. “Oh, don’t worry, guys,” she said, flustered, which pissed me off. I wanted relaxed, chatty Lucy back. “I’d better get going anyway. If you need to talk super-secret, businessy stuff, I’ll just be in the way.”
“You’re not going anywhere,” I said in a firm tone, my hand on her leg pushing her to sit down. “I trust Lucy completely. And she’s not exactly corporate spy material.” Ollie gave me a look, and I frowned at him. He knew what had gone on five years ago. I hadn’t really trusted anybody since then. That I was willing to trust Lucy now was a huge step – Ollie understood that.
Lucy let out a shocked laugh. “Corporate spy!” She laughed again. “Sorry, Ollie, but the idea of me even understanding enough of what you might talk about to use it as a corporate spy is funny. But seriously, I can just grab an Uber and?—”
“No, it’s fine,” Ollie said with a smile at Lucy. “I’m sorry, but I just wanted you to know that this is really sensitive stuff. Don’t go. Felix’ll be grumpy if you take off and we won’t get anywhere. I’ll try to keep it brief so you’re not too bored.”
“Okay,” Lucy agreed. “If I can have another cider. Ooh and a chocolate pudding.”
So, Lucy drank her cider and ate her pudding whilst the three of us hashed out the details of Ollie’s investment in Hyde Park, then laid out the Framlingham Estate plan. I kept my hand on Lucy’s thigh, rubbing small circles on her tights. About ten minutes after she finished her pudding, I felt her lean a little more heavily into my side, her body relaxing. When I looked down at her, she was fast asleep. I leaned back onto the wall in the corner of the booth and put my arm around her so that she could snuggle into my chest more comfortably and held her to me. I couldn’t really blame her for being tired. I hadn’t let her sleep much last night. Ollie looked between us and raised an eyebrow.
“She’s not that into finance and property development then?” he observed.
I laughed quietly. “Good for her. Finance is bloody boring, and we’re all boring bastards.”
“Whatisshe into?” asked Vicky.
I blinked at her, opened my mouth to reply and then snapped it shut when I realised I had no idea, not anymore.
Chapter 20
Dog-eat-dog
Lucy
“Where have you been?” Felix demanded in a low, furious voice as he took me by the elbow and led me into his office, shutting the door behind us. “Will’s been looking for you. There’s been nobody answering his phone for the last hour. Clients have been calling, Luce. You can’t just swan off any time you want in the day just because we’re together now.”
I flinched as if he slapped me and took a step back. He dropped my elbow and then crossed his arms over his chest as he watched me. We were alone in his office, and the atmosphere was thick with his anger.
This Felix wasn’tmyFelix. This Felix was Ruthless Business Bastard Felix. It wasn’t the Felix who made me laugh, who fussed over my temperature regulation, who cuddled me in bed and watchedTheLord of the Ringswith me. And it certainly wasn’t the Felix I’d known twenty years ago – the one who had found me and looked after me after we lost Dad. That wasmyFelix. If I was honest, Ruthless Business Bastard Felixreminded me a little of his father, which I knewmyFelix would hate more than anything.
