Page 25 of Milo
“Yes, why?”
“Well, people don’t normally do that. They’re usually delivered by a courier service with lots of paperwork.”
“Well, I had to strike while the iron was hot. I understand that you don’t take on much outside work.”
I shift awkwardly, and I can practically feel Niall tense. “No. I have a lot of work here and I owe the earl my loyalty.”
“No need to explain,” he says kindly. “Besides, these aren’t valuable paintings. They’re part of a job lot I bought at auction. I thought you could clean them up and see what’s under the dirt.”
For some reason, it stings that he wouldn’t give me valuable art to work on. As if he senses it, Niall walks over and stands next to me.
“Milo is capable of dealing with anything you give him, no matter how much it’s worth. The art is the point for him,” he says evenly, uncapping the bottle and testing the milk on my forearm. I nod, taking the bottle from him and giving him a grateful look. For a second he stares down at me, his eyes dark. Then he turns to Simeon. “He has more talent in his little finger than most people you know.”
“Niall,” I protest but he shakes his head.
“You have, Lo. Seems he should know that if he’s going to be using you.”
Simeon holds his hand up. “I meant no disrespect.” He looks at Niall for a long second and then turns to me. “He’s right. You are very talented. I’ve seen some of the restoration work you did for the Pinchton estate.”
“It’s conservation as much as anything,” Niall says proudly. “He’s keeping it around for the generations after us to see.”
I blink. That had been part of a debate I’d had with Oz one morning. At the time I hadn’t thought Niall was listening as hesat hungover to the eyeballs wearing sunglasses and drinking a vat of coffee. “I never knew you heard that.”
He smiles slightly, the lines at the sides of his eyes lengthening. “I always listen to you.”
We stare at each other for a second until Simeon clears his throat. I hand Cora to Niall and stand up. “Let me dish up supper.”
Supper is surprisingly relaxing after the slight stand-off. Cora sits gurgling in her bouncy chair as she kicks energetically, setting the chair bouncing vigorously while Dotty watches her curiously, her tiger eyes gleaming as if she can’t quite work out who this tiny interloper is. Niall unbends slightly towards Simeon and after he opens a nice bottle of red wine, they sit discussing the prospects for the Scottish Premiership. Niall went to uni in Edinburgh and has never relinquished his fondness for Scottish football. It turns out Simeon is the same, so they have a very spirited discussion.
When supper is finished, as Niall clears away the plates, I turn to Simeon. “Shall we look at these pictures? We’ll take them up to the main house, if I can get a lift?”
He nods enthusiastically and while he goes to get his coat, I come up next to Niall. “You okay?” I ask tentatively. He looks up at me from where he’s loading the dishwasher and just like that, the near kiss roars back into my mind where I’d hopefully pushed it.
He straightens up so quickly I step back in surprise. “I’m fine. Why, Milo?”
I swallow hard. “Just …” I falter, searching for words, and he watches me patiently. “About the yoga session …”
I fade out and his eyes darken. “The yoga session or what happened afterward?”
The front door slams. “Oh my God, no,” I say loudly and he laughs. “Just the yoga,” I say quickly. “I can’t talk about this in front of Simeon. It was just yoga, after all.”
I hesitate, waiting for him to say something. Anything. I look anxiously at the door where I can hear Simeon’s footsteps. When I look back, Niall has an unreadable expression on his face.
“Just yoga. Nothing to talk about,” he says evenly, no expression in his voice at all.
Something in the way he’s looking at me makes me take a second glance, but he stares back at me placidly, the only movement about him a tic in his jaw. I focus on that display of agitation and raise my eyes back to him. “Niall,” I start to say, but Simeon sticks his head around the door.
“You ready, Milo?”
I hold Niall’s eyes for a second, wishing for I don’t know what, but when he looks away and I don’t get it, I sag slightly.
This is for the best,I tell myself. He’s not for me. He’s too forceful, too bossy, too everything. I need someone like Simeon who is looking at me admiringly. Someone quieter, someone who won’t push.
Feeling resolved, I gesture him to the front door. “I’ll be right with you,” I say. I look behind me as Niall retrieves Cora from her chair and straightens up.
“I’ll leave you to it,” he says evenly, and murmuring a goodnight he mounts the stairs. I stare after him for a long second, looking at the empty stairs with my mind buzzing, but then I make myself put it away.
This is just the remnants of my childhood crush,I tell myself sternly. I have a life to get on with. I have a feeling that while I may have been on hold for a few years I’m coming out of it now, and life’s too short and precious to waste. I push away the feeling that I’m doing something wrong, because it’s ridiculous, and follow Simeon out to the car.
