neutral, but Ellery heard pity.
‘If you’d rather just have coffee,’ she told him with a bright, rather glittering smile, ‘that’s fine. The eggs look a bit overcooked, anyway.’
Smiling faintly, Larenz glanced in the pan. The eggs had congealed to its bottom. ‘How about a compromise? Coffee and toast.’ He paused. ‘If you’ll join me.’
She threw him a startled glance; he smiled, his face so very bland. How good he was at wiping away all expression, she thought resentfully. She had no idea what he was thinking, and she had an awful feeling that she was all too transparent. ‘Very well.’ She poured two mugs of coffee and fetched the toast. Larenz hung his coat over a chair and they sat across from each other, the awkwardness palpable, unbearable.
Ellery took a sip of coffee and burned her tongue. ‘You’re off?’ she enquired in that same awful brisk voice. ‘I don’t even know where you live. Are you returning to Italy or…’ She let the sentence trail away for it occurred to her that perhaps he didn’t want her to know where he lived. She hardly wanted to come across as some sort of stalker.
‘I divide my time between Milan and London,’ Larenz replied quietly. He hadn’t touched his toast or coffee; he simply stared at her across the length of the table, his expression solemn now and perhaps even a little sorrowful.
Ellery took a bite of toast. It tasted like dust in her mouth. ‘Sounds lovely,’ she finally managed after she choked it down. ‘Quite the jet-setting lifestyle.’
‘Quite.’ Larenz lifted his coffee mug, then placed it back on the table without taking a sip. ‘You could come with me.’
Ellery stared at him, sure she must not have heard him correctly. ‘Pardon?’ she said politely, and waited to hear what he really must have said.
‘You could come with me,’ Larenz said again, and he sounded surprised, as though he hadn’t expected to say it. Staring at him, Ellery was quite sure he hadn’t.
She shook her head slowly, confusion and hope warring within her. ‘Come with you? Where?’
‘To London, and then to Milan,’ Larenz stated matter-of-factly. He seemed to have recovered from his surprise. ‘I have some business to do, but it could be…nice…to have company. It might do you some good, too. You don’t have any guests booked for the next week or so, do you?’
‘No, not yet,’ Ellery said after a moment. The words week or so seemed to echo through her mind. Was that as long as this…affair…would last? ‘I teach at the local school,’ she added. ‘But it’s actually half-term this week.’
‘Then why don’t you come with me?’ Larenz smiled and took a sip of coffee. ‘You could use a break, I’m sure, and we could hammer out the details of the fashion shoot—’
‘The fashion shoot?’ Ellery repeated in disbelief. ‘You still want to have it here?’
‘Of course. My head of PR is quite set on this place.’
She shook her head slowly. The idea of a fashion shoot at Maddock Manor made no sense to her, but it hardly seemed relevant now. ‘So you want to bring me to London and Milan to discuss business,’ she said a bit flatly. ‘Surely a week’s trip isn’t necessary for that.’ She heard the slight edge to her voice as she added, ‘You could just take me out for dinner.’
‘I could,’ Larenz agreed, smiling faintly, ‘but this trip isn’t about what’s necessary.’ He put down his mug and met her gaze directly, with an open honesty she hadn’t been expecting, a vulnerability that reached right down inside her and grabbed her heart.
No. Don’t reach me. Don’t touch me like that, with your eyes. Don’t make me hope, don’t make me fall —
‘I want you to come with me because I want to be with you,’ Larenz said steadily. ‘What happened between us last night—it was good.’ He raised his eyebrows. ‘Wasn’t it?’
Ellery looked down. ‘Yes, it was,’ she whispered. It seemed such a simplification
‘If you’d rather just have coffee,’ she told him with a bright, rather glittering smile, ‘that’s fine. The eggs look a bit overcooked, anyway.’
Smiling faintly, Larenz glanced in the pan. The eggs had congealed to its bottom. ‘How about a compromise? Coffee and toast.’ He paused. ‘If you’ll join me.’
She threw him a startled glance; he smiled, his face so very bland. How good he was at wiping away all expression, she thought resentfully. She had no idea what he was thinking, and she had an awful feeling that she was all too transparent. ‘Very well.’ She poured two mugs of coffee and fetched the toast. Larenz hung his coat over a chair and they sat across from each other, the awkwardness palpable, unbearable.
Ellery took a sip of coffee and burned her tongue. ‘You’re off?’ she enquired in that same awful brisk voice. ‘I don’t even know where you live. Are you returning to Italy or…’ She let the sentence trail away for it occurred to her that perhaps he didn’t want her to know where he lived. She hardly wanted to come across as some sort of stalker.
‘I divide my time between Milan and London,’ Larenz replied quietly. He hadn’t touched his toast or coffee; he simply stared at her across the length of the table, his expression solemn now and perhaps even a little sorrowful.
Ellery took a bite of toast. It tasted like dust in her mouth. ‘Sounds lovely,’ she finally managed after she choked it down. ‘Quite the jet-setting lifestyle.’
‘Quite.’ Larenz lifted his coffee mug, then placed it back on the table without taking a sip. ‘You could come with me.’
Ellery stared at him, sure she must not have heard him correctly. ‘Pardon?’ she said politely, and waited to hear what he really must have said.
‘You could come with me,’ Larenz said again, and he sounded surprised, as though he hadn’t expected to say it. Staring at him, Ellery was quite sure he hadn’t.
She shook her head slowly, confusion and hope warring within her. ‘Come with you? Where?’
‘To London, and then to Milan,’ Larenz stated matter-of-factly. He seemed to have recovered from his surprise. ‘I have some business to do, but it could be…nice…to have company. It might do you some good, too. You don’t have any guests booked for the next week or so, do you?’
‘No, not yet,’ Ellery said after a moment. The words week or so seemed to echo through her mind. Was that as long as this…affair…would last? ‘I teach at the local school,’ she added. ‘But it’s actually half-term this week.’
‘Then why don’t you come with me?’ Larenz smiled and took a sip of coffee. ‘You could use a break, I’m sure, and we could hammer out the details of the fashion shoot—’
‘The fashion shoot?’ Ellery repeated in disbelief. ‘You still want to have it here?’
‘Of course. My head of PR is quite set on this place.’
She shook her head slowly. The idea of a fashion shoot at Maddock Manor made no sense to her, but it hardly seemed relevant now. ‘So you want to bring me to London and Milan to discuss business,’ she said a bit flatly. ‘Surely a week’s trip isn’t necessary for that.’ She heard the slight edge to her voice as she added, ‘You could just take me out for dinner.’
‘I could,’ Larenz agreed, smiling faintly, ‘but this trip isn’t about what’s necessary.’ He put down his mug and met her gaze directly, with an open honesty she hadn’t been expecting, a vulnerability that reached right down inside her and grabbed her heart.
No. Don’t reach me. Don’t touch me like that, with your eyes. Don’t make me hope, don’t make me fall —
‘I want you to come with me because I want to be with you,’ Larenz said steadily. ‘What happened between us last night—it was good.’ He raised his eyebrows. ‘Wasn’t it?’
Ellery looked down. ‘Yes, it was,’ she whispered. It seemed such a simplification
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