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“So,” she murmurs, taking a sip of her champagne. “I guess I should hand it to you. You managed to do the impossible.” She lifts her glass. “To taming the untameable. You’ll have to tell me your secret.”

“He’s not exactly a wild beast,” I say lightly.

“I guess not. More of a closed book.” She lets out a breath. “How long did it take him to tell you about Leona?”

“His nanny?” I say. “That was very sad.”

“I know,” she says, leaning in. “Can you believe he was the one who found her dead? The trauma of it was awful.”

I blink, making it obvious I didn’t know.

“Oh. He hasn’t told you that part?” Her eyes widen with excitement. “That’s strange. Surely he should’ve. It tells you all you need to know about the man and why he’s so damn impenetrable.”

“Don’t worry,” she tells me, sounding almost sympathetic. “I’m sure he’ll tell you eventually. When he can get his brain out of his pants long enough to talk. I mean, who wouldn’t want to know that the man they married found his beloved nanny lifeless in front of his eyes when he was only twelve years old?”

The words slam into me, stealing my breath. I try to picture West as a boy, watching someone he loved die in front of him, and my chest aches.

Selena smiles at me like she’s won a game I didn’t know we were playing.

“Excuse me, I need to use the bathroom,” I say, my hands shaking. The words sound flimsy, even to me, but it’s all I can manage as I step past her perfume cloud. My pulse thunders in my ears, drowning out the music and chatter around us.

All I can think is that she knows parts of him I don’t, pieces he never offered me. And it hurts.

WEST

I check my watch, wondering if eleven is too soon to leave the party and head for our hotel. We’ve done our bit, after all. I’ve danced with my wife, made it clear I don’t intend to hide her, and I’ve introduced Bennett to more than a dozen people who can make or break careers.

Right now he’s leaning on the bar, talking to the daughter of one of them, grinning like he’s about to ask for her number. He’s fine holding his own. But Eden… I haven’t seen her in more than half an hour, and seeing as I’ve spent the last few hours with her in arm’s reach, that scratches at me in ways I don’t like.

“I’m going to find Eden and we’re heading out,” I say, touching Bennett’s arm. “You okay to find your own way back to the hotel?”

“Yup.” He nods, flashing me a tipsy grin. “All good.”

I give him a sharp look, then turn away, scanning the room for a glimpse of blue silk.

“Looking for someone?” Victoria’s voice cuts through the hum, smooth and amused. She’s standing by the edge of the bar, sequins catching the light, champagne glass in hand.

“My wife.”

Her smile quirks. “She was with Selena a little bit ago.”

“What?” My jaw tightens. If I thought I was annoyed before, I definitely am now. “Why? Where did they go?”

“Well, Selena’s there,” she says, pointing over at the corner, where my ex is talking to a group of her girlfriends. One of them looks over at me then back at her, whispering something.

Selena’s eyes meet mine.

“And Eden?”

“I’m not sure.” Victoria shrugs. “Now please excuse me, I have two plumbers currently trying to stop the great flood in the kitchen.” She kisses the air half an inch from my face. “By the way, your wife is very lovely.”

Yes, she is. And I’d really like to find her right now. I storm over to where Selena is still watching me. “Where is she?” I ask her.

“Hello to you, too,” Selena replies, rolling her eyes at her friends. “Girls, you remember West, right?”

“Oh, we remember him,” the brunette next to her says. “You were the subject of many emergency lunches at the Ivy.”

Their laughter makes my skin prickle. “Glad to be of assistance.”