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Dominic fished in his jacket pocket and pulled out his wallet. Opening it, he pulled out a shiny silver card with the name ‘Beresford Estate Expense Account’ emblazoned on it, and handed it to her.
Faith stared at the card, even as she noticed the slip of paper with it. ‘Memorise the PIN and destroy that paper,’ he said. Then, when she just kept looking at it, he added, ‘Go on. Don’t you have a reservation to confirm?’
Faith swallowed. ‘Don’t you want to know what I’ve got planned for the evening?’
Dominic’s smile was wicked. ‘I trust you. Surprise me.’
* * *
Later that evening, as Dominic stared at the limited wardrobe he’d brought to the hotel, he regretted not asking Faith to share the plan for the evening. At least then he’d know if he needed the dinner jacket or if an ordinary suit would suffice. Or if whatever she had arranged would be more comfortable in jeans... Surely she’d have mentioned if they needed any sort of special outfits, though. Right?
Why hadn’t he let her tell him?
Sighing, Dominic dropped to sit on the edge of the bed, tie in hand. The reason, if he was honest with himself, was simply that she’d looked so excited about her plans. Standing there in her bright red blouse, with her hair tied back, she’d bobbed excitedly up and down on her toes. And just the idea that she was trying so hard to get this right, to do a good job...he wanted her to have a moment of glory when she pulled it off.
If she pulled it off.
He should have checked. He should be approving all the plans for the week. He would with any other new supplier or contractor. So why was it different with Faith?
Because Faith was different, he answered himself. Faith was so many worlds away from Kat and the way she worked. Faith, for whatever reason, needed this job, and needed to do it well. And he was going to trust her and let her get on with it.
Even if she could be using his credit card for anything right now. She could be on her way to the airport and back to Italy. Or anywhere.
No. Faith wanted this job; that much he was sure of. Still, they’d only talked vaguely about budgets on the plane, and Faith didn’t seem the sort to be constrained by vague limits when the perfect opportunity for fun showed up. Although she’d been pretty canny with his money when she went clothes shopping.
He should have more faith.
Groaning at the unintentional mental pun, Dominic lay back on the bed and wished it was eight o’clock and time to meet in the lobby already.
In the end, he was twenty minutes early, dressed in a suit and clean shirt, no tie—although he had one in his pocket in case of emergency. Compromise, he’d decided, was the name of the game. Something the Americans could stand to learn at the negotiating table, actually.
He was early, but Faith was earlier, already standing in the lobby, dressed in a black dress that skimmed her knees, and with a red cardigan over it that hid the neckline. Respectable, but not too formal. Maybe he could ditch the tie at reception...
‘You’re early,’ she said, smiling at him as he approached. ‘Too impatient to wait any longer?’
‘Something like that,’ Dominic admitted. Up close, he could see the red lipstick that made her mouth even wider and more tempting than normal. And he was studiously ignoring the way her black heels made her legs look endless.
Rifling through her oversized handbag, Faith said, ‘I’ve got receipts and confirmations here—printed them out at the business centre. Do you want them as we go along, or shall I put them together in a full report at the end of the week?’
Dominic let his shoulders relax. ‘It can wait. Just give me the full accounting when we’re done. Including your hours and salary.’
Her eyes widened again as she looked at him. ‘Okay. Will do.’
What was it that made it so hard for her to let people trust her? he wondered. Was it just that the scope of this job was a little outside her normal remit? Or was it something more?
Maybe he’d ask her, one day. If he got the chance.
‘So, is it time for me to know where we’re going yet?’
Faith gave him a mysterious smile. ‘Soon,’ she promised.
The Americans obviously hadn’t been given any hints, either. They arrived in the lobby in dribs and drabs, dressed in the same cautious smart/casual attire Dominic had opted for. As soon as they were all assembled, Faith clapped her hands to get everyone’s attention and said, ‘Okay, ladies and gentlemen. Time for your first, proper London experience of the trip.’
Leading them out of the lobby, she kept talking. ‘I know you’ve all been to London before, and I know that you’ve probably experienced a lot of the standard tourist attractions. But there are some things that are so quintessentially London, it would be wrong to miss them out this week. I promise there’ll be some more unusual outings in your future but, just for tonight, I went for the classics.’
