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CHAPTER 21
CASSIE
Cassie studied the unicorn tapestry on the wall of Beatrice’s chintz-decorated guest room. The unicorn was shown encircled by a fence and attached by a silver chain. She’d been staring at it since dawn because it gave her something else to focus on instead of Leo.
Her dreams had been vivid with memories of being with Leo on the boat. It had been one week since their night together. She kept herself busy helping Beatrice with final edits. During the day, it was easier to justify her frustration about how he shut down. But at night, memories of their passionate night together shattered her defenses. She’d wake up aching to be with him again.
Soon after she arrived in London, she did an internet search and read about Leo’s notorious reputation. After skimming a few stories about his partying antics and scrolling through pages of his photos with women, she learned two things. First, the Leo Sutton she’d met in Santorini wasn’t like the Leo described in these stories. Leo had been his true self with her. She believed it to her core.
Second, she learned that James Sutton, Leo’s father,had been a womanizerextraordinaire. He’d also been her father’s fiercest competitor. She’d never known anything about their conflict. But James Sutton had died a year ago, and she had no idea if the rivalry continued between her father and the Sutton company.
Cassie had to accept she might never see Leo again. He said he lived in London, so if she did see him, she would have to navigate how herfather’s past business competitionwith James Sutton would affect their relationship. What relationship? She threw a pillow across the room. “I’ve got to stop doing this,” she muttered, and headed to the shower.
Thanks to Beatrice, she was starting her new job today at Worldwide Witness. If it worked out, she would return to New York to pack and then make a permanent move to London.
She looked forward to starting a new career and meeting new people, and then, who knew?
Most of her wardrobe consisted of jeans, T-shirts, flouncy long skirts, and peasant blouses better suited for warmer weather. She managed to get out to a local boutique Lucy had recommended and chose a few simple outfits. She zipped up a black skirt and buttoned a dove-gray silk blouse. She stepped into black heels and twisted her damp hair into a knot.
Her phone buzzed. Her mother was calling. It was two o’clock in the morning in New York. She never called this early.
“Hi, Mom. Are you okay?”
“I didn’t mean to scare you. We’re fine.”
“Okay. What’s up?”
“I thought I’d call to wish you good luck today.”
“Thanks. I’m grateful for Beatrice’s help.” She put her mom on speaker while she put in her pearl earrings.
“I’ll have to meet her one of these days. She sounds like a delightful character.”
“She is a character for sure.” Cassie needed to shift the conversation to find out what her parents knew about Leo. “How’s Dad? I haven’t heard from him lately.”
“He’s been a little down. He put in a bid to renovate the Triton.” Her mom’s voice was uncharacteristically somber. “He didn’t get the contract.”
No wonder she couldn’t sleep. She was worried about him.
“Why not? He’s known Stavros for years.”
“Another company underbid by a lot. Even though he’s friends with Stavros, it was too good of a deal to ignore.”
“Who got the contract?”
“Sutton Properties. Why do you ask?”
Oh, wow. Leo’s family’s company won the bid, but it didn’t explain why Leo freaked out that morning.
“Just curious,” she muttered while still mulling over this revelation.
“Your father and James Sutton competed against each other for years. When James died, his eldest son, Malcolm, took over. His other son, Leo, started his own company. Leo made a bid on the Triton but pulled out at the last minute.”
She stilled. That’s why Leo was at the Triton. Why did he pull his bid? Did he have a rivalry with her father too? Her mind went into overdrive with more questions. “Why didn’t I know about this competition? I don’t remember either you or Dad talking about the Suttons.”
“Your father wanted to keep business at the office.”
“Have you known about it for all this time?”
