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Now Laura smiled. ‘I’m sure you’ll do a great job.’
Before she could say more, a couple came towards them with cries of greeting, and both Laura and Frank stepped forward.
‘I hope we have time to talk more later, Gabby,’ said Laura.
‘That leaves you with us.’ Julia smiled at Gabby. Her tone was friendly but her smile didn’t reach her ice-blue eyes.
Gemma darted a frown at her sister and chimed in. ‘Zander asked us to make sure you’re OK whilst he greets the guests, and we thought we could use the time to get to know each other better, too.’
A waiter eased by, offering a tray of champagne cocktails, and Gabby took one, pretty sure that fun flings didn’t ask for orange juice or a nice cup of tea at events such as this. Though she’d make sure she stuck to non-alcoholic beverages after this one—she had no intention of risking letting the mask slip.
‘So...’ Julia said, and Gabby tried and failed not to feel intimidated.
Julia Grosvenor would be formidable in court. Zander’s eldest sister was scarily elegant, her blonde hair swept into an immaculate chignon, the ice-blue dress a vivid echo of her eye colour and a perfect showcase for her figure.
She studied Gabby with disconcerting appraisal. ‘Zander tells me the two of you met recently and hit it off.’
‘Yes. We were at school together, though I was in the year below him. We bumped into each other in Bath and things went from there.’
‘A chance meeting?’ The question was civil, but the faintest stress on the word chance indicated waves of scepticism.
‘Come on, Jules,’ Gemma interpolated. ‘This isn’t a courtroom and we haven’t got time for a whole series of questions. Why don’t we cut to the chase?’
Like Zander, Gemma was dark blonde, tall and slender, and tonight she was dressed in a deep red gown.
‘We all want to know what your intentions are.’
The direct approach—Gabby welcomed it. ‘I don’t have any,’ she said. ‘We’ve only just started to see each other. I like Zander and he likes me, but neither of us is looking for anything serious.’
Stop there. Don’t overdo it.
Both women were looking at her—two super successful, intelligent women, used to judging and evaluating people in their different fields. Yet she had told them nothing but the slightly shaded truth.
Julia studied her for a long moment. ‘If that’s true, then go for it,’ she said. ‘Zander deserves some fun.’
Gemma smiled. ‘On that note, as you have probably noticed my brother is a workaholic. Anything you can do to persuade him away from the office would be much appreciated! Now, we need to mingle...’
Soon enough they were engulfed, and Gabby’s plans to embrace invisibility were scuppered by people eager to meet Zander Grosvenor’s date. Panic threatened again, but Gabby combated it with a steely determination not to make a fool of herself or Zander. He’d trusted her to hold her own and she would play her part.
Yet her nerves twisted and tied into knots, and as the evening progressed the scenario felt more and more surreal. The pop of champagne corks, the glitter of the women’s jewellery in the light of the chandeliers, the flash of expensive watches under the sleeves of designer tuxes, the conversations with their casual mention of royalty, celebrities and share portfolios made her dizzy.
To her relief, though, most people, whilst clearly curious, were also courteous—until...
Gabby sensed trouble as a red-haired woman glided towards her with a speculative, near-malicious smile on her lips.
‘Hello, Gabby. I just had to meet you. The woman who has lured Zander Grosvenor from his monk’s cell.’
Gabby tensed; she recognised the woman as a grown-up version of the playground girls who had made her life miserable as a child, with their loaded comments and taunts.
‘I’m Melanie Kilton. So, tell me all about yourself—and how on earth you managed to catch Zander.’
Melanie had a smile on her lips and icicles in her blue eyes. She also had a figure to die for and a plummy voice that spoke of the fact that she’d been born to grace events like this—preferably on the arm of a man like Zander.
‘I’m a librarian—’ Gabby began, before realising the stupidity of her answer.
Melanie’s laughter tinkled. ‘How...stereotypical. Perhaps you and Zander will be like one of those cheesy romances where the librarian heroine falls in love with the handsome hero?’
Gabby willed her brain to come up with a witty comeback. But in the mirror of her childhood, she stood there, with the sting of humiliation behind her eyelids, willing the ground to open up and swallow her.
