AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“My family will be happy to have me out of the house,” he said ruefully.
“I don’t blame them,” I muttered.
He shot me a sharp glance.
“As for my girlfriend, let’s just say I’m between relationships.”
I knew that shouldn’t have made my heart leap, but it did. He was single. And unavailable, my brain added. To me, at least, because he disapproved of my lifestyle. And I was damned if I apologized to anyone for my life choices, especially to a privileged trust fund baby who had no idea of what it felt like to have to choose between food and rent.
CHAPTER 9
MARCUS
It worked!
I didn’t think it would, but it did.
I was so relieved I didn’t have to stoop to kidnapping them both, but I would have done it if I’d had to. I finally understood why Leo did what he did. Right now, I would do whatever it took to keep Celine and Rose safe. And I refused to question why.
Mainly because I didn’t know the answer myself.
“Where’s your bag?” she asked.
“At the hotel. I’ll have my assistant check me out of the hotel and drop off some fresh clothes,” I replied.
The window guy was almost done when we went in. Celine settled with him while I called my assistant with a list of instructions. I’d have to work from here, and while my staff wouldn’t collapse if they didn’t see me for a few days, it would make life more difficult all around.
Then, I called Leo and told him what was happening.
“Do you want to bring her home?” he asked.
“Nah. She insists on staying here because she doesn’t want any more charity from the Donovans. Her words, not mine. We’ll be fine. Tell me, does Tia miss me?” I teased, knowing it would piss my brother off.
He was very possessive of her for a man who claimed to hate her.
“Go fuck yourself,” he snarled before he hung up.
I grinned as I realized that my poor brother had it bad, and the lucky bastard didn’t even know it yet. But he deserved this joy after the shitty hand he’d been dealt. Leo’s first wife, Natalie, had cheated on him with Tia’s brother, Arjun. And one night, she crashed her car when they were on their way back from a party. Natalie died on the spot, but Arjun survived, and Leo had hated him ever since.
When he first met Tia, Leo had fallen head over heels for her without knowing that she was his enemy’s sister, and he hadn’t taken the revelation kindly. I was glad he was able to overlook her relationship with Arjun and give himself a second chance at happiness because Tia was just right for him.
Celine showed me to her spare room and left me there to get on with my emails while she got lunch for Rose.
When I came out of my room to greet my assistant, Celine was setting the table for lunch.
“Soup and sandwiches,” she said, looking embarrassed.
“That will be perfect, thanks,” I replied, mentally kicking myself for not ordering a meal service already. She had enough on her plate without cooking for all of us. “You didn’t have to cook for me.”
“It’s the least I could do,” she replied with a shrug. “After all you’ve done for me. But don’t expect gourmet fare. All I can manage is soup, salads, eggs, and sandwiches.”
“If you don’t mind, can I do the cooking while I’m here? I like cooking,” I explained.
“You’ve already done enough, Marcus, when you didn’t have to do anything,” she said softly. “Thank you.”
I shrugged that off uncomfortably.
“You would have done the same for me, right? Ah, that’s my assistant. I’ll let her in,” I said, eager to change the subject.
