Total pages in book: 114
Estimated words: 107639 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 538(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107639 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 538(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
I held out my hand to Ed. “It’s nice to finally meet you,” I said, the words nearly choking me. I wanted to apologize, somehow explain the rudeness of taking nearly a decade to finally make Landry’s father’s acquaintance. But of course, it was none of my business.
And I was leaving anyway.
He smiled at me. “Friend of Everett’s, you say? From university?”
“No, sir. I w-work for him. In New York.”
Landry hustled into the room behind me with an Apple Store bag on his arm and four large Starbucks cups on a takeout tray. He handed one of the coffees to me before setting the rest on the table, placing the Apple bag on the floor by my feet, and pulling off his jacket and knit cap. His blond hair came tumbling down into a runway-ready look. “He doesn’t just work for me, Dad. Kenji is my good friend. Remember I told you about the Brotherhood? Kenji is part of that group.”
“Not really,” I said quickly. “I work for them. That’s all.”
“That’s not all, really,” Landry said hotly.
Nan’s eyes flicked to Landry’s and back to me. Her smile was one of understanding, as if she knew some of the history between Landry and me. “Landry speaks very highly of you, Kenji,” she offered. “It’s nice to finally meet you in person.”
I felt incredibly awkward. Was I supposed to let on that I knew next to nothing about them? That Landry had kept everything a secret for all these years? Or did they already know?
“Are you hungry?” Landry asked eagerly. He gestured toward a man in a chef’s coat washing dishes in a far sink, and the man seemed to pause as if waiting to hear my response to the question.
“No, thank you. I was just leaving.”
The man returned to his dishwashing.
Ed’s smile wavered as he looked between Landry and me. “Nonsense. We’d be shockingly terrible hosts if we let you leave before you eat, and Reggie makes an excellent omelette… or he could even do the full English if you’re hungry.”
The man in the chef’s coat smiled at me. “We’ve got streaky rashers or sausages.”
I nodded at the Starbucks in my hand. “This’ll do me, but thank you. I have a flight to New York to catch.”
“Kenji…” Landry’s eyes held emotions—hurt, confusion, frustration—that I had no intention of acknowledging.
Stay strong, dammit. “I need to get back to work.”
“Then I’m coming with you. Give me a minute to pack my things,” Landry said before disappearing back toward the stairs.
I could feel Nan’s eyes on me. When she spoke, her voice was kind. “At least have toast or a muffin.” She stood and pulled out a chair, nodding at it like a friendly but firm schoolteacher.
I sat and reminded myself the man at the table with me, my host, was an earl. If ever I was going to remember my manners, maybe it should be here and now. “Toast, please. Thank you.”
Ed studied me, a crinkle of confusion between his gray eyebrows. “You a friend of Everett’s? From school?”
I opened my mouth but didn’t know what to say. “N-no, sir. We’re f-friends from New York.”
His eyes widened like it was the first time he’d heard this information. “You’re the friend in trouble? He was very upset, you know. I haven’t seen him that upset since his mother… well, anyway.” He cleared his throat and pulled the newspaper back up.
Nan plucked one of the cups out of the Starbucks tray and handed it to the man in the chef’s coat while he bustled around to make my toast.
“It’s true, you know,” Nan said quietly, returning to her seat. “Landry was devastated when he discovered you were in danger. He raced to Downing Street, met with Teddy. If he hadn’t worked something out with Jim Winthrop, he was prepared to contact the Palace. He was terrified for you.”
I stared at her. When she said Teddy, did she mean…?
A younger woman with wild brown curls came hustling in as Nan finished speaking. Her eyes lit on the remaining Starbucks, and she quickly plucked it from the tray. “Sweet relief,” she murmured before taking a sip and closing her eyes. “Nan, we have a serious problem.”
Nan cleared her throat and straightened up in her chair. “Cora, this is Kenji Toma. Kenji, this is Cora Davencourt, the earl’s niece and Landry’s first cousin.”
Cora’s eyebrows winged up toward her hairline as she noticed there was a stranger in her midst. She glanced from me to Nan and back. “You’re Landry’s guy?”
Nan nodded. Reg moved toward me to place a collection of very elegant tableware in front of me, dropping a linen napkin in my lap before setting a plate of toast and accoutrements next to it.
I glanced back at Cora. “What do you mean, Landry’s guy?”
Cora and Nan exchanged a look before Cora spoke. “Oh. The, uh… guy Landry was… ehrm, worried about. That’s all.” She flashed her teeth at me in a grimace-smile combination that showed she was a terrible liar.