He was surprised when I turned up on his doorstep, but he didn’t kick me out. Maybe he was just being polite. That’s definitely the most likely scenario, especially as I gate-crashed his friends’ get together. Oh god, what a clutz. Here he was spending time relaxing, and I just bumbled in. Of course, they were all nice to me, but again they were just being charming. It’s probably a big part of how they all got to be rich, powerful, and influential. My stomach churns even harder at what I’ve done, disturbing their time together, which probably doesn’t happen very often. I rise and dress quickly. I need to go and apologise and then get out of here to leave them in peace.
I rush down some stairs and then come to an abrupt halt. I look around and nothing seems familiar. I don’t think I saw this part of the castle yesterday, and I have no clue where I am. I hear voices and decide to follow where they’re coming from. I round the corner and see a door off to the side, and when I hear the voices again, I poke my head through the doorway and see a vast kitchen. It certainly isn’t antique like the rest of the castle. No expense has been spared in making it state of the art. In the middle of it all are two women. One of them looks like they’re preparing some food, and the other is looking down at the tablet she has in her hand. A guy is leaning against a counter with his back to me. I make a little coughing sound to get their attention. The voices stopabruptly and three heads swivel towards me. I recognise Lance, the guy who Chase introduced me to last night.
“Err, sorry, I’m looking for Chase?” I’m not sure why it comes out as a question, but Lance gives me a small smile and straightens up.
“He’s in the morning room. I’ll show you.” He walks past me and I follow behind him. I want to ask him questions, but his large wide back is too intimidating. After several turns, which I would have no hope of remembering, he opens a door and stands back to let me through. The room is light and sunlit. There are a variety of plants and shrubs in pots, which I haven’t seen in the rest of the castle. On one wall is a side table with a coffee machine, a toaster, and a few covered dishes. Doors open out onto a terrace, and just inside is a table where Chase is sitting reading from a tablet. Just Chase, though, none of his friends are present.
At the sound of Lance shutting the door behind me, Chase looks up. He breaks out into a big smile. He doesn’t look annoyed with me for disturbing him, so my stomach settles slightly.
“Good morning. Did you sleep well? Help yourself to coffee or I can call for tea if you prefer.”
“Err, good morning, and thank you.” Coffee does sound good and would help with the nerves fluttering about my body. Plus, some caffeine before I drive back to London would be a good thing. I pour coffee into a mug and add a splash of milk before sliding into a seat at the table.
“When I first moved over here I had to wait an extra day for theWall Street Journaland then go and buy it or have it delivered. Now I can read it whenever I want.” Chase waves the tablet to make his point and then puts it down.
I glance around me, looking through the doors to see if the others are outside.
“Where is everyone else?” I swing my gaze back to Chase, then it dawns on me. “Oh, I guess they wouldn’t be used to the time difference. It’s still early.” I take a swig of my coffee, it tastes really good.
“Oh, they’ve gone home,” Chase says breezily, as if it’s no big deal.
“Gone?” I wheeze out, cold realisation forcing the breath out of my lungs. “Because of me?”
Because they can’t share all their secrets with me around.
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have come. I’ll go and they can come back.” I start to rise but Chase covers my hand with his. It’s large and warm, but also soft, just like it was when I took it last night.
“Noah. Don’t leave.” I look at our hands on the table, unable to pull mine away.
“But—”
“I want you to stay.” The sincerity in his voice makes me raise my eyes to his. “I’ve known them for thirty years. I can catch up with them another time.” Only then do I believe him, and I manage a nod.
“Good, now how about some breakfast before I show you around?” He removes his hand, and for an instant I wish it was back in place. But I recover quickly and wrap my hand around my mug again.
“Do you know, I’ve been wanting to show you this place for a while now,” Chase says as we stand in the grand entrance hall after we’ve both eaten a large breakfast. “Not just the library, but the whole castle.”
“Have you?” I’m surprised by his admission, but also pleased. “Why?”
“My friends—yes, my very good friends who I’ve known for thirty years—thought I was crazy for buying this place. They thought it was a middle-aged man’s folly. That I was going through some sort of mid-life crisis.
“Admittedly, it was in a poor state, and at times even I thought it was beyond saving and that maybe they were right. But I think you’ll fully appreciate why I thought it was worth saving and that it makes the perfect place to hold everything I’ve been collecting for years.”
A warm fuzzy glow of pride fills my chest that he trustsme, not his friends, with being shown this part of him. The part that’s seen this come to life, and what he’s put of himself into this building and the treasures it holds. He’s not wrong, I truly want to see it.
“I can’t wait,” I say, almost bouncing with excitement, and he grins at me. For a moment I think he’s going to offer me his hand again, but he doesn’t, and I feel equal parts disappointed and relieved. I don’t want to complicate this further.
The tour takes several hours, mostly because I ask so many questions. But then Chase answers them all thoroughly. Our enthusiasm is evenly matched as he responds to every query I ask. His face lights up with his passion for his home, and he looks even more handsome as he talks animatedly about the details in the carved panels of the large dining room or the story behind the ornate chimney stacks. Eventually we finish the tour in the library, which is rapidly becoming one of my favourite rooms.
Now the tour is finished, I’m not sure what should happen. Despite a good breakfast, the activity of the last few hourshas made me hungry again, and my stomach grumbles slightly.
Chase raises his eyebrows in amusement.
“Thank you for showing me around. It’s getting on, I should go.”
“You can’t go yet. You came here because of my autobiography, but we’ve barely spoken about it. I meant what I wrote, that if you were here we’d be able to sort it out more easily.
“So please stay until we’ve figured it out, and if I do decide to go through with it all, I’d like you to be my agent.”