Original Sin (34 page)

They left the car at the kerb and walked through the walnut double doors. Tess scanned the crowd anxiously for Dom. She was nervous that an unsuccessful reunion might deal a fatal blow to their transatlantic relationship.

For a split second she felt on edge – maybe he hadn’t even come? – but then she saw him, patting his invite against the palm of his hand. She had run over this moment in her head a hundred times, knowing it would be a litmus test for whether their relationship was really in trouble or whether it was just a blip caused by pressure and distance. Tess was relieved to feel her heart give a little flutter of pleasure and she was equally pleased to see him grin as he spotted her.
Oh, he looks fantastic
, she thought.

‘Here she is at last,’ said Dom, hugging her. He looked her up and down; the tight curves of her Hervé Léger dress, the hint of tanned cleavage courtesy of her regular visits to the Portofino Sun Center, and seemed to approve. ‘I’ve missed you, you know,’ he added in a whisper as he slipped his hand in hers. It felt comfortable and familiar, two things that fitted together perfectly.

‘Dom, meet Leonard Carter,’ said Tess. ‘You’ll be pleased to hear that Leonard has said he’d sponsor your visa.’

‘Wow!’ said Dom, pumping Leonard’s hand. ‘Well, I can sincerely say pleased to meet you, Mr Carter.’

Leonard laughed. ‘Well, I think that’s enough of a reason to call for champagne all round,’ he said, motioning to a waiter. He handed Tess a glass of bubbly.

‘Just a few sips,’ she said happily.

Amber light glowed around the room and shone off the circular zinc–topped bar at the centre. Against one wall was a huge avant–garde sculpture formed from mirrored cubes five feet wide. Lined up along each surface and lit from above were the purple Lupin bottles in random patterns.
Nice touch
, thought Tess, looking around the party with professional appreciation. It was a difficult thing to do a launch well – after all, she had attended enough in her time – and this one was very good. A great balance of beautiful people and industry players teamed with a smattering of hip celebrities, mixed together with interesting food and drink – the bar was serving something that appeared to have holly sprouting from the top – in an intriguing and unusual setting. If Sean had arranged this, she was becoming more and more intrigued.

And then she saw him. He had a square dimpled chin just like his sister Liz, and eyes that seemed to sparkle with mischievousness. Sean Asgill was walking across the room, shaking hands and exchanging whispered jokes, pressing the flesh like a pro. As he got closer, Tess could see his bespoke suit, his craggy smile and tanned skin, which surprised Tess considering as he was supposed to have spent the last month in a rehab facility. Confidence oozed from every pore. No, not confidence, she corrected herself,
cockiness.
It was amazing how a few million dollars could made a guy think he was God’s gift. Excusing herself from Leonard and Dom, she walked over to him, extending her hand.

‘Sean Asgill?’ she asked.

‘That’s me,’ he said, switching his glass to his left hand. As they shook hands, Tess could see him checking her out.

‘I’m Tess Garrett,’ she said.

He started laughing, slowly at first, working up to a deep, throaty chuckle. ‘You have my deepest sympathies.’ he said.

‘Sorry?’ she asked, feeling her cheeks flush with annoyance.

‘I wouldn’t wish the job of taking my family in hand on anyone.’

‘Well, they’ve got you to blame,’ she smiled quietly.

‘Yes,’ he smirked, his pale green eyes flashing. ‘I guess I should thank you for that.’

‘Well you’re welcome.’

‘Although you weren’t being entirely altruistic, were you? I mean, it did all work out for you too, didn’t it?’

She took a deep breath. Working in newspapers for a decade had taught Tess not to suffer fools gladly, but Sean Asgill was the boss’s son.

‘Sean, I really don’t think … Ugh!’

Suddenly Tess jerked backwards, coughing . A girl in a long lilac sequinned dress had appeared, spraying her with the bottle of scent she was carrying on a silver platter.

‘Tess, Tess,’ said Sean, slapping her on the back, ‘it’s not acid, it’s Lupin.’

She coughed a little more, then took a long drink of her champagne.

‘Well, perhaps it’s aimed at a younger market than you,’ said Sean, with more than a hint of amusement in his voice.

‘Or perhaps if she hadn’t aimed it straight into my mouth,’ snapped Tess.

‘So you don’t like it. Millions will,’ he chided.

Tess tossed her hair back and cleared her throat in a vain attempt to regain a little composure.

‘So, I thought you’d be at the sales conference today,’ she said, trying to change the subject.

‘Hey, parties like this don’t magically happen,’ he protested. ‘I’ve been up since seven talking to the events planners.’

‘Seven? I hope it wasn’t a late night then,’ she said with a hint of sarcasm.

‘No later than usual,’ he replied, his attention beginning to wander towards a group of giggling blondes.

‘By the way, did you get my email about the charity dinners? Are you going to any of them?’

‘Are we talking about the one in honour of the UN Secretary–General?’ he asked, rolling his eyes.

‘Okay, so it won’t be very rock ’n’ roll, but I still think you should go. Obama will be there. The French President, too. In fact, give me a few days’ notice and I can fly over to accompany you.’

He looked back at her. ‘You actually want to come to a party and hold my hand?’

‘Simply to make sure we get the right photo opportunities.’

He was shaking his head and smiling. ‘Come on, Tess. This is bullshit,’ he said, lowering his voice.

‘Bullshit?’ she replied coldly.

‘This ridiculous attempt at rehabilitation.’

He lowered his voice. ‘Look. I had an overdose, yes. And thanks to you and your fearsome ambition, no one knows about it. So well done Tess Garrett and I’m sure my mother is very pleased.’

‘What are you saying?’ asked Tess, bristling.

‘I’m saying, what if people did know that I’m not perfect? Would anyone really care? I know my mother is trying to protect Brooke and her precious fiancé, but let’s be real here – who really cares what I get up to? I know the Billington family are conservative, but is David really going to dump my sister just because I’m not best friends with the President? Because I’ve taken drugs and inhaled.’

‘Snorted and collapsed more like it.’

‘Tess, it’s all bullshit. Whatever I do isn’t going to harm the wedding and you know it.’

‘You might think it’s acceptable behaviour to go to an orgy and almost flat–line on a ketamine and heroin cocktail, but I doubt Wendell Billington does. Or the American public,’ Tess hissed, incensed at his lack of gratitude to both her and his own mother.

‘That party was a one–off,’ he said gruffly. ‘I didn’t know it was going to be so hardcore.’

‘Well, I doubt that you just bowled up. I heard there was a ten thousand pound membership fee.’

Sean looked at her with a cruel smile. ‘Not for people like me, honey.’

‘Of course not,’ she said. Tess knew that her first impression of Sean Asgill had been exactly right. He was a spoilt, condescending prick who thought that the world revolved around him and that, given the cushion of money around him, he could behave any way he chose.

‘Listen Sean, lightning can strike twice, believe me,’ said Tess, the contempt in her voice barely concealed. ‘There are only so many times I can bail you out. In fact, I think you’ve had your quota.’

His eyes narrowed. ‘Sweetheart, I don’t need a lecture, I don’t need a baby–sitter, and I certainly don’t need a half–assed publicist telling me how to live my life. Do we understand one another?’

‘Perfectly,’ said Tess, turning on her heel and stalking towards the bar.

Arrogant, self–centred pig!
she thought furiously
.
The nerve of the man! ‘
I don’t need a publicist’!
Well, that’s exactly what Liz had said and that’s exactly what Brooke had said. Well, she was quickly learning that everyone in this damned family had a secret.
Just you wait until someone digs up yours, Sean Asgill
, she thought.
I won’t be there to break your fall.

She pushed her way to the vodka bar, snatched up a shot, and downed it in one.

‘He gets under your skin, doesn’t he?’

Tess looked up to see Leonard standing behind her. She shook her head, trying desperately to think of something diplomatic to say. Then she caught the smile on Leonard’s face and she burst out laughing.

‘He’s … well he’s … ’

‘He’s an asshole.’

‘Well, I wouldn’t go that far … ’

‘Perhaps you should, my dear,’ said Leonard. ‘He’s part of your job, after all, and you need to know exactly who you’re dealing with. Of course I love my nephew, he’s my family and there’s nothing I won’t do for him, but he can be a bit of a
scoundrel
.’

Tess laughed out loud.

‘The trouble is, I can see myself in Sean,’ said Leonard, his wise eyes watching Sean across the room. ‘When I was his age, I was just as irresponsible, just as vain.’

He chuckled as Tess looked at him.

‘I had too much money, not enough focus, and I was surrounded by people who indulged me. That, I’m afraid, is Sean’s problem, although I doubt he’s aware of it. Underneath all that flash, Tess, is actually a very caring, sensitive man.’

Tess raised her eyebrows sceptically.

‘Hard to believe, but he is.’ He smiled. ‘He just needs someone to knock a little sense into him. I’d love to do it myself – give him a more responsible job in the company, perhaps, because I actually think he’d thrive. But Meredith won’t hear of it and, well, you can see her point,’ he added, nodding towards Sean, who now had his arm around the most attractive woman in the room. Annabel, she assumed: glossy, expensively dressed, not especially beautiful up close, but the overall impression was striking. Tess was not surprised he was so shallow. ‘On the other hand,
he
seems more of a catch … ’

‘Who?’ asked Tess, her mind still on Sean.

Leonard pointed across the room. ‘Him.’ She followed his gaze. He was looking at Dom, who was deep in conversation with a man in a three–piece suit. Tess instantly felt a pang of affection. Compared to Sean Asgill, Russ Ford, and most of the men she had encountered in the past few weeks, Dom certainly was a catch. After nine years together, their relationship was not perfect, but whose was? She had met Dom just three years after her father’s death and her mother’s new marriage. Before Dom came along, Tess had simply thrown herself into her career, but now she supposed he provided a safe harbour for her, someone to lean and depend on. And he
was
cute. He looked up and she walked over.

‘Ah, there you are,’ he said. ‘I thought you might have run off with Sean Asgill.’

‘Ha! Not likely,’ she replied, still fuming. ‘He is an absolute prick.’

He laughed and pulled her into a hug. ‘Come on, that’s our meal ticket you’re talking about there,’ he smiled. ‘You know your problem? You get too angry with people. Sean Asgill’s only some pampered rich bloke, he’s not Hitler.’

‘It’s just people like that make my blood boil.’

‘Hey, I thought your plan was to become fabulously rich some day?’ he teased.

‘Yeah, so?’ she asked.

‘So why do you want to be rich if you can’t stand rich people?’

Grabbing two glasses of champagne, Dom steered her towards the side door, which led out onto a terrace and the walled gardens beyond. Tess felt happy and relaxed for once – tonight she was officially off duty. ‘This is a great party. That was Sir Martin Sorrell I was talking to back there. We’ve swapped cards. Thought I might be able to swing an interview for the business section. That should earn me a few brownie points.’

Tess was only half listening. ‘It smells good out here,’ she said, breathing in the wet floral, dewy fragrance. It smelt of England.

Dom turned and planted a gentle kiss on her lips. ‘It looks a bit like that place in Maryland we stayed at once,’ he said.

‘Oh yeah, that place George Washington stayed in. It seemed as if George had stayed in every house in the state.’

She remembered that hotel very fondly. They had barely left their room all weekend. In fact, the only time they had left the bed was to open the windows to let a little lazy light into the room or to collect the room service they’d asked to be left outside the door.

‘Here, you’ve got some lipstick on your teeth,’ said Dom . He took his finger and rubbed it under her lips, the gesture familiar yet intimate. She took his hand and bit his finger softly.

‘Ooh,’ he laughed. ‘Saucy.’

‘You know I’ve really missed you,’ said Tess, meaning it this time.