Wrangling with the Laywer (21 page)

He heard her exhale again. When he looked back, she was still sitting facing away from him, looking at her hands. In an ideal situation she would be making his life a little easier by offering some platitudes at this point. He realised fatalistically that this was not going to happen.

“I’m not saying any of this to make you uncomfortable.”
He sat on the window ledge, watching her slight back. “When I’m wrong, I try to admit it. To make amends.”

She stood up.

His heart hammered in his chest as he watched her. Was she going to leave? Come over and slap him? Kiss him?

“I appreciate everything you’re saying,” she told him quietly, turning to him slowly instead. Her face looked drawn. “I really do. I never had question about your motivation for the case. I know you’re a good man, you always have been.” She inhaled involuntarily, reaching down for her bag. “And I’m glad we’ve been able to put all of this behind us. It was a confusing... situation. If I complicated things at the time, then I’m sorry, too. But I never...” her voice trailed off. “I never doubted you were a good person.” A frown sliced through her expression. “I have to go. I have an appointment.”

He felt a surge of disappointment like he’d never felt before in his life. This wasn’t how it was supposed to end. He smiled, narrowing his eyes against the rejection. “So that’s it?”

“I think it’s probably for the best this way, given the circumstances.”

He felt a little nauseous.

“I guess I’ll see you around. On the case.” She gripped her bag with both hands in front of her. “’Bye, Gabe.”

He nodded. As he watched her turn to leave, he felt a small part of his joy for life dying somewhere deep inside of him.

Harper watched Megan and Gene up on the dance floor for a few minutes until the forced smile on her face started to hurt. Instead she turned and looked at the empty chair next to her for a moment. She’d outdone herself tonight, turning up at the charity auction without a date. The ultimate humiliation at the most talked about event of the year. Oddly, she didn’t care. She saw Megan approach her. Her sister didn’t drink often, but when she did, one glass of champagne was usually enough to make her tipsy. She’d already had two.

“You.” She pointed at Harper. “Bathroom. Now.”

Harper got up slowly, feeling painfully sober. “You’re drunk.”

“I am. We’re still going to the bathroom.”

Harper allowed her to lead the way through the glittering crowds. Thankfully most of the guests seemed to be too busy gossiping about each other to notice Megan’s outlandish swagger.

She paused in the small, private sitting room adjoining the ladies facilities. Sitting them down, Megan gave Harper a stern look. “Not that I’m not having a good time.” She paused, looking momentarily confused by the double-negation. “I’d just like to know why we’re sitting at a half-empty table. And what happened to your date.”

Harper sighed. “I didn’t feel like spending the night being polite to some guy I barely know.”

“Polite? You’re barely even awake.”

“I’m fed-up and I don’t feel like being here.” Gripped suddenly by a wave of emotion, Harper dropped her head into her hands. Mortified, she realised she was on the cusp of tears. She lifted her head, staring shocked into Megan’s confused expression. “I’m a mess, aren’t I?”

“What’s going on?” Megan sounded concerned now, the humour gone.

Harper took a deep breath. Looking around to make sure they were alone, she then quietly explained the meeting she’d had with Gabe just weeks ago when he’d apologised to her. As she finished, her throat clogged with unshed tears. “I never accused him, ever, of not being a good person,” she breathed deeply.

“But what did he mean about treating you so badly?” Megan clasped her hands. “I thought it was just a one-night stand, a casual thing?”

“It was.” Harper vision blurred. “Since when I have been the type of person to have one-night stands?” she accused. “You know me better than that!”

“But you said-”

“I know what I said!” She wiped her eyes roughly. “I was in love with him and he just... he made me feel all of these things and then just got up and left.” She reached into her bag searching in vain for a tissue. “It was humiliating. And completely unnecessary to make me fall for him. I didn’t even know. It just happened, and then it was amazing for one night and suddenly he was gone.” Her voice cracked on the final word. “And I mean, gone. It was like seeing through the gates of heaven and then having the doors slammed in your face.” Her brows creased. “I can’t believe I just said that.”

Megan ignored the dramatic metaphor. “You just said he apologised to you,” she uttered emphatically. “The guy’s practically telling you he wants another chance! Why are you sitting here crying? Why didn’t you take him up on it if you like him so much?”

“I don’t like him.” She felt the tears streaming down her face.

Megan bit back a smile. “If this is the part where you tell me you love him, then-”

“I just feel like I messed it all up,” she cut in breathlessly. “I don’t know what to do. I don’t know if I should go back and see him and explain things. I just don’t know if I can trust him. What if he suddenly decides that he’s over me again? He just broke off his engagement with this poor girl, this model-”

“He was engaged to a model?
” Megan was incredulous. “You never told me that-”

“It doesn’t matter.
” Harper was only just managing to keep up were her own thought process; she had no illusions that Megan was really following any of this. Not that it mattered. The situation was irresolvable. No amount of talking would help.

She felt a pain low in her chest. “
I have a son who depends on me to make good decisions, and I’ve done nothing but make lousy, bull-headed ones for the past six years,” she admitted. The immensity of it all weighed down her: the case, and her careless fling with Gabe. “I can’t be running after some guy who’s got the track record of a crash and burn when it comes to finishing the course in relationships.”

There was a tap on the door. Gene popped his head around. “Everything okay?”

The two sisters managed the same dry expression.

“The bidding’s about to get started,” he continued bravely.

“Let’s go back out.” Harper swallowed deeply and gave Megan a grave look. “Where’s my makeup?”

“In your shoes.”

Harper burst out laughing.

By the time she’d repaired the emotional damage to her makeup and re-entered the ballroom, Harper was feeling marginally more optimistic. She’d been silly not to talk to Megan about this before. At least having it out in the open meant she could move on, wherever that particular momentum took her.

The first few lots were snapped up quickly and cheaply as tradition dictated. When the lots got more substantial, including tickets to sold-out events in foreign cities and exclusive backstage passes to concerts, the bidding got more intense. Harper kept her pallet by her side, not quite liquid enough to be challenging the type of players in attendance that evening. The final lots were reserved for the most fun; Don appeared on the stage smiling broadly while Natalie tried to keep her obvious amusement in check. The bidding reached ten thousand dollars before an elderly woman in the front row finally got her prize. Don’s expression could have sunk a battleship.

“For our final lot tonight,” Natalie told the enthusiastic crowd some minutes later, “we’re seeing the return of the all time highest bid ever recorded at this event. Just three years ago, this particular lot went for a cool sixteen thousand dollars.” The crowd gasped appropriately. “Allow me to welcome on stage, ladies, our prize lot this evening: Mr Gabriel Stahl.”

Harper’s expression went slack. In fact she felt her whole mind go slack. Gabe walked on stage, breathtakingly handsome in black-tie under the intense spotlight. His brows were low over his eyes, shading them and making his smile seem much darker than usual.

“Can I start the bidding this evening at four thousand?”

It was like a hushed madness took over the audience. Pallets started rising and falling so quickly that Natalie had problems keeping up. At one point there were four pallets in the air simultaneously.

“Bid for him!” Megan squealed at her.

Harper experienced a wave of helplessness. “Where am I going to find twenty-thousand dollars? For a date?”

The bidding reached twenty-five thousand before the pallets stopped rising. Harper couldn’t see
the nuances of Gabe’s expression properly due to the harsh lighting. She wondered what was going through his mind. She guessed he was probably squirming with discomfort, though he did seem to be smiling quite graciously down at the front row. Natalie was clearly tickled pink; there was indeed a woman in the front row that seemed to be winning the lot. Natalie winked at her a few times before she called it. “We have winner!” There was a brief commotion as they encouraged the woman on stage to collect her prize.

Harper felt a stab of completely irrational jealously. She wanted to close her eyes, dreading seeing some gorgeous, nubile young woman step on to the stage. She’d lost her chance with Gabe, by her own decision, but that didn’t mean she wanted to see him with anyone else.

“We have a double reason for celebration this evening,” Natalie went on charmingly. “Our highest bidder is actually a birthday girl, believe it or not, just in case you’re wondering why she’s allowed to be here so late.”

Harper stilled. Her whole body and mind seemed to open up hopefully as she stared at the stage. There was a brief silence while a small, blonde girl was led up the stairs and into her father’s waiting hands.

“This is Alice Stahl, folks.” Natalie stepped back as the applause started. “Looks like she just bought herself a non-negotiable trip to the zoo with her daddy.”

Alice smiled shyly as he was lifted into Gabe’s arms. She shook her head as Natalie approached.

“Okay, not a trip to the zoo.” Natalie leaned forward, allowing Alice to whisper in her ear. When she turned back to the audience, her expression was rapt with anticipation. “Ladies and gentlemen, it seems our esteemed bidder has actually being bidding on behalf of a third party this evening.”

The audience clapped loudly, cheers coming from the front. Harper felt her body enter into another freeze. Leaning in, Natalie listened while Alice explained at seemingly great length who her secret bidder was. The audience started to get impatient, making rowdy hoots. Harper felt her heart thudding against her chest; the torture wasn’t quite over. Gabe could very well be going home with a beautiful stranger tonight after all.

Natalie’s pause when she turned back to the audience was stretched. She laughed lightly, frowning down at her cue cards as if floundering. “Well, this is a surprise.” Holding a hand above her eyes to shield them against the night stage lights, she searched the audience. “Is Harper Green here?”

Harper froze. The spotlight was searching the room randomly. It passed over her once.

“There!” Natalie pointed out towards her gleefully. “Harper, come on!”

Cringing so badly she wasn’t sure if she could get up, Harper straightened herself. The spotlight came swooping back down on her. Covering her eyes, she searched for Megan, for anyone she could make eye contact with, but everyone was peering into the light as blindly as she was. What was going on?

Was Gabe in on this?

Making her way slowly to the front, she tried as hard as she could to smile openly at Natalie. Her friend was making wide
and questioning eyes at her, not even trying to hide her obvious mirth. Harper practically stumbled on to the bright stage. She couldn’t look at Gabe.

“So...” Natalie drew the monosyllable out gleefully. “I think we have a first for our charity auction, ladies and gentlemen. It seems our young bidder here had purchased a date for her father and this lovely woman here.”

The audience went wild, clapping furiously. Feeling her heart ready to leap from her chest, Harper covered her mouth with one hand. She turned towards Gabe where he stood with the strangely pragmatic-looking Alice in his arms. Gabe looked semi-horrified, while Alice seemed to be taking everything in her stride. Harper had the feeling her expression probably mirrored Gabe’s more closely than Alice’s.

“Let’s give these guys a round of applause for being such great sports,” Natalie concluded. “And so generous to our cause this evening. The children of St Bartholomew’s will be greatly appreciative of not only this bid but the extremely generous donations from everyone tonight. Thanks so much for your support.”

There was a confusing rash of noise from the audience and flashing lights as they were led off the stage. Harper stumbled to a halt backstage with Gabe and Alice standing in front of her. She stared at them blankly.

Alice reached out from her lofty position in Gabe’s arms and touched Harper’s face to gain her attention. “Can we go the zoo?”

“To the zoo?” Harper breathed the words, feeling an almost hysterical humour catching in her throat.

“Me and daddy and you and Finn.”

“You bought the date so we could all go to the zoo?” She looked at Gabe. He looked as shocked as she did; she guessed he was not in on it. Turning back to Alice, she released an incredulous laugh. “Sure, sweetie. I think Finn would love that.”