No Romeo (My Kind of Hero) by Donna Alam

Author:Donna Alam [Alam, Donna]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Montlake
Published: 2024-08-06T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 27

EVIE

After my reaction in the jewelry store, I spend the next few days making sure I’m around Oliver as little as possible. I go to work, take on an extra shift, and go to Nora’s so often I think she must be sick of the sight of me. It feels like Bo and I walk the length and breadth of London, pausing only for coffee (a puppuccino for him) and snacks in outdoor cafés. We sit under a variety of trees and parasols as I try not to contemplate life and the mess I’m making of it as London bustles by. I’m not just avoiding Oliver; I’m avoiding the feelings that being near him bring. I can’t think straight when he’s standing in front of me.

Meanwhile, the ring from Garrard sits on the dresser in my bedroom, a daily reminder of the mess I’ve gotten myself into.

“This is for you.”

I jolt at the sound of Oliver’s voice, almost dropping my toast in shock. I know he already left because I waited until I heard the door click closed before leaving my room.

He sets a folder on the table next to my napkin.

“Visa stuff?” As I glance up, I find he’s wearing black-framed glasses. I discovered last week that he wears them for reading. I’d smiled and squirreled away the tiny fact, imagining his vanity had kept it from me. This morning, it feels more like a reminder that we’re not in a relationship.

“I thought you’d want to read through the paperwork.” Sliding the frames from his face, he folds them and slips them into his jacket pocket. His chosen suit is navy today, his shirt open at the neck, his watch a chunky silver Chopard. “Ariana said she’d taken you through the gist of things before she submitted the application.”

“Yeah, she did. And I got my receipt with the processing times. It seems you’ll have your house before my visa comes through.”

He nods, then adds, “That doesn’t mean things have to change.”

“What do you mean?” Silly heart, please calm down.

“That you don’t have to move out.”

My laughter sounds strange. “I was thinking I’d find myself a place way before then. I might start looking next week. You know, after the big meet.” The big meet that might go so badly that he’ll want to be rid of me, because I have no idea what he thinks I’ll be able to achieve.

“No.” One adamant word, his diction sharp. “That doesn’t suit me. The agreement was three months, and we’re barely one month in.”

“Oliver, I need to pull my life together. I can’t hide out here forever.”

He folds his arms across his chest, staring down at me as though I’m some wayward subordinate who might be cowed by his magnificence. I’m not cowed, but I am appreciative. Which is an issue in itself.

“I have to get on with my life.”

“If you leave before the twelve weeks is up, it’s a breach of contract,” he intones stonily.

“You know a verbal contract isn’t

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