Miss White and the Seventh Heir

As she continued to stare at the château, she wondered about Trey. She craved to know more about him. Who were these friends? Did he have lots of friends? Did he travel overseas often? The questions were endless. Every day there was something new that she wanted to know about him, but she kept stuffing the questions down. It was better if they didn’t get to know each other that well—at least, that’s what she kept telling herself.

She’d gotten so lost in her thoughts that Trey had time to round the car and open her door for her. She stepped out, glancing around at her new surroundings when a new worry came to her.

“Are you sure your friends won’t be upset about you bringing me here without checking with them first?”

He shook his head. “Trust me.”

She wanted to trust him. And that surprised her. It’d been a long time since she’d felt that way toward a man.

Trey led the way to the front door. As she followed, a dreadful thought came to mind. Sage swallowed hard and tried to push off the troubling thought. But it wouldn’t leave her in peace.

The question that had hovered at the back of her throat refused to be smothered. “Is this your girlfriend’s home?”

There was a distinct pause. “I don’t have a girlfriend.”

It shouldn’t have mattered to her, but there was a great sense of relief in his answer. “Your friend must trust you a lot. This place...it’s magnificent from the outside. I can’t imagine what the inside must be like.”

He didn’t say anything as he opened the door and stood aside for her to enter. She stared in awe. This place was more than magnificent. It was jaw-dropping, mouth-gaping striking. The foyer was spacious with a gleaming tile floor and stone walls that rose high above her head, forming a dome with a crystal chandelier suspended in the center.

She turned to say something to Trey, but he had stepped back outside to retrieve their luggage from the car. She went out to help.

Trey frowned when he saw her in the rain. “What are you doing out here? You’re going to get soaked.”

The rain had picked up since they’d arrived just moments ago. But that wasn’t enough to deter her. She wasn’t used to anyone waiting on her. Since her father died, she’d been the one waiting on people—till she took on the managing editor job at QTR. But it was all still so new to her.

It was raining too much to argue. Soon they both had the luggage inside the château. Thankfully she’d packed for all occasions and had a raincoat. She slipped it off and looked around for a place to put it. She couldn’t imagine ruining anything in the fancy house that looked more like a museum.

It reminded her of her childhood home in a way. It, too, had been impressive, but her parents had decorated it in a way that was beautiful but comfortable. This château was more a showplace than a home.

She turned to Trey. His face was pale and etched with deep lines that bracketed his eyes and mouth. It was like he’d aged ten years since they’d arrived. What had caused such a reaction?

“Here.” Trey held out his hand for her coat. “I’ll take it.”

He promptly slung it over a chair in the corner. Then he added his coat.

“You can’t do that.” She rushed over to the chair to retrieve her coat.

“Why not? I’ll hang them up tomorrow when they’re dry.”

“But the chair—”

“Is fine.” He sent her a puzzled look. “Why are you so worried about a chair?”

“Because this place—it’s like a museum. I don’t want to ruin anything and have your friends upset with you.” And then she decided to state the obvious. “I can see how worried you are. It’s written all over your face.”

“There’s nothing you can do to this place that will cause a problem. Just relax.” He moved to the bottom of the sweeping staircase. “Would you like something to eat? Or should we call it a night?”

The meal on the plane hadn’t been much and it had been a while ago, but right now exhaustion was winning. “How about we sleep and then eat?”

“Works for me.” He headed up the grand staircase. “There are a lot of bedrooms. You can have your pick as we’re the only ones staying here.”

“This is an awfully big place just for the two of us.”

Maybe staying here wouldn’t be so bad. There would be plenty of space and they wouldn’t end up on top of each other. And then realizing her wording could be construed in an intimate way, she inwardly groaned. Thankfully she hadn’t vocalized her thoughts.

“Is something wrong?” Trey gave her a strange look.

She shook her head. “I’m just tired.”