Bad Boy (Invertary 5)

Flynn rested his chin on her shoulder. “Everyone’s gone home.”

She’d noticed the last car leave, followed closely by the police van from Fort William. Jena had told her about the people shooting up in Flynn’s home—just one more violation to process.

“What did your sister say? Does she plan to advise your mother to file for custody?”

Abby shrugged. “I don’t know. She didn’t tell me. She was acting strangely.” Abby paused as she thought about earlier when she’d walked Lawrence and Victoria to their car. “She put her fingers to my cheek.”

Flynn stiffened. “She hit you?”

“No, I think it was a caress. Her version of a hug. She didn’t say anything, though.”

Flynn relaxed again. “Maybe it was her way of apologising for throwing you under a bus with your mother.”

“I don’t know what it was.” She stared out into the darkness as Flynn held her close. “I know this sounds weird, but it kind of felt like an apology.”

They sat silently, soaking each other in, letting their minds order themselves in the peace of the night.

“Mitch and Lawrence couldn’t stop the TV production companies using the footage from today.” He sighed heavily. “It’s my fault. I signed a stupid contract. I didn’t think.”

“To be fair, your agent and lawyer railroaded you into a deal that was lucrative for them. You were out of your mind on pain meds when you signed the contract. So it isn’t entirely your fault. Not this time, anyway.”

Flynn twisted to look down at her. “How do you know about this stuff?”

“Matt and Mitch. They did some digging and were talking about it. I was making tea. People always assume the folk making tea are invisible. Well, except for the Montgomery-Clarks. We were raised to remember servants had ears and weren’t to be trusted.”

“Servants, huh?”

“It sounds great, but trust me, it isn’t. Most people only think about the fact they don’t have to cook, or fetch their own dry cleaning, or tidy their bathrooms. They forget there are always people watching, listening, waiting. It’s impossible to ever completely relax. You’re always on guard.”

“I can see the pitfalls. No running around the house naked when the feeling strikes.”

She laughed. “Not unless you want to pay the medical bills when the staff have heart attacks.”

“We had a servant too,” Flynn said, but she could hear the teasing in his voice. “She did all the cooking, cleaning and fetching. Was really efficient until she deemed us old enough to do it ourselves.”

“Ah, the joys of motherhood.” Abby smiled wryly. “I know them well.”

Flynn nuzzled the side of her head, making her snuggle into him. “You know, you’re doing good as a mother. With the kid, I mean. She isn’t as annoying as she could be.”

Abby couldn’t stop her laughter. “High praise, thank you.”

“Okay,” Flynn grumbled. “That came out wrong. She’s okay, you know. She’s kind of growing on me. She’s pretty funny and more than a little evil. We’d get on great if she wasn’t so obsessed with painting the Premier League pink.”

“You’re peas in a pod.” Abby shook her head with amusement. “You share the same mental age and know exactly what buttons to push to wind each other up. It’s quite entertaining to watch. I’m never quite sure who’ll come out on top.”

“I will, Abby. You can count on it. There’s no way I’m letting a five-year-old get the better of me.” Flynn’s outrage made Abby chuckle.

“Be sure to tell her when she wakes up.”

Flynn ran his fingers along Abby’s arms in an absent-minded caress. “Katy asked me if I was staying the night again tonight.”

Abby heard the question in his voice. She bit her lip as she thought it over. The cat was already out of the bag where Flynn was concerned. Really, there was nothing else they could do to make matters worse in her mother’s eyes. But did she want him to stay? Did she want him in her bed? The answer was a no-brainer. Ill-advised or not, she definitely wanted Flynn in her bed.

“Two nights? Are you sure you can cope with such a commitment? I thought this was a casual fling.”

“Do you have any idea how many people have told me you don’t do casual? Even if they hadn’t, I would have figured it out for myself.”

Her heart tried to climb out of her throat. “So, this isn’t casual?”