Page 65 of Midnight Secrets

“Jordan?” He peered down at me. “What am I going to do?”

He hauled me up when I put my hand in his. “You’re going to put your big girl panties on and go in there tomorrow night and be the woman I know is hiding inside that terrified little girl.”

I chewed the side of my mouth. “Are you going to be there?” I really wanted to ask about Ash, but after the cold reception from this morning, I doubted it.

“Ash and I will both be there. He has meetings for his father this morning but he has this in his diary for tomorrow. Zee can’t come as he’s babysitting Cas.”

Jordan tucked my hand through his arm and led me back to the car. “Do I get to meet this Cas?”

“Considering Zee has a ring on her finger and managed to impregnate her, I would think so.”

“Zee is going to be a papa!” I stopped to gawk at him because I never thought I’d see the day that my cousin settled down.

Jordan grinned at me. “Is this the point that I have to warn you of the evils of unprotected sex?”

“Jay!” My voice hit a high octave of indignation.

“What? It’s my duty as a big brother to stop you being impregnated by evil spawn.”

“And they say romance is dead.” I nudged him with my elbow.

“Romance didn’t die, it was cuffed to a bed and spanked until it submitted a few years ago.”

My mouth dropped open and he chuckled at my shocked expression.

“One day that may not shock you so much,” he said with a wink.

The thought of being strapped to Ash’s bed appealed to me more than I would ever admit. The problem was that he didn’t want me anymore and that was the deepest cut to my soul. It permeated so deep that it bled emotional tears that wouldn’t stop crying.

***

Chapter Twenty-Four

Lucrezia

I stood in my bedroom and stared at the red silk dress that had been delivered an hour ago. Since I hadn’t been to buy anything, I’d intended to wear a cocktail dress that Catarina had hanging in her wardrobe.

There was a rap at the door before Francis popped his head around it. “A woman has arrived downstairs for your hair and make-up.”

“What?” My brow furrowed as I wandered out the door. A woman stood in the hallway below the balcony staircase of Papa’s London home. She waved up at me before gripping her silver case again. “Did you order her?”

Francis shook his head. “Nope. Nothing to do with me.”

Ash.

He was the only one organised enough to put all of this together.

“Do you want me to set up down here or in your bedroom?” she called up.

“Up here is fine,” I replied and returned to my room.

She appeared a minute or two later and oohed and aahed over my dress before opening her silver case and sorting through all the paraphernalia inside. Her name was Sharon and she was a beautician that the mysterious Cassandra used.

“Do you want me to style your hair wet or dry?” she asked.

“I’ve already washed and conditioned it this morning.” I didn’t have the energy to start and wash my hair and listen to the hairdryer again.

“No worries, let’s start by getting some volume into your hair and then move onto your make-up.”

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