Page 36 of Some Like It Scandalous
She paused mid-column. No. It had saved money for her. Charlie never said it saved anything for him and that wasn’t why he made the offer. Money never came up in conversation unless she brought it up.
Then it had usually involved her saying no to something because it was too expensive. Squeezing her eyes shut.Idiot. Idiot. Idiot. Idiot.
More tears fell and she had to keep her back to Becca and Tony when they headed out at four so they wouldn’t see her red-rimmed eyes. Kate paused to drop a printout on her desk, butAnna didn’t look up and after a moment she moved on. Anna stayed planted at the desk, determined to finish her projections so that if it came up at dinner, they could brainstorm fundraising ideas.
Because fundraising is safer than talking about how stupid you are…
A dull ache formed behind her right eye and began to pound in time with her pulse, but she kept at it. Flipping screens, she looked up different schools and their current tuition rates, and programming alternative columns to increase the rates by ten percent per year. The graphic representation showed that at bare minimum students would need about sixty thousand dollars to complete a four-year degree at a non-specialized school while for-profits and specialized universities would cost upward of one hundred and fifty thousand for the same four years.
The bleak results didn’t improve her rapidly darkening mood. The phone on her desk rang and with everyone else gone, she answered it automatically. “Alyxandretta Dagmar Scholarship Fund, Anna Novak speaking. How may I help you?”
“Miss Novak. Thank you for answering. This is Lilly Lymon with theEvening Star, Londonnews. We were calling for your comment on the recent engagement announcement released an hour ago.”
Damn press, and we just changed the number.“I’m sorry, Ms. Lymon, I’m afraid I have no comment.” She went to hang up the phone, but the woman rushed onward.
“None at all regarding the engagement of the Andraste prince to Nikole?”
The headache behind her eye became an ice pick striking right through her heart.
“No.” Miraculously, her voice remained completely calm. “None at all.”
She hung up the phone and stared sightlessly at the computer screen.
After hitting two buttons to save the work, she stood up and walked past the guards and into the bathroom. Her red-rimmed eyes hurt and the surge of temper flooding through her aggravated her more. She pulled out her cell phone and turned it on. It took a minute to boot up and she ignored the incoming texts and waiting voicemails to flip to the web browser. Plugging in the nameNikole,newsandprince, she let it search and washed her face. By the time the screen populated, she saw several reports—all filed in the last sixty minutes—announcing Nikole’s “secret engagement,” to the Grand Duke Andraste.
Torn between outrage and amusement, she started laughing.
Nikole let the details “slip” during a recent party on a Mediterranean yacht. She immediately retracted the statement with a coy wink and a nod.
Nikole. Not Charlie. Not his family.
They weren’t engaged. Pleased, she shut her phone off and ran her fingers through her hair. She exited the bathroom and her heart hitched again.
Sebastian perched on the corner of her desk—like George, Sebastian was also a younger version of her Charlie. His exploits had earned more headlines than his brother. Pale beneath his tan, the prince stood with a faint grimace at her approach. “Hello, Anna.”
To her utter surprise, he caught her hands and drew her close to press a kiss to each of her cheeks. “Hello, Sebastian.”
It had been a decade since the last time she saw him anywhere beyond a news article. Of all the people she’d met during her sojourn in Norway, Sebastian had shown her the greatest amount of kindness and insisted she call him by his given name. Canting his head to the side, he studied her puffy eyes. “Are you well?”
Plastering on a smile, she resisted the urge to sniff. “I think I should be asking you that question. Weren’t you injured recently?”
He waved off the concern. “I’ve done more damage on a ski trip in Switzerland.” Despite the airy words, lines of strain tightened the corners of his eyes.
“I’m afraid Charl—” she bit off the name, “Armand is not here.”
Sebastian glanced over at Kate, who had no choice but look at them since her desk faced Anna’s. “Do you mind if we talk somewhere more privately?”
Kate rose from her desk and pointed to the eastern wall. “They finished the conference room today, Anna, and I’ll take care of this last spreadsheet if you like.”
“Thank you.” Anna followed Sebastian and noted the faint stiffness to his gait. He might have dismissed his injury, but he couldn’t disguise the physical effect with an expensive suit or easy smile. Kyle and a man she didn’t recognize followed both of them, but neither made any attempt to join them in the conference room.
Sitting, so Sebastian would do the same, Anna studied Armand’s younger brother. It was uncanny how much he and his brother could be twins, but the differences were there. A scar high on his right cheekbone, an easier smile, and his eyes didn’t have the same lingering sadness or depth—as though the weight of the world rested upon him.
“I fear I should go directly to the point of this visit.” The grave tone sent a warning shiver up her spine. George made it plain he did not want her around, going so far as to avoid her completely. She hadn’t missed his very deliberate snub in the hallway the day before when they’d approached from opposite directions. He’d simply turned his back on her and gone back the way he came.
Clasping her hands together, she lifted her chin. Braced for it, she waited. “Go ahead.”
“I owe you a profound apology, one I do not think I can ever make amends for.” He sat forward in his chair, hands together on the edge of the table. His aristocratic bearing failed to hide the distress lurking beneath the surface. “I truly believed that it would take certain maneuvers to undo the great injustice of the past. Sometimes, dramatic solutions are called for… I am saying this very poorly.”
