Page 102 of You Only Love Twice
And whoever was pulling their strings had been working for the prince consort all those years ago.
But how the hell could she give the Rogues that information without revealing her treachery?
Malloryn would forbid her to ever see Obsidian again. He'd make sure she was watched.
How the hell could she protect Obsidian from what was inside his head if Malloryn learned the truth and locked her away? How could she protect the Queen or London if shedidn'tspeak up?
Where the hell are you, Ava? Please find the implant in Jonathan Carlyle's head, so I can somehow lead this investigation in the right direction without betraying my interest in Obsidian.
Gemma squirmed as she chased the spoonful of coddled eggs across her plate. She didn't require food, but sometimes she liked the taste of it, and yet this morning her mouth tasted like ash.
"If you stare at it any longer, Gem, it's going to grow legs and crawl away," Charlie muttered beside her.
She looked up sharply.
"Sure you know what you're doing?" he murmured under his breath as Byrnes and Ingrid argued across the table over whether yesterday's events could be construed as the bride crying off or Malloryn reneging.
That stupid bet.
Nobody was paying them any attention.
"What do you mean?" she breathed.
"I know where you were last night," Charlie mouthed silently.
The heat drained out of her face.
His hand found hers under the table and squeezed.
"I'm not going to tell anyone," he whispered, leaning close to her ear so only she could hear the words.
Of all the Rogues, Charlie was probably the one she felt the most relaxed around. He was like the younger brother she'd never had, albeit the kind of brother who'd glue her shoes to the floor because he thought it was funny.
She hadn't realized how much a part of her needed to hear someone endorse her feelings. He wasn't trying to protect her like Malloryn; nor was he staring at her like she had two heads like Byrnes. Charlie knew what it felt like to be at the mercy of one's heart: While he hadn't given Gemma the girl's name, he'd told her about a long lost love on a dirigible flight to Brighton two months ago.
"It's never going to happen,"he'd told her, with a bittersweet smile, when she'd pressed him to make a move."She hates me."
"Love and hate are but two sides of the same coin, Charlie."
God, what a simplistic platitude.
"And it's none of my business," he pointed out now. "But I just hope you know what you're doing. I shouldn't like to see you hurt."
"I'm not going to get hurt."
Charlie winked. "Good. Because if you did then I would have to have a word with him, and after the other day, I'm fairly certain that's not going to end well for me."
"Oh, Charlie." She shoved his shoulder, but he barely moved.
Twenty-two and built like a tree.
"Nice try, Gem," he said, spearing a piece of egg off her plate. "But I'm going to be too big for you to thrash sometime soon."
She rolled her eyes. "The bigger they are, Charlie...."
He grinned.
And yet, her smile slid off her face.
