Page 27 of All We Want for Christmas
Flynn pushed both buttons but the lift stayed motionless. ‘Hmm,’ he said again. ‘I suppose I could try to take the panel off, but I don’t have my tool kit with me.’
Lara waited a few seconds, then said, ‘So we’re stuck?’
‘Yes, but I’m sure we’ll soon be out of here. You won’t be trapped with me for long.’
Lara suppressed a sigh. Knowing her luck, she wouldn’t bet on it. Now she had Fiona and the TV historian waiting in the drawing room for St Anselm’s finger. What if Fiona decided to go back up to the treasury herself?
What’s more, she was acutely aware that she was now stuck in very close proximity with a man she fancied like mad.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
‘I should have known not to get in here with you. This lift has always been a bit dodgy,’ Lara said, trying not to dwell on Flynn’s muscles as he leaned forward, examining the control panel.
Flynn turned to her. ‘Yeah. Carlos told me, and the engineer’s scheduled for next Tuesday. Not that it’s any help to us now.’ He tried a winning smile, which she assumed was meant to cheer her up.
‘No, it isn’t.’
He waved his radio. ‘Shall I call someone or do you want to? Who normally rescues people from lifts around here?’
‘Well, I’m one of the designated rescuers myself. I know how to use the emergency crank system in the basement.’
‘Great!’ Flynn gave an exaggerated sigh of relief then said, with mock surprise, ‘Oh, wait. You’re stuck in a lift.’
‘Well spotted. Henry and Fiona also know how to use it, but we won’t want to bother them. Gerald also knew, of course.’
‘Ah.’ He blew out a breath. ‘So that would be my job now?’
‘Yes, but luckily Carlos is also familiar with the crank system.’
Flynn closed his eyes and opened them again. ‘He’s going to love this. The boss being stuck in the lift.’ He held up his radio. ‘God, this is embarrassing.’
‘Better that it’s us and not Henry or Fiona,’ Lara said, although she wouldn’t have minded Fiona taking her place at that moment. She was trying not to dwell on the worst-case scenario of Fiona taking the historian into the treasury.
‘I need to let Fiona know that her guests won’t be seeing St Anselm’s finger any time soon.’
Luckily, Fiona was more worried and embarrassed about her staff being stuck in an antiquated lift. She said she was giving her celebrity guest a tour of the ground-floor rooms and hoped they’d be out of there ‘in a jiffy’.
Flynn, however, had less upbeat news to deliver from Carlos. ‘He says it’s going to take at least half an hour to crank us down to the ground floor.’
‘I could have told you that. Good job I’m not claustrophobic,’ Lara said, staring at the walls and the ancient two-button mechanism and the modern safety warnings: do not use this lift in a fire.
She suppressed a shudder. Even though she knew they’d be rescued sooner or later, it still gave her the creeps to be suspended halfway to the top of the tower, even with Flynn for company.
She sank down with her back to the wall of the lift.
‘This bloody lift is now my top priority,’ Flynn grumbled, peering at the control panel again. ‘This whole system should be on display in a museum.’
‘I doubt there’s any money in the budget.’
‘OK, then we need a new mechanism or a better failsafe than a hand crank system. We’ll fix it ourselves in-house.’
‘That’s Ravendale, I’m afraid. Nothing moves too speedily and making do is the name of the game.’
‘I’m going to change things.’ He sighed, then the corners of his mouth curved upwards. ‘Still, I suppose there are worse places to be stuck.’
In close proximity, and with no excuse to look away, Lara was forced to meet his gaze full on. If she was honest, it was no hardship, although that glint in his eye was sending her hormones haywire.
He slid down on the opposite wall, his feet reaching alongside hers to her calves. Luckily the lights had stayed on although the bulb was dim.
