That scarf was breaking every part of that deal. I wasn’t a man who bought expensive gifts for his girlfriend, was I? And what did that expensive gift silently promise? More than I had to give.
I could just give the scarf to Primrose to use as inspiration. Or I could return it. Or I could just sling it in my wardrobe and not think about it again. There were several solutions that didn’t involve giving it to Hollie. I didn’t want to mislead her or let her down. She’d been through enough. I wasn’t going to be another thing on the list of rubbish things that happened to her.
I pulled open the heavy oak and brass doors of Fortnum and Mason, resolving not to think about it.
This was most definitely a lunch arranged by Stella. Left to our own devices, Beck and I would have picked up a sandwich and found a bench. Although, in this wind, I was pleased we would be indoors. Dodging the tourists, I made my way across the lobby, with its tables, cabinets and shelves filled with jams, teas, confectionary and everything quintessentially English. I should bring Hollie here—perhaps we could come for afternoon tea. As I was making mental plans in my head, I realized she’d never agree to go out in public with me. Perhaps when the competition was over and she wasn’t an intern anymore. There I was again, thinking about Hollie when my head was supposed to be elsewhere. It was as if she’d permeated every thought.
I took a clearing breath and climbed the few stairs on the far side of the store. I spotted Stella waving from a window seat, nodded and headed toward her and Beck. Stella pulled me into a half hug before I pulled off my scarf and put it on the back of the seat beside her.
“Hermes. Someone’s been shopping. Next time can you take Beck?” She peered in the corner of the bag. “What is it?”
“A scarf.” I should have picked it up on the way back to the office to avoid attracting Stella’s attention.
“What kind of scarf?” she asked.
“Have we got menus?” I asked, looking around for a waiter.
“What kind of scarf,” Stella repeated. “Can I see?”
“You know what a Hermes scarf looks like. I want to show Primrose the color. It’s design inspiration.” That would throw Stella off the scent. I didn’t want her to put two and two together and come up with eight, which is what would happen if I told her I’d bought the scarf for Hollie. Because it was also design inspiration. I beckoned over a waiter, who gave us menus and offered us drinks. Just as I thought Stella had forgotten about the scarf, she got a second wind.
“How’s Hollie?” Stella asked and it was all I could do not to groan. Instead I focused my energy on glaring at Beck.
“What?” he asked, not even trying to pretend he wasn’t delighted that his fiancée was giving me a load of grief. “It’s not like I could keep news like that to myself.”
“Why would you want to hide that you’ve got a new girlfriend, Dexter?” Stella asked. “I was hoping you’d bring her today. When do we get to meet her?”
This time I couldn’t contain a groan at their pestering questions. “You’ve got all the disadvantages of parents without the advantage of me being able to borrow money from you.”
Stella fumbled in her wallet and pulled out a twenty-pound note. “Here you go. Now tell Auntie Stella exactly what’s going on in your love life.”
“Love?” Beck interrupted.
“Okay,” Stella said, taking the drink the waiter just brought over. “If it’s not love, what is it? Just sex?”
“Stella, we’re not going to talk in detail about my sex life,” I said. “Beck is a very good friend of mine and I really don’t want to make him look bad.”
She laughed. “Throw a girl a bone. Beck said you like this girl. I want to know more about her. At least tell me, is the scarf for her?”
“Christ, I thought you had a successful career and happy relationship. Why do you have time to stick your nose into my life?”
She slung her arm around my shoulder. “We’re family. I make time for family.”
I chuckled. “She’s a lot,” I said to Beck.
“Right?” he said, grinning as if he were completely proud of it.
“What if the scarf is for her?” I wouldn’t mind Stella’s take on me giving Hollie the scarf. Would it be inappropriate? Too much? “It doesn’t mean anything. Does it? It’s not like I planned it. I didn’t make a special trip—I was just on my way here and saw it in the window.”
Stella’s eyes widened. “So, you were passing Hermes, saw a scarf in the window that you thought would suit Hollie, and decided to get it for her? You’re making me swoon.”