But they were an easy crowd to please—and not just because of the waiters discreetly circulating the room with bottles of prestige cuvée champagne. Clearly, like their host, they appreciated magic, and as their applause filled her head she was finally able to admit what she had been fighting so hard to d
eny. She missed Aristo. Missed him so much that words were simply not adequate to describe the sense of loss, the loneliness, the aching bruise of his absence.
She already knew that she would never again share that dizzying chemistry with a man. But, together with their son, it was something nobody could ever take away from her—it would always be there inside her. And now, looking out into the blur of faces, she felt a tingling heat run down her spine, for she could almost feel him there in the audience, a shadow memory of that first time they’d met.
Two hours later it was over.
‘Teddie, that was marvellous.’ Edward Claiborne was the first to offer his congratulations. ‘I honestly think she’s a genius, don’t you, Elliot?’ He massaged his forehead. ‘I’ve watched a lot of very talented magicians in my time, but with you I find it impossible to separate technique from performance. When you’re doing a trick, I know something’s happening but I just don’t see it.’
‘Well, he’s happy,’ Elliot said softly as they watched him shaking hands with an Oscar-winning actress. ‘And he has some great connections.’ He grinned. ‘Hollywood, here we come!’
She punched him lightly on the arm. ‘Hollywood is in California. You hate California, remember? That’s why you moved to New York. Besides, it’s hardly convenient for George’s nursery.’
She made her way slowly back to the dressing room. In some ways the evening had been a triumph, but it had been a bittersweet triumph, for she knew now that no amount of applause and admiration would ever make her feel as complete as lying in Aristo’s arms.
But there was no point in thinking about that now. This is supposed to be your night, remember, she told herself. And, taking a deep, cleansing breath, she walked into her dressing room.
And stopped.
Aristo was sitting on a chair, his head bowed, what looked like a phone clamped between his hands. As she took a faltering step backwards, her fingers gripping the door frame for support, he looked up, his dark eyes fixing on her face.
‘Aristo.’
He was wearing a dark suit, and it was a shock seeing him dressed so formally, but of course this was real life now, and that meant work. Her stomach clenched as he stood up, but she forced herself to hold his gaze.
‘Hello, Teddie.’
She stared at him in disbelief, trying to ignore the pain ripping through her chest. ‘What are you doing here?’
Her arms had lifted to cross automatically in front of her body, and she willed her legs to stay upright.
‘I came back for the show,’ he said quietly. ‘I told you I wouldn’t miss it for anything.’
Her heart thumped inside her chest. ‘Except you did. It just finished. But it doesn’t matter.’
Her voice sounded wrong, too high and breathless, and she knew it didn’t match her careless words, but she was past caring what he thought of her.
‘You had something more important to do. You had to fix a crisis in Dubai.’
He shook his head. ‘There was no crisis in Dubai.’ His mouth twisted. ‘Only, I’m such an idiot I had to go all the way there to work that out.’
‘I thought you had to be there to talk to your staff and the media.’
Staring down into her eyes, he let out a long breath. ‘I was wrong. I realised the only person I needed to talk to, the only person I wanted to talk to, was you. That’s why I flew back to New York.’
He ran his hand across the face, and with a jolt she realised that although he was dressed in a suit, he looked nothing like the suave businessman who had left her on the island. His shirt was creased, and his unshaven face looked paler than usual, and he was actually holding his passport, not his phone.
He must have come straight from the airport and he must be exhausted. The two thoughts collided inside her head.
But, remembering how he’d let go of her hands when she’d told him she loved him, she pushed the thought away.
‘Well, I’m sorry you had a wasted trip,’ she said stiffly. ‘Two wasted trips.’
‘Teddie, please—’
‘No, Aristo. I don’t want to do this.’ She shook her head. Her whole body was shaking now. ‘If you want to see George, then talk to my lawyer.’
‘I don’t want to talk to your lawyer. I want to talk to you.’