Alex turned; Lara was standing there in a drop-dead gorgeous off-the-shoulder emerald coloured dress. Her dark hair w
as piled up on her head, and there was a diamond-drop pendant around her neck Career was forgotten for a moment, he was just glad to see her.
‘What?’ she said defensively.
‘You scrub up well.’
She hit him on the shoulder.
‘Okay, ouch. You look fantastic. Like a glamorous mermaid.’
It was true; he could barely remember seeing Lara in anything but jeans. He was shocked and a little unsettled.
‘Comes at a price. I could tell you, but it’d be too upsetting. Monte Carlo is not big on affordable evening wear.’
‘Whatever it costs, it’s worth it.’
Lara rewarded him with a smile and joined Alex at the rail. She clicked her glass against his and they stood in silence watching the rich and influential moving below them. He wanted to tell Lara about Charlie’s revelation that his career had stalled and about Dominic’s offer too. He certainly wanted to hear her take on it all, he trusted her opinion more than anyone else’s. But Lara had enough of her own work problems to worry about without adding Alex’s precarious career situation to. Keep it light, he thought.
‘I spy with my little eye something beginning with C.’
‘Conspicuous consumption,’ she said, giving him a sideways smile. Alex shook his head.
‘That’s two ‘C’s.’
‘Okay… Cartier?’
‘One point to Mademoiselle Stone. I would have also accepted Chihuahua or crocodile Birkin.’
They both laughed. It was fun sharing all this with someone on his wavelength, someone who could appreciate the absurdity. Unlike Alicia, who Alex knew would be enjoying the party for entirely different reasons. In fact, she would probably already have cornered the president of Bolivia by now.
‘So let me play another guessing game,’ said Alex. ‘Why has Lara Stone come to Monte Carlo?’
‘Do you want to guess or do you want me to lie?’
‘Or you could just tell me.’
Lara blew her cheeks out.
‘I’ve been on Jonathon Meyer’s yacht,’ she said.
‘It’s here? In the harbour?’ said Alex, looking out into the darkness.
‘In Cap D’Ail down the coast. I spoke to the first officer.’
Alex was already getting a bad feeling about this.
‘And what did he tell you?’
‘Not much, but he put me in touch with a woman called Melissa who supplied girls to Meyer’s parties.’
‘Girls? Like prostitutes?’
‘She says not. Seems like a grey area. But she did say there’s a guy named Jago Bain who was thrown off Meyer’s yacht and might have an axe to grind. I called Eduardo from Le Caché earlier and it turns out he knows him. He’s going to set up a meeting.’
There was another long pause.
‘What?’ said Lara, her eyes challenging.