It’s strange being back here in London. Feeling this mixture of homecoming, yet a little like a stranger at the same time. Like this is no longer my home at all.
“Paynes and Sons,” a female voice crackles over the intercom.
“Hi, um, Lilly, um, Darling here, to see Richard Payne,” I stutter back, cursing my nerves. A warm hand lands on the small of my back, Ash’s ginger scent washing over me and instantly calming me.
“Ah, come in, Miss Darling,” she replies, the door buzzing, and I push it, stepping away from Ash’s comfort and missing his touch immediately.
We walk into a brightly lit reception area, a Georgian window on the same wall that the outside door is situated, letting in some winter daylight. There’s a crystal chandelier hanging down from the incredibly high ceiling, and a dark wooden desk sits at the base of a curving staircase. Behind it is an attractive older woman, with a neat blonde bob streaked with grey, looking at the screen of an iMac.
She looks up at our approach and smiles widely at us, not faltering when her eyes flick to the guys behind me.
“Good morning, Miss Darling, and guests,” she says. “Mr Payne is expecting you and will be down shortly. Can I check your documents, please?” she asks, and I hand over my passport. She takes it, looks at the back page, then nods. “Please take a seat if you wish.” She indicates a plush Chesterfield sofa in teal velvet, that’s opposite her desk.
“Thank you,” I murmur back, feeling nauseous, and wishing that I had eaten breakfast back at the hotel. We walk over to the sofa, but I can’t sit down, nervous energy making me too jittery.
“Hey, Pretty Girl,” Loki murmurs gently, taking one of my hands in his and stopping me from picking at my corduroy pinafore dress. I chose the mustard with a bee print, in the hope that it would make me feel cheerful. It’s not working. “It’ll be okay, promise,” he assures me as I look into his beautiful green eyes that are sparkling as the weak sunlight hits them.
Just having him, all of them, near is helping to ease me some. This whole thing has bought up feelings about my mother’s death that I thought I’d dealt with. Foolish really, to think that the trauma would just disappear.
I nod, not knowing what to say, but stepping into him until I can rest my head on his strong chest, my arms wrapping around him and his own coming to pull me into a tight hug. Closing my eyes, I take a deep inhale, breathing him in, and being surrounded by Loki’s familiar vanilla scent calms me further, until the nausea abates.
“Good morning, Miss darling,” a cultured man’s voice calls out, and I open my eyes to see an older gentleman reaching the bottom of the stairs, a broad smile on his face.
He’s of a slight build, and to be honest, he doesn’t have many defining features, he’d be quite unmemorable. I recognise his voice from our phone call yesterday though, or maybe it was the day before with the time difference? Fucked if I know.
I take a step back, but keep hold of Loki’s hand, and give Mr Payne a small smile.
“Good morning, Mr Payne.”
“Richard, please,” he replies, stepping towards me but keeping a respectful distance. “I’m so glad you could make it.”
“Me too, although, I’m still a little confused and frankly in shock,” I tell him honestly.
“Of course, that is to be expected. If you follow me, we shall get down to business and keep you in suspense no longer,” he says kindly, stepping to one side and sweeping his arm towards the stairs he just came from.
He starts forward, and Ash immediately steps up next to him, striking up a seemingly casual conversation.
“So, Richard, being a solicitor is a bit of a change from police work,” Ash says, and Mr Payne’s, Richard’s, steps falter slightly, although his smile doesn’t drop.
“I’m flattered that you took the time to look into my background, Mr Vanderbilt,” he replies, heading up the stairs.
I just stare at the exchange, not surprised that Ash looked into him, but I am impressed that Richard knows who Ash is given that I didn’t mention it in any of our communications.
Ash nods. “I like to protect my interests, Richard. I’m sure you understand.”
I bristle at being referred to as an ‘interest,’ and Loki must notice as he leans in to whisper into my ear.
“Don’t worry, Pretty Girl. You can punish him later when we make him watch you ride my cock.” I shiver at his words, whilst also being appalled that he just said that here, in the offices of what looks like a pretty high-end solicitor.Fucking piss artist!
Deciding that the only reaction that comment deserves is an eye roll, I look around to see several panelled wooden doors lining a carpeted corridor. We head towards the first one, and I catch a glimpse of his name on a brass plaque before Richard opens the door and ushers us in.
A large dark wood desk sits in front of double windows, the same multipaned ones as downstairs, with a view of St James’ Park filling them. The whole office is not quite what I expect, with box files stacked everywhere haphazardly, and the chaos makes me like Richard more.
“Now, before we begin, Miss Darling,” Richard says, closing the door softly behind him and coming around to sit behind the desk. He gestures to the two leather chairs in front of it, so I sit down, Ash beating Loki to the other chair. Loki stays beside me, and I can sense Jax and Kai flanking me, creating a wall of protective comfort at my back. “I need to check that you are happy for these boys to be present too?”
“Absolutely,” I say with no hint of hesitation in my voice. That is one thing about today that I am certain of, their presence.
“Excellent. So, as I briefly mentioned in my phone call, your mother entrusted Payne and Sons with her last will and testament.”