Page 64 of The Ring
Anthony looks at me, then at TJ, and weirdly, he seems fine—almost… happy. “You caught me,” he replies. “You left the party early—everything alright?”
“Yes, I was just tired, and my shoes were killing me,” I emphasise the last part the most, since he could have heard us watching TV until pretty late. I glance at him to see if he bought it, but he’s stoic. Sometimes I feel like I’m good at reading him; other times, like now, I have no idea.
“What are you up to today?” Anthony asks me.
I open the fridge and start inspecting the contents. TJ leans against the other door, also peering inside.
“I need to pop over to the Jessica McCormack store in Carlos Place to pick up some jewellery and then head to the tailor to collect some clothes.”
“Your driver called. He’s still unwell, but you can take mine—or, if you wait an hour while I finish some work, I can take you myself, if you want,” he offers.
Anthony doesn’t like me being alone on the streets of London, so most of the time, I take my driver, Joe. He’s not only a driver but also kind of a bodyguard. Anthony, for a long time, tried to get me to have one because of the fame and because I tend to wear thousands of pounds worth of jewellery. But I didn’t want one. One of the easiest ways to get recognised is to have a bodyguard trailing you. If you don’t, people sometimes think you look a lot like a famous person, but you’re not actually them. Since I didn’t accept his proposal, he hired an ex-Marine instead, who is six-foot-six. I don’t need to be a genius like him to know he’s my unofficial, official bodyguard.
“Thank you, but I’m fine. TJ is taking me.”
“So, TJ is taking you, is he? Should I expect you both for dinner as well?” Anthony says, his tone the same one he uses when he’s picking on me.
I glance at TJ, and he just looks amused.
Before Anthony goes full-on annoying older brother, I turn to TJ. “You know what, let’s eat something at Carlos Place. I’m craving a patisserie from The Connaught.”
He just nods and follows me as I pull him away.
“Drive safely!” Anthony calls out to us.
“Of course, I have precious cargo with me,” TJ replies, and it makes me blush a little.
Chapter 35
TJ
Iwalk into my flat and spot West sitting in the living room with his laptop.
“So, the prodigal son finally returns home,” West remarks as soon as he sees me walk in.
I roll my eyes and make my way to the kitchen. Predictably, West sets his computer aside and follows me.
“Where have you been for the past four days?” he asks. “I was about to call the police.”
“I texted you. I was with Cornelia.”
He chuckles lightly. “No, really, where were you?”
“I’m being serious—I was with her.”
He looks at me, shocked. “Are you sure it wasn’t someone who just looked a lot like Cornelia?”
I don’t dignify that with an answer; I simply shoot him a withering look. While those comments bother me a bit, I can’t say I wasn’t expecting them.
West lifts his hand in a mock surrender. “Alright, I was just making sure.”
“You don’t have to. It was her.” A smile spreads across my face as I open the cupboard and pull out a protein bar.
“How on earth did you pull that off? And when should I expect the flying pigs to arrive? And blood to flood through the Thames?”
“I didn’t do anything. It sort of happened,” I reply casually, making my way towards my room.
West follows me, clearly unimpressed with my vague explanation. “Care to elaborate?”
