Free The Medici Mistress: Nothing and no one would stop him from having her. by Clare Connelly Page A

Clapham.”
    “Yeah, she’s good.”
    Annie’s eyes dropped from the stage, and landed on a familiar pair of almond shaped eyes. “Hey, Stu. Chloe’s here.”
    He swore. “She said she couldn’t make it.”
    “Go talk to her. Just… be gentle.”
    He looked at her with confusion. “You’re serious? Would you be gentle if some guy had reached down your throat and ripped your heart out?”
    Annie shook her head. “No. But that’s the best part about telling people what to do with their lives. You can see the picture clearly. Trust me, you’ll regret throwing away what you have if you don’t make absolutely certain of what you want first.”
    “Who made you so clever?” He teased, squeezing her hand in farewell before cutting through the crowd in the direction of Chloe.
    It was almost an hour later before she ran into Thomas again. He was talking to a group of partygoers but broke off when she approached.
    “I’m going to head home,” she said quietly.
    “Sure. I’ll come with you.” He put an easy arm around her shoulder.
    “No, no. You stay. You’re having fun. Besides, I think Stu might need moral support.”
    Thomas followed the direction of Annie’s stare, and saw Stu at the mixing table, with a subdued looking Chloe beside him. “I guess you’re right.”
    “Would you walk me to the front though?”
    “Of course. Do you take me for a philistine?”
    She smiled, leading the way through the crowded back garden, and through Stu’s townhouse.
    Annie took in a deep breath, steeling herself for what she was about to do. “Thomas, we need to talk.”
    His face went from happy to concerned in a split second. “What about?”
    She bit down on her lip. “I thought we were both in this for a bit of light-hearted fun. If I had known you were getting serious feelings for me, I never would have allowed it.” She fixed him with her shimmering, green eyes. “I care about you too much to keep seeing you. Not when our feelings are so out of synch.”
    “What are you saying?”
    “I’m so sorry, Thom. I think of you as a friend. A good friend. And I wish I could see a future for us. But I don’t.”
    He nodded, a slow nod, one of dawning comprehension. “This is because I told you I’m falling for you.”
    She took both his hands in hers. “I should have ended it a while ago. I suspected you were getting serious, but it was easy to convince myself I was wrong. I was selfish. I like being with you. I love hanging out with you. But I know I’m not in love with you.”
    “Woah. I think this is the first time I’ve ever been dumped before.”
    She looked into his handsome face, and smiled. “I can well understand that. I’m sorry to be the one doing it to you.”
    “Don’t.” His smile was laced with disappointment. “I’ll get over it.”
    “Can we still be friends?”
    Thomas had never remained friends with a woman, post-break-up. Then again, he’d never been with anyone like Annie Carlton before. “We’ll see.”
    As she slipped into a cab and headed home, Anne breathed easily for the first time in a fortnight. It was as though a huge weight had been lifted from her chest, and she was free. Free to do what she really wanted.
    Except she wasn’t free; not really. The past was an inexorcisable ghost that bound her actions, whether she liked it or not.
    Unless she could forget that feeling of pain, she could never move on.
    The weekend loomed before her, no plans, and no desire to do anything except brood. By Sunday afternoon, she’d cleaned her apartment to a sheen, prepared a week’s worth of meals, and caught up on the latest Real Housewives episodes. It was actually a relief when Monday rolled around and she could finally fill her days with enough distraction to blot out thoughts of Giac.
    * * *
    “This is a sexual harassment case waiting to happen,” Lincoln muttered, staring long and hard at his good friend and boss.
    Giac’s smile was wolfish. “Believe me, it will not come to