Anyway, the point was, he’d dismissed the dress from his mind. And then he’d been so enjoying spending time with her again, filling her in on his latest project at the company, how exciting it was to be moving on finally, finding his feet in the world again—that it had taken longer than it should to notice that Zoey wasn’t her normal, sparkling self on their walk to the Hemmingslea Gallery.
As they wandered around the exhibition opening night party, however, there was no denying it.
Something’s wrong.
As soon as he knew that, he could see the signs of it in every movement she made. The fixed smile on her pale face. The way she gripped onto a nearby chair too tightly, turning down a glass of champagne for the third time. The slightly green tinge she developed as another waiter brought round a tray of prawn canapés.
‘Are you feeling okay?’ he asked as she shook her head at the waiter.
‘I’m fine,’ she replied. But her smile didn’t reach her eyes.
Maybe she was physically fine, Ash decided, but that didn’t mean that there wasn’t something else going on.
She was avoiding alcohol—because she was afraid that if they got drunk together again they’d make the same mistake they had on the island? Was she looking so stiff and was the conversation so stilted and one-sided because she still felt awkward around him?
Or was there something else?
Whatever it was, they definitely needed to talk about it. And not surrounded by priceless art and hundreds of other people, preferably.
‘Where did you fancy for dinner?’ he asked casually, hoping to build up to leaving early.
Zoey’s eyes widened and the green tinge got stronger. ‘Sorry. Be right back.’
And she was gone, through the crowds, towards the cloakroom.
Okay, she definitely wasn’t fine, whatever she said. And there was something, a niggling feeling at the back of his head, that told him he knew what the problem was.
No. She’d have told me by now.
Following at a slower pace, Ash made his way over to the cloakrooms, where the girl who’d welcomed them waited, guarding jackets and bags.
‘Did you see a beautiful woman in a navy dress come this way?’
She smiled and nodded towards the ladies’ bathroom.
That made sense. At least she hadn’t run out on him completely. That was always a risk with Zoey.
Leaning against the wall, Ash waited until she emerged again, still pale but less green.
‘Want to try telling me you’re fine again?’ he asked, pushing away from the wall. ‘Or do you fancy trying the truth this time?’
‘Ash, really. I’m fine. Must have been something I ate disagreeing with me.’ Another person might have found her words and her smile convincing—someone who didn’t know Zoey as well as he did.
But he’d seen that look in her eyes before, and recently. That haunted, hunted look, as if she was desperately searching for an escape route, a way to run.
It was the same look she’d had when he’d found her in a cupboard, trying to climb out of a window to avoid marrying David.
The fact she now displayed the same look and feel in relation to him was a stab to Ash’s heart—and his pride.
‘Don’t lie to me, Zoey,’ he said, his voice low. ‘I’m not some fiancé you’re running out on. I’m your friend. I want to help you. And I can’t do that if you won’t tell me the truth.’
‘You want to help...’ Zoey shook her head as she looked down at the floor, giving a low laugh. ‘And I know I need your help. I just... I was so determined to do it on my own. And the moment I tell you, that’s over. You’ll want to fix everything for me.’
Fix everything. That meant there was something that needed fixing. Of course he was going to want to do that, then.
‘Zo. Please. Just talk to me.’
Indecision flickered across her face. ‘Not here,’ she said finally. ‘I want to tell you—I’ve been trying to figure out how all night. But not here.’
Grabbing his hand, she pulled him out of the main foyer and into a small side gallery he’d had no idea was even there.
The room was mostly in darkness—the rest of the gallery was closed for the evening, and Ash was pretty sure they weren’t supposed to be there. But there was just enough light from the foyer for him to see her face as she looked up at him, chewing her lower lip.