Lynne Marshall - Hot Single Docs - London's Calling

Abbie’s lips twitched as she caught the twinkle in Edward’s otherwise deadpan expression. There was more to this man than people appreciated, wasn’t there?

‘I’m going to have the Cornish lobster with hand-cut chips,’ Rafael decided, when it came to the main course. ‘Or perhaps the Aberdeen Angus filet steak with beetroot.’

Except he didn’t seem to have any more of an appetite than Abbie did. There was just as much left on his plate as hers when it came time to be cleared away.

The dessert that Abbie chose was to die for. A chocolate fondant with a delectably oozy centre that came with a peach compote and a mascarpone sorbet. The speeches started before she’d taken more than a taste, however, and Abbie stopped and held her breath.

What would Ethan say?

He didn’t seem to be showing any effect from the shots of Scotch he’d been throwing back, but then, his speech was so short it was hard to tell. He said something very complimentary about Lizzie and he wished the couple every happiness and that was it. Except that he finished by thanking his brother, saying that he appreciated the way Leo had always looked out for him.

As dessert plates were cleared away, Leo and Lizzie moved through the tables, stopping to talk to as many people as they could before they started the next part of the evening with their first dance. It was Leo who came to the table where Rafael and Abbie were now sitting alone. Edward had gone to talk to Declan.

‘Thanks for coming.’ Leo smiled. ‘I hope you’re all enjoying yourselves.’

‘It’s a beautiful wedding,’ Abbie said. ‘Lizzie looks stunning.’

‘Great speeches, too.’ Rafael grinned. ‘Short. If we were in Italy they’d go on till midnight and nobody would get a chance to dance.’

Abbie hoped the length of the best man’s speech hadn’t been due to the lingering tension between the brothers. ‘It was a nice thing that he said,’ she offered. ‘About you always looking out for him. You must have been an awesome big brother to have.’

Leo’s smile looked wry. ‘Whether he wanted it or not,’ he murmured. ‘It wasn’t always appreciated.’

Abbie raised her eyebrows but Leo didn’t get a chance to answer the silent query. A dramatically glamorous woman, dripping in diamonds, was sailing towards him as gracefully as only an aging prima ballerina could.

‘Leo...darling... You must come with me. Tony and I are dying to talk to you.’ With her arm firmly linked with his, Leo was hustled away.

Abbie had to smile. There would be no prizes for picking her as one of the clinic clients who’d scored an invitation. Everybody knew about Francesca, who had to be in her early seventies now, and had had her first plastic surgeries with Leo and Ethan’s father, James.

And that thought led her back to Leo’s cryptic comment. She turned to Rafael.

‘Whether he wanted it or not? And it wasn’t always appreciated? I wonder what that was about?’

Rafael shrugged. ‘I’ve heard the father was a complete bastard. I suspect being the big brother made life pretty tough for Leo.’

‘He looks happy now.’

‘He just got married to a beautiful woman. Of course he’s happy.’

‘Where’s Ethan?’

‘I saw him heading for the restroom a while back.’

‘So did I.’ Abbie frowned. ‘Was it my imagination or was he limping more than usual?’

Rafael mirrored her frown. ‘Maybe I should go and check that he’s all right.’

‘I’ll come with you.’

They slipped out of the crowd unnoticed because the music had started and Leo was leading Lizzie onto the dance floor.

They found Ethan in a hallway near the restrooms. Leaning against the wall, with his eyes closed, he didn’t see them approach.

‘Are you okay?’ It was Abbie who asked.

Ethan’s eyes snapped open. ‘I’m fine,’ he said.

He didn’t look fine. There were deep lines around his eyes and his skin looked slightly grey. He looked like a man who was dealing with something physically painful.

‘Great speech,’ Rafael said. ‘Well done.’

Ethan gave a noncommittal grunt. ‘I didn’t say much.’

‘Sometimes it doesn’t need much,’ Abbie said. ‘It just needs the right words.’

That brought the ghost of a smile to Ethan’s face. ‘What are you two doing out here, anyway?’ he asked. ‘You should be in there, having a good time.’ His smile twisted a little. ‘Or at least finding the right words.’ He pushed himself off the wall and headed back towards the ballroom. ‘I’m going to find another Scotch.’

Abbie and Rafael looked at each other.

‘Shall we go back?’ Rafael asked. ‘Would you like to dance?’

Abbie shook her head. ‘I think I might have had enough of so many glamorous people. And I’ve certainly had enough champagne.’

Rafael’s face emptied of expression. Was he waiting for her to say that she needed to get back to the hospital? To Ella?

‘You know what I’d really like to do right now?’

‘No. What?’

Abbie reached out and took his hand. Her heart skipped a beat. This was how she could show Rafael how much she wanted to try and fix things.

‘I’d like to go home,’ she whispered. ‘With you.’

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