The Aristocrat Read online

  I’d never looked at my decision to carry on my father’s legacy as a choice. But I suppose it was. There were no shackles on me.

  I nodded. “Thanks for sharing that perspective. It’s a different way of looking at it. There’s no such thing as a total lack of choice, is there?”

  Her phone chimed, and she looked down at it. Her eyes widened.

  “What is it?” I asked.

  “I get notifications when someone makes a donation to Mrs. Barbosa’s fund.” She looked up at me. “What did you do?”

  When Felicity had been cleaning in the kitchen earlier, I’d clicked the donation link and sent the rest of the money—ten-thousand dollars—that would allow her to meet the goal.

  “I’ve donated to far less important causes in my lifetime,” I said. “I wanted to make sure we had what we needed to get started.”

  “You didn’t have to give that much. It’s crazy.”

  “It’s not, really. We’ll be helping someone in need, and I get to spend scheduled time with you. I can’t put a price tag on that.”

  “Well, normally, I’d be angry at you for giving so much, but it’s so needed, and it’s for a good cause. So I really appreciate your generosity. Without your donation and Mrs. Angelini’s, this probably wouldn’t have happened for at least another year or two, if ever.”

  “It’s truly my pleasure, Felicity.” Sitting down on her bed, I looked around. “Being here…” I paused. “It feels so…nice. This warm, inviting room. This house, in general. Mostly the beautiful girl who lives here.” I winked. “You’re all right, too.”

  She laughed. “Good one.”

  “Seriously, Mrs. Angelini is a gem. It was great to meet her. Thank you for inviting me over tonight.”

  “You’re welcome. And yeah, I know. I’m a lucky girl to live here.”

  “From what I gather, Mrs. Angelini feels lucky to have you in her life as well.”

  “She’s the best.”

  “You think she’d foster me, too?” I teased.

  “Well, then, you’d be like my stepbrother, and that would be creepy.”

  “Because I’d be trying to sneak into your room at night?” I smiled mischievously.

  “I read a book like that once. It didn’t end well.”

  “Interesting.” I put my feet up, sinking into her pillow.

  “Feel free to make yourself more comfortable,” she said, eyebrow raised.

  “I’m sorry. Does this bother you?”

  “I’m kidding.”

  I tucked my hands behind my head. “I notice you’re keeping your distance. Perhaps a good idea after what happened today?”

  “Probably.” Felicity blushed.

  “You’re smart to do that, because I would probably try to kiss you again.”

  Her cheeks reddened. She looked so beautiful, dressed in a peachy shirt that complemented her hair and skin. Her hair was a bit straighter than its usual fluffy texture.

  “By the way, Mrs. Angelini gave me a warning tonight,” I said.

  “She what?”

  “Yeah. She said to make sure not to hurt you too badly.”

  Felicity shut her eyes. “I wish she hadn’t said that. I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t be. She’s right. Which sort of makes me wonder why you invited me over. You’d previously decided it was best that we not see each other anymore. Did my kissing you change things?”

  She tilted her head. “Did you kiss me, or did I kiss you?”

  “Come to think of it, you might’ve initiated it.” I smiled. “Wait—did you take advantage of the pathetic state you found me in at the food shop?”

  She shrugged. “I felt bad for you. The mac and cheese and SpaghettiOs? It was pathetic. I had to do something.”

  I straightened up against her headboard. “Okay, in all seriousness, aside from the kiss, what made you invite me here tonight?”

  Felicity continued to keep her distance across the room as she looked down.

  “At Harvard, I used to play extreme Frisbee, right?” she said, looking up. “I was one of the worst players on the team, and we didn’t win very often. I always knew most of the time I was going to lose. Yet I was okay with that because the invigorating experience was worth the loss. As long as I didn’t expect to win, I was okay. I could just enjoy the experience.” She exhaled. “Falling for you is a losing game.”

  “But one you’re willing to play?” My heart raced. “I’m game if you are.”

  “If we’re gonna spend time together, I have to let you know that I…can’t sleep with you.”

  All right. Fuck.

  I certainly hadn’t been expecting her to mention sex right now, even if the thought of it was never too far from my mind these days.

  “I understand.” Even if it kills me. But she had reopened the possibility of spending the summer together. I stood up and walked over to where she had her planners lined up on the shelf. “Do you have one of these to spare?”

  She squinted, seeming perplexed. “Um…sure. The ones on the right aren’t written in yet.”

  I pulled a blue one off the shelf. “I’ll return it at the end of the summer. Is that all right?”

  Felicity shrugged. “Okay.”

  The last thing I wanted to do was leave her tonight. But since she’d resigned herself to letting me hurt her, my gut told me to pace myself in doing so.

  “Thank you for a lovely evening, Felicity.”

  “You’re leaving?”

  “I think it’s best if I do. Especially since we have a long day tomorrow.”

  “We do?”

  “Unless you’re working at the restaurant?”

  “Not until the following night.”

  “Brilliant, then. I’ll pick you up in the morning, and we’ll head to the store to start purchasing supplies for the renovation. How many people did you say are able to help?”

  “My friend Bailey and her boyfriend both live in Providence. I know they’re definitely in. I’ll contact them tonight and see who can make it tomorrow.”

  “It’s okay if they can’t. We can get started ourselves either way. But the more the merrier. What do you have already in terms of tools? I’m wondering what we’ll need to purchase.”

  “Our next-door neighbor works in construction. He has a ton of power tools in his garage—probably almost everything we need, aside from materials. He told me to just let him know when I need to borrow stuff. I can text him.” She smiled. “I can’t believe this is actually happening.”

  As we descended the stairs, excitement raced through me. I’d be spending the day with her tomorrow. And working on this project would be a better way to expend my energy than painting art I was too embarrassed to show anyone.

  We stood facing each other at her front door. I chose not to give in to the need to kiss her again.

  “In case there’s any question, Felicity,” I said as I turned to go, “it was most definitely me who kissed you today.”

  The following morning, I picked Felicity up bright and early, and we went to the nearest home improvement store. We were able to borrow a lot of tools from Felicity’s neighbor, Hank Rogers: an air compressor, pneumatic nailer, and chop saw, among other things. So the first step would be getting the framework up. I’d rented a truck, so we’d be able to transport the wood we’d use to start framing the inside. Then we’d have to hire out for electrical and plumbing before resuming the last of our tasks—things like drywall, painting, then flooring.

  Mrs. Barbosa was out when we arrived at her house after our shopping trip. Felicity and I went straight to the old garage structure we’d be renovating and got started. Luckily, I remembered much of what I’d learned from my father when he’d brought me with him on a volunteer mission in Tanzania a few years back. That trip, we’d built an addition to a schoolhouse.

  Felicity held the studs while I put them in place. I also taught her how to cut the wood properly. Our team of two was off to a pretty good start, if I said so myself. But a coupl
e hours into it, our private partnership was interrupted when her friends arrived to help. Two guys and a girl entered the garage.

  “Sorry, we’re late,” the girl said.

  “I didn’t know you were back in Narragansett,” Felicity said to one of the guys.

  He nodded. “It’s been a long time, Felicity.”

  Getting a strange vibe, I looked between them.

  Felicity seemed uncomfortable as she turned to me. “Leo, this is my best friend, Bailey.”

  “Great to meet you,” I said.

  “You, too.” She smiled.

  “And this is her boyfriend, Stewart.”

  “Stewart, how’s it going, man?” I shook his hand.

  Then she turned to the other bloke. “And this is Matt.”

  I nodded toward him as my suspicions grew. “Hi.”

  “Hey,” he said, seeming just as wary of me.

  Matt was a couple inches shorter than me, with dark hair and dark eyes. I’d have to ask Felicity about him later.

  She showed them around the space for a few minutes. “If one of you wants to handle cutting the wood, that would be great,” she said. “That way I can continue to help Leo.”

  Matt volunteered to handle the wood cutting while Bailey and her boyfriend worked on clearing out some of the residual junk out of the side of the room opposite where I’d been working.

  At one point, Felicity stopped me. “I think Mrs. Barbosa just pulled up. We should go say hello.”

  I put down the piece of wood I’d been about to affix on the wall. “All right…”

  We left the other three in the garage and headed toward the main residence.

  Before I could blink, a large boy ran out of the house and landed straight against my chest, nearly knocking me over. Without saying anything, he took my hand and led me to the backyard as he ran at warp speed.

  “What’s going on, mate?” I asked.

  He shrieked but said nothing. Within seconds, I realized he wasn’t typical. This must have been the special-needs child we were renovating the therapy space for. I laughed, relieved that I hadn’t had a knee-jerk reaction to nearly being clobbered by a kid almost as big as me. I knew he was only about thirteen or fourteen.

  The boy led me to a bench swing, and we sat down. He began swinging us with his legs as he continued to hold my hand. There’s a first time for everything in life, I guess.

  I spotted Felicity running toward us.

  “So, okay, you’ve met Theo,” she said, out of breath.

  “I certainly have. We’ve become quite acquainted in a matter of seconds.”

  A woman, whom I assumed was Mrs. Barbosa, appeared. “Leo, I’m so sorry. Theo loves it when we have fresh faces over to the house, especially guys. He’s so used to all the female therapists who come work with him. I guess he got a little excited to see you.”

  I looked at him, and he gazed over at me before placing his head on my shoulder.

  “I hope you’re not uncomfortable,” she said.

  “Of course not.”

  Theo was like a nearly two-hundred-pound teddy bear. There was certainly nothing to be uncomfortable about.

  “Thanks for humoring him. He’s not verbal, but I can see he likes you, even if he can’t tell me. And believe me, he can sense the good ones.”

  “His radar must be off today, then,” I joked as he continued to swing us.

  She smiled. “I can’t thank you enough for your donation that helped make all of this possible. Felicity told me. I don’t know what to say.”

  “No need to say anything. I’m happy to do it. You’ll be seeing a lot of us over the next few weeks.”

  “I understand you’re from England, and you’re only here through the summer?”

  “Yes. And being able to work on this project will bring important meaning to the last leg of my trip.”

  Mrs. Barbosa looked back toward the house. “I wish I could stay and chat, but my other kids need me inside. It’s time to make lunch.” She waved at the boy. “Come on, Theo.”

  Theo didn’t budge. He seemed very comfortable as he continued to lean his head on my shoulder.

  “It’s all right. He can stay with me. I’ll make sure he gets inside safely.”

  “Are you sure?” she said.

  “Yes.”

  It didn’t look like we had much choice; this kid wasn’t letting go of me anytime soon.

  After she left, Felicity beamed as she looked at me. “You’re very sweet to let him do that.”

  “Every man can use a ride on a swing once in a while.”

  She chuckled. “Do you want me to stay here with you?”

  “No. We’ll be fine.”

  “Okay.” She smiled.

  “Hey…” I called as she walked away.

  “Yeah?”

  “That guy…Matt. Who is he?”

  Felicity let out a breath. “Did you sense something? Is that why you’re asking?”

  “Yeah, I did. You seemed nervous around him from the moment he arrived.”

  She glanced toward the garage. “He was my high school boyfriend. I had no idea Stewart was going to bring him here. They’re good friends. The last I heard, Matt was living in Pennsylvania. I never expected to see him.”

  That gave me pause. “He lives in Pennsylvania. The same place you’re headed?”

  “Yeah. That’s just a coincidence, of course. He ended up getting into UPENN after high school. That’s why we went our separate ways. At the time, I was pretty broken up about it. I didn’t see why distance had to matter. But I guess he realized he wouldn’t be able to keep it in his pants at school or something.”

  “I see.”

  “I haven’t seen him in a while. He doesn’t usually come home in the summers. I’ve maybe seen him twice in the years since we broke up.”

  My suspicions grew. “Interesting that he decided to come help all of a sudden.” Damn. I could feel this odd jealousy rising to the surface. I had no right to feel territorial about her, but I felt threatened by her ex.

  “Well, he’s good friends with Stewart.”

  Is she that naïve? “Make no mistake, he came here because of you.”

  “I don’t think so.”

  “Trust me. He’s using this as an opportunity to reconnect. He missed your beautiful face.” Just like I will.

  “Well, that’s too bad for him, isn’t it?” She shook her head. “Anyway, I’d better go help them.”

  My eyes remained glued to her as she walked away, but I stayed on the swing with Theo. I had only a limited view of the garage from here.

  At one point, as Felicity walked from the garage to the house, Matt stopped her. They talked for a while. I was certain he was happy to have cornered her.

  She kept looking down at her feet. He definitely had an effect on her.

  I turned to Theo and muttered, “If you weren’t cockblocking me, I could have rescued her from this, you know.”

  He laughed and began to move the swing faster.

  Hanging on to the edge, I warned, “I don’t think these swings were meant to go this fast, mate.”

  He laughed harder.

  All in all, I spent nearly an hour on that swing with Theo before he randomly bolted toward the house. I chased after him to make sure he got safely inside.

  When I returned to the garage, I locked eyes with Felicity, who seemed less anxious than before as she chatted with Bailey and gathered trash into garbage bags.

  I went back to my task of putting up the framework. From time to time, Matt would bring me the appropriate-sized pieces of wood, and I’d pretend to be cordial while sizing him up.

  After our work was done for the day, Felicity and I packed into my rented truck while the other three took off in Stewart’s Jeep.

  As we headed down the road, I turned to her. “I think we got a lot done for the first day, yeah?”

  “Way more than I thought.”

  “What did Matt want when he stopped you earlier?” I asked. �
��I watched you talk to him while I was swinging with Theo.”

  “He asked me what I was up to, and he said we should get together when I move to Pennsylvania, but I brushed it off. I’m not going to do that.”

  I knew it. “Nor should you, if he’s hurt you in the past,” I said, swallowing the lump in my throat. He’d only been back into her life for a matter of minutes and had tried to make a play for her. “How long is he here for?”

  “Not sure. He’s on vacation in Narragansett, visiting his family. He has to return to Pennsylvania for work, I assume.” She turned to me. “He also asked if you and I were together.”

  “What did you say?”

  “I told him we were seeing where things go.”

  “That’s the truth, I suppose.” I tightened my grip on the steering wheel. “Anyway, I’m sorry he showed up if it dampened your spirits today at all.” Glancing over at her again, I paused. “The fact that you were so affected made me wonder if you still have feelings for him?”

  She shook her head as she twirled her silver ring around her finger. “The only thing that bummed me out about seeing him was that it reminded me of how things ended—of the fact that almost all relationships end. I’m not into anyone right now but you, Leo, if that’s what you’re wondering. And that really sucks for me.”

  Some of the tension that had been building inside my body all day began to lift. “I guess we’re one fucked-up team, then. Because all I could think about was how lucky he is to get to live where you’ll be. And the way he was looking at you made me a bit uneasy, even though I don’t have a right to be.”

  Felicity remained quiet for several seconds as she looked out the window. “Matt was my first…everything. I gave way too much of myself to him at a very young age. It’s why when the other relationship I had in college ended, it almost didn’t faze me. I’d already been there and done that with Matt and had lost some capacity to be hurt by then.”

  “Do you really lose the capacity, or do you just block it out?”

  “I’m definitely a good blocker of emotions. It’s a practiced talent.” She flashed a sad smile. “Have you ever had your heart broken?”