When she got back to Holland Park, she found Max in the study, behind the desk. Chris was in there too, and Steve. All conversation halted when she showed up and stood in the open doorway looking at them.
‘What’s this, a board meeting?’ she quipped, breezing in, thinking, stuff them; they’d intimidated her once, they weren’t ever going to do it again.
‘Sort of,’ said Max.
‘Anything I should know about?’ she asked, looking around at the three of them and seeing that something had changed.
Now, Steve looked directly at her, not avoiding her eyes. And Chris, who hadn’t addressed a single civil word to her in a fortnight, was smiling ruefully.
‘Hunter’s just phoned,’ said Max.
‘Oh?’ Annie held her breath.
‘They’ve picked up Pete Jones. He was getting on a ferry in Portsmouth when they collared him.’
‘Shit,’ said Annie. Yes, she could almost feel some sympathy for the little bastard. His life had been so wrecked by the fallout from Sam Farrell’s sins and Dolly’s revenge that he had been driven to murder. But she hadn’t wanted the Bill to get him. His arse belonged to her. She didn’t want prison, rehabilitation and release for him. She wanted this closed up, done with.
Chris and Steve stood up and came to the door. Annie stepped aside.
‘Mrs Carter,’ said Steve, passing her with a polite nod.
‘Mrs Carter,’ said Chris, and winked at her.
Annie closed the door on them both, heard them go off across the hallway and out the front door.
‘Blimey, what did you say to them?’ she asked.
‘Not a lot,’ said Max, standing up and coming around the desk.
‘Bit different to the treatment I’ve been getting.’
‘They thought you’d screwed me over.’
‘I know.’ Annie stepped further into the room. ‘And now, knowing the full story, what do you think?’
Max stared at her.
‘God’s sake, say something,’ moaned Annie, wishing he’d come to her, hold her, take the fear away, the awful fear that she might be losing him.
‘I think that you kept an oath you swore to keep. You honoured that oath, even when it came back and bit you in the arse. Even then, you kept it. When a lot of others would have given it up.’
‘It sure didn’t do me any favours,’ said Annie.
‘Even so. You kept it.’
‘You say that as if it’s good.’
‘Loyalty’s a good thing.’
‘Max, I’m sorry,’ Annie burst out suddenly. ‘I wish I could have told you. I wanted to. I couldn’t do it. Not just because of the oath. I was too afraid of what your reaction would be.’
Max moved closer until he was within touching distance.
‘I was mad as hell at you,’ he said. ‘When I left Gina Barolli’s place, I wanted to wring your bloody neck.’ His eyes dropped to the bruises at her throat. ‘I nearly bloody did it too, didn’t I. Sorry.’
‘What changed your mind?’ She couldn’t believe it; he’d apologized.
‘You did. Being so tough, so bloody-minded, so certain you were in the right.’
‘I was in the right.’
Max stepped closer. He let out a breath and gripped her waist with both hands and pulled her in, very gently, so that their bodies touched.
‘One thing,’ he said.
‘Oh? What’s that?’ Annie linked her arms around his neck. She kissed his chin, then his cheek, then his mouth, nuzzling in against him, inhaling his scent.
Max eased her back a bit, grasped her chin, stared her straight in the eye. ‘No more fucking secrets. Not now, not ever. Are we agreed?’
‘Agreed,’ said Annie.
‘Swear?’
‘I swear. I really do.’
‘Good.’ He pulled her back in and kissed her, hard. ‘Time for bed, then,’ said Max.
‘It’s two in the afternoon,’ said Annie, starting to smile.
‘Shut up,’ said Max with a grin, and lifted her into his arms.
‘Ow! Watch the damned rib,’ she said.
‘I said, shut it.’