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Thomas has it all: nobility, money, the girl, and a position waiting for him at the family business. But when he thinks about the life ahead of him, he can't breathe. So he takes a gap year backpacking.
Nadia...
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A rush of breath exploded from Thomas' lungs as Nadia catapulted into him. Still weak, and a little tipsy, he was pushed backwards, just managing to keep them both upright. He'd caught her though. He wasn't going to let her fall.
The world settled after a moment, but the tremor in his legs remained — until he realised Nadia was the one shaking. "You're crying."
"No, I'm not!"
"Oh yes, you are."
He felt her move her head from side to side and heard a sniffle. An arm moved across his chest as she wiped her nose with the sleeve of her hoodie. Pulling a handkerchief out of his pocket, he handed over the neatly folded linen, then wrapped his arms around her quivering frame, holding her tight, and she melted into him.
When her hiccups became sighs, he held her away and looked down. The whites of her eyes shone under a sliver of moonlight, sparkling until she turned away and a mop of frizzy hair hid them.
"What happened?"
"Nothing happened," she said on a pout.
"Nadia —"
"I told you, it's nothing."
Thomas exhaled. The woman could be more obstinate than his father, and that was speaking volumes. "Tell me."
Silence. God. He wanted to rattle it out of her. But that wouldn't work. An ultimatum, then.
"Look, it's blatantly clear something happened, and there just might be a solution, so you'd damned well better tell me quick smart, or we can forget about the Inca Trail."
"We?"
He shrugged. "Us lawyers have means and ways." He didn't tell her he'd followed with every intent of bribing his way onto the tour. Bribing a way in for the two of them would be tricky.
Her mouth clamped shut into a sealed line.
Realising he'd prodded her enough, he waited. If she were going to speak, it would be in her own time. The tactic paid off.
"He" — she pulled away to wrap her arms around her chest and swallowed — "gave my pass to Savannah."
"Savannah?"
"The American." She looked up at him and rolled her eyes. "You know, the hot one."
Thomas flinched at the venom in her tone and thought it a good thing she'd not had the pleasure of Beatrice. She glared at him, and he fumbled. "How, er — umm ... It was your ticket. It doesn't make sense —"
"I transferred the money to him — for both the tickets. Stupid me, hey?" Her hand fisted into her hair, and she sniffed. "Because he said I couldn't buy them in Australia — a frickin' firewall, or some shit like that." She scoffed. The next words were quieter, slower. "They were our birthday presents." Slender shoulders slumped. "If he ... If things were over between us, I was going to ask him to pay me back so I could stay over here a little longer." A thin veil of clouds swept across the sky, painting her face with shadows. "But the fucking arsehole —"
