Page 56 of Break Me: Smith and Belle

“But it’s not like this is your first party,” I said with a nervous laugh.

“What if it is?” She shrugged her narrow shoulders.

I forced the startled look off my face, but it was too late. Brex and Edward were wearing similar expressions.

“Don’t feel sorry for me,” she demanded. “Who wants to celebrate the day they were born? You don’t even remember that day! You might as well pick some random Tuesday and have cake then.”

I’d hit up against Georgia’s protective shell before. But, in recent months, I’d gotten a peek at the soft heart she hid under it. I made a mental note to ask Smith about her past. Surely, she couldn’t have gone her whole life without a birthday party. Then again, Georgia liked to pretend she didn’t need anyone or anything, especially when it came to her feelings. Most of the time, she didn’t seem to have any at all. It was one of the reasons that I found her so hard to understand. I knew, for a fact, that she was a submissive, in the truest sense of the word. As someone who craved the liberation of giving control to my husband in the bedroom—if nowhere else—I knew the bliss that came with releasing the emotions and worries that preoccupied me.

But Georgia never seemed worried or upset about anything. Angry? Yes. But I didn’t see how that equated to her sexual predilections.

“Stop dissecting me,” she barked.

I turned away, embarrassed to be caught staring. “I’m sorry. I was just thinking…“ I searched for an excuse that would give us both an easy out. Before I could find one, Alexander reappeared in the room, looking stricken.

“We should talk,” he said in an unusually concerned voice. “Somewhere private.”

“I think you can tell anyone in this room,” I said, trying to ignore the slight shake in my own voice. “They’ll all find out, eventually.”

“It’s not that—” Alexander cut himself off as Mrs. Winters entered the room. He stayed silently as she surveyed all of us and inquired about drinks. He didn’t say anything until she headed back to the kitchen. “Where’s Smith? I should talk to him, too.”

“I thought he went to the loo.” My forehead wrinkled when I realized I had no clue how long my husband had been absent. I’d thought nothing when he’d excused himself for a moment after dinner, but I’d been too preoccupied to notice his absence.

“You should find him,” Alexander told me, his voice rich with meaning.

I couldn’t decide if he was being cautious due to the presence of the housekeeper, or because he wanted to wait for Smith to be here before he delivered bad news. I told myself it was the latter. After all, we’d gone out of our way to keep Mrs. Winters in the dark while knowing exactly where she was at all times. Alexander knew better than to share secrets in front of strangers. I imagined he’d spent his whole life learning to prevent the staff from overhearing the wrong thing.

I nodded and started toward the hall. Smith must have gone upstairs. He probably needed a moment away from our growing number of guests. I’d only gotten as far as the doorway when Georgia called, “Stop.”

“What?” I asked, even though my body halted in place.

“You won’t find him upstairs,” she confessed.

A drum pounded in my head as I stared at her, trying to translate her words into any meaning other than the one I already knew to be true. “Where is he?”

“I can’t tell you that.”

“Georgia,” I said, my voice low but filled with a dangerous undercurrent. “Where is he?”

“I heard you the first time,” she said. “I can’t tell you.”

“Then tell me,” Alexander ordered, stepping to my side.

Georgia shook her head.

My knees locked, my legs feeling weak beneath me, and I nearly crumbled. It was only Penny, still nestled in my arms, that forced me to stay upright. Something was happening. Georgia knew where he had gone. Judging from the pinched look on her face, she didn’t agree with whatever decision he had made.

Had he gone to take the fall for what I’d done? Was he on his way to the police to tell them he was responsible for Nora’s disappearance?

“I don’t think you understand,” Alexander continued. “I need to talk to him.”

“It might be too late for that,” she admitted.

I took one shaky step toward the nearest chair. Edward shot out of his own seat, just in time to rescue Penny from my arms as I finally buckled. I didn’t know what Georgia meant. I didn’t understand her words. Somehow, my heart did, though, because I felt it break.

“Where is he?” Alexander’s command boomed through the room, echoing in the vacant space my heart had recently occupied.

“Doing something stupid,” Georgia said through gritted teeth. Her jaw tensed, and I could see the war going on inside her. At last, she exhaled with a frustrated grunt. “He got a blackmail letter today. You didn’t kill anyone.”