The Hundred Year Wait Read Free Page A

had
gone well but no one had stood out of the crowds wanting to be
photographed with her.
    “My effort is
likely to be entirely wasted,” she replied, knowing the chances of
bumping into him again were slim.
    “He is rather
reclusive.” Sebastian nodded once and fixed his gaze back on her
plot notes. For now the conversation on Myron was over. With a deep
breath she tried to join him in working out the best combination of
motives, character traits and circumstances to make the plot
gripping and unpredictable. Despite her best efforts, it only held
half her attention, while Myron's personality and traits held the
other half.
    The two hours
before her next signing slipped by in a barely registered haze.
With the little they had left to work out they should have been
done before time ran out but the need to move on to the bookshop
came before all the details were finalised.
    “You really are
distracted by Myron, aren't you?” Sebastian put down the pen. She
nodded.
    “I don't expect
that it matters much. I'm unlikely to even meet him again, let
alone get him to like me, and like is only the first of many
stages.” She pulled her jacket on and neatened her hair.
    “Of all the women
I've met, you're the first to show an interest in my brother that I
can believe in. You're also the first I've thought might interest
him.” He handed her the notebook she'd been jotting ideas down
in.
    “There is still an
element of chance that may never go in my favour.” Sebastian raised
an eyebrow. “I may never meet him again,” she explained and gave
him a wry smile.
    “Ah...” He scanned
her face as he trailed off, making her wonder if she'd said
something stupid.
    “What?”
    “His car has been
outside for the last ten minutes.”
    “He's probably
waiting for me to leave.” Despite her brush off, every muscle in
her torso tensed at the thought of him being so close to her.
    “No. He would ask
you to go if he wanted to talk to me. The only other possibility is
that he's here for you.” Her eyes went wide and she froze to the
spot while her brain tried to fathom a why. “Stay calm and go on.
Don't keep him waiting.”
    “Thank you,
Sebastian.” She stood on her tiptoes to give his over six foot
frame a kiss on the cheek. With that, she rushed from the flat and
down the stairs, only checking her pace by the front door. Rain
pattered down outside but she'd not thought to bring an
umbrella.
    When she strode
outside Myron's driver leapt up and opened the car door for her.
After exhaling in an attempt to calm herself, she stooped and got
into the car. Somehow she found herself sitting beside Myron Holmes
while managing the potentially undignified entrance with enough
grace that it boosted her confidence. A second later the car pulled
off and she could only assume they were on the way to the bookstore
she was scheduled to sign at.
    “Good afternoon,
Mr Holmes,” she said, giving him her attention. Today he wore a
deep blue suit and, if possible, looked even better than
yesterday.
    “Increased heart
rate, flushed cheeks and dilated pupils. Are you nervous, Miss
Jones?” Myron replied instead of greeting her.
    “I always get
nervous before a book signing. I'm put on show for everyone to see
and fans are notorious for putting their celebrities on a pedestal
that's impossible to stay on.”
    “Yet you chose
your profession.”
    “For the most part
my profession allows me to stay in the comfort of a familiar place
and be paid to invent and solve whatever predicaments I want my
characters to face. Every job has a downside.” Mycroft blinked but
made no response. She waited for him to explain why he'd picked her
up as she definitely wasn't saying anything more about why she was
nervous.
    “My sources inform
me that your next novel involves some, characters, of a North
Korean nationality, as well as a particular incident with them that
closely resembles a case my brother recently aided with.”
    “The storyline was
his