Alex looked at Lara now, in the glittering lights of the party at the
British Museum. He saw that she was now sporting a deadly serious
expression and he changed tack, "why have you been avoiding me for the last
month?"
She let out a short laugh and attempted to pull her arm away from his strong grip. "I may have saved your life Alex, but that doesn't mean I want to be friends with you. There's the small matter of those prayer wheels you stole from me, plus you were working for Powell." Lara almost spat the name, "and I see money is still more important to you than anything else," she sneered, glancing across the room at Alex's date, the empty-headed heiress to a textiles fortune.
Alex shook his head slightly in annoyance. "Look, I thought we had gotten past all that. What's going on with us?"
"There's an 'us'?"
Alex chose to ignore that comment and carried on speaking. "I didn't know that Powell was with the Illuminati, even less that he killed your father. If I knew that I would have killed him myself Lara, I swear."
She looked at him with eyes blazing, "well then I should thank you for leaving that pleasure for me." Lara looked down at Alex's hand on her arm, "I would advise you to remove you hand, if you wish to keep it," she said icily.
He knew by now to take her threats seriously. As he let go Lara turned around and stormed off to the bar, but Alex was persistent and followed after her. "Lara! Please could you at least tell me what I've done wrong now, I mean since you forgave me for taking the prayer wheels, and for working for Powell."
"You're still an arrogant, self-centred, greedy, sell-out!" she retorted over her shoulder.
"Are you talking about that article?" he said, realization finally dawning.
"Damned right I am," she spun around. "You had no right telling the Daily Mail all that personal information about me. Especially about my father." The last sentence was spoken more quietly.
"Please Lara, let me explain."
The note of desperation in his voice made Lara stop and turn to look at him. She wished he didn't look so damn sexy in that tuxedo because then this would be so much easier.
"Ok. I'll give you one minute to explain yourself."
"Thank you." He led her out onto a balcony so they could talk in privacy.
"Go on then, the clocks ticking." She leant back against the wall, arms folded across her chest defensively.
"I'm sorry I sold the story, but most of what they said was lies anyway, I hardly told them anything," he said with as much sincerity as he could muster.
"I know it was lies, Alex." The edge to her voice made him hesitate, but he decided to carry on.
"I know this sounds pathetic, but I didn't really have a choice," he sighed and looked down, embarrassed. "I was in so much debt, and then this guy comes along offering me fifty grand just for a few details about you to pad out the story exposing the Illuminati." He looked up, smiling weakly.
Lara cringed. "Is that all? You betrayed me for fifty thousand pounds?" It was almost inconceivable. "So was it before or after you told me that you loved me that you agreed to do this?" she asked in a hurt voice.
"Oh god, Lara," Alex ran a hand roughly through his hair. "If I could go back and change one thing..."
"I would have lent you the fucking money, if you'd asked," she said angrily.
"You know I couldn't have borrowed from you."
Lara just clenched her fists, trying to suppress the urge to punch the guy.
"I've apologised, what else can I do?"
"Get out of my face."
Alex shrugged that off and decided to give it one last shot. "I know you despise the fact that I view tomb raiding as a business, and that if someone offers me fifty grand for a ten minute interview I'd take it, but some people don't have the luxury of doing all this for fun," he gave Lara a pointed look.
"What I really want to say is that what happened in Siberia, well, it...it changed me and you don't have to believe me but it's true. Watching a knife flying towards you and then suddenly being spared is quite an experience. I never properly thanked you for what you did for me, if I were you I would have let me die, God knows I deserved it. And, well, I think you're." he paused, not knowing quite what to say, "you're amazing Lara. So if you never want to speak to me again then fine, but I was hoping that maybe you'd give me the chance to show you how sorry I am and how much I appreciate what you did for me. And that I've changed," he finished.
Alex took Lara's hand and lifted it to his mouth, placing a gentle kiss on the scar that ran across her palm where she gripped the knife and turned it around to save his life. "Let me buy you dinner tomorrow night, to try and show you that I mean it," he said, giving her a lop-sided smile.
"So you just said all that to try and get a date with me?" she spluttered, pulling her hand away from his angrily.
"Lara no! For Christ's sake I meant every word and if you can't see that." he exclaimed, unable to finish the sentence. "I don't know why I bothered, or why you bothered to save my life. You're just a heartless bitch!" he stormed off through the French windows back into the party, leaving Lara feeling like she'd just been smacked in the mouth.
She suddenly felt a terrible sickness in her stomach and leant against the railings to steady herself. Maybe he had changed, maybe he really was sorry. Maybe she really was a heartless bitch. In the space of two days she had rudely rejected the proposal of a perfectly lovely man, offended Hillary and now stamped on Alex's attempt at an apology. What was wrong with her? Lara knew that she could be rather cold, but the events of her youth had made her feel pretty deadened emotionally. The only thing that made her feel alive was danger, the thrill of tomb raiding, coming back with the prize. For a while, Alex had made her feel alive but that was before he had betrayed her trust by stealing the very thing she was paying him to locate. She should never have given him the chance to betray her again. He was just insufferable, so arrogant. So handsome. And he did seem so sorry. "Bloody hell!" she said out loud.
She let out a short laugh and attempted to pull her arm away from his strong grip. "I may have saved your life Alex, but that doesn't mean I want to be friends with you. There's the small matter of those prayer wheels you stole from me, plus you were working for Powell." Lara almost spat the name, "and I see money is still more important to you than anything else," she sneered, glancing across the room at Alex's date, the empty-headed heiress to a textiles fortune.
Alex shook his head slightly in annoyance. "Look, I thought we had gotten past all that. What's going on with us?"
"There's an 'us'?"
Alex chose to ignore that comment and carried on speaking. "I didn't know that Powell was with the Illuminati, even less that he killed your father. If I knew that I would have killed him myself Lara, I swear."
She looked at him with eyes blazing, "well then I should thank you for leaving that pleasure for me." Lara looked down at Alex's hand on her arm, "I would advise you to remove you hand, if you wish to keep it," she said icily.
He knew by now to take her threats seriously. As he let go Lara turned around and stormed off to the bar, but Alex was persistent and followed after her. "Lara! Please could you at least tell me what I've done wrong now, I mean since you forgave me for taking the prayer wheels, and for working for Powell."
"You're still an arrogant, self-centred, greedy, sell-out!" she retorted over her shoulder.
"Are you talking about that article?" he said, realization finally dawning.
"Damned right I am," she spun around. "You had no right telling the Daily Mail all that personal information about me. Especially about my father." The last sentence was spoken more quietly.
"Please Lara, let me explain."
The note of desperation in his voice made Lara stop and turn to look at him. She wished he didn't look so damn sexy in that tuxedo because then this would be so much easier.
"Ok. I'll give you one minute to explain yourself."
"Thank you." He led her out onto a balcony so they could talk in privacy.
"Go on then, the clocks ticking." She leant back against the wall, arms folded across her chest defensively.
"I'm sorry I sold the story, but most of what they said was lies anyway, I hardly told them anything," he said with as much sincerity as he could muster.
"I know it was lies, Alex." The edge to her voice made him hesitate, but he decided to carry on.
"I know this sounds pathetic, but I didn't really have a choice," he sighed and looked down, embarrassed. "I was in so much debt, and then this guy comes along offering me fifty grand just for a few details about you to pad out the story exposing the Illuminati." He looked up, smiling weakly.
Lara cringed. "Is that all? You betrayed me for fifty thousand pounds?" It was almost inconceivable. "So was it before or after you told me that you loved me that you agreed to do this?" she asked in a hurt voice.
"Oh god, Lara," Alex ran a hand roughly through his hair. "If I could go back and change one thing..."
"I would have lent you the fucking money, if you'd asked," she said angrily.
"You know I couldn't have borrowed from you."
Lara just clenched her fists, trying to suppress the urge to punch the guy.
"I've apologised, what else can I do?"
"Get out of my face."
Alex shrugged that off and decided to give it one last shot. "I know you despise the fact that I view tomb raiding as a business, and that if someone offers me fifty grand for a ten minute interview I'd take it, but some people don't have the luxury of doing all this for fun," he gave Lara a pointed look.
"What I really want to say is that what happened in Siberia, well, it...it changed me and you don't have to believe me but it's true. Watching a knife flying towards you and then suddenly being spared is quite an experience. I never properly thanked you for what you did for me, if I were you I would have let me die, God knows I deserved it. And, well, I think you're." he paused, not knowing quite what to say, "you're amazing Lara. So if you never want to speak to me again then fine, but I was hoping that maybe you'd give me the chance to show you how sorry I am and how much I appreciate what you did for me. And that I've changed," he finished.
Alex took Lara's hand and lifted it to his mouth, placing a gentle kiss on the scar that ran across her palm where she gripped the knife and turned it around to save his life. "Let me buy you dinner tomorrow night, to try and show you that I mean it," he said, giving her a lop-sided smile.
"So you just said all that to try and get a date with me?" she spluttered, pulling her hand away from his angrily.
"Lara no! For Christ's sake I meant every word and if you can't see that." he exclaimed, unable to finish the sentence. "I don't know why I bothered, or why you bothered to save my life. You're just a heartless bitch!" he stormed off through the French windows back into the party, leaving Lara feeling like she'd just been smacked in the mouth.
She suddenly felt a terrible sickness in her stomach and leant against the railings to steady herself. Maybe he had changed, maybe he really was sorry. Maybe she really was a heartless bitch. In the space of two days she had rudely rejected the proposal of a perfectly lovely man, offended Hillary and now stamped on Alex's attempt at an apology. What was wrong with her? Lara knew that she could be rather cold, but the events of her youth had made her feel pretty deadened emotionally. The only thing that made her feel alive was danger, the thrill of tomb raiding, coming back with the prize. For a while, Alex had made her feel alive but that was before he had betrayed her trust by stealing the very thing she was paying him to locate. She should never have given him the chance to betray her again. He was just insufferable, so arrogant. So handsome. And he did seem so sorry. "Bloody hell!" she said out loud.