He gave the impression to be implying that Patrick was behind the investigations into the provenance of Aleksander’s work. Though LWC Capital hadn’t employed Emma, she hoped that Patrick was investigating Aleksander. Even when she couldn’t get out of the duty Aleksander had given her, hopefully, somebody would uncover one thing unlawful and he’d be taken down just a few notches.

“Certainly, they do. I distinctly keep in mind you throwing fairly a match when your staff misplaced to mine within the intramural competitors in freshman 12 months. Didn’t you break a vase or two?”

“Maybe, however that’s simply because I care about sports activities. I additionally keep in mind you throwing a little bit of a tantrum whenever you misplaced out to me for valedictorian in senior 12 months.”

“I did.” Patrick nodded and took a sip of his champagne glass. “Though I wouldn’t precisely name it a tantrum. Reporting you to the dean was the precise factor to do, what with all of the dishonest.”

“Allegations, allegations.” Aleksander swept a patriarchal smile over the assembled males. “Patrick right here all the time favored to blow the whistle on me after I was higher than him, but it surely’s not precisely my fault that I’m only a hair smarter right here and there.”

Emma watched the boys lob thinly veiled jabs backwards and forwards, all beneath the guise of teasing one another about their college days. The rationale why Aleksander wished Aurora was slowly changing into clearer. It was most likely much less in regards to the portray than about getting again at Patrick for some slight, both actual or imagined. The 2 males had been extraordinarily aggressive, extra so than Emma had seen between any two individuals who weren’t Olympic-level athletes or courtroom legal professionals. And their competitiveness appeared to go all the way in which again to their faculty days.

She needed to think about that the feud stemmed extra from Aleksander than Patrick. From what she knew in regards to the two males, she knew it was more likely that Aleksander did cheat and that Patrick was merely doing all he might to maintain issues honest. She herself knew, for example, that Patrick was proper when he talked about the doubtful provenance of a few of Aleksander’s work. Nonetheless, from the way in which the 2 spoke, it appeared that they had been each very invested in no matter feud that they had occurring — and from the amused expressions of the opposite males, she assumed it wasn’t the primary time they’d had this sort of interplay.

“—and I by no means did discover that trophy,” Patrick completed, shaking his head with a dramatized expression of cluelessness.

“Effectively, you wouldn’t have received it within the first place if I hadn’t been sick the day of the race.”

“Sick? Extra like hungover.”

“What can I say?” Aleksander shrugged. “I’ve all the time lived it up. Not like some individuals right here.” He raised his eyebrows at Patrick.

That jab may need been slightly extra deserved than the others. From what Emma had seen of Patrick, he was a next-level workaholic who not often took time away from the workplace for pleasure.

“Maybe my dedication to my work is my secret to success,” Patrick prompt.

“Certain, however what sort of success? Considered one of us is unquestionably extra widespread with the women.” Aleksander shot Emma a flirtatious smile that made her abdomen flip. Oh, no. She’d been content material to face right here whereas Aleksander and Patrick bickered, but when she was being introduced again into the dialog, she’d reasonably go away.

Not that she might.

“Effectively, Emma is right here with me tonight, not you. If that’s what you’re referring to.” Patrick held out his arm to Emma. “Talking of which, I wished to ask her opinion on a sure piece of artwork. When you’d excuse us.”

Or maybe she might go away. Feeling extra grateful than she’d anticipated, Emma took Patrick’s arm and let herself be led away from the group of males. Patrick’s muscle groups rippled beneath her finger ideas as they stepped round a desk of hors d’oeuvres.

“What portray did you wish to talk about?” Emma requested politely. She wished to thank Patrick for whisking her away or maybe level out how extremely entitled Aleksander was, however this was purported to be an expert event.

“There isn’t a selected portray I had in thoughts,” Patrick advised her. “Though I want to get your opinion on the artwork usually and listen to any solutions you may need on what I ought to bid on, what I actually wished was to get a second alone with you.” His eyes appeared to darken as he stated the final bit, going from the sunshine blue of a summer time sky to the deep blue of a stormy ocean.

Emma’s coronary heart fluttered on the suggestion that he wished to spend time along with her and at his expression. She’d observed how enticing he was, however till now she’d by no means had any indication that he may really feel the identical approach.

“You probably did?” Her voice was slightly decrease than she’d supposed.

“And, in fact, I wished to get you away from these jerks,” Patrick added, his tone now way more informal. Perhaps Emma had imagined the change in his eyes. It was higher this manner, anyway. As she saved reminding herself, he was a mark. Even when he was drawn to her, it wouldn’t change something. Besides maybe getting her simpler entry to the portray.

“Aren’t they your pals?” Emma requested teasingly.

“Effectively, Kareem and Ruben are one thing near pals, however Aleksander is unquestionably not. We’ve identified one another a very long time, and I doubt we’ve had even one nice dialog since we met.”

“What occurred?” Emma requested. “I imply, you’ll be able to’t have simply checked out one another for the primary time and determined to be rivals.”

“I feel he began to hate me slightly after I beat him out for sophistication president in our freshman 12 months. That was the primary time we went head-to-head on something. Since then, we’ve regularly discovered ourselves in competitors. At first it was primarily by likelihood, however since then we’ve each tried to beat the opposite out at one thing.”

“I can see that. Is your rivalry largely historic or are you continue to attempting to win?”

“Oh, it’s positively nonetheless occurring. Only a few weeks in the past, I bought a portray at public sale that I knew Aleksander wished and he was very upset. If there had been a way for him to cheat and get it from me anyway, he would have. I’m positive of it.”

Emma’s coronary heart clenched. She was sure that Patrick was speaking about Aurora. And she or he was the one serving to Aleksander cheat. For a second, she wished to admit every little thing to Patrick and hope he might assist, however there was no approach he’d belief her after that. He’d most likely flip her in to the authorities himself.

“I see,” she stated delicately.

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