It was Chiara's first time in a chauffeured car excepting her father's funeral. She had been running on fumes then, on tea and a couple hours' sleep, so she barely remembered it; it was a misty memory, filtered through illness and grief.

Today, though, even though it was cold, the sun was shining and she was on her way to London, for as close to a holiday as she had ever had in her life. And for the first time in weeks, the shadow of her father's death wasn't looming over her, casting a pall over her every waking moment.

She settled back into the luxurious leather upholstery, determined to enjoy every moment of her found good fortune. She opened every drawer and cupboard in the back of the car and helped herself to a bottle of water and a biscuit, even though she wasn't particularly hungy or thirsty, and the trip was barely two hours.

The car pulled up in front of the hotel and someone was there to open the door and whisk her one piece of luggage away before she could say anything sensible. Not that she would've known what to say, anyway. Noah was waiting for her, and had tipped everyone in sight before she could even get her money out.

"Chiara, welcome to London!" He smiled and hugged her, leading her into the hotel's opulent interior.

Chiara's eyes were like saucers, looking from one thing to the next inside the hotel. She'd never been anywhere like this in her life. "Sorry, Noah, but we have to walk a bit slower, okay? The only other times I've been to London was when we went to Gardening conventions and stayed in Motor Courts by the airport, you know?"

They laughed together as they rode up in the elevator.

"Lovely to see you, child," Ellie said as she hugged Chiara. "Hope your drive up was pleasant?"

Chiara nodded. "Yes, I had water and some biscuits I didn't even want, just because I could," she informed the older woman with a grin.

"Well, we have nothing going on this afternoon until dinner, then there's the concert, so you can rest, or we can go out, whatever you like," Ellie told her. "Oh, you can put your things in there." She gestured toward a door that opened off the beautifully appointed lounge in which they were standing. There was a beautiful view of Hyde Park across the street.

Chiara hesitated. "Have I put one of you out?" she asked. "How did I manage to get my own room when you didn't know I was coming?"

Ellie smiled. "No worries. We were in a two bedroom suite, and we switched to a three bedroom suite, that's all."

"Oh god, the expense!" Chiara was beside herself. "I wouldn't have minded to kip down on the sofa, honestly!"

"Nonsense!" Ellie was emphatic. "Please don't give money another thought whilst you're here with us, Chiara dear. During most of the year, I live a regular life, buying things on special, cutting corners where I can, but the holidays are my time to splash out a little, and thanks to Drew I can, so please, let me enjoy myself, all right? I only have boys, and while I do love them," and here she paused to smile at Noah, who smiled back, "I'm looking forward to shopping with a real, live girl."

Chiara finally nodded, depositing her bag in the beautiful room with the view of the park, and returning to have a cup of tea with Ellie and Noah.

She actually ended up taking a nap, a luxury she hadn't indulged in for years. Then she took a bath before getting dressed for dinner. She was a little worried that she'd be overdressed. but she saw Ellie was wearing a dark blue sheath dress with sparkles, and Noah was wearing a jacket and tie, and stopped worrying.

"Oh, Chiara, you look lovely," Ellie told her. "Doesn't she look beautiful, Noah?"

"Yeah," he agreed enthusiastically. "I think this is the first time I've seen you not in those overall things."

"Thank you," she acknowledged, embarrassed. "I made it from something I saw in a magazine," she admitted. She'd copied it as best she could, making it larger to accommodate her larger measurements. It was black, overlaid with black lace on top, with a bouffant skirt with a pink pattern of flowers on it. She'd also shortened it a bit to show off her legs, which she considered to be one of her assets. She knew they were going straight to the concert after, where they might be standing, so she was wearing black ballet flats, just in case.

"Well, Drew said it was the BBC, and that they would be performing with the Philharmonic, so I thought it would be a bit dressy," she said.

"Exactly so," Ellie reassured her. "You look just right."

They went to dinner at Minuet, one of London's poshest restaurants. Chiara knew that UK Crush liked to come here, and that TinkerBell Foster had performed there before, one of her last public performances.

"Wow, this is so beautiful," she breathed as they sat down. "I hate so sound like a broken record, but I've never been anyplace like this in my life."

Chiara leaned over to Noah. "You'll have to show me which cutlery to use, seriously, okay?"

He laughed. "As if I know," he responded. "I just grab whatever's handiest."

"Will Drew be joining us?" Chiara asked, looking around.

"No, unfortunately, they're rehearsing and doing meet and greets and those sorts of things until the last minute, so we won't be seeing him until after, if that," Ellie told her. "There's probably a party or something after the show, so I wouldn't be surprised if we don't get him to ourselves until tomorrow."

"Oh, that's a shame." Chiara couldn't hide her disappointment.

"No reason you can't go to the party, sweetheart," Ellie told her with a smile after they'd given their order. Chiara didn't understand a lot of the French menu, so she stuck to filet mignon because at least she knew what that was.

"Will Noah be going to the after party?" she asked.

"I'm 'too young,'" Noah informed her, and Chiara could tell that this topic had been discussed between him and his mother many times before.

"Aww, poor Noah," she commiserated with a smile.

After dinner, which was as delicious and beautiful as she expected, it was back in the car and over to the Royal Albert Hall, which was again, stunning, and made Chiara glad she was dressed up. There were fangirls everywhere, dressed in jeans like teenyboppers, and in tight, short dresses who must've been freezing, holding posters, armed with phones, hoping for photos or selfies.

"They're going to be disappointed," Noah remarked.

"Why?"

"No red carpet or arrivals opportunity tonight," Noah explained. This is strictly for broadcast on television, and all of the artists have been here all day. They arrived this morning, I believe. We're the most famous people they'll get to see, I'm afraid." He grinned at Chiara and winked.

Sure enough, screams went up from the assembled fans when Noah and Ellie were recognized, which made Chiara smile. She wondered if Luke's fiancée and family and Gary's people also got such greetings from the crowds.

They were seated in a private booth up in the balcony, from where the view was amazing, but eye contact with those on stage really wasn't possible.

"Wow, will Drew even be able to see us?" Chiara asked.

"Not really, not here in the Royal Albert," Ellie answered. "But don't worry, he knows we're here."

"He knows I'm here?"

"Not you, that's still a secret," Ellie said with a smile. "I've arranged for Neddy to come for you and take you to the party. Drew will be so tickled when he sees you."

Chiara was glad that, however much Ellie knew about her and Drew, she was happy about it, and seemed to want to encourage it.

Once the show started, Chiara was carried away. Every performer was flawless, and Christmas magic was woven. And Manderley Dreams was by far the most popular act there, so they were given the most to do, and they executed it all to perfection.

Chiara grabbed Ellie's arm when Drew sang the opening bars of "O Holy Night" alone, accompanying himself on the most beautiful concert length Steinway grand Chiara had ever seen. The rest of the band joined in from the second verse, with Gary and Luke on acoustic guitars, and Ned on glockenspiel, and they sounded incredible.

"Aren't they marvelous?" Ellie whispered to Chiara.

Chiara could only nod.

By the time the show was over, Chiara was thoroughly in the Christmas spirit, and completely head over heels for Drew.

"Okay, sweetheart, security's going to take you to Ned, who will take you to the party, all right?"

Chiara was surprised. "What? Aren't we all going to see Drew first? Congratulate him on the show?"

"Nah, the lads will have begun leaving already, snuck out in an unmarked bread van or something, and separately; they'd be mobbed otherwise," Noah informed her. "Ned will come for you and sneak out, some different way."

He leaned in and kissed Chiara on the cheek, after which he smiled at his mother. "Have fun at the party, Chiara, you smell wonderful." He winked at her.

Just then a large man named Dex showed up to escort Chiara to Ned. She waved good bye to Ellie and Noah and walked away with Dex to Ned's dressing room.

She hugged Ned and kissed his cheek. "That was amazing, Ned! You were phenomenal!"

"Thanks, I thought it went rather well, too," he agreed, smiling at her. "And don't you look pretty as a picture tonight. You clean up grand, don't you?"

"Oh, thank you." She did a quick twirl, making her skirt pouf out in a very satisfying way.

"Okay, let's get going, I'm starving."

So they ducked out a side entrance and into a car with windows that were tinted so dark they were nearly black.

"You mind if we grab some food beforehand?" he asked. "I'm just that hungry. I know there will be something to eat there, but I want something now, you know?"

"Of course not, go ahead."

So they found a kebab place, and Chiara hopped out and grabbed a few sticks, which Ned wolfed in the car on the way to the hotel suite where the after party was happening.

There was a crowd of mostly girls at the front of the hotel, but Ned had the driver take them to the back, to where the kitchen door stood open, and they entered that way.

"Be careful of your skirt," Ned advised her.

Chiara gathered her skirt close so it wouldn't brush against anything as they made their way through the kitchen and through the back of the hotel until they found themselves at the elevators.

Security let them on a special elevator that was smaller than the rest, and finally they were on their way up.

"Don't we need a pass or something?" Chiara asked curiously.

Ned pointed at his face, green eyes twinkling. "This is our pass," he said with a wink.

They could hear the music as soon as the doors opened, along with the sound of raised voices.

Wow, this place was huge. One wall was floor to ceiling glass, with views of nighttime London spread out around them.

And liquor was everywhere.

Every surface already had bottles and glasses. There were ashtrays and cigarettes, and some things that looked like drug paraphernalia to Chiara, though she wasn't sure.

"Did this party really just start a little while ago?" she asked Ned, her voice quiet with awe.

He laughed comfortably. "Some people have been here since the afternoon, probably," he told her.

"Hey, where's Drew?" he asked a young woman in a skin tight halter dress.

She swiveled her head toward a closed door and turned away.

Chiara and Ned walked toward the door. Just as they got it open, however, someone called Ned. He motioned Chiara inside while he turned to answer the man who'd hailed him.

Chiara entered what looked like a bedroom suite. The first person she saw was Gary, sitting on the huge bed, leaning against the headboard, facing her. He wasn't wearing anything, and had an erection, which he was clasping, rubbing from time as he smiled and nodded. A nude girl lay next to him, pressing her body into him as she kissed his neck and rubbed his legs with her foot. The lamp next to the bed was on, as was the bathroom light, which shone into the bedroom through the open door.

There was no other illumination in the room.

Chiara stepped back, and was going to close the door on naked Gary and his playtime when she realized someone else was sitting on the bed, facing him. She recognized the dark curls and the set of the shoulders from the back a split second before Gary saw her.

Gary looked at her, brown eyes mocking, raising one eyebrow slightly, holding her with his gaze. He smiled at her as she stood motionless just inside the door, unable to move. Drew, who sat on the bed facing Gary, obviously had no idea she was there.

"So Drew, old man, tell me about that chubby gardener bird you've got stashed down at your property," Gary drawled as he continued to stroke himself.

Next to Gary, the naked girl who was kissing his neck briefly lifted her head. "Enough with the bloody talking," she whined. "Can we bloody fuck already?"

"In a bit, in a bit," Gary promised, stroking her back and squeezing her buttocks.

Chiara saw Drew's bare shoulders move up and down, and realized to her horror that he was shirtless as well, and might possibly be in the same state as Gary. "What do you mean? There's nothing to tell. She works for me she grubs about with the flowers, she cuts the lawn, end of story."

"That's not what I've heard," Gary said, blinking like a cat, grinning a small grin at Chiara, who stood as if made of stone. "Ned tells me you've got her living there, right on the property."

"Yeah? What else does Ned say?"

This time it was Gary who shrugged. "Nothing. But you know Ned. He wouldn't know who was shagging whom if you were fucking right in front of him."

The girl with Gary moved down his body and started sucking on him, and the rhythmic slurping sounds filled the room.

"Oh, yeah, baby, feels good," Gary murmured before addressing Drew once more.

"I mean, you can do so much better, you know man?"

"Yeah, I know, I know," Drew answered, his voice lazy, and Chiara realized from his breathing that he was probably playing with himself as he spoke. For some reason this fact, more than his words, made her feel sick.

She swallowed, gripping the doorknob.

"And you know what I always say, right mate?" And Drew joined in on Gary's next words.

"Don't fuck around with the help!" They both shouted in unison.

Just then, just when Chiara thought she might be able to move, just when she thought she might be able to back out of the room with her dignity intact, someone emerged from the bathroom, wiping white powder from her nose. She was wearing black crotchless panties and nothing else. She had a spectacular body, with perky, perfect breasts, and a sheaf of blonde hair.

"You guys sure you don't want a bump?" she asked in a characterless, child's voice.

"No, we're good," Drew answered back. "Now get your beautiful arse over here. I've been watching Audrey blow Gars for the past five minutes."

The blonde girl walked toward Drew and began knee walking on the bed toward him.

"God, look at those perfect tits," Drew groaned, reaching for her.

"Uhm, who's the fat girl?" she asked, catching sight of Chiara standing by the door."

"What?" Drew's voice was muffled because his face was buried in the girl's chest.

"She's watching us," the girl stage whispered.

Just as Drew sat up and turned around, Ned finally finished talking and entered the room.

"Surprise, mate!" Ned crowed. "Look who's here..." his words died in his throat as he took in the sordid scene on the bed.

"Oh fuck," Drew said dismally.

Only Gary seemed unaffected, though the girl attached to his cock had sat up before he finished, wanting to see what was going on.

The six of them stood in tableau, staring at each other.