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moving out of this place will have to wait until I finish uni.” To Sophia, it felt like her mother held her hostage.
    “Or…you could bypass all of that by coming to live with me.”
    “I don’t know why I didn’t think of that sooner, but you’re right. It’s time to get out from under her thumb. You won’t mind having an unemployed vagrant live with you?”
    “Ha, of course not, darling. Just so long as it’s you and not someone else. Which gives me an idea,” Anne Marie said as she sat next to Sophia. “I think we should go to Opal tonight.”
    “I can’t.” Sophia propped herself up on her elbows, pushing away all those sore feelings her mother always managed to drag up. “The last place I feel like going is a night club. Plus, I promised I would go to this charity dinner auction at the St. Pancras Renaissance.”
    “Do you think that’s a good idea after the way you two have been arguing?”
    “Not really,” Sophia said as she sat upright and pushed her hair out of her face, “but the auction is fashion-based, with designer clothing and such, so I’ll have fun no matter what.”
    “Well,” Anne Marie said with a smile, “I think you need some good, fashionable company then, don’t you think?”
    “Why, yes.” Sophia flashed a grin. “I think you may be right.”

Chapter Four
    X AVIER S KETCHED A CROSS T HE P AD of paper, seeking the perfect dress to finish off his collection for New York’s Spring is in the Air fashion show in a couple months. It was a show for people new to the fashion world, and since he was one of their “success” stories from years past, they’d invited him back to show others what determination and skill could do. Not that his mind was in the right place at the moment. He clenched his eyes, unable to concentrate on the design as much as the pounding in his head.
    He did a quick drawing with his eyes closed. Maybe the loss of his senses would help. Once he finished and opened them again, he growled his annoyance. The sketching pencil snapped between his fingers. Tearing out the page, he crammed it between his hands and threw it in the garbage.
    It reminded him too much of her. Everything reminded him of her. His Sophia.
    His entire line—hell, his entire life—had revolved around her. Every stitch of cloth. Every roll of fabric. Every color. Everything.
    Yet, for the second time, she’d run out on him without so much as an explanation. She had been within his reach. She had been in his arms. And now she was gone again.
    Granted, the first time hadn’t been her fault, but this time Sophia had scurried away of her own accord. And what was this business about her not knowing who he was?
    He collapsed in his chair and pressed his palms to his eyes.
    Why did it have to be this difficult? He’d thought he’d convinced himself to get her out of his mind. Obviously, Sophia had gotten him out of hers .
    Or had she? Maybe he had just frightened her. He thought he’d shown restraint, but hell, after all that time and thousands of miles, it had been all he could do to keep his hands to himself. It had been so long since he’d held her. Sure, maybe he shouldn’t have kissed her. Maybe he’d gotten a little carried away. But when their bodies had molded together as they had so many years before, the depth of what they’d shared reached a level Xavier had never known. The need that had flowed through him had sent him into a frenzy. He’d wanted her so badly he could have felt the pleasure at his fingertips. And he knew he’d seen longing in her beautiful blue eyes. He’d seen the spark of recognition.
    Xavier rubbed his hand on the back of his neck.
    In this day and age, one would think people would be easy to find. But even though he had stretched his powers to find Sophia, he’d come up empty-handed over the years. He had known where her parents lived in London and had tried—unsuccessfully—on numerous occasions to contact Sophia there. Each time he’d tried,