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Just in case, she had been telling herself this last eighteen months. Just in case her father made some sort of miraculous recovery and decided to finish the book on the Jacobite uprising that he had been working on when—When—
‘This way.’ She led the way further down the hallway, opening the door at the end and ushering Nik inside.
‘Study’ was probably rather a complimentary way of describing the room that they entered. The shelved walls, and most of the floor space, were covered in books, both for reading and reference, and the desk was awash with papers and framed photographs.
It was one of the latter that Jinx picked up and handed to Nik, at the same time keeping her gaxe deliberately averted from his.
She knew exactly what he would see in the photograph: a family sitting on a blanket eating a picnic beside a river, all of them smiling happily into the camera.
Her mother. Her father. Her brother. Herself.
Just a normal family snapshot.
Except that it wasn’t the whole picture…
‘Where are your mother and brother now?’ Nik asked with that astuteness Jinx had come to expect of him.
‘They died eighteen months ago,’ she answered flatly. ‘In case you’re interested, my mother’s maiden name was Watson,’ she added dryly.
Nik continued to look at her, his stillness letting her know he expected her to add something to that remark. But what could she say? Her mother and Jamie were both dead. There was nothing else to say.
‘The shock was too much for my father,’ she added abruptly when she couldn’t stand that expectant silence a moment longer. ‘I—he’s been like this—’ she raised her hands helplessly ‘—ever since.’
Nik gave the photograph another long look before replacing it back on the desktop. ‘Wasn’t that just a little selfish of him? After all, it wasn’t just his wife and son who died, but your mother and brother too.’
‘You don’t understand!’ Jinx snapped, deeply resentful of this criticism of her father. ‘You know nothing about the situation at all, Nik, so how dare you come here and presume to sit in judgement—?’
‘Calm down, Jinx,’ Nik soothed. ‘I was only—’
‘I know what you were only,’ she accused. ‘I think it’s time you left now.’ She turned away. ‘Past time!’
She had been stupid to have ever hoped for Nik’s understanding; after all, his only interest in her was the film rights to No Ordinary Boy. Something she kept forgetting!
Because every time she was around him all she could think about was how attracted she was to him. It was there all the time, a thrum of awareness beneath her skin. As for what had happened between them at his hotel earlier…!
‘I want you to leave, Nik,’ she repeated.
‘Do you?’
When had he got so close? At what point in their conversation had he moved so that he was now standing only inches away from her? Causing that thrumming sensation beneath her skin to increase so that every inch of her was tinglingly alive!
She moistened dry lips. ‘Yes. I—’
‘I don’t think so, Jinx,’ he murmured throatily, standing so close now he was actually touching her.
Causing fire to leap and flame through her veins like molten lava, her breathing ragged as she looked up at him.
Grey eyes shimmered like mercury, his gaze intense as it rested on her lips, his own breathing rapid and uneven.
‘No, Nik—’ Jinx only had time to protest achingly as his head lowered and his mouth took possession of hers.
Oh, yes, Nik, her body disagreed as it instinctively curved against the hardness of his. Jinx was the one to initiate the deepening of the kiss as she forgot everything else but the pleasure of being in this man’s arms.
It had only been a few hours since they were last together like this, but even so they were hungry for each other, Nik’s arms like steel bands about her waist, Jinx’s hands moving restlessly up and down the long length of his spine as their lips and tongues explored and possessed, Jinx easily matching the desire that Nik made no effort to hide from her.
Nik was finally the one to pull back, his expression regretful as he looked down at her, his hands still lightly linked at the base of her spine. ‘Much as I’m enjoying this—and, believe me, I am enjoying it,’ he drawled, ‘at this particular moment I believe there may be several other things that need our immediate attention more.’
Jinx looked up at him with passion-drowsy eyes. ‘Such as?’
He grimaced. ‘The fact that there is a reporter and photographer outside—who, no matter what you might hope, aren’t likely to be going anywhere soon. Which means—’
‘Yes?’ She had stiffened warily now, stepping back as she moved out of his arms to self-consciously straighten her hair, embarrassed at the way she kept falling into his arms.
Yes, she was attracted to him. Yes, she wanted him. But he was the last man she should keep responding to in this way.
Nik’s look of regret deepened at her obvious withdrawal. ‘Which means that you and your father will have to be the ones to leave. If only temporarily.’
Her eyes widened. ‘That’s ridiculous. It’s you they’re after, so when you leave, they will leave with you.’
She had moved house six months ago because continuing to stay at the family home had seemed to be badly affecting her father, his lapses more extreme as he shut himself off even from his surroundings; to move him again now—even temporarily!—was out of the question.
Nik raised dark brows. ‘And if they don’t?’
‘They will,’ she said flatly.
He shook his head. ‘I wish I could be as sure of that as you appear to be…’
Jinx looked at him sharply. ‘What do you mean?’
He shrugged. ‘Just a hunch I have. Jinx, does it really matter why they’re hanging around out there?’ he continued impatiently as she made to protest once again. ‘The fact remains that they are there, and they have a lot more patience than you do. And your father isn’t going to remain asleep upstairs for ever,’ he added softly.
No, he would be down within the hour, and when he did come down he was unlikely to understand why it was she didn’t answer the knocking on the front door. But where on earth was she supposed to go in order to avoid those people outside? Nik just didn’t understand. There was no way she could take her father to the impersonality of a hotel, and it wasn’t fair to just invite themselves to stay with friends, either.
She drew in a ragged breath. ‘I still think that they will leave when you do,’ she told him stubbornly.
He raised an eyebrow, signaling his disagreement with that statement. ‘Shall we give it a try?’
Jinx looked at him with narrowed eyes, suspicious of his confident tone, as if he knew the reporter and photographer were waiting for her and not him.
But that couldn’t be so. The only interest a reporter could possibly have in her was if they were to know of the J. I. Watson connection, and there was no way—
What about her meeting with Nik Prince this morning in the very public lounge of a large London hotel—a man already reported to be on the trail of the author J. I. Watson so that he could acquire the movie rights? What about her visit to James Stephens’s office this morning?
She felt her heart sink as she faced the possibility that she could have been the one to lead the press to her home. It would be just too ironic if that were the case.
It was, also, primarily Nik Prince’s fault, she decided angrily. If he hadn’t been so persistent in the first place—If he hadn’t discovered the connection—If he hadn’t followed her here—
‘Don’t bother,’ she snapped, glaring her displeasure at him. ‘Where do you suggest we go, then?’ she demanded pointedly.
‘Well, I’ve already given that some thought—’
‘Why am I not surprised?’ Jinx huffed.
Grey eyes gleamed warningly. ‘There’s no need to get angry with me—’
‘Who else can I get angry with?’
Dark brows rose mockingly. ‘And that’s reason enough, is it—because I happen to be here?’
‘For the moment—yes!’ Her eyes flashed deeply violet. ‘I’m still not convinced this wasn’t all your fault. Everything was just fine before you came into my life—’
‘Everything was not just fine!’ he rapped out, eyes now a shimmering silver. ‘Your father is very ill, and likely to remain so if he doesn’t get professional help. Your own life is a mess—’
‘I beg your pardon?’ She stiffened resentfully.
‘Look at you, Jinx. You have a job as a university tutor, but you can’t do that at the moment because of taking care of your father. You’re a famous author, but for the same reason you can’t lay claim to that either.’ He gave an impatient shake of his head. ‘As for your personal life—’
‘Stay out of my personal life, Nik!’ she cut in coldly.
‘I’m already in it—’
‘Then I suggest you get out of it again!’ she practically shouted. ‘I don’t need you, Nik, or your amateur psychiatry concerning my father; I believe I am the best judge of what is and isn’t good for him! I just don’t need you in my life…full stop!’ She glared at him.
He drew in an angry breath. ‘That wasn’t the impression I got a few minutes ago—’
‘Oh, let’s bring that into it, shall we?’ she scoffed. ‘So I’m attracted to you; so what? Why is it that men feel they can differentiate between love and lust, but we women can’t? Because I assure you that we can, Nik.’ She gave a humourless laugh, angry with herself as much as him for the way she had once again given in to the desire she felt for him. ‘I can,’ she claimed, her gaze challenging now as she met his.
Nik wanted to shake her. Wanted to grasp her shoulders and shake her until her teeth rattled.
Lust. She lusted after him?
No woman had ever said anything like that to him ever before—even if it had happened to be the truth! And, coming from Jinx, he found that he didn’t like having it said to him now, either!
‘What’s the matter, Nik?’ she taunted his silence. ‘Don’t you like having the tables turned on you?’
No, he damn well didn’t! It was an unpleasant experience to be told that someone—Jinx!—lusted after him.
At the same time he could accept the irony of it. Wasn’t it how he had always conducted his own personal relationships, feeling desire without the love?
Maybe it was, but that was still no explanation for the resentment he felt at having this five-foot-one-inch of a woman say the same thing to him…
He drew in a controlling breath. ‘Not particularly,’ he acknowledged. ‘I’m also not sure it’s the way for a nicely brought up young lady to be talking,’ he mocked, knowing by the way the colour suddenly blazed in her cheeks that he had scored a direct hit with his barb.
But did he really want to score direct hits where Jinx was concerned? Wasn’t that just guaranteed to alienate her even more?
It was too late to realize that, Nik admitted ruefully as her expression became haughtily remote, violet eyes turning to icy blue. ‘Probably not,’ she accepted tersely. ‘Now I really think it’s time for you to leave, Nik.’
After which she would be at great pains to make sure the two of them never met again.
It was there in the resolve of her expression, in the coldness of her eyes, the defensive stance of her body.
But he knew where she lived now; he could always—
No, he couldn’t, he accepted heavily. That would make him as bad as the reporter and photographer lying in wait for her outside.
Which brought him back to his initial point…
‘Jinx, you really can’t stay here—’
‘I really can, Nik,’ she insisted. ‘In any case,’ she continued firmly as he would have spoken, ‘whether I decide to go or stay is really none of your business.’
He wanted to make it his business, wanted to pick Jinx up, throw her over his shoulder and carry her away from here. Be a regular caveman, in fact—which would go down with Jinx about as well as a lead balloon!
But the alternative was leaving her and her father here at the mercy of the press…
He drew in a deep breath. ‘I have a friend—well, he’s more like family, I suppose—it’s a bit complicated,’ he tried to explain, sure that now wasn’t the right time to be discussing his sometimes complicated family tree. ‘Have you ever heard of Ben Travis?’ he asked instead.
‘Should I have done?’ Jinx returned cautiously.
‘Probably not—although he is married to Marilyn Palmer.’
Jinx’s eyes widened. ‘The famous Hollywood actress?’
‘The one and only.’ Nik nodded. ‘And Marilyn’s daughter, Gaye, is married to the brother of Stazy’s husband, Jordan Hunter.’
‘The acting world is almost incestuous, isn’t it?’ Jinx scorned.
Nik felt the anger flare in his gaze, his mouth tightening to a thin line. ‘Ben is a psychiatrist—’
‘I’ve already told you, my father doesn’t need a psychiatrist,’ Jinx interrupted. ‘Time and love are all he needs. And a little peace and quiet to go with it,’ she added pointedly.
Meaning she really wanted him to leave now. Not that he hadn’t thought she’d meant it in the first place, but now she absolutely wanted him out of her home. And her life…? Unfortunately, yes.
Nik sighed. ‘Can I call you later?’
Jinx’s gaze narrowed suspiciously. ‘Why?’
He made an impatient movement. ‘So that I can check that everything is okay!’
‘And why shouldn’t it be?’
‘Jinx, will you just try being a little less defensive for a few minutes and actually think?’ Nik exploded in frustration. ‘If I leave—when I leave,’ he amended as Jinx raised mocking brows, ‘if, as I suspect, the reporter and her buddy continue to hang around outside, then I’m going to need to know about it—’
‘Why?’
He really would strangle her in a minute! Which would achieve precisely nothing. But it might make him feel a lot better. If only fleetingly.
‘Okay, let me put this another way,’ he bit out, inwardly wondering how he could have been so aroused by her a few short minutes ago and now felt like throttling her! ‘I am going to call you later to see how everything is.’
