Kate Hewitt - Bad Blood

‘A journalist-free zone. I need to lie low until the Sapphire ceremony. A deserted island. Sun, sea and se—’

‘I am not having sex with you.’

A ghost of a smile touched his mouth. ‘I was going to say seclusion, but sex sounds good to me. You talk when you’re awake and you talk in your sleep. It remains to be seen whether you talk during sex.’

WHY the hell had he brought her with him?

At the time it had seemed the only way to make sure she didn’t talk to the press, but he was only now realising what her presence meant. He had company at a time when he wanted it least.

Not just company. He had Katie—a girl who believed that all would be right with the world providing you had someone with whom to share your problems. A girl who believed talking solved everything.

It was probably just punishment for dragging her into this mess.

She was furious with him.

He glanced at her tense profile, careful to reveal nothing of his own emotions.

‘You don’t have to look as though your world has come to an end,’ he ground out. ‘It was a small-time costume drama with second-rate actors. It would have been provincial and boring.’

‘It was another step up the ladder.’

‘How many steps does this ladder of yours have? You might want to think about taking two at a time or you’re never going to reach the top.’

‘Do you have to be sarcastic about everything?’

‘That play would not have progressed your career.’

‘I had some really original ideas for the costumes. My name would have been on the credits.’

‘Which three people would have seen. Anyway, you’d never have got the job.’

‘Thanks. So not only did you stop me going, but now you’re telling me I’m rubbish at my job.’ She turned her head deliberately and looked out of the window. ‘Just because I don’t work in Hollywood doesn’t mean I don’t have feelings. I think you’re incredibly mean.’

‘Mean?’ Fighting an inexplicable urge to laugh, Nathaniel stared at the back of her head. ‘I haven’t heard that word since I started at boarding school.’

‘I bet you were a complete nightmare at boarding school.’

‘I had my moments. And for your information, I wasn’t being “mean” or sarcastic, I was being honest. They wouldn’t have given you the job.’

Her shoulders grew a little stiffer. ‘I heard you the first time. You don’t need to repeat yourself.’

‘I saw the costume plot. Your drawings are in a class of their own.’

‘Just because I’m not—’ Her head turned. ‘What did you say?’

‘Your drawings are in a class of their own. You have great talent. And you would have terrified them. Your work is far too imaginative and original. They would have gone with something “safe” and predictable that has been done a thousand times before. Provincial, boring producers don’t want to rock the boat.’ That assessment was met with a long tense silence.

‘You think I have talent? You’re not just saying that because I’m angry with you?’

‘I’m saying it because it’s the truth.’

‘Oh.’ A confused frown pulled at her brows. ‘Well, that’s nice. Unfortunately you admiring my work won’t pay my bills or help me up the ladder. Not that I expect you to understand. You live in a world of private jets, bodyguards and limousines. I live in a world of rising debt and unemployment.’

She knew nothing about his world .

‘Relax, wardrobe. I’ll make some calls and get you work in Hollywood. If it doesn’t work out with Alicia, then I’ll call Rupert Schneider or Howard Kennington.’

Her mouth opened and closed. ‘You know all those people?’

‘Yes. And they’re always on the lookout for new talent. They’d love you.’

‘Y-you’d introduce me? Seriously?’ She looked stunned. ‘Well, thank you. It’s nice to know you do, in fact, have a conscience.’

‘Don’t endow me with qualities I don’t possess. I’m introducing you because you have talent, and because I can’t stand a woman who sulks, especially if I’m stuck on an island with her.’

‘You should have thought of that before you forced me to come along with you. There is such a thing as karma, you know. You’ll be punished in some way for doing this to me.’

‘I’m already being punished. I’m about to be trapped on an island with a woman who can’t stop talking. Man’s idea of hell, believe me.’ Smiling, Nathaniel leaned back against the seat and closed his eyes. Immediately, reality closed in and his thoughts turned dark. He saw Jacob sitting in the front row. Saw those dark eyes looking at him. Knowing. They were bound together by the past. Nothing was ever going to change that.

His smile faded and his eyes flew open.

Oh, yes, he was being punished .

‘Are you all right?’ Katie’s big green eyes were full of concern. ‘Only you’re gripping your seat really hard.’

Nathaniel released his grip and the blood flowed back into his fingers. ‘I’m a nervous flyer.’

‘You flew a plane in your last film. You have a pilot’s licence.’

‘Precisely.’ He hauled in all of his professional skills to make sure he didn’t falter. ‘I hate being flown by someone else. I’d rather be the one at the controls but I had a lousy night’s sleep on your lumpy sofa and I didn’t want to crash us into a mountain.’

Her steady gaze suggested that she wasn’t convinced and he reminded himself that Katie Field noticed things. He couldn’t afford to lower his guard. Which suited him just fine. Apart from last night, onstage, Nathaniel couldn’t remember the last time he’d lowered his guard.

‘So this island—’ The hope of new contacts seemed to have cheered her slightly. ‘Where is it? And how do you know we won’t be followed around when we get there?’

‘It’s a tropical island off the coast of South America. And the reason I know we won’t be followed around is because we’ll be the only two people on the island.’

‘Just us?’ Her voice was a horrified squeak. ‘You expect me to spend two weeks without a single person to talk to?’

‘I believe there are two species of parrot found on the island. If you play your cards right, one of them might talk to you.’

‘You may think you’re funny, but I’m the sort of person who likes company. If you’re the only person on the island—’ her eyes narrowed ‘—then I’ll just have to talk to you.’

‘Talk away. Just don’t expect me to answer.’ Nathaniel watched her through the dark shield of his lashes. ‘On the other hand, if it’s company you want, I’m sure we can find some way of passing the time that doesn’t include conversation.’

He was arrogant, overbearing—Katie sighed. And insanely sexy .

How could he be sexy when he was asleep? Strands of dark hair flopped over his forehead giving him a dangerous, rakish look. The bold black brows and darkened jaw were wholly masculine and as for that mouth—

She looked away quickly, her heart thudding against her chest.

No, no, no .

She wasn’t going to do that to herself. Not again. No more fantasies about unobtainable guys. She knew who she was now and was comfortable with herself. Five minutes of idle flirtation with a hot movie star didn’t change anything.

Blind with tiredness but totally unable to relax enough to sleep, Katie stared out of the window at the tropical islands that studded the sparkling ocean below.

Some of the tiredness sloughed away as she gazed beneath her. The sea was dotted with emerald-green islands, each framed by white sands and coral reefs.