“Too bad she can’t marry the man she loves.”
Alex lifted an eyebrow in surprise. Just how much had Kelly told her aunt about him?
Kaye gave him a tentative smile. “Robert’s not right for her, and I don’t like the way he’s pressing my dear girl to marry him either. It was a pleasure meeting you, Alex. Enjoy the party.” Her gown swished as she walked away.
When the song ended, he strode across the floor to Kelly’s side. “Happy Birthday, love. Could I have a chat with you?"
At the same time, Megan approached and tugged on his jacket sleeve. “Alex, I’d like a dance.” He groaned inwardly when Kelly’s gaze dropped to the hold Megan had on his arm. Megan’s mouth turned downward. “Who’s this?”
Brushing past him, Kelly whispered with a cool hauteur, “While I want to thank you for what you’ve done for me, going after David and Mick, if you’re trying to introduce me to your new girlfriend, I’d rather not meet her.” Her voice choked up on her last words, “It’s just too much to ask of me.” She hurried through the crowd.
“Kelly,” he called out, but she kept on going.
How could he convince Kelly he’d come here to see her?
After the rock band finished their song, he jumped on stage and spoke to the musicians.
Holding the microphone close, he belted out a love song and sang how his heart ached for the one he’d loved and lost. He put a 1950's spin on the song, by speaking some of the words. As he intended, it was a little tongue-and-cheek because he wanted to make her smile so she’d warm up to him as he crooned about unrequited love.
Finally, Kelly paused and stared at him. She had to know the song was for her. Satisfaction simmered inside him, until a group of women gathered near the front of the stage. When the music ended, Megan rushed up to him.
Contempt flashed on Kelly’s face before she whirled away.
He exhaled a frustrated breath. His singing had backfired. He’d seen Kelly’s surprised face turn into an unhappy one. She’d never speak to him now, or trust him, and he’d lost her once again in the crowd.
When he stepped down from the stage, Megan followed. Vanessa strode toward him with her hands on her hips. Talk about darkening one’s day. One sneer from the witch and the women around him departed like rats from a sinking ship. He hadn’t seen the she-devil since his day in court. With her gold, statuesque gown, like plastic, wrapping her body, most men might believe her beautiful. To him, she looked as deadly as a cobra about to strike.
She grabbed a drink from a passing waiter and lifted her glass in salute. “Darling, did you change your mind and come to the party for me?”
He eyed the martini in her hand. “Only if I’ve died, and this is Hell.”
“Then did you come here tonight for that home-wrecking slut?”
“Don't ever speak of her in such a way.”
When he turned, she plucked at his jacket sleeve. “All right, Alex. Why are you here?”
Alex glanced at her with disgust. “I’ve nothing to say to you.” He strode away, but her high heels clicked behind him.
Vanessa rasped, “Damn you, Alex. So destroying your career wasn’t enough? That little strumpet is going to pay. Mark my words––”
He whirled on her. “Shut the hell up, Vanessa. Leave Kelly out of this.” He turned on his heel, but she gripped his sore arm, pulling the jacket from his shoulder.
“Have a good time living in poverty, you bastard. You’ll never work as an actor again.”
Grasping Vanessa’s elbow, he steered her into a nearby private room and closed the door. Then with disgust, he dropped his hand, not wanting to touch her. “You’re causing a scene. Don't you have any pride, Vanessa?"
“Not if you’re leaving me. No one leaves me, not until I’m ready.” She laughed, a little hysterically. “And I might be pregnant after our night together.”
“Not by me. Lab reports confirm the brandy decanter in my office had been laced with sleeping pills––the same brand you’re prescribed. I was out cold. Now, I’m giving you one last chance to stay out of my life or else.”
Her expression soured as she straightened. “You can’t prove I did anything of the sort?”
“Not smart that you left the empty bottle of your prescription in the waste can, but it doesn’t matter. I don’t think it would be good publicity in the press to think that you had to drug me to get my attention. It wouldn’t be good for your career. According to my doctor, the medication you put in the decanter would have left me, let’s say, unable to perform. That combined with knowing . . . ” He leaned closer, hoping to make his meaning finally, and utterly clear to her. “That I have not the least desire to make love to you, proves nothing happened. I’ve turned the evidence over to the police and my solicitor, and they’re waiting for my word to start legal action. So I suggest you stay out of my life.” He splayed his hand in the air. “Or I can see the headlines in the tabloids now . . . ”
Her mouth dropped open, and then she snarled, “So, Kelly’s brought you back by telling you she’s pregnant? You’re a bigger fool than I thought.”
“Kelly . . . pregnant?” He turned in shock. He had to find her.
“You didn’t know?” she hissed. She stomped her foot. “Well, you can’t marry her. Robert will stop you. Damn you.” Her martini sailed toward him through the air. He stepped aside. The glass shattered against the door next to him. “I hate you, Alex!” she screeched.
He stared at her. “Now that’s much better than your false, professed love.” He added dryly, “You know you really should work on your aim.”
She raised her fist and rushed at him. “You’re going to pay for this, you bastard.”
Alex shoved her out of his way. She fell into a nearby chair.
He leaned his hands on the arms, and thrust his face at her. “No, Vanessa,” he warned through tight lips. “Any more bad press for Kelly or me and I’ll hold you responsible. While I was in England, I had a private investigator do some research on you. Don’t you think the press will love it when I tell them all about your past? How you slept your way to the top, with about every producer in town. How about your numerous, but secretive, plastic surgeries? And your mother’s sordid profession as a streetwalker, not to mention your little foray into that line of work for a time when you were a teen.” He stood back and crossed his arms over his chest. “Don’t think I don’t know all about it.”
“You wouldn’t dare go public with anything like this. Why you’d look like a fool.”
“I will, if you so much as attempt to harm Kelly. By the way, did you catch my interview with Sandra Weaver?”
Vanessa’s winged eyebrows drew together. “What interview?”
Alex didn’t bother answering. She could find the information on her own. He headed back to the party, his relief enormous to be free of the witch.
He glanced around the ballroom looking for Kelly. No wonder she was angry. And she had a lot to say for herself, especially with the secret she’d been keeping from him.
* * *
Tears pricking her eyes, Kelly clenched her arms over her chest and tried to keep her mind on the conversation with one of Cochran Investment’s satisfied clients. She’d made a fool of herself, staring at Alex while he was on stage. For one brief moment, she had imagined he sang to her. It was probably part of the actor job description to make every woman feel special.
“I’m sorry . . . you were saying, Mr. Brown?” Kelly asked.
When Alex strode directly up to her and put his arm around her shoulders, she gasped.
He stroked his fingers on her bare shoulder in an intimate way, sending shock waves through her. “Hello, love.” He smiled at her in his most charming way with his teeth gleaming white and his dimples evident.
Frowning, she glanced at his hand. “What are you doing, Alex?” she asked warily. How could he do this to her in public?
“I need to speak to you . . . privately.” He added in a low voice, “Unless you want eve
ryone to know our business and cause more gossip.”
She gritted her teeth. Robert must have told Vanessa, who in turn told Alex about her pregnancy. What else could drag him away from the eager Megan Daniels? “Excuse me, Mr. Brown. It seems this client can’t wait until Monday morning to talk business.”
Alex clasped her hand in a firm grip. “Yes, I’m certain this discussion can’t wait. Let’s go into the garden.”
Sighing, she went with him through the French doors and onto the terrace. He led her down stone steps and along a lighted path, to a secluded bench surrounded by ornamental trees and sweet, fragrant flowers.
“Sit . . . please,” he said.
With a sigh, she plopped down on the bench and crossed her arms over her chest. “What do you want, Alex, other than to humiliate me? Everyone could see us leave the ballroom together. I’ve endured more bad publicity about us than I can take, so please have a care for my life. I really don’t want to meet your new girlfriend, or hear you sing love songs to her.”
“I don’t have a new girlfriend,” he said, sitting down beside her. “By the way, I brought you a birthday present.” He retrieved a wrapped box from his jacket pocket and presented it to her. “Open it.”
She gave him a sideways glance and then tore off the wrapping. Inside, a necklace with a heart-shaped ruby, surrounded by tiny diamonds, lay against black velvet.
“The song I sang tonight was for you, sweetheart, and the lyrics, my true feelings. I want to make it official, love. You’ve stolen my heart. Or should I say as Moto did, ‘you’ve ripped my heart from my chest.’ It’s only appropriate that you wear this around your neck.”
She gaped at Alex, unable to speak.
He lifted her hand and twined their fingers together, while his gaze searched hers. “What did happen to us on that island? You don’t need to answer my question because I already know. And I don’t want to hear another tale of how lonely we were. It took me a while to figure it out, Kelly, but I’m hopelessly,” he emphasized the word with his beautiful blue eyes gleaming at her. “I’m hopelessly, in love with you.”
She shook her head to clear her thoughts. “Say that again?”
He grinned. “I love you, Kelly, and I always will.” Putting his arm around her, he pulled her close. “I want to hold you, take care of you, marry you.”
Stunned by his words, tears of happiness brimmed in her eyes. She was enthralled watching his gaze lower to her mouth. She licked her own lips in response to his being so preciously close.
“It’s true,” he said in a husky whisper that made her shiver. “I want to break our silly agreement. I’m never going to let you go. And if someone is spying on us, they can see this.”
His mouth covered hers. Her hands pressed against his jacket, Kelly gave herself up to the sweetest pleasure. Returning his kiss with eager affection, she lost herself in his love for her.
Finally, he pulled away, his expression growing serious. He raised an eyebrow in question. “But perhaps I was mistaken about your feelings for me?”
Giving a little gasp of happiness, she cupped her hands to his cheek. “You’ve always known how I feel about you, Alex.”
He held her hands in his, his eyes shining with warmth. “Sweetheart, after I left you the last time, I went to my solicitor. I’m officially divorced. They claim it was a clerical error, although I’m sure Vanessa had a friend in a high place. They corrected the date back to April 30th as it would have been.” He pulled an envelope from his pocket.
In the dim light, she skimmed the papers before returning them to him.
He slipped the divorce papers into his jacket pocket, then clasped her hands. “I’m still worried about your protection, but with both Lewis and Mick going to prison, and if we live in England, far away from here, you should be safer. But, Kelly, we have more issues between us. I can’t offer you anything like Hillyard. Right now, I have a lot of debt. I don’t even know if or when I’ll land my next acting job, but I want you to marry me . . . If you’ll forgive me for behaving so stupidly.”
“I want to . . . but being with me,” she said, wincing. “How can we do it? I don’t want you hurt or worse. You’ve gone through enough because of me.”
He grabbed her shoulders. “Kelly, I can’t go back to the way I used to be. I swear when I saw you lying there for dead in that warehouse, it was like walls crashing around me. I realized how much I loved you and there is no life without you.”
Tears sprang to her eyes. “I never expected to hear those words from you.”
“Then I’ll say it again. I love you, Kelly. Marry me? I’ll shout it in the ballroom if you’d like. You have stolen my heart.”
“Well,” she said with a watery chuckle. “I had to steal it, as it was obvious you wouldn’t give it to me freely.”
He grinned. “I’m not sorry. You hold my heart in your hands.”
Her brow creased in concern. “Robert will go ballistic. He might hurt your career.”
Alex framed her face in his hands. “Between Vanessa and Hillyard, my career is already over. He’s already blacklisted me in Hollywood.”
“Oh, no.”
He nodded. “Oh yes. But I don’t expect Vanessa to bother us again.” He squeezed Kelly’s hand and told her about the drug Vanessa put in his drink and what the doctor had said about the effects of the medication. “I passed out that night. Even out of my mind, I knew I hadn’t slept with her.”
“She’s sick, Alex.”
“No one knows that better than I do. I’ve threatened her with her own tactics—the media—so I don’t think we have to worry about her anymore. However, Hillyard will try to make our lives miserable, but I don’t care. If I have to, I’ll do something else for a living.”
She pulled a little out of his embrace. “I’ve seen how women chase you. My mother suffered because of a cheating husband.”
“Ah, the jealous type?” He grinned and tapped her chin. “Bloody hell, that’s all right because I’ve been insanely jealous over you, starting with Hillyard on the cruise ship, and Moto who nearly killed me to get to you. Not to mention—”
“Okay, so it works both ways.” She ran her hand along his jaw and smiled through her tears.
“I won’t cheat, Kelly. You make me more than satisfied.”
“I watched your interview. What about Megan Daniels?”
He tipped Kelly’s chin up and caught her gaze. “I said there was no truth to the rumor. Megan came here on her own tonight. She’s followed me since my divorce, but I’m sure our marriage will dampen her enthusiasm.”
“I should hope so.”
His eyes brimming with tenderness, he held her hand in his. “I want only you.”
He hadn’t mentioned the baby. Her hands on his chest, she pushed a little away from him, narrowing her eyes.
“Is there any other reason why you’re asking me to marry you?”
He chuckled. “Other than to keep me from being an unhappy and lonely old man someday—your words—I can’t think of anything else.”
Happiness enveloped her. He didn’t know about the baby and wasn’t asking her to marry him because he felt forced. She should’ve known Vanessa wouldn’t tell him.
“Tell me you feel the same, Kelly.”
She looked into his worried blue eyes and at that moment, nothing else mattered. She smiled. “I love you, Alex. There’s never been any doubt in my mind about that. I was attracted to you from the first time I saw you in your cabin, wearing nothing but a towel.” She grinned. “But it was how good you were to me while we were lost that really made me fall in love with you. I don’t care how poor we’ll be. I’d live in a hut, just to be with you.”
“With our money situation, we might have to.”
She teased, “I know of a little vacant hut on a certain deserted island.”
He pulled her close. “Answer the question, love,” he said in a husky voice. “Will you marry me? Will you risk whatever we have to go through?”
“Yes. Oh yes, Alex. I’ll risk it all for you.” She giggled, her eyes brimming with tears of happiness to be with the man she loved. Unlike her engagement to Robert, she knew deep in her soul that Alex was the right choice.
“Will you wear your birthday present?”
Smiling, she nodded eagerly, and he hooked the necklace around her neck.
Then he cradled her face in his hands. With his thumbs, he swiped the wetness from beneath her eyes and placed a light kiss on her lips. He deepened the kiss and held her as if he’d never let her go. Desire surged through her.
With a sigh, he lifted his mouth from hers and rested his cheek against her hair. "I’ve been utterly miserable without you. I don’t want you going back to Hillyard’s ranch, ever.”
“I only have to get my things. After you left, I told Robert nothing he said would ever convince me to marry him, which means on Monday, I probably won’t get the extension and the company will be dissolved.” She ran her finger down Alex’s face. “I planned to move across the country and change my name.”
He stroked her cheek. “I like the idea of a name change, but this time, you’re leaving with me.”
Pressing her lips to his, her love for him burned brightly. She decided to tell him about the baby later and hoped he didn’t mind he would be getting more than he bargained for. He kissed her, slowly and with a shared hunger that swept them both up in the moment.
When his fingers tugged on the zipper of her dress, she broke their kiss. “Alex?”
He groaned. “You’re right. Unless we want to cause another scandal, we’d better call a halt to this and return to the party.”
She nodded and caught a glimpse of his face in the dim light. “We can’t go back looking like this either. Come here.” With her thumb, she gently wiped her lipstick from his mouth, giving herself credit for resisting the strongest desire to plant another kiss on his sensual lips and sink back into his arms. “I’d better go in first and repair my makeup. See you inside.”
He waited several minutes. As soon as he stepped near the doors, Hillyard’s bodyguard, Max, said to his back, “Drake, this is a private party.” Alex turned. Six, tall bouncer-type men, glared as they surrounded him.
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