Best of Virgins Bundle

by Cathy Williams

  She didn’t understand. She hadn’t been expecting hearts and flowers, declarations of undying love—she didn’t believe that was Max’s style at all—but neither had she been expecting this explosion of anger the moment he saw her.

  ‘Abby,’ he grated, hands clenched at his sides. ‘I asked you—’

  ‘I heard you,’ she cut in forcefully, the strain she had been under, her lack of sleep, lack of interest in food, all finding an outlet in her own anger. ‘I heard you,’ she repeated more calmly. ‘I just didn’t understand you!’ Her voice broke emotionally. ‘What happened between your reassuring call from the plane, when you told me you couldn’t wait to see me again, to what the hell did I think I was doing?’ She shook her head, tears in her eyes now. ‘You aren’t making any se—’ She broke off, staring across at him now as the truth hit her with the force of a sledgehammer. ‘You’ve spoken to Kate Mayhew!’

  He had arrived back in the country only hours ago, to cameras and reporters waiting to welcome the hostages home, and had endured a press conference since then—and yet somewhere in all that activity, Abby was becoming increasingly sure he had found time to telephone Kate Mayhew.

  She sat down abruptly, her emotions in turmoil. She had thought—hoped—that Max’s concern for her during the hostage situation meant that he felt something like the love she felt for him towards her. The fact that Max had obviously felt that same concern for Kate Mayhew, that he had actually already spoken to the other woman—been to see her first?—now gave lie to that hope.

  ‘Well, of course I’ve spoken to Kate,’ Max retorted savagely. ‘You had no right to do what you did—’

  ‘I had every right, damn you!’ She stood up again, glaring at him, her heart breaking at how different this reconciliation was from her imaginings; it couldn’t have been more different!

  She had food waiting in the kitchen to be cooked, the table laid in the dining room—she had even put clean sheets on her bed! None of which, in the face of Max’s hostility, were going to be used!

  ‘You had been taken hostage, and the two of you are obviously…friends. I felt that the least I could do was go to her and try to warn her—try to alleviate some of the shock she would feel when she heard the news that day.’ The same shock she had felt when she heard the news!

  Max’s hands were thrust into the pockets of his denims—denims that hung loosely on the accentuated leanness of his hips. The last two weeks had taken their physical toll on him: the dark shadows beneath his eyes, the deep grooves beside nose and mouth told of the emotional strain he had been under, not knowing from one moment to the next whether he was going to live or die.

  Just looking at him was enough to make Abby wilt with weakness. She wanted to launch herself into his arms, to feel the living strength of him, just to know that he really was here.

  He ran a hand tiredly over his eyes. ‘Was that your only reason, Abby? Or was it that you hoped to catch Kate during a moment of weakness, when she—?’

  ‘Stop right there, Max,’ she cut in incredulously. ‘Do you have any idea of what it cost me to go and see her?’ She breathed deeply. ‘The two of us were lovers, and before you left you asked me to trust you; I thought my going to see Kate to reassure her of your safety was part of showing my trust in you. Obviously I was wrong!’ She turned away. ‘I think you had better leave, Max, don’t you?’ she said dully.

  This was unbearable—unacceptable. She could only imagine what Max had gone through the last twelve days, knew only that she had felt as if she were poised on a knife’s edge, not knowing if she would see him again, only sure that she loved him, longing to see him once more, if only to tell him that.

  Now all she wanted was for him to leave—to go back to Kate Mayhew and whatever strange, unfathomable relationship the two of them shared and just leave her alone. She didn’t want to be a part of their sordid triangle.

  ‘Abby—’

  ‘Go to her, Max,’ she told him scornfully as she spun round to face him. ‘I want no part of your relationship with Kate Mayhew!’ She stared at him challengingly.

  A nerve pulsed in his tightly clenched jaw. ‘Kate and I aren’t lovers—’

  ‘No? That explains why you have women like me in your life then, doesn’t it?’ she retorted scathingly. ‘I suggest you talk to her about it, Max—because I no longer want to hear anything you have to say!’

  Uncertainty flickered in his eyes, his gaze searching now on the pale gauntness of her face. ‘You look awful, Abby.’

  ‘What a blessing for world peace that you never thought about joining the diplomatic service!’ she said incredulously. ‘Of course I look awful! I’ve been worried out of my mind about you—unable to sleep or eat.’ She gave a self-derisive shake of her head. ‘What a waste of time that was!’

  He frowned. ‘I heard that your last two shows have been incredibly successful.’

  They had been. The ratings last week were the highest they had ever been. And she knew that for the most part she owed that to her worry over Max. It had brought her a new maturity, a seriousness that had completely obliterated that ‘bright young thing’ he had spoken of so scathingly at their first meeting, leaving in its place a quietly assured young woman who dealt with her guests with a new, forceful capability.

  She was surprised that Max, only back in the country a few hours, would already know about that.

  ‘They have, yes,’ she confirmed abruptly.

  ‘No more problems with Gary Holmes?’ Max probed, his grey gaze intent on her face.

  No more than usual. They obviously still disliked each other intensely, and Abby didn’t trust the other man an inch, but Max being taken hostage and consequently being no longer in the picture seemed to have created some sort of hiatus in hostilities. The two of them just stepped warily around each other whenever possible.

  ‘Not really, no,’ she dismissed woodenly, wondering when Max would go. She needed to cry, badly, and she wasn’t going to do it in front of him.

  ‘That’s good.’ He nodded distantly. ‘I—Hello, boy,’ he greeted Monty warmly as the cat strolled over to twine in between his legs.

  Abby watched as Max went down on his haunches to stroke the happily purring feline, despite everything her heart aching at how good it was to see Max here, alive and well.

  Their meeting hadn’t turned out anything like she had expected—hoped—but the fact that Max had come back unharmed was more than enough. If he had come back to another woman it was something she would just have to accept.

  And exactly when had she got to be so selfless?

  The easy answer to that was—she wasn’t! Even now she wanted to launch herself into his arms, to feel the physical strength of him around her, inside her, to reassure herself inch by precious inch that he really was safe, to touch him, to kiss him, to just lose herself in the wonder of having him here.

  But she knew she wasn’t going to do any of that. She had her pride, if nothing else. God, she really was starting to sound ridiculous now! Where was pride going to get her once Max had gone?

  It was her Max had got a message out to. It was her he had—eventually—come to once he was free to do so.

  But only, as far as she could tell, in order to protect another woman…

  It was too much on top of everything else she had gone through these last weeks.

  She bent down to snatch Monty up into her arms, holding him defensively in front of her as Max slowly straightened, his expression guarded. ‘I really do think it’s best if you leave, Max,’ she told him huskily.

  He took a step closer, then went very still—like a tiger poised to spring. ‘Do you?’ he finally prompted gruffly.

  ‘Yes!’ She forced her gaze to meet his, determined to hold her ground; she wasn’t sure she could have moved even if she had wanted to!

  He shook his head impatiently. ‘Look, Abby, even if I want to I can’t explain about Kate. Not without—’

  ‘I don’t want you to explain about Kate!’ s
he cut in forcefully. What new, fragile lover wanted to hear about a continuing obsession with another woman?

  His mouth tightened. ‘You just want me to go?’

  Her arms tightened about Monty, a move he showed his disapproval of by squirming in protest. ‘Yes.’

  He looked at her frustratedly for several long seconds, eyes blazing, before giving an abrupt nod of his head. ‘Have it your own way,’ he rasped. ‘This whole thing was probably a mistake anyway.’ He turned on his heel and left.

  But it needn’t have been a mistake. If Max hadn’t persisted in deceiving her about his relationship with Kate Mayhew…If she hadn’t seemed to trip over the other woman at every turn…If Max had only loved Abby as she loved him…!

  ‘If the sky were really made of marshmallow,’ she told Monty emotionally. The saying was a favourite of her father’s from when she was growing up and had wished for the impossible. Having Max fall in love with her was definitely one of those impossibles!

  ‘I think I should tell you from the onset that Max has absolutely no idea that I’m here.’

  Abby looked across the table at Kate Mayhew, still stunned at having left the studio on Thursday afternoon to find the other woman waiting outside for her.

  It had been a strange couple of days. Only concentration on her work had distracted her from the heartache of having Max return safely only to show he cared more about Kate Mayhew’s ruffled feelings at Abby’s visit to her than he did the distress she had gone through.

  To have Kate Mayhew come to see her, suggesting the two of them go and talk over an afternoon coffee in Luigi’s, was the last thing she wanted. Or needed.

  ‘Max who?’ she asked the other woman dryly.

  Kate Mayhew’s mouth twisted. ‘I deserved that,’ she said huskily. ‘I was—less than honest with you two weeks ago.’

  Abby had known that then, and didn’t need it confirmed now, but other than causing a scene and refusing the other woman’s invitation, she felt she’d had no choice but to agree to this cup of coffee. A coffee neither woman had touched, incidentally. Luigi’s frown was disapproving as the coffee cooled in the cups.

  She shrugged. ‘It doesn’t matter.’

  ‘It does matter,’ Kate Mayhew told her, determined. ‘I—At first I thought Max was different because of what had happened to him.’ She shuddered. ‘It must have been so awful for him, never knowing from one minute to the next whether he was going to get out of there alive!’

  And Abby had lived every moment of that uncertainty with him. Only to have him return and berate her for visiting this woman…

  ‘It would take much more than a few unstable terrorists to shake Max Harding.’ She gave another derisive shrug.

  The other woman looked at her with unflinching brown eyes, more lovely than ever today, her fiery red hair loosely flowing, her tailored black suit and cream blouse extremely elegant while remaining completely feminine, her legs long and shapely in high-heeled black shoes.

  Next to her, in denims and a cropped white T-shirt, her hair secured untidily on top of her head, Abby felt distinctly scruffy.

  ‘You’re in love with him,’ Kate Mayhew murmured huskily.

  ‘I don’t think so!’ Abby gave a hard laugh, determined not to show how shaken she was by the comment.

  ‘Oh, yes.’ The other woman gave an assured nod. ‘Is he in love with you too?’

  Abby’s hands clenched around her cooling coffee cup. She felt as if the breath had suddenly been knocked from her body; scenes like this were way out of her league. ‘Doubtful, wouldn’t you think?’

  Kate smiled slightly. ‘One never knows with Max.’

  Abby shrugged. ‘I’m sorry, but I can’t help you there.’

  The other woman straightened, eyes a candid brown. ‘He won’t talk about you, of course—’

  ‘Of course,’ Abby echoed dryly; he wouldn’t talk to her about this woman either! ‘Well, the fact that Max and I were once—friends has absolutely nothing to do with anyone but the two of us.’ Any more, it seemed, than Kate’s relationship with Max was any of her business!

  ‘Max has been—different, since he came back.’

  ‘You already said that,’ Abby snapped. This really was beyond what any woman in love with a man who was involved with another woman—this woman!—should have to endure! ‘But if you and Max are having problems then he’s the one you should be talking to about them. Not me.’

  ‘No,’ Kate told her firmly. ‘Max is very protective towards me. To the point where he wouldn’t want to do or say anything that might upset me—’

  ‘How commendable,’ Abby bit out tightly; sarcasm wasn’t normally a part of her nature, but she really didn’t know how else to deal with this. ‘Look, Kate,’ she began again. ‘If you’ve come here to warn me off Max, then I think I should tell you you’re too late; we aren’t even talking to each other any more! The truth is that Max and I had a—a mild aberration.’ Her mouth twisted self-mockingly. ‘But it was a mistake—for both of us,’ she continued as the other woman would have spoken. ‘An attraction that blazed fiercely and then just as quickly blew itself out. I’m sorry if that hurts you, but I can assure you it is over.’ If it had ever really begun. Which, on Max’s part, Abby was sure it hadn’t.

  The other woman sighed. ‘I didn’t come here with the intention of hurting you, Abby—’

  ‘I’ve told you that it doesn’t matter to me what you and Max do. It’s none of my business. There’s nothing between Max and I!’ She was so angry with this woman, and with herself, but most of all with Max, for having put her in this position in the first place.

  ‘Max isn’t his usual happy self, Abby—’

  ‘I’ve never seen Max happy, so I wouldn’t know the difference!’ She had seen him arrogant, mocking, and angry, but she couldn’t say she had ever seen him happy!

  But she had also seen him relaxed and charming, a little voice inside her head taunted. Over the lunch they had shared. And protective of her where Gary Holmes was concerned, gentle with the demanding Monty—and so sensually ignited the two of them had been in danger of going up in flames…

  And none of that mattered a damn in the face of his obsession with Kate Mayhew!

  The other woman shook her head, a haunted look in those deep brown eyes. ‘I made a mistake two years ago, Abby—’

  ‘I don’t want to know!’ she cut in forcefully, giving up all pretence of drinking her coffee and turning to unhook her shoulder bag from the back of the chair. ‘I have no idea whether or not you intend telling Max about this meeting, but my advice to you would be—don’t!’ Her mouth twisted. ‘He has a way of misinterpreting anything that involves me.’ And she was already shaken enough by this meeting without having an enraged Max back on her doorstep!

  Kate looked up at her as she stood. ‘Of course I’ll tell Max the two of us have spoken; we don’t keep secrets from each other.’

  That hurt more than anything else this woman could have said to her!

  ‘He kept me a secret!’ It was a cheap shot, completely unworthy of her, but in the last three weeks these two people, Max and Kate, had broken her heart. She didn’t have to let them continue to do it.

  Kate gave a regretful sigh. ‘I really didn’t come here today with the intention of hurting you—’

  ‘You haven’t,’ Abby assured her abruptly. ‘Goodbye, Kate. I doubt the two of us will ever meet again.’ She turned on her heel and left, two bright spots of angry colour in her cheeks.

  She had no idea where she went after that, totally oblivious as she wandered from shop to shop, not buying anything, not seeing anything, completely lost in her own humiliation.

  Her only consolation was that this time Max couldn’t blame her for what had happened. At least, he shouldn’t. But that didn’t mean he wouldn’t. He seemed to hold her responsible for everything else, so why not this too?

  Her telephone was ringing when she let herself into her apartment hours later, throwing her bag down in
a chair to stare at the noisy instrument as if it were about to bite her. Max. It had to be Max. With the intention of hurling more accusations, no doubt. Well, she couldn’t face them right now. She wished she had never set eyes on the man.

  This should have been such a happy time in her life—one of those magical overnight success stories, that was really nothing of the kind but gave the appearance of being so. Instead she had met Max, and it had all become something of a nightmare.

  She ignored the ringing telephone, walking straight past it to go through to the bathroom and run herself a hot, scented bath—always her point of refuge when she was troubled or in distress.

  It didn’t work this time. Her emotions were too much in turmoil. Part of her wanted to pick up the telephone and tell Max to get his girlfriend off her back, another part of her wanting to put even more distance between the two of them than there already was.

  It didn’t help that the telephone rang twice more while she was in the bath, setting her nerves jangling anew.

  And then, on the fourth time of ringing, a thought occurred to her: Max didn’t know her land-line number! She had never given it to him. It was an unlisted number, and the only time Max had called her in the past had been on either his or her mobile! Of course he could have asked Dorothy for it, but somehow she doubted it…

  She left a trail of damp footprints as she jumped out of the bath, wrapping a peach-coloured towel about her nakedness as she hurried through to grab up the receiver. ‘Yes?’ she prompted breathlessly.

  ‘Where the hell have you been?’ Gary Holmes demanded angrily. ‘I’ve been ringing you for hours.’

  ‘What do you want, Gary?’ she asked warily as she dropped down into an armchair; she’d thought she had made herself more than plain concerning the privacy of her home.

  Although their working relationship had continued to be less than cordial these last two weeks, Abby had really been too numbed to react to any of the cutting remarks Gary had made. And over the last couple of days she had simply tuned the man out when he’d tried to ask her if Max would be appearing on her show now that he was back—as if. She’d been concentrating all her efforts on her work in order not to think about Max.