‘Would you want to meet someone who paid to get rid of you?’ Kat asked.
Elisabetta shifted her mouth back and forth as if she was shuffling words like cards inside her mouth. ‘What’s going on between you and Flynn Carlyon?’
‘Nothing.’
Elisabetta smiled—the smile of a cat standing beside an empty birdcage. ‘So he’s managed to do it, then.’
‘Do what?’
‘Get you into his bed.’
Kat ground her back teeth together to try and control her temper. ‘My private life is none of your business.’
‘Don’t get too cosy in his bed,’ Elisabetta said. ‘He won’t offer you anything but a quick tumble when it suits him.’
‘You know something, Ms Albertini?’ Kat said. ‘You’re a wonderful actor, one of my all-time favourites. I’ve admired you from afar for as long as I can remember. But as a person? You’re a bitter disappointment.’
At first Kat thought Elisabetta was going to slap her. The colour rose in the older woman’s face in twin spots on her regal cheekbones, but then she tossed her glorious mane of salt-and-pepper hair back and laughed. Kat stood there waiting for it to end, sure another insult would follow and mentally preparing for it. Had she gone too far? Who in their right mind would insult one of London’s most adored theatre actors? Was this the end of her career? Was it over before it had even begun?
An apology was forming on Kat’s lips when Elisabetta stopped laughing and smiled at her instead. ‘I like you, Kat Winwood,’ she said. ‘You’ve got G and D.’
Kat frowned in puzzlement. ‘G and D?’
‘Guts and determination,’ Elisabetta said. ‘Believe me, in this business you’ll need it. I’ll see you tomorrow. Ciao.’ And with a wave of her hand and a swish of her plush velvet coat she disappeared through the stage curtains.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
KAT HAD JUST returned from walking Cricket and was hanging up his lead when Flynn came in from work.
‘How did today go?’ he asked.
It occurred to her then how comforting it was to have someone to debrief with at the end of the day. Under normal circumstances she would have gone home to an empty bedsit. Sure, she could have called a friend or have a friend call her, but to have someone on site who was genuinely interested in her made her feel supported. Grounded. Safe. Protected. ‘It was...interesting,’ she said.
‘Did Elisabetta behave herself?’
Kat took Flynn’s coat from him and held it against her. She could easily have hung it up next to hers but she wanted to savour the warmth and smell of his body still trapped in the cashmere. ‘She was hell on wheels during rehearsals, but after everyone left we sort of came to an understanding.’
One of his dark brows lifted in an arc. ‘That sounds intriguing. Tell me what happened.’
Kat gave him a quick run-down on the conversation she’d had with Elisabetta. ‘Mind you,’ she said. ‘I wouldn’t trust her, for all her charming friendliness. She’s like a chameleon. She changes when it suits her.’
‘That’s why she has the reputation she has as an actor,’ Flynn said. ‘She can morph into any character she wants. But you did well to stand up to her. Not many people do. They’re too frightened of her celebrity to connect with the person under the façade.’
Kat frowned. ‘You think it’s a façade? That she’s not like that normally? Bitchy and unfriendly to anyone she perceives as a threat?’
He leaned on one crutch as he brushed his bent knuckles down her cheek. ‘She’s a bit like you. You can be prickly and unfriendly until you establish trust. Maybe she recognised that same quality in you.’
Kat turned and hung up his coat as she thought about it. She straightened out the sleeves, dusted off an imaginary bit of lint from the back and turned to look at him again. ‘What would you like for dinner?’
He was looking at her strangely. There was a slight frown between his eyes and his mouth had lost its easy smile. Then he did a slow blink and refocused. ‘Sorry, did you say something?’
‘I asked what you wanted for dinner,’ Kat said. ‘I didn’t have time to pick anything up after the rehearsal, but I can go out now to the convenience store and—’
‘No,’ he said. ‘This has gone on long enough. You don’t need to wait on me hand and foot. I can order something in but only if you’ll stay and share it with me.’
Would that be all that she was sharing? The thought of spending another night in his bed was tempting. More than tempting. But what if what Elisabetta had said was true? That he would only have her in his bed when it suited him? How long would it suit him? A week? A month? Until Richard’s party was over?
Why are you stressing about how long he wants to sleep with you? It’s a fling. They’re not meant to last long.
I’m not stressing. I’m just wondering...
You’re in too deep. You know you are. You’ve got feelings for him, deep, scary feelings that involve weddings and babies and a white picket fence.
I want a career first. It’s all I’ve ever wanted.
So you keep saying.
When the food arrived, Kat set it up in the dining room. Once they were both seated, Flynn raised his wine glass to hers. ‘To the most beautiful new talent to hit London’s West End.’
Kat gave a self-deprecating snort. ‘I don’t know about that. I’ve got so much to learn. It’s a big step up from toilet-paper ads to playing Sylvia.’
‘You got that part on your merit.’
She fingered the bottom of her glass. ‘Did I? Or did Elisabetta choose me because she wants to get back at Richard by publicly humiliating me?’
He put his hand over hers, stilling its restless fidgeting. ‘Look at me, Kat.’ His eyes were dark and serious. ‘Whatever her reasons were, you have to take control now. It’s up to you. Actors have to deal with difficult casting arrangements all the time. Good actors don’t bring their personal life to the stage. You have to be Sylvia on that stage, not Richard Ravensdale’s love child. Understood?’
Kat let out a wobbly breath. ‘You’re right. You’re so right.’ She smiled. ‘Thanks for the pep talk. If ever you get sick of practising law, you could be a life coach.’
His smile was rueful as he pulled his hand back from hers. ‘Yeah, well, I’m good at sorting out other people’s problems. It’s different when it’s closer to home.’
Kat searched his features for a beat. ‘Is there something you’re struggling with? Personally, I mean?’
His expression closed like curtains on a stage. ‘No.’
His answer was too abrupt, too definite. Was he having second thoughts about their relationship? Did he want it to end sooner rather than later?
They ate in a companionable silence but Kat got the feeling he was mulling over something. Every time she glanced at him he was frowning. It would relax whenever he caught her looking at him, and his smile would quickly replace it, but it only lifted half of his mouth.
Was his foot annoying him? Slowing him down at work? Her guilt over injuring him came back with a vengeance. Everything had changed between them once she had run over his foot. The dynamic of their relationship had changed. They had gone from enemies—at least on her part, that was—to lovers. Intimate partners in a fling-relationship that had a scarily loose time frame. It never used to bother her when she’d had temporary relationships in the past. It was just how things were. She had never felt a pressing ache in her chest at the thought of it ending. She had never envisaged a future together where she could have it all: the career, the loving and supportive husband, the kids, the house and the pets.
But now, after just one night sleeping in Flynn’s bed, she realised how much she wanted to repeat it. To spend not just one night but many nights, all the nights that were allotted to her on this earth.
; But what did he want? He had made it clear he wasn’t going to settle down. Even Elisabetta, who knew him well, had said the same.
‘I bought you something today,’ Flynn said into the silence.
Kat looked up in surprise. ‘What? Why?’
He leaned back in his chair to reach for a small package on the sideboard she hadn’t even noticed was there when she’d come in to set the table. He handed the package to her with an unreadable look. ‘Actually, it’s from Cricket,’ he said. ‘For taking him for all those walks.’
Kat unpeeled the satin ribbon and the paper to find a jewellery box from a well-known jeweller inside. Her heart flip-flopped. Jewellery? What sort of jewellery? She tentatively opened the box and found a beautiful tortured pearl on a delicately crafted white-gold chain. The pearl was irregular in shape but she knew from reading about them somewhere that each one was completely unique. Was he telling her something by this lovely gift? That he saw her as unique and special? She looked across at him. ‘I don’t know what to say...it’s beautiful. But you shouldn’t have bothered.’
‘Cricket insisted,’ Flynn said. ‘Anyway, it’s just a trinket.’
A trinket? Kat looked back at the gorgeous pearl. This was no throwaway trinket. This would have cost a packet. She had never been given jewellery as a gift before. In fact, as far as gifts went, she had received very few over the course of her twenty-three years. Her mother had never had enough spare cash for presents, and certainly none of Kat’s past boyfriends had ever gifted her with anything—not so much as a bunch of flowers.
Kat leaned down to where Cricket was sitting at her feet waiting in hopeful enthusiasm for a titbit to be offered his way. ‘Thank you, Cricket,’ she said, ruffling his funny ears. ‘You’ve made me feel very special. I’ll treasure this for always.’
Cricket yapped as if he understood every word she said and then did one of his crazy little twirls.
‘Mad dog,’ Flynn said with a relaxed smile.
Kat met his gaze across the table again. ‘I think he’s the nicest dog I’ve ever met.’
Are you talking about the dog or him?
The dog... Okay, both.
Sucker.
Kat lifted the pearl and its chain out of the box and trailed it across her palm. ‘Does Cricket buy all your lovers gifts?’
‘You’re the first because I’ve only had him since Christmas.’
She put the pearl back in its box and gently closed the lid. She was the first but wouldn’t be the last. Why should that make her feel empty inside? As if a giant hole had been gouged in her stomach? ‘What happened with your family that you ended up with Cricket?’
He picked up his wine glass and looked at the contents for a moment. ‘There was a scene. There usually is at Christmas and birthdays—any occasion, really.’
‘What happened?’
He took a slow breath in and released it in a whoosh. ‘I didn’t like the way my parents were treating Cricket. He’s not the sort of dog you can lock outside, especially as they’d had him in the house since he was a puppy. We got into an argument and things escalated. My father’s solution was to have Cricket euthanised.’
‘Oh, no!’
‘Oh, yes.’ His look was grim. ‘I left with Cricket and drove back here and had a perfectly lovely evening with the Carstairses and their kids. It was the best and worst Christmas, if you know what I mean.’
‘I do,’ Kat said. ‘But how lovely that you’ve got him now. He adores you. It’s like he’s always been yours.’
That smile that made her insides melt was back. ‘I haven’t quite figured out the logistics of what to do with him when I go away on holidays or business,’ he said. ‘He doesn’t strike me as the boarding kennel type.’
Kat reached down to scratch Cricket underneath his chin. ‘Is your daddy calling you fussy, my sweet? You’re not a fusspot, are you? You just love the comfort of home and I don’t blame you one little bit.’
When she looked up again she caught Flynn looking at her with that odd look on his darkly handsome features. ‘What’s wrong?’ she said. ‘Why do you keep looking at me like that?’
His expression became blank. Unreadable. The stage curtains not only pulled across but the lights turned out as well. ‘How am I looking at you?’
‘I don’t know...as if you’re uncertain about something...about me.’
He reached for the wine bottle to refresh their glasses. ‘It’s just work stuff playing on my mind. Big cases, big egos, big bucks involved.’
‘I guess it’s another good reason to avoid marriage,’ Kat said. ‘You see the other side of it—the dirty and bitter side. No wonder it puts you off.’
He put the wine bottle back in the silver cooler. ‘Not all marriages end up in the divorce court. Some couples manage to last the distance, but you can never know if you and your partner are going to be the success story or the soul-destroying showdown.’
‘True,’ Kat said. ‘But do you think it’s more about good luck than good management?’
‘A bit of both, probably,’ he said. ‘When I look at your brothers and sister and their partners, I can’t imagine any of them ever wanting a divorce. But life can throw up some curve balls. Relationships can get knocked off course by all sorts of things. Bad health, financial stress, kids or the lack thereof, interfering relatives... The list is endless.’
‘I guess communication is the key,’ Kat said. ‘Being able to talk about stuff—really talk, I mean. Not locking stuff away only for it to blow out in an argument when it’s too late to fix it.’
He gave a wry smile. ‘Listen to us. The experts on the institution both of us are actively avoiding.’
Kat smiled back but for some reason it felt false. ‘Yeah, well, I didn’t rule it out entirely. Just not right now.’
A long silence passed.
All Kat could hear was the ticking of the mantle clock in the sitting room next door.
‘It’s tough finding a partner once you’re famous,’ Flynn finally said. ‘You can never know if people want you for you or for the social esteem it gives them to be associated with you. Both your brothers have struggled with that.’
‘Has Miranda experienced it too?’
‘She lost her boyfriend Mark when they were teenagers,’ he said. ‘Cancer. She hadn’t dated since. She martyred herself until Leandro whisked her away to Nice to help him sort out his late father’s estate. He’s had a thing for her for ages. Everyone could see it except Miranda.’
Another silence ticked past.
‘Does it happen to you?’ Kat asked. ‘The celebrity thing? I mean, you’re so close to the Ravensdales. Do people use you to get to them?’
‘Lovers, you mean?’ he said. ‘Occasionally, I guess. It doesn’t really bother me, to be perfectly honest.’
‘Because you only want them for sex?’
He looked at her for a beat or two. ‘Putting it baldly, yes.’
Was that all he wanted from her? Their relationship was based on the physical chemistry they had, not on anything else. No lasting bond was being formed. No future path was being laid out. No plans were being made for continuing their relationship indefinitely. ‘I guess I should count myself privileged you want me for other things as well,’ she said, and held up her hand to tick off a list. ‘Dog walking, cooking, running errands, scintillating conversation.’
His smile was a little twisted. ‘I want you for lots of reasons.’
Her insides slipped sideways at his deep and husky tone. But common sense raised a red flag. ‘You want me to go to Richard’s party,’ Kat said. ‘Be honest. That’s your primary goal. It has been from day one.’
‘I’m not denying I want you there,’ he said. ‘But it’s no longer my primary goal.’
She moistened her suddenly dry mouth. ‘What i
s?’
His eyes smouldered as they held hers. ‘Why don’t we clear away here and I’ll show you?’
* * *
Flynn woke from a disturbing dream later that night. It took him a moment to realise it had only been a dream. His heart was pounding, his skin was clammy and his pulse was racing like he’d had four energy drinks back to back. He had dreamt he was left alone on an island in the middle of the ocean. There was no power. No lights. No food. No shelter. No way of contacting anyone. A cruise ship was in the distance but it was too far for him to swim. There were sharks in the water. Menacing dorsal fins everywhere, circling the island. Every escape route was seething and swirling and swishing with danger.
He turned his head expecting to see Kat beside him in the bed but the space where she had been earlier was empty...well, apart from Cricket, of course. ‘What are you doing in here?’ he said. ‘You’re supposed to be sleeping in your basket downstairs.’
Cricket sank his undershot chin even lower onto his paws, his eyes taking on a beseeching look that would make anyone with half a heart think twice about removing him.
But that was the trouble. Flynn had more heart than he wanted right now. It was taking up more and more room in his chest, making him feel things he didn’t want to feel. He couldn’t explain why suddenly everything had changed when for so long he had been perfectly happy with his life. Seeing Kat arrive home earlier that evening had shown him what his life could be like if they were a couple. Not just dating or having a fling, but a committed couple.
He had been excited all day at the thought of coming home. The thought of sharing a meal with her, talking to her, watching her with Cricket, making love to her, had distracted him all day. He had bought her that pearl in his lunch hour. A completely spontaneous thing he still couldn’t explain. He had walked past that jeweller’s hundreds if not thousands of times and never once had he looked at the display in the window. But that day he had felt compelled not only to look but to go inside. He had seen the pearl and instantly known it was perfect for Kat. It was unique and beautiful, just as she was.
The Most Scandalous Ravensdale (The Ravensdale Scandals) Page 14