Xan tried not to wince at his firm handshake. "Xan Lane, manager of Romance Island Resort," she said, extracting her pulverised fingers from his grip.
Fortunately, he didn't seem to notice, as he exchanged nods with Jay, who stood silently beside Xan. "Felix," Trevor said.
Behind Trevor, a child hopped out of the helicopter, and Xan's jaw dropped. The dark-haired girl looked perhaps twelve years old, moving with a dancer's grace as she landed on the pavement and crossed to stand behind Trevor.
Was it school holidays? Xan wondered. Bring your daughter to work day? Because she'd expected to meet the enigmatic Angel, not some security consultant and his daughter.
"And this is..." Trevor began, waving in the direction of the girl.
Xan turned on a child-friendly smile and extended her hand.
"Don't," Jay hissed.
The girl shook her hair out of her eyes, before directing a glare at the helicopter blades responsible for mussing her hair. "Doctor Alanna Miller. We spoke on the phone." Huge, dark eyes sucked at Xan's soul as the girl – no child, that was certain – made no move to shake hands. The eyes flicked mercifully to Jay for a moment, before returning to Xan. "Is there anything you don't know about this island?"
Xan wet her lips. "I'd like to think there isn't, but some of my staff might have more detailed knowledge than me about their specialty. That's why I pay them, after all."
Alanna nodded. "Fair enough." She jerked her head at Jay. "Does he count as staff?"
Xan tried and failed to hide her smile. "I don't pay him, so probably not."
Alanna made shooing motions with her hands. "You're still not my favourite person, Jason. Go back to safely sunning yourself on your private beach. I'll send for you if I need you."
Without a word, Jay left.
The dark eyes settled on Xan again. "Shall we start, Xan? I've seen the helipad, so let's begin with transport. Jo mentioned ferry services and a dock. I'd like to know the frequency and travel times before you show me your function facilities."
Xan nodded and led the way toward the main jetty, hoping to catch sight of Jay's retreating back as he headed back to his villa, but he'd evidently fled in such a hurry that he was nowhere to be seen. After less than five minutes with the woman, Xan began to understand why Jay was so afraid of her.
EIGHT
"So where are we going again?" Jay grumbled as he fastened his seatbelt. To give him credit, he actually looked decent, dressed up. He wasn't wearing a tux or even a suit, but in a shirt and chinos he seemed...almost civilised. Maybe it was the shoes. After seeing him barefoot or wearing thongs, she'd wondered if he actually owned any other shoes, but he'd managed to surprise her again. If all her efforts failed and she did have to attend the doctor's wedding as his date, at least he'd look good.
"We're going to a private party to celebrate the reopening of the Mangrove Hotel, after all its renovations," Xan explained patiently. "We have an arrangement with them where they send their guests to us for a day trip or weekend package, and we send ours here on the nights when there's Staircase to the Moon. Like there is tonight, for example. It's likely to be the last one this dry season, which is why Steve wanted to have his party tonight. He said the public will get one part of the lawn, but we'll get a cordoned off area for VIPs, because it's a private, invitation-only party." One she hoped Jerome wouldn't manage to get into.
"So why d'you need a date? Don't you want to socialise a bit, maybe find a friend for the night?" Jay asked, too damn perceptively.
"Not everyone hooks up with random strangers for one night stands," Xan snapped. "Some of us have standards. Want to be sure of our feelings before we get into bed with someone, though sometimes even that's a huge bloody mistake." She clamped her lips shut before she said any more.
"What's his name?"
"What?"
"What's his name?" Jay repeated. "Mr Bloody Huge Mistake?"
Damn him to the underworld and back. With harpies, just like in his namesake's legends. "It doesn't matter."
Jay peered out the window at the islands below. "It does if he'll be at the party tonight, and you want a pretend date to scare him off, and maybe make him feel inadequate. What'd he do? Make the mistake of thinking you wanted more than one night, when you just wanted a quick fuck?"
Xan clenched her fists. "Gods help me, Jay, if you weren't my boss, I'd punch you for saying that. Is there no filter on your mouth at all?"
"Nope," he replied cheerfully. "Look, sorry if it's offensive. But I know how these things go. I've watched movies and read books. Things go wrong when the fake date doesn't know shit. I figure I know you, but I don't know him. So, help me not fuck this up for you. Do you want me to help you get him back, or to leave you alone? Is he a stalker?"
"No, he's not a stalker. He's not a one-night stand, either. He's the wanker I was engaged to marry, before he cheated on me. I found out just before I got the job at the resort. He's...he says he wants me back, but like you said, cheaters never get the girl. Definitely not this girl. But he was there when Steve told me about the party, and he sort of invited himself along as my partner before I could stop him. If I arrive with you, I figure that'll mean he can't get in."
Jay frowned. "So you don't need me to make him jealous."
"No." Though it couldn't hurt if Jerome thought she had moved on to someone better.
"So no normal date-like behaviour? You don't need me to kiss you breathless, or invent pet names for you, or know what your favourite position is?"
Only in books did people have favourite positions. Honestly, most men only knew two or three – on top, on the bottom, or from behind. The rest were invented for the porn industry, Xan was sure of it. "No," she repeated. "We are what we are. Colleagues from Romance Island Resort, helping another hotel manager celebrate a special occasion."
"Fine," Jay sighed, pouting. "If you change your mind, let me know. I figured it was the only chance I'd ever get to kiss you. Maybe not, then."
Xan clenched her fists again, but then she caught his grin before he turned his face away. "You're baiting me, aren't you?"
"Yeah," he admitted. "You're funny when you're pissed off. Bit scary, too, but where's the fun if there isn't any danger?"
"Bloody rock star," she muttered under her breath. It was too late to back out now, but she heartily wished she'd never asked him to the party. She crossed her fingers, hoping he could behave himself enough not to get chucked out of Steve's party. Maybe she'd have been better off alone.
NINE
"Do I get to hold your hand?" Jay asked, nodding toward the couple in front of them.
"No, because we're not a couple," Xan said, pasting a smile on her face as she gave her name to the hostess. The woman found Xan's name easily and ticked her off, but Jay presented a bit of a problem.
"I'm sorry, Mr Felix, but you're not on the list," the wide-eyed woman stammered. "I'll see if I can find the manager."
Xan leaned forward and said something she never thought she'd say: "It's all right, he's with me."
"Your...partner?"
Jay glowered. He really didn't like that word.
Xan laughed. "After a fashion. Jay owns Romance Island Resort, but I'm the manager. Seeing as he was in town, I invited him along as my date, so he could meet some of the other hotel owners and managers here."
"Oh, in that case..." She waved them through, turning her attention to the next group of guests.
"Do you kiss on a first date?" Jay persisted.
"This isn't a date."
"You told her it was."
It was like bringing along her brother, if she'd had one. Xan's respect for Jo jumped up a notch.
Xan scanned the guests who'd already arrived, searching for Jerome. She didn't want to see him, but she wanted some warning before he came near her again. After a few minutes, she was satisfied that he hadn't managed to gain entry to the party.
"What do you want to drink?" Jay asked, gesturing at a waiter with a loaded tr
ay. He'd already claimed a condensation-coated beer.
"Juice," Xan decided, reaching for the glass. She wanted her wits about her for a bit longer before she started drinking anything stronger.
She expected Jay to wander off in search of fangirls, but he stuck to her side much like the devoted date he wasn't. Not that he needed to – a white picket fence separated the crowd in the beer garden next door from the thirty or so guests in the private party area. The public stood six deep at the railing overlooking the mangroves, while there was seating for all the guests at their stretch of railing.
When Jay was halfway through his second drink, he asked, "So, where's the mistake?"
"I don't know," she admitted. "I haven't seen him yet."
As if someone in the hotel had heard her, all the outside lights went out.
"Well, that helps," Xan muttered.
She knew what was coming, though. The buzz humming through the crowd spilled over into the party area as the first sliver of reddish moon appeared on the horizon. Gasps and whispered superlatives followed as the moon rose higher, as if too much noise might make the celestial body sink out of sight.
Minutes passed and the blood orange staircase emerged across the tidal flats, forming a path up to the moon the water reflected.
"Beautiful," Xan sighed. She'd seen Staircase to the Moon so many times from this very beer garden, as well as from Romance Island, but it never ceased to enchant her.
"Yep. Nature's bloody awesome up here," Jay said. "It's more of a real staircase here, too. At the island, it's more like one of the resort paths, with maybe a couple of steps when there's waves."
Maybe bringing Jay along wasn't such a bad idea after all.
As the moon climbed the sky, it paled from red to white, the staircase all but vanishing. The lights came back on and a small army of waiters appeared, bearing trays of food and drink. In front of the railing, chairs were shifted to make space for a stage.
Xan had forgotten about the live band that played here on Staircase nights. Her night improved another notch, so she reached for a cider instead of juice this time.
Jay clinked his drink against hers, then pointed at the band setting up. "Do you know them? Are they any good?"
Xan shook her head. "I don't know. I guess we'll have to wait and see."
Jay dragged a table and two chairs over to a spot beside the picket fence with a good view of the band. He claimed one seat for himself, gesturing for her to take the other. Xan gratefully accepted.
They sat in companionable silence for a few minutes, until Jay finished his drink. "Want me to get you another one?"
Xan had plenty left, so she shook her head.
Jay took off in search of his next drink. Over on the stage, the band launched into their first number. They weren't bad, even if they were covering another band's familiar song. But that's the way the world worked, wasn't it? As an unknown band, they'd have to play what was popular, instead of their own, original songs, until they'd built up enough of an audience who appreciated their unique style and wanted nothing else.
She heard Jay sink into his chair. "How long did you have to play other people's songs before you had enough fans to play your own?" she asked, not taking her eyes off the band.
"One fan's enough for me, if it's you," Jerome replied. "Have you thought about what I said?"
Xan swore. "What are you doing here?"
"I said I'd be here. And I'm here for you, Xan. Here to win you back. Here to make you see the truth about how I helped your friend Kelly and I'm the only man for you."
Xan turned away. "Go away, Jerome. I told you I'm not interested. If the only man for me is a cheating paedophile, then I don't want any man at all."
"You don't mean that. Tell me you don't mean that."
"She usually says what she means. Xan doesn't mince words," Jay jumped in. "And that's my seat, mate." He set his beer on the table, placing a bottle of cider pointedly in front of Xan.
"I don't see your name on it," Jerome snapped, jutting out his chin.
Xan rose. "Take mine, Jay. I'm not staying."
Both men protested, but Xan didn't want to listen. She couldn't be bothered with pissing contests. She found another table near the railing and claimed that for herself and her cider.
Less than a minute later, Jay joined her. "Was that the big mistake?"
"Yes," she admitted.
"He's a fucking idiot."
Xan silently agreed. That also made her one for falling in love with the bastard, but everyone made mistakes. At least she hadn't married hers.
The band struck up another tune. Xan liked this one.
Evidently, so did Jay. He dumped his beer on the table. "Excuse me, I believe they're playing my song."
Xan watched in fascination as Jay strode right up to the stage, so the lights showed his face, and gestured for the microphone. After a brief discussion with the singer, Jay jumped onto the stage, mike in hand.
"Let's try that again, shall we? Just like in the Arena – with energy!"
The grinning band members turned up the volume, produced a second microphone, and proceeded to back Jay up as he belted out the lyrics with his eyes closed.
At the end, Jay looked right at Xan, who clapped her approval for the performance. He gave an exaggerated bow, then held a quick, whispered conference with the band before they launched into another number, with Jay as their frontman.
Some of the guests recognised him. Both in the beer garden and the private party, people lifted their phones to photograph Jay's impromptu live performance.
Xan's phone stayed in her handbag, where it belonged. Though she'd never tell him, Chaya had always been one of her favourite bands, so she sat back, sipping her cider, content to just enjoy the show.
TEN
"Ah, Ms Lane?" a soft voice asked.
"Nngh?" Xan had lost count of her drinks hours ago, but she was fairly sure she'd drunk less than Jay, who now sat with the band beside the darkened stage, sharing laughter, stories and enough alcohol to drown a whale.
She wasn't about to join them, though, and she was quite happy drinking alone, as long as Jerome didn't join her. Luckily, he'd vanished.
"Ms Lane, when you're ready, see Hotel Reception about your room key. All tonight's guests are staying in the deluxe apartments by the pool, as it's quieter than the rooms overlooking..." The waitress waved at the beer garden on the other side of the temporary picket fence, where the public staircase party had turned into a proper drunken revel.
Xan nodded and thanked the girl, without taking her eyes off the revellers. The last time she watched Staircase to the Moon from this lawn, she'd been among the public patrons, as the designated driver for a bunch of backpackers who'd been staying at the place she managed back then. It felt strange to be on the other side of the fence, as one of the upper-class VIPs. She half expected someone to tap her on the shoulder and tell her she didn't belong, but of course no one did. This was Australia; moreover, this was Broome. The laid-back lifestyle here was nothing like the prim and proper sort of thing that went on back in the UK. If the Queen herself held a garden party in Broome, it would either be on this very lawn, or at Romance Island Resort, and she's get an invitation just as easily as she'd scored one to this event.
The waitress carried her full tray of drinks over to the band. They raised their glasses in one raucous, clinking toast to cheers of "Yeah!" and "Right on!" before draining the drinks dry. As if this was their final cue, they rose as one to ascend the stage, not for an encore, but to pack away their gear.
Jay, never one to clear up after himself, or do a day's work at all, sauntered over to Xan. "Top blokes," he slurred, grinning. He nodded at the empty bottles on the table beside Xan. "I hope you're not planning on driving after those. The police in town get real narky about drink driving."
Xan rose and half a dozen...whatever-they-weres swam woozily up to her head. Shouldn't have drunk so much. "No. We're staying the night here. We'll head back in
the morning. I'll be fine by then."
Jay snorted. "If you drank all those, you'll have a hangover by then."
Xan shrugged. "So will you." She bent her surprisingly unsteady steps toward Reception.
Jay held the door for her, which was probably a good thing, as her feet seemed to want to trip over themselves right now. Shouldn't have had that cider. Or the other ones. Maybe the cocktail had been a mistake, too. Too sweet. She was pretty sure she hadn't finished that one, at least.
"Your key, Ms Lane," the receptionist said, though Xan couldn't remember her name. Everyone knew her, that's all. It was a small town thing.
"What about him?" Xan demanded, jerking her head at Jay, then wishing she hadn't. Woozy as buggery. "He needs a key, too. He's not sharing mine." She closed her fist around it.
The receptionist blinked, then produced another key, which she handed to Jay. "For you, Mr Felix."
With a wink and a whistle, Jay led the way back outside, helping Xan out the doors and up the stairs. For once, Xan didn't protest about him touching her. Mostly because if he let go, she was certain her knees would buckle and she'd hit the floor. This was why she didn't drink. Now, why wouldn't the bloody key go into the lock? And which lock was it, when there were three of them?
"Here, lemme help," Jay said, taking the key. The lock behaved for him, clicking after barely a moment, letting him swing the door wide open. "C'mon, Xan, let's get you to bed."
She felt her body tilt dizzily, and opened her mouth to protest, then closed it again when she felt something soft under her back. Bed. Just what she needed right now, to sleep off that hellish cider.
"Now I get why you invited me. You needed someone to carry you to your room. You don't drink much, do you?"
Xan peered blearily at Jay. What was he doing in her bedroom? "Bugger off," she mumbled. "I'm not sleeping with you."
"You don't have to. There's another bed," Jay said.
No. She was not sharing a bed or a room with Jay Felix. "Out. Getcherownroom."
The Rock Star's Wedding Page 3