'Wait a minute,' Blair cried, grabbing wildly for the telephone. 'Wait just a damned minute ...'
Hunter frowned and pulled her back into the tight circle of his arm. 'Your daughter could use some lessons in manners,' he said sharply. 'I guess she heard me say we'll have to stay away for a few more days and she wasn't exactly overjoyed at the possibility. Yes, yes, I understand. All right, here she is. Blair, your father wants to talk to you.' He put his hand over the telephone as he handed it to her. 'Get that look off your face,' he said in a soft growl. 'Believe me, I'm no more thrilled than you are.'
Blair took the receiver from him, her eyes riveted to his face. She put the phone to her ear. .
'Hu ... hu .. .' Carefully, she took a deep breath and began again. 'Hello,' she said, still staring at Hunter.
Meryl's breathy whisper made her blink. 'It's me.
Blair, please, don't let on. Make believe you're talking to my father. Blair, please, please, listen to me for a second, OK? Just listen .. .'
'What's the matter?' Hunter asked her. 'Is the line fading?'
Blair shook her head. 'No,' she said finally, 'no, the line's fine. I just ... I just .. .'
'Blair,' Meryl whispered frantically, 'I'll put Daddy on if you'd rather talk to him. Shall I?'
'No,' Blair said slowly, 'I'd much rather talk to you.' She forced a smile to her face and looked up at Hunter. 'Why don't you tell me what's going on back there, Dad?'
'Thank you, Blair,' Meryl said. 'Look, I'll make this quick-I guess you're kind of surprised .. .'
Blair smiled through her teeth. 'Yes, you might say that.'
'Actually, we're surprised, too. We thought you'd have told Mr Hunter who you were. At least, that's what we thought at first .. .'
'I wish you were here right now, Daddy,' Blair said grimly. 'I'd like to see your face while I told you why I didn't. Maybe you can figure it out. Maybe you can imagine how I felt when .. .'
'Blair, listen, I think I know what happened. I .. .
''Do you, Daddy?'
'And don't say "Daddy" like that, Blair. You make it sound as if you're angry with me.'
'You're so clever, Dad.'
'All right, I'll get to the point. When we didn't hear from you or Hunter, we began to wonder. I mean, we knew you were probably scared.'
Blair closed her eyes and leaned her forehead against the telephone. 'That's an understatement,' she said hoarsely.
'And Daddy said Mr Hunter is a rather assertive type and that he'd probably be expecting me to be-well-uncooperative.' There was a brief pause and Meryl cleared her throat. 'I usually am, when it comes to security. What I'm getting at is that-well-as the hours ticked by, we guessed that maybe you'd thought you'd been kidnapped and were afraid to tell him who you really were. That's what happened, right?'
Blair nodded. She didn't trust herself to speak, and she only sighed into the phone, but Meryl seemed to understand.
'OK,' Meryl breathed, 'that's what we figured.' 'Blair,' Hunter murmured, 'are you OK?'
She nodded, her head whirling. Two days of terror and suddenly bits and pieces began to come together. Things Hunter had said about her welfare, about her safety, about her lack of cooperation-things she'd been too naive or too frightened to understand. Meryl was still talking, urging her to ... to what? To go on with the pretence? God, she couldn't! She couldn't ...
'It'll just be for a day or two,' Meryl was saying.
'Please, Blair, do it for me. It's just a harmless gag .. .' 'No!'
'Blair, please-it'll be OK. You'll see.'
Hunter's arm tightened around her. 'Blair,' he whispered, his breath warm against her cheek, 'what's the matter?'
'Noth ... nothing,' she said. He's not a criminal, Blair.
He's not what you thought he was ... You're safe.
'Blair, Jesus, don't pass out on me. Forget the damned phone. Take a deep breath. Come on, that's it. Again .. .' Suddenly, the voice whispering into her ear was masculine and authoritative.
'Miss Nolan, this is Oscar Desmond. Listen carefully, young woman. I want you to go on pretending to be my daughter for just a few more days.'
Blair turned as far from Hunter's piercing stare as she could manage. 'No,' she whispered, 'I won't. I ...''Everyone believes my chauffeur foiled a pair of ambitious paparazzi and whisked Meryl off to a secluded location.'
Hunter's fingers curled around the telephone. 'Let me have that,' he said. 'What the hell's going on? You look like you've seen a ghost.'
'No,' she said quickly. 'I'm fine. I ...'
'No one knows Meryl's here, Blair. Her young man and I have been getting acquainted without any disturbances. It's made my daughter very happy.'
'Happy?' Blair whispered. 'Happy? What about me?
What about ...'
'I've told Hunter it's not safe to come back to the city.
He believes me.'
'I don't care about that,' she said in a frantic whisper, trying to turn away from Hunter's piercing stare. 'I don't .. .'
'I can't tell him the truth. He'd never agree to let me use him as a diversion.'
Blair swallowed drily. 'Yes, but eventually, when the facts are known .. .'
She could almost hear Desmond shrug. 'I'll worry about it then. Hunter earns a lot of money in my employ. He'll be angry, but I'm sure I can straighten things out.' Her eyes skimmed over Hunter's face, lingering on his mouth as she remembered the feel of it against her own.
'Do this for Meryl's sake,' Oscar Desmond pleaded.
He wasn't a criminal ...
'Make it short and sweet, Blair,' Hunter said. 'Yes,' she said to him, 'I will .. .'
But it was Oscar Desmond who answered. 'Good girl,' he rasped, and the phone went dead in her hands.
CHAPTER SEVEN
'W AIT,' said Blair, 'please ...'
The drone of the dialing tone mocked her plea. She stared at the receiver and than hung it up slowly, conscious of the sound of Hunter's breathing and the light pressure of his body against hers.
'It's terribly hot in here, Hunter. I need some air .. .' She pulled open the door and stumbled out of the booth, drawing deep breaths of the hot, humid air. Her legs felt spongy and everything around her seemed to be losing colour and substance. She made a soft, murmuring sound, and suddenly Hunter’s arms closed around her.
'Easy,' he said softly. 'Just lean against me.'
'I'm all right,' she protested, but she lay her head against his chest and closed her eyes, breathing in the heated air as well as the heated scent of his skin.
'That's my girl,' he murmured. One hand moved up to cup the back of her head, lifting the heavy mass of dark curls from the nape of her neck. A hot breeze whispered against her skin, but it felt cool against her damp flesh. 'Better?'
'Yes,' she sighed, her face still pressed against his shirt. 'It's the damned heat,' Hunter said, cradling her against him for a few moments more, then taking her by the shoulders, he moved her gently away from him. 'Let me see ...' His eyes scanned her face and he smiled. 'You'll be fine. We'll get you something cool to drink at the market. I should have realized the weather would affect you. It takes time to get used to it.'
'It's not that,' she said, and then she stopped. She'd almost told him that Iowa was a lot worse than this in midsummer, and what a mistake that would have been. What would Meryl Desmond know about Iowa, in midsummer or any other time?
'Don't argue with me, Blair,' he said, looping his arm around her waist. 'I've seen heat-stroke before. Pale face, clammy skin-just the way you looked when you stepped out of that booth. Let's get some liquids into you, and then get you something lighter than those trousers and that sweater. And you need a hat to keep the sun off your head. You'll be OK,' he said, starting down the hill with her tucked firmly against him. 'There's nothing to worry about.'
No, there wasn't, she thought, walking along obediently beside him. Well, there was. She had to keep pretending she was Meryl or tell Hunter the truth, and she wasn't about to do tha
t, not until she had things sorted out. Desmond had said Hunter would be angry if he knew he was being deceived. She glanced up at him and thought of the intensity with which he'd guarded her the past two days. Yes, she thought, he probably would be angry-and at her. It was always the messenger who brought the bad news who lost his head. And then would come Meryl's tears and Oscar Desmond's anger-cooler than Hunter's, but anger none the less-and before she knew it she'd be unemployed and broke and ...
That was the bad news. Now for the plus side of the situation. The terror of the past couple of days was over. Hunter wasn't a desperado. God, it was crazy! She wanted to laugh and cry and ... He wasn't a kidnapper at all, although who could blame her for not being able to tell the difference? It wasn't every day you were snatched off the street and tossed into a car. Or hustled half-way across a foreign country by a tight-lipped madman. Or treated without the slightest bit of human decency.
She stumbled over a cobblestone and Hunter's arm caught her closer to him. How solicitous he was being, she thought, glancing up at him. Not that it was the first time. That was the way he'd been all along. Concerned one minute and cruel the next. No, not cruel exactly. Cold. Contemptuous. Yes, that was a good way to describe his behavior, especially when he'd humiliated her, degraded her ... which he'd done as often as he possibly could. Hunter, you bastard!
Blair pulled free of his arm. 'I can walk by myself, thank you,' she said, her words like ice.
His eyes met hers. 'Feeling better, I see.'
There was something in his voice ... Her head swung up and she glared at him, but his face mirrored only polite concern. Too polite, she thought. He was mocking her, damn him! She could see it in his eyes. Deep within himself, he was laughing at her, just as he had last night when she'd asked him to stop at a ladies' room, and this morning when she'd asked for her shoes ...
He's a bully, Blair. And you've played right into his hands... But not any more. He was ... he was nothing but an employee, when you came right down it it. A bodyguard. Muscle, and not much else. And there wasn't a damned thing to be afraid of, not from now on.
She waited while he unlocked the car, and then she turned her back on him. 'Get me something cold to drink,' she said over her shoulder. 'Make sure there's plenty of ice in it.'
The laughter was visible on his face, now, tugging at his mouth. 'Anything you say, Miss Desmond.'
Blair's hands went to her hips. 'That's right,' she said. 'Anything I say. Just see you remember that, Hunter.' 'One call to Daddy and we turn into a tiger,' he said softly. 'Interesting.'
'You have put me through a very difficult couple of days, Hunter. I just wanted you to know that things are going to be different from now on.'
One of his eyebrows rose lazily. 'Really?' he said, as if she'd told him something amazing.
Blair pushed her hair back from her face. 'Yes, really.
We may have to stay away from Rome for another day or two .. .'
'At least.'
‘… but you're not going to push me around any more.
Is that understood?'
'I haven't pushed you around, Blair. I've merely done what was necessary for your safety.'
Blair uttered a quick, unladylike retort and he laughed.
A blush rose to her cheeks, not because of what she'd said, but because of the way he'd reacted to it. That damned contemptuous attitude of his again ...
'My, my, how quickly we revert to type,' he said. 'There's nothing funny about this,' she hissed. 'I'm angry, Hunter. Damned angry! And I just want to make sure you ... What are you doing? Hunter, stop that! Let me go .. .'
It was useless. She might as well not have been talking.
He scooped her up, swung open the car door, and tossed her into the seat as easily as he had the first time at the airport. She was still sputtering as he got in, stuck the key into the ignition and turned on the air-conditioning.
'Relax,' he said easily, and cool off a little, Blair. The heat seems to have gone to your head.'
'How dare you?' she said, her voice shaking with barely restrained fury. 'I was talking to you, Hunter, and when I talk, you'd damn well better list--'
He was on her in an instant, his hands clasping her wrists, his face inches from hers. She caught her breath at the cold fire burning in his eyes.
'Listen Miss Desmond,' he growled, 'I don't know what's gotten you so fired up, but if that's what happens to you after one talk with Daddy, you can forget about any others until we get back to Rome.'
'Don't talk to me that way, Hunter. Who do you think you are? Who ...'
'I'm the man who holds your life in my hands,' he said. 'And I'll talk to you any damned way I please.' 'You do not hold my life in your hands,' she said furiously. 'You're my bodyguard, not my kidnapper. The game's over, Hunter. I'm not afraid of you any more.' He stared at her for a moment, and then a look of incredulity spread across his face.
'Your kidnapper?' His eyes searched hers and he began to chuckle. 'You're not serious!'
'I am not going to discuss it,' she said, refusing to look at him.
'I don't believe it,' he said, laughing softly. 'You thought I ...? Is that why you tried so damned hard to get away from me?'
'Anyone would try and get away from you, Hunter,' she said coldly. 'I'm sure that's not news to a man like you.'
To her surprise, the laughter fled from his face. 'You're right,' he said in clipped tones. 'It's not. And that only makes me more attuned to every trick you can think of, Miss Desmond. I suggest you keep that in mind before you try any more funny business.'
Blair turned to stare at him and then she slammed her fist against the dashboard. 'Why in God's name didn't you tell me who you were?' she demanded.
Hunter shrugged his shoulders. 'I did. I gave you my name-didn't your father tell you I'd be picking you up at the airport?'
'I ... I was told you were a new chauffeur, not a bodyguard.'
100
A FLOOD OF SWEET FIRE
'Maybe Desmond didn't want to upset you by telling you anything else.'
'Anything else??'
'We got word that someone might try a snatch the night before you were due in Rome.'
Blair's eyes widened. 'You mean ... those men who tried to hustle me into the Fiat weren't paparazzi?'
Hunter gave her a grim smile. 'Good thinking, Miss Desmond. But they're off our backs. Your father told me the police picked them up minutes after we got away. That's not the story the papers got, of course. Desmond followed my recommendations; my policy is never to publicize these damned attempted kidnappings. Publicity’s half the reason they take place.'
'He followed your what?'
'My recommendations. My firm provides security for Desmond Enterprises in Europe.' His eyes swept over her and he gave her a cold smile. 'You were most vulnerable from the airport to the villa. If they were going to make a try for you, I figured it would be then. So I decided to swap places with the chauffeur. I didn't want to take any chances on your doing something stupid, like disappearing for a quick swim at Capri. Your reputation’s preceded you, Miss Desmond. Everybody from your old man down to that poor son of a bitch you lost last winter had warned me that it was impossible to provide you with proper security.'
Meryl, you just wait until I get my hands on you ...
'Why don't you tell me about it?' Blair asked carefully. 'I'd love to hear your version of what happened.'
'Let's not play games, Blair,' Hunter growled. 'You slipped away from him every chance you got during the month you were here. That's why he lost the account; it's what convinced your father that he couldn't afford not to hire the best.' He leaned across the console towards her and she drew in her breath. 'It's why I've anticipated every trick you tried to pull. Just remember that. As long as you’re in Italy, I'll be as close to you as your skin.'
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