God damn it, he was no happier now that Madison had rung than he had been before when he had thought she was a little fool for not contacting him!
Edgar!
Every time he turned around that man was there. And usually at Madison’s side. It did seem rather a close god-daughter/godfather relationship—
Gideon climbed out of bed impatiently. Forget Edgar. Forget Madison’s relationship with the other man; he was only interested in whether or not she could really act. And he had a screen-test to organise for three hours’ time. And then he would know for certain whether or not he had found his Rosemary…
Hours later, as he watched the playbacks yet again, he wasn’t sure what he had found…!
Madison had arrived at the studio dressed in denims and a green silk shirt tucked in at her narrow waist, her hair plaited loosely down the length of her spine—and with an attitude that stood out a mile! She’d made it obvious she didn’t really want to be there, as prickly as a thistle when he’d introduced her to his assistant, Claire. Although, to give Claire her due, she had done everything in her power to get Madison to relax, offering her coffee, chatting to her about how she was enjoying her stay in England so far.
None of it had helped Madison relax, and Gideon had finally had to accept that it was his own presence that was making her so edgy.
He’d excused them both to Claire, pulling Madison out of the studio. ‘What the hell is wrong with you?’ he snapped. ‘You’re here for a screen-test, not to have your teeth pulled!’
Madison gave him a look that told him she thought the latter might be preferable. ‘I’m just not happy about this,’ she admitted grudgingly, twisting her slender hands together in front of her.
He stood back, looking at her with narrowed eyes. Her face appeared free of make-up today, making her look even younger than she had the other evening, but the clean lines of her bone structure were clearly visible; she was absolutely stunning to look at, with or without make-up.
‘Why the hell not?’ he demanded harshly, annoyed with himself for not remaining as detached as he would have wished.
Madison shrugged. ‘I’m not a star, Gideon—’
‘Leave me to be the judge of that,’ he rasped, even more determined after looking at her today that Madison could do this.
She shook her head. ‘I don’t want to waste your time—’
‘It’s my time to waste,’ he insisted grimly.
For the first time today she began to look less tense, relaxing enough to give a slight smile. ‘And mine,’ she pointed out dryly.
He gave an inclination of his head. ‘But mine is a damn sight more valuable!’
Madison smiled broadly this time. ‘That’s the Gideon Byrne I know,’ she drawled ruefully.
He quirked dark brows. ‘And love?’ What the hell—? Flirting with Madison was not part of his plan. Plan! When Madison was around nothing seemed to go as he planned! ‘Let’s get down to business, Madison,’ he continued harshly before she could make any reply. ‘You do the test. You’re either what I want—or we never see each other again. How does that sound?’ he demanded coldly.
Her mouth twisted wryly. ‘It sounds as if I should make a mess of the screen-test!’
‘You may very well do that anyway,’ he stated cruelly. ‘Let’s go and see, shall we?’ He indicated they should go back into the studio.
He wasn’t sure what it was—their conversation? His challenge?—but after Madison had left, and he watched the re-runs, he knew they weren’t destined never to see each other again…!
She was brilliant! Her acting showed just the right amount of vulnerability, fragility—and scheming witch!—to make her the perfect Rosemary.
It was something else about Madison on the screen that bothered him. Somewhere at the back of his mind, niggling away, he knew she reminded him of someone. And he had no idea who it could be, knew he had never met anyone else, despite his dismissal at the weekend to Edgar, with Madison’s particular brand of beauty. But there was something there anyway—the way she tilted her head, the curve of her cheek, a certain huskiness in her voice…
And he didn’t like not knowing whoever it was she reminded him of. In fact, he felt decidedly uncomfortable as he continued to watch her on the screen.
Uncomfortable enough not to offer Madison the part…?
‘Come on, Gideon.’ Claire came into the studio where he still sat in the darkness. ‘Let’s go out and have some dinner. It’s been a long day, and I’m sure you’re as hungry as I am.’
It wasn’t unusual for Claire and himself to end up having dinner together at the end of a long day; in fact, he spent more time with Claire than most men did with their wives! Not that he and Claire had ever thought of each other in that way; Gideon never became involved with the people he worked with—and Claire knew him too well, warts and all, to ever feel in the least bit romantic about him!
Beautiful as she was—a tall, leggy redhead in her late thirties—Claire had never married. Her career was everything to her, and as Gideon’s assistant for the last five years she seemed to have found the niche she wanted. Completely to his benefit, Gideon freely acknowledged. Claire knew exactly where he should be, and when he should be there, and made sure that was exactly where he was.
She also made sure he ate properly…
‘Sounds like a good idea,’ he nodded, standing up, stretching stiffly. He had been sitting in the studio for hours; he needed the break.
Claire grinned. ‘I booked a table at Miguel’s.’
From any other woman Gideon would have seen this as an attempt to be pushy in their relationship; with Claire he was completely comfortable with the arrangement. It was a little like having a caring older sister, he decided as they left for the restaurant.
An older sister he had never had. His childhood, especially from the age of seven, had been quite a lonely one—
Damn it, he seemed to be thinking back to those days rather a lot at the moment! And considering he normally chose to keep those memories blocked out of his mind he was far from pleased at the realisation. It was Edgar, of course, with that chance remark the other day at lunch, concerning Gideon’s father.
Edgar and his father had been friends, and it had been a friendship that stood the test of time—and adversity!—but it was still something Gideon would rather not have been reminded of.
In fact, he was still scowling when he and Claire reached the restaurant, completely irritated with the whole situation.
And that irritation only deepened when he saw Edgar and Madison sitting at a table together on the other side of the restaurant! Madison was looking absolutely stunning in an emerald-coloured dress that Gideon knew exactly matched those bewitching eyes he had been looking at on screen for hours!
‘Great,’ he muttered harshly once he and Claire had sat down, having a clear view across the room at the now laughing Madison.
Were she and Edgar already celebrating her success? And was that laughter at his expense?
Damn it, he was becoming paranoid now! He was the director of the film; he still had the power of yea or nay—
Madison’s screen-test was perfect; he would be an idiot if he didn’t say yea!
‘Hmm?’ Claire looked up at him enquiringly, already glancing through the menu.
‘Nothing,’ he muttered, picking up his own menu and seemingly becoming completely engrossed in it.
Which he wasn’t, of course; his thoughts were all on the fact that Madison sat across the restaurant, with a man he was fast coming to dislike!
Edgar had been altogether too smug about Madison from the very first time he’d mentioned her—almost as if he were a magician producing a rabbit from a hat!
Or just a godfather producing his much loved god-daughter…?
His normal rationality had deserted him, Gideon acknowledged self-derisively. And at a time when he should be feeling elated. He had found his Rosemary, the long search was over, and he could begin work on the film no
w.
Then why did he still feel so uneasy about Madison’s involvement in it…?
‘Isn’t that Madison over there?’ Claire cut in on his dark thoughts. ‘Oh, and Edgar Remington, too,’ she recognised lightly.
Gideon barely glanced across the room at the mismatched couple; after all, he had already looked at them once; he didn’t need to keep seeing them together.
‘Yes,’ he acknowledged tersely, his attention returning doggedly to the menu in front of him.
‘She is lovely, isn’t she?’ Claire obviously felt no such lack of interest, her chin resting in the palm of her hand as she looked across at Madison. ‘All that gorgeous blonde hair. And those emerald eyes. And she has a figure that—’
‘Okay, Claire, I get the picture!’ Gideon cut in harshly.
She quirked auburn brows. ‘The question is; does she?’
His mouth twisted, his eyes narrowed irritably. ‘You know damn well she does!’
Claire shrugged. ‘And when do you intend telling her that?’
He scowled again. ‘When I damn well feel like it!’
Claire sat back in her seat. ‘Gideon, I flatter myself that I know you as well as anyone is allowed to— You’re a private person—’ she shrugged dismissively as he glowered fiercely ‘and I respect that. As you well know, I’m pretty private myself.’ She grinned knowingly; her own private life was a closed book to Gideon. ‘But for some reason the mere sight of Madison McGuire seems to bring you out in invisible hives!’
He grimaced. ‘Not so invisible if you can see it,’ he reasoned self-derisively. ‘And it isn’t Madison exactly,’ he sighed. ‘I just—’
‘Uh-oh,’ Claire cut in softly. ‘It appears they’re just about to leave, and they’re coming over.’
He had spent immeasurable hours looking at Madison on the screen, but, even so, the flesh-and-blood Madison was something else completely. As Claire had already said, Madison was gorgeous!
Male heads turned as she strolled across the restaurant at Edgar’s side, her honey-coloured hair moving silkily over her shoulders and down her back, her face pale but beautiful, the green dress showing off the perfection of her figure, her legs long and shapely beneath its short skirt.
It should please him that she already attracted such attention; after all, he wanted a Rosemary that people were going to want to stare at, that people noticed in a crowd. What angered him, he inwardly acknowledged, was that most of that interest was male!
‘Gideon,’ Edgar greeted smoothly as he and Madison reached their table. ‘And the lovely Claire,’ he added huskily, bending to gallantly kiss the back of her hand. ‘So nice to see you again, my dear.’
The exchange left Gideon and Madison looking wordlessly at each other, Gideon having stood up as soon as the other couple reached the table.
‘Celebrating?’ he rasped, at once wishing he didn’t sound quite so accusing. This woman certainly brought out the worst in him!
Those green eyes flashed a warning even as her chin rose in challenge. ‘Not at all,’ she drawled dismissively. ‘This happens to be Edgar’s favourite restaurant.’
Gideon came here a lot with Claire, but he could never remember seeing the other man here before…! ‘It is good.’ He gave an acknowledging inclination of his head. ‘Did you enjoy your meal?’
Humour glowed briefly in her deep green eyes. ‘Most of it,’ Madison murmured dryly.
Until he arrived, was the unspoken message Gideon read in her voice! Madison was obviously no more comfortable with him than he was with her, and he found that irritated him too. In fact, he seemed to have been in a constant state of irritation since Edgar had first mentioned Madison’s name to him!
But Madison’s reaction to him, this definite aversion she had to his company, wasn’t one he was used to. Not that he flattered himself that women were bowled over by his irresistible charm—most people would agree that ‘charm’ wasn’t part of his make-up!—but he wasn’t unattractive, and his reputation as a film director didn’t do him any harm where women were concerned, either. Madison seemed to be unimpressed with both those things…!
‘How did it go today, Gideon?’
Edgar again! One of these days he was going to tell the older man exactly where to go!
As it was, Edgar had put him on the spot where today’s screen-test was concerned. Not that Gideon didn’t already accept that it was a fait accompli that Madison was to play Rosemary—he would just have preferred to tell her that in his own time, and in his own way!
It was the look of dismay on Madison’s face as she looked incredulously at Edgar that made Gideon relent slightly. ‘I think that’s for Madison and I to discuss, don’t you?’ he challenged the older man; the sooner Edgar got his interfering nose out of this, the better he would like it!
The older man shrugged unconcernedly. ‘Obviously Madison hasn’t had time to find herself an agent over here yet, and so—’
‘With you around she doesn’t need one!’ Gideon found himself interrupting, turning impatiently to Madison. ‘Come in and see me tomorrow,’ he bit out abruptly. ‘About the same time as today?’ He looked questioningly at Claire, who gave an affirmative nod of her head. ‘We can discuss a contract.’
Madison’s gaze was steady as she looked at him. ‘Does that mean I got the part?’
Still Gideon felt reluctant to commit himself to that! What on earth was wrong with him? He had been looking for exactly the right person for this film for months now, and now that he had finally found her he didn’t seem able to admit as much. He wasn’t offering to marry the girl, for goodness’ sake, just to have her star in his next film!
‘Gideon wouldn’t be wasting his time on you if you hadn’t,’ Edgar put in dryly. ‘Would you, Gideon?’ he added challengingly.
Edgar was so damned determined…!
Gideon’s uneasiness of earlier, as he’d watched Madison on that screen, returned with a vengeance. What the hell was he getting himself involved in? Whatever it was, it was too late now; the moment he’d seen Madison he had become involved!
His mouth twisted wryly. ‘It means we’re going to discuss the possibility of a contract,’ he insisted stubbornly. He might only be delaying the inevitable, but it was his film, his contract, his star; he would do this in his way, or not at all.
Madison continued to look at him for several long seconds, and then she turned away, smiling constrainedly at Edgar. ‘I think it’s time we left and let Gideon and Claire get on with their dinner, don’t you?’ She linked her arm with his. ‘Nice to see you again, Claire,’ she added warmly.
The two men exchanged nods, Edgar’s smoothly confident, Gideon’s coldly dismissive, his eyes narrowed as he watched Edgar and Madison walk away.
‘You’re letting your antagonism show,’ Claire drawled softly.
Gideon turned to her sharply, the two of them resuming their seats. He shook his head. ‘Edgar is—’
‘I didn’t mean Edgar,’ Claire cut in, brows raised in query.
He frowned, that frown deepening as Claire’s meaning became clear. ‘I don’t know Madison McGuire well enough to feel antagonistic towards her,’ he rasped dismissively.
‘I thought that,’ Claire replied lightly, continuing to meet his gaze.
‘Don’t get clever on me, Claire,’ he scorned derisively; their five-year working relationship gave Claire a lot of leeway where he was concerned, but making ambiguous comments concerning his behaviour was overstepping the line.
Damn it, it wasn’t Claire he was angry with! It was—it was— Hell, he didn’t even know who he was angry with any more!
‘Let’s order our food,’ he suggested harshly, putting a firm end to that conversation.
But that didn’t mean he had forgotten about it as they ordered and ate their meal…
Or when he returned alone to his apartment later that evening.
What was it about Madison McGuire that made him so angry? Hell, he didn’t know! But one thing he did know:
he would have to get that anger under firm control before they began working together…
CHAPTER FOUR
‘I’M REALLY sorry about this, Madison.’ Claire grimaced as she came back into the room.
For what had to be the fourth time!
Madison had arrived at the studio at exactly twelve o’clock, as requested, been shown to a sitting-room by the ever friendly Claire—and she had remained sitting here for forty minutes waiting for Gideon Byrne to put in an appearance!
If he was hoping to unnerve her by keeping her waiting in this way, he was going to be sadly disappointed; she was furious at his tardiness. He might be the great Gideon Byrne, but good manners cost him nothing, and if he wasn’t able to meet the twelve o’clock appointment after all he should have damn well telephoned and told her so!
‘He’s definitely in the studio somewhere,’ Claire continued awkwardly. ‘We arrived together over two hours ago. Could I get you another cup of coffee?’ she offered hopefully.
‘No, thanks.’ Madison stood up, slinging her bag over her shoulder in preparation for leaving. ‘Gideon is obviously busy, and I—’
‘Oh, please don’t leave.’ Claire touched her arm. ‘I’m sure Gideon will be here in just a few minutes.’
Then she had more confidence in him than Madison did! He was a boor, a rude, arrogant boor, and as such he could take his film role and shove—
‘Sorry I’m a little late, ladies!’ The object of her anger strolled unhurriedly into the room, the air immediately filled with that charge of electricity he took around with him, his dark brows raised as he took in the fact that Madison was standing, her stance aggressive, obviously preparing to leave. ‘Your contract.’ He held up some of the papers he had in his hand. ‘It took a little longer to—prepare than I had anticipated.’
Her contract… She had begun to wonder, with his lack of appearance, whether Gideon Byrne wasn’t playing some elaborately cruel hoax on her by asking her to come here today.
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