in my life.’
‘The latest in a very long—’ She grimaced her dismay as she realized what she had just said. ‘I shouldn’t have said that. It’s just that—’
‘It’s the truth…?’ he jeered.
‘No! I mean—well, yes, it is the truth. But I still shouldn’t have said it.’
‘No, you shouldn’t,’ Zak acknowledged dryly. ‘But it’s probably the most honest thing you’ve said all evening!’
Her eyes widened. ‘I beg your pardon?’
‘Granted.’
Her mouth firmed. ‘I have no idea what you’re talking about, Mr Prince. Are you implying I’ve been dishonest with you?’
Were her hands trembling slightly? He couldn’t be sure as she hastily clasped those hands together. ‘You aren’t the only one with connections, Tyler,’ he added, sure now that she had definitely gone paler. ‘And this afternoon I made a few phone calls in order to check up on you.’
The colour did drain completely from her cheeks now. ‘Oh, yes?’ she said airily. ‘And what did you learn?’
Zak looked at her with narrowed eyes, more convinced than ever that she was hiding something. ‘Not a lot, as it happens. The press, it seems, can be pretty close-mouthed when it comes to one of their own. However, I did learn that you’re considered a good reporter, if a little inclined to get too emotionally involved.’ He paused before making his next statement. ‘Also, that you had a blazing row with your editor a couple of weeks ago, which apparently culminated with him threatening to fire you…’
Her eyes were huge brown pools of melted chocolate as she met his gaze unflinchingly. ‘Well, he doesn’t seem to have carried out that threat, does he? Because I’m still employed,’ she retorted.
‘Apparently not,’ he conceded, his mouth tightening. ‘Out of interest, what did the two of you argue about?’
Tyler shook her head. ‘I really don’t think that is any of your business.’
He shrugged. ‘I just wondered if it might have had anything to do with the little agreement you came to with my brother?’
‘Of course not,’ she snapped. ‘Now if we could stop talking about me and concentrate on you…?’ she said pointedly.
He sat forward. ‘I’ll keep asking until I find out the truth about you, Tyler,’ he warned.
Tyler closed her notebook with a decisive snap before secreting it away in one of those many pockets on her combat trousers. ‘Until today, I really believed all the things written and said about you in the media: that you’re charming, not in the least difficult to work with, affable even!’ She gave a disbelieving snort of derision. ‘When in fact you’re really exceptionally rude, extremely difficult to work with, and not even the tiniest bit affable!’
Zak reached across the tabletop and easily clasped her arm as she would have stood up, his fingers like steel bands. ‘Is that what you intend writing in your article?’ Despite the fact that he had set out to be as unpleasant as possible, he wasn’t used to people disliking him, and found that he didn’t particularly like the experience.
He also discovered that he liked the feel of Tyler’s skin against his fingers. It was soft and silky to the touch, making him wonder if the rest of her body felt as sensuous and warm.
‘Relax, Tyler,’ he told her gently. ‘We haven’t finished talking yet.’
She looked across at him coolly. ‘Do you want me to hang around just so that you can insult me some more?’
His mouth twisted into a smile. ‘I’m all out of insults at the moment—but if you give me a few minutes…! Besides, we’re drawing attention to ourselves.’ He looked pointedly around the lounge to where quite a lot of people, several men included now, were openly staring at them.
‘You’re the one drawing attention to us,’ she corrected him tautly, at the same time sitting back abruptly, releasing her arm from his grasp as she did so.
Zak watched as she ran the fingers of her other hand over the spot where he had held her. Both of her hands were completely bare of rings, and were long and slender, with delicately tapered fingers. He found himself wondering what it would feel like to have those fingers moving caressingly over his bare chest and back. And other parts of his body…
‘We were discussing the argument you had with your editor,’ he reminded her, angry with himself for having those thoughts about Tyler; she was a reporter, for goodness’ sake!
She shook her head, her spiky hair gleaming almost auburn in the overhead lighting. ‘You may have been, I don’t believe I was.’ She met his gaze boldly over the rim of her glass as she took a sip of the mineral water.
Zak suppressed his feelings of irritation with difficulty, finding that this woman pressed buttons in him that he normally kept well away from the public eye—and he didn’t mean physical ones! Although God knew she was attractive enough…
‘What shall we talk about, then?’ he mocked. ‘The fact that you and the handsome photographer Perry Morgan are apparently inseparable? Or shall we—? Going somewhere, Tyler?’ he asked as she put her glass down on the table with obvious force before moving to stand up.
Except she didn’t quite make it, all the colour draining from her face before she collapsed back into the chair, her eyes closed, her breathing shallow.
‘What the hell?’ Zak had been propelled forward as she fell, moving down on his haunches beside her chair now. ‘Tyler!’ He shook her shoulder slightly. ‘Tyler, speak to me, damn it!’ he ground out forcefully.
She seemed to find the strength to open one eye and glare at him. ‘Go away,’ she muttered weakly.
He ignored that, and straightened before bending down and easily sweeping her up into his arms.
She weighed next to nothing, he discovered as he began to stride purposefully across the lounge with her still in his arms, totally immune to the avid stares the two of them were receiving, his expression one of grim determination.
‘What do you think you’re doing?’ Tyler gasped, both eyes open now as she began to struggle in his arms.
‘I would have thought that was obvious!’ Zak didn’t even glance down at her as he stepped into the waiting lift.
‘It is, but—where are you taking me?’ She was struggling even harder to sit up in his arms.
‘My hotel suite,’ he informed her. ‘And stop struggling like that; you’ll only end up hurting yourself,’ he said as his arms tightened about her. He had no idea what was wrong with her yet, and until he did she wasn’t going anywhere!
‘You’re definitely making an exhibition of us now,’ Tyler protested as the two people waiting to get into the lift stared at them in shocked surprise as Zak stepped out with her still cradled in his arms.
‘Do I look as if I care?’ he dismissed impatiently as he used the key-card to get into his hotel suite, kicking the door shut behind him to stride
