but I don’t want to have dinner with you. I came here purely for the purpose of meeting with him and him alone. I don’t want to talk to anybody else. Two days away from my little girl is immensely hard for me, as I’m sure you can appreciate if you have children of your own? I’ve left her with my mother who hasn’t been in the best of health and I’ve also got classes to teach first thing Monday morning. There are things I need to do to prepare for the week on Sunday night.
‘The truth is this is the last place in the world I want to be and I wouldn’t be here at all if it weren’t for that cold-hearted summons from your charming “friend”. So please, why don’t you just go and enjoy your dinner with a much more amenable companion? I’m quite all right here on my own.’
Tucking her dark hair behind her ears, Brenna forced herself to meet Fin Malone’s impenetrable glance without flinching or looking away but everything inside her seemed to clench and tighten unbearably when those flawlessly arresting blue eyes locked onto hers.
‘I’m used to taking care of myself,’ she continued, alarmed at the waver in her voice. ‘Perhaps you’d just be good enough to let me know as soon as you hear from Nick? I’m anxious to get our business over and done with and then go home.’
Instead of responding immediately, Fin crossed his arms casually over the wide muscular chest that was just one of his disturbing physical attributes and smiled.
Why didn’t he seem to be taking her seriously? Was he one of those irritating men who regard women who stand up for themselves as slightly hysterical? The thought made her bristle. But just then the sexy little indentation in the centre of his hard-sculpted chin commanded her attention and caused an inconvenient flare of heat to explode inside her. Clearly, the man must be involved in the film industry. If he could light up a room just by virtue of entering it, what would the sight of him be like on the big screen in full cinematic glory? How had he come to be a friend of someone like Nick? Nick’s own accomplishments were of a far more cerebral nature, whereas Fin Malone’s assets were surely first and foremost his physical ones?
‘Why don’t you just rest for a couple of hours and see how you feel after that?’ he suggested smoothly, obviously undisturbed by her outburst. ‘I’m staying just across the hall from you if you should need me. I’ll come back in a little while to make sure you’re okay.’
As he turned and walked to the door, Brenna found herself admiring his striking physique from behind and brought herself up short with a silent appalled expletive. She had no business admiring any man – no matter how drop-dead gorgeous. She wasn’t a fool and never again would she risk replicating the kind of heartbreaking situation she’d found herself in five years ago.
‘He’s not going to take Nancy from me, is he?’ She couldn’t help the anguish that spilled out of her voice as Fin reached the door. Emotion was running high in her blood. Fear, too. The thought that she might lose her daughter – her reason for living – was like suffering a thousand tortures all at once. The big American slowly turned round. His gaze thoughtfully assessed her before he spoke, as if not wanting to squander his words.
‘So your little girl’s called Nancy? That’s a pretty name. Look, it’s not up to me to fill you in on the details about what Nick wants. That’s personal and between the two of you. All I can tell you is that he’s not the louse you seem to think he is … not in my experience. He’ll do what’s right. I know he will.’
With that he strode out into the corridor, closing the door firmly behind him.
Having donned her long black coat over her sweater and jeans, Brenna went for a walk. The hotel grounds were extensive with the most beautiful meandering gardens set against a backdrop of verdant rolling hills and valleys. Right now they were windswept and rain-washed but that merely added to their charm.
As soon as she strode out and fresh cold air circulated in her lungs, she had the reassuring sense of being a little more in control. Everything will be all right, she told herself. Nick might have money but she had her daughter’s love and nearly five years of unstinting devotion to bind them together. Nancy was beautiful and precious but anyone who knew her would never describe her as outgoing. Her nature was thoughtful and quiet. She wasn’t a child that naturally joined in with the other children’s games, whether at pre-school or during play-dates at home. She would flounder in any situation where she was the centre of attention. The kind of fame her father attracted would be overwhelming.
An acute pang of longing for her daughter assailed Brenna as she walked. Why now, she wondered, shaking her head in bewilderment, should Nick suddenly decide he wanted to see her? It had never been her aim to deliberately keep him out of Nancy’s life. It was he that had coldly told her that their relationship was over and that there was no room in his life for fatherhood. His words – echoing round his book-lined living room – had had the same effect on Brenna as a bomb exploding. Every emotion and tender feeling she’d ever had for him was devastated by his heartless announcement. He had, after all, pursued her from the beginning not the other way round. Being older and more experienced, he’d employed a ruthless charm offensive that she’d been unable to resist, demolishing her doubts and reservations with the seductive prowess of a formidable expert until she agreed to have dinner with him.
Less than a week later he had persuaded her into his bed. Shy and not remotely as experienced, Brenna had trembled violently when he’d first kissed her. Nothing could have prepared her for a flood of feelings so powerful that they all but knocked her off her feet whenever Nick was near.
‘Idiot!’
Muttering the derogatory word behind gritted teeth, her hand impatiently wiped away the foolish tears that gathered in her eyes. What good did it do berating herself? Something good had come out of the affair: Nancy. Her little girl was the light of her life.
‘Apparently there’s even more rain forecast.’
The deep voice behind her made her jump. Brenna spun round to find herself face to face with Fin Malone. His hands were pushed deep into the pockets of his expensive-looking leather jacket and his silky brown hair was boyishly mussed by the breeze. There was also a hint of a sardonic smile teasing the edges of his beautifully carved mouth.
Needing a moment to compose her feelings, Brenna deliberately turned away, her long black hair partially shielding her face as she dipped her head to gaze at the ground instead. She didn’t want him to see that she’d been crying … didn’t want this cool customer – this confident friend and colleague of Nick’s – to have the slightest clue that she was actually far more vulnerable than she might at first appear.
‘The weather doesn’t bother me. If it rains, you get wet. I don’t know why people make such a fuss.’ Still keeping her gaze averted, her slender shoulders lifted in a careless shrug.
‘Brenna?’ It stung Fin’s pride that she wouldn’t look at him. He wasn’t used to such a negative reaction from women. It made him more determined than ever to get her attention. From the moment he’d seen her she’d posed a challenge – not just because she was beautiful and he wanted her to notice him – but because there was something about her angry defensiveness and her determination not to let anyone else get the upper hand that intrigued him.
‘Have you heard from Nick?’
She suddenly turned round and Fin didn’t miss the flare of hope in her eyes. For a moment he didn’t know what to say because the stunning raven-haired beauty simply stopped his thoughts in their tracks. Surely it couldn’t have been easy for Nick to leave her behind even in the pursuit of the glittering career he had now? Fin honestly couldn’t fathom it.
‘Well,
