he gave Andy the privacy she needed to use the towel before pulling her clothes back on.
‘Do we need to talk about this?’
The fact that he needed to ask, and the way in which he asked, told Andy that what Darius was actually saying was that he didn’t want to talk about it.
That he regretted what had happened.
Andy wasn’t sure how she felt about what their lovemaking had revealed to her. But no doubt she would have days and weeks in which to agonise over her feelings.
When she would never hear from Darius again.
Which, Andy realised, saddened her more than she liked to admit.
She had tried from the first to resist her attraction to Darius, knew from their first meeting, when she had been so instantly aware of him that it was a foolish attraction at best, and a dangerous one at worst. An attraction she had guessed would only bring her heartache.
She now knew for certain that it would.
Because her reaction to Darius today, and their lovemaking just now, told her that she had allowed her heart to become involved. She had no idea if that tumult of emotions was actually love, but she definitely had strong feelings for Darius, much stronger feelings than she had ever felt for any other man. Strong enough that she had allowed him to see her scars. That she had then given herself to him willingly.
She hadn’t really needed to read all that stuff online about Darius, regarding the history of his brief physical relationships with beautiful models and actresses, to know that he wasn’t the type of man who did emotional relationships.
Any more than Andy was a woman who did purely physical ones.
Although Darius certainly couldn’t be blamed for thinking that she was, after the way she had behaved with him just now.
The best that she could hope for now was to try to salvage at least some of her pride.
She stood up. ‘So...’ She frowned at the sound of a mobile phone ringing. It wasn’t hers.
Darius muttered under his breath as he drew his mobile from the back pocket of his jeans, a frown between his eyes as he checked the number on the screen. ‘I’m sorry but I have to take this.’
Andy nodded abruptly as she turned away to finish tidying up the kitchen, leaving Darius the privacy to take his call. Or at least it started out that way.
‘What the—? When?’ he demanded of the caller harshly. ‘I’ll be there as soon as I can. Tell Xander... Never mind, I’ll tell him myself when I get there.’ He ended the call abruptly. ‘I have to leave immediately, Miranda.’ He sounded distracted.
Andy had already guessed that much from Darius’s half of the conversation. ‘Is everything okay? Well, obviously it isn’t.’ She grimaced. ‘What’s happened to Xander?’ She watched Darius closely, easily noting the pallor of his cheeks, and the shadows in his eyes.
He frowned grimly. ‘He was involved in a car accident during the early hours of this morning, but the hospital had no idea who to contact until he regained consciousness a short time ago and could tell them my mobile number.’
Andy took a step towards him, only to come to an abrupt halt as she recognised that at some time over the past thirty seconds he had placed an invisible wall about himself, and one which she couldn’t penetrate. ‘Is he going to be okay?’
‘Let’s hope so.’ Darius intended to find out the details of Xander’s injuries for himself later; for the moment it was enough to take in that his twin was injured and in the hospital. ‘I really do have to go to him, Miranda.’
‘Well, of course you do,’ she accepted briskly.
Earlier Darius had wanted—needed—to put some distance between them, if only so that he could clear his head enough to try and work out what the hell had happened here today. But he certainly hadn’t wanted to leave under these circumstances.
The sooner Darius could get to the hospital, and see his twin for himself, the better he would like it.
‘Would you like me to drive you to the hospital?’
Darius looked up sharply. ‘Sorry?’
‘I asked if you would like me to drive you to the hospital,’ Andy repeated softly.
‘Why?’ He looked totally bewildered by the offer.
‘It’s what friends do for each other, Darius.’
‘Is it?’
‘Yes. Besides—’ she avoided meeting his piercing gaze ‘—you’re obviously upset, and probably shouldn’t be driving at the moment.’
He continued to frown as he gave a slow shake of his head. ‘I’m going to need my car later...’
‘Then I’ll drive you there in your car and get a taxi back. Look, I’m not asking any longer, Darius, I’m telling you I’m driving you to the hospital,’ she added briskly. An uncertain Darius was definitely out of character. ‘What happens after that will be completely up to you.’
Although she already had a feeling that she wouldn’t be seeing Darius again after today.
DARIUS KNEW HE’D had every reason to feel concerned about his twin as he looked down at Xander lying asleep in the hospital bed. His brother’s face was deathly pale apart from a colourful bruise on his brow from where his head had struck the windscreen. The doctor had taken Darius aside in the corridor and informed him that they were currently monitoring Xander for concussion, that his ribs were badly bruised, and his left leg had been badly broken, and required surgery.
Xander’s lashes flickered several times before his lids were slowly raised and he looked up at Darius with dark and pain-filled eyes.
‘What the hell did you think you were doing?’ Darius’s voice sounded harsh in the otherwise silence of the room, his hands clenched at his sides. ‘I realise you’ve been acting more recklessly than usual this past few months but not to the point of nearly killing yourself.’
‘Darius,’ Andy remonstrated gently, knowing it was worry for his twin that motivated his anger, and that he would probably regret this outburst later if it wasn’t stopped now.
Darius had been tensely silent on the drive over to the hospital, offering no objection when Andy got out of the car with the intention of accompanying him inside. Not, she had realised, because he had actually wanted her with him, but because he was so distracted and worried about his brother that he had simply forgotten she was there.
Her heart melted now as she saw the desolation in Darius’s expression as he looked down at her blankly.
‘I’m not suicidal, Darius,’ Xander spoke huskily, as if it hurt to do so. Which it probably did, when his ribs were badly bruised. ‘I just... I went on to the club late last night and something happened, Darius.’ Xander’s voice
