at a television studio, which was all I could have been in that industry at sixteen.’
‘You might have been cast in a show if you’d tried out for one.’ He certainly had the male x-factor that was very marketable in television.
‘I didn’t want to be an actor. I wanted to run the show, Chloe, be in control.’
Master of his own fate, she thought. Had the drive for control been born in him or was it a reaction to the out-of-control life his mother had led? Her own life had been so overwhelmingly controlled, any overt rebellion crushed by abusive tirades, she’d lost the spirit to even try for any control. Until Max had stepped in. She fiercely resolved to be mistress of her own fate after she left here.
‘Getting a job at a publishing house was a stepping stone to the big picture,’ he went on. ‘It was the same field—selling stories, appealing to what people wanted whether it was fiction or non-fiction. I made it to marketing manager by the time I was eighteen. Which opened doors for me to get where I wanted to be.’
Chloe didn’t know his exact age—somewhere in his late thirties. It was an amazing accomplishment to have risen from nothing to a billionaire television baron. ‘It must give you a tremendous sense of satisfaction, having achieved the wealth and power to choose what shows you want to produce,’ she remarked admiringly.
‘Mmm …’ Ruthless purpose flashed into his eyes. ‘My way.’
‘Like getting me for the lead role in this show,’ she murmured, remembering what he’d told her. ‘You didn’t care how much my mother haggled over the contract.’
His mouth quirked and the expression in his eyes simmered into something else—something that made her heart skip and sent tingles along every nerve. ‘I wanted you,’ he said.
On the surface it was a professional comment but it didn’t feel like one. She quickly lowered her gaze and covered her inner confusion by picking up her almost empty glass of wine and slowly finishing it off. Was she hearing what she wanted to hear, seeing what she wanted to see? Max was in a relationship with another woman—a stunningly beautiful woman who was probably as self-assured as he was. Why would a man like him find a lame duck like herself desirable?
Apart from which, she shouldn’t be excited by the idea that the attraction she felt with him was returned. It made her situation here perilously close to her mother’s nasty reading of it. Although Max had made no move on her. Not even the suggestion of a move. They were just talking. Which was what she should be doing instead of thinking.
‘What was your favourite show when you were a boy, Max?’ she asked, forcing herself to look at him with curious interest.
‘M*A*S*H,’ he answered without hesitation. ‘The script was brilliant, the cast of characters was brilliantly balanced, the acting was superb, and it could make you laugh and cry and tug at every emotion in between. I loved that show.’
Love … she could hear it in his voice and wondered if he’d ever loved a woman with the same fervour, loving everything about her.
‘Did it get to you, too?’ he asked.
Chloe had to drag her mind back to the conversation. She shook her head. ‘I’ve never seen it. My mother dictated what I watched.’
He grimaced, then looked consideringly at her. ‘Would you like to see some of it? I have the whole collection of M*A*S*H in my library. I could give you the first season’s episodes to watch and if you enjoy them …’
‘Yes, please.’ Chloe jumped up eagerly, seizing the opportunity to end the foolish meandering in her mind. ‘Could we go and get the discs now, Max? The activity this morning and the wine over lunch … I’m feeling drowsy so I want to head off for an afternoon nap. But I’d love to see what you saw in M*A*S*H when I wake up.’
He nodded agreeably, rising from his chair, and she quickly collected Luther, who was still asleep. The excursion to Max’s library only took ten minutes. It was an amazing library, the shelves more stocked with CD discs of movies and television shows than books, although there were stacks of them, as well. Max moved straight to the M*A*S*H collection, handed her a set of discs and invited her to exchange them for others anytime she liked. Chloe thanked him and quickly took her leave.
She was tired and she did go to sleep, driving off the madly mixed-up thoughts of Max by reading a book until her eyelids drooped. Luther’s yapping woke her, the insistent noise bringing her slowly out of deep slumber. She rolled over on the bed, intending to scoop the dog up to cuddle him back into silence, then realised the yapping was coming from the living room.
Frowning over what might have disturbed the little dog, she pushed herself off the bed, automatically re-covering herself with the silk kimono she’d donned for her afternoon siesta and tying the belt securely as she walked out of the bedroom.
And stopped dead.
A face was peering through the glass panes of the front door, a face she never wanted to see again—the face of Tony Lipton!
CHAPTER EIGHT
AS Chloe stared at him in stunned disbelief, Tony caught sight of her and with an air of triumphant satisfaction, stepped back, his hand reaching for the door-knob, which turned because she hadn’t switched on the locking mechanism. It had completely slipped her mind—being with Max, thinking of Max. Apart from which, she was supposed to be safe on Max’s property.
The door opened and Tony was in before Chloe could do or say anything to stop him. ‘I wasn’t sure I had the right place with that damned dog here,’ he said, casting a malevolent look at Luther, who was still yapping and jumping at his legs as though to drive him out again.
Good dog, Chloe thought, wishing she had the physical strength to evict her highly unwelcome husband. ‘You have no right to be in this house, Tony,’ she threw at him in bitter resentment.
He glowered at her. ‘You’re still my wife, and Maxa-million-bucks Hart has no right to come between us.’
‘You didn’t mind Laura Farrell coming between us.’
He waved a sharply dismissive hand. ‘That was nothing.’
‘I don’t call a baby nothing.’
He rearranged his expression to apologetic appeal. ‘If you’ll just hear me out, Chloe …’
‘I don’t want to listen to another pack of lies from you. Which is why I took up Max’s offer of this house. What I would like to know is how you got past his security.’
He smirked. ‘I came by boat, snuck under his wharf to avoid triggering any alarm, climbed up the rock breakwater and beat his bloody security.’
‘Then I’d advise you to leave the same way or I’ll call the main house and you’ll get charged with trespassing.’
‘You won’t call anyone, Chloe.’ He moved quickly to stand between her and the telephone, which he must have spotted on the kitchen bench. He held up both hands in a non-threatening gesture. ‘I just want to talk with you. Given the years we’ve had together, I think I deserve the chance to …’
‘No!’ she cut in decisively, determined not to be moved by any
