Never Say Never (The Price of Fame Series) (16 page)

Once inside, Sander showed her to the guest room with ensuite. It felt wrong not taking her to his bedroom, but it would be easier to keep his hands off her this way. Chloe unpacked her things onto the dresser mechanically, like her head was a million miles away, and he supposed it was. Guilt filled his chest and almost pushed the breath right out of him. He was being a selfish bastard.

“Chloe, if you want to stay with your mother tonight I can take you home.”

She turned to him with wide eyes. “We had an agreement. I’m not going to back out of it now.”

Lowering himself to sit on the edge of the bed, he told her, “I’m not a monster. If you want to be with your mother, I’ll understand.”

She sat next to him, lifting one of his hands and holding it in both of hers. The contact sent a jolt of heat through him, and his body warmed. This was the first time she’d touched him freely that hadn’t been a prelude to more, and he didn’t want her to let go.

“No, you’re not a monster. You’re a kind, caring, lovely man. Thank you for giving me the option, but I want to do this for you. She’ll be safe with Freda there.”

He didn’t think he was kind or caring, and a lovely man wouldn’t have thoughts of peeling off her clothes and taking her on the bed, especially at a moment like this. More proof he really wasn’t good enough for her.

Sander rose. “I’ll let you get ready. Help yourself to anything you need. There’s food and drinks in the kitchen.”

He left before he could act out any of his fantasies and headed straight to the bathroom for a libido killing shower.

* * * *

An hour later, Chloe didn’t recognize herself. She’d spent her life making up people’s faces to enhance their features, but she had to admit she never did it to herself, preferring to look natural. But tonight she had to support Sander—in front of his supermodel ex, no less—so she’d gone all out.

Making her way through his flat to the kitchen, she spotted him in a dark navy suit. His back was to her, but the spotlights shone down on his hair which was stunningly gold in comparison with the color of his jacket. It molded to every inch of him, highlighting his broad back and thick biceps. Her mouth watered as her gaze dropped to his bottom and she remembered Anna’s comments about the kilt.

When her heels clicked on the tiles, he turned to her, and his mouth dropped open. “Fucking hell.”

Chloe’s brows shot up at the harsh words, but she couldn’t be offended, not when his eyes darkened to match his suit. “It’s not too over-the-top, is it?”

He swallowed, cleared his throat, and when words still didn’t come he shook his head.

“I can re-do the makeup. I know it’s bolder than what I usually go with.”

“No,” he said and crossed the room. He picked up one of the curls of her hair and let it slide through his fingers. “You look amazing. Don’t change a thing.” Pulling his hand away, he asked, “Are you hungry? I’m not sure if the happy twosome will have a spread tonight. Sienna never did eat much.”

It was the first time he had mentioned his ex-fiancée in a casual way. Chloe was shocked speechless. In answer to his question, she nodded. Sander crossed over to the fridge and pulled out a bottle of white wine and a platter of antipasto and seafood.

“I thought we could have something light now, just in case.”

Chloe’s stomach growled as she took in the delicacies.

He smiled, obviously having heard, and her cheeks heated. After placing the tray on the table with the wine, he left to pull two glasses from one of the cupboards.

“No beer today?” she asked.

“Drinking beer with a woman as beautiful as you by my side would be a crime.” He winked.

“You’ve done it before,” Chloe reminded him.

“True.” Sliding into the chair next to her, he pulled the plate closer then opened the wine. “But tonight you deserve better than a beer drinking man on your arm.”

His logic was lost on her, but she didn’t waste much time thinking about it. Instead, she picked up a small lump of mozzarella. “Cheese and prawns is a weird combination.” She popped the oil drizzled cheese in her mouth and groaned as the flavors played over her tongue.

“Cheese is good, so are prawns. Why not have them both together?” To make his point, he picked up a lump of mozzarella, a tomato, and a prawn and put them all in this mouth.

She didn’t quite know what to say to that. Dane would have been horrified at Sander’s choice of meal, but Chloe figured he was right. She liked everything on the plate, why not have them together? She followed suit and moaned again at the flavors enticing her mouth.

“I didn’t think watching a woman eat with her fingers could be such a turn on.”

Her face heated and she quickly gulped down some of the wine. The crisp, dry taste went wonderfully with the shellfish.

“When you say things like that it makes it hard to keep my hands off you,” she admitted, both hoping and dreading that he would stop.

He let out a heavy sigh. “I suppose I should keep things like that to myself.”

Her heart dipped a little, and she tried to keep the disappointment from her face.

“Still, it’s hard when I want you more than I want my next breath.”

She knew exactly what he meant, but this conversation would only lead to things she should probably stay away from. “What time do we have to leave?”

“We have ten minutes before the car arrives.”

They finished up the snack and wine, then washed their hands. Sander stood far too close to her at the sink and she was overpowered with his crisp aftershave. She was sure her thirty pound bottle of flowery smelling stuff wasn’t classy enough for the evening, but he didn’t comment. Not that there was anything she could do about it now.

Crossing to the window, he looked out front and cursed under his breath. “Seems I was right about being hounded by the press.” He stepped away and reached out his hand. “Stay close and ignore them. I’ll keep you safe.”

Her hand shook as she placed it in his. Once they locked up, he seemed to reconsider and released her hand, opting to wrap his arm around her waist instead. Chloe was grateful to be wrapped up in his strength again and huddled in closer. When he opened the door of the front foyer, a barrage of flashes greeted them. She closed her eyes and saw spots. Several voices threw questions his way, but he only answered with “No comment.”

His arm tightened around her as he led her through the madness and straight to the black town car idling by the curb. The driver opened the door, and Sander helped her slide in before joining her at the other side. When the car began to move, she released the breath she’d been holding.

“That was crazy,” she murmured.

“That’s what happens when a guy goes to his ex-fiancée’s engagement party. The press coverage for tonight is extreme, and Sienna and Paul have invited everyone who’s anyone in the business.”

Chloe shook her head. She was completely baffled by the behavior. “Why would they want to publicize something so private?”

He shrugged. “Sienna loves to be in the spotlight. I imagine the wedding will be even worse. Do you know they have a magazine covering the party tonight?”

Chloe was suddenly thankful for making an effort to look her best. “That’s over-the-top.”

His smile was serene and at second glance, his whole body seemed relaxed as he lounged back into the seat. She had expected him to be nervous, upset even, but he looked almost happy. Maybe he was over Sienna, unless this was another side of him she hadn’t seen, although she doubted anyone was that good an actor. Body language didn’t lie.

He reached across the seat and took her hand in his. “What are you thinking about?”

“I was thinking that you don’t look worried about tonight. In fact, you don’t look half as bothered as you were a week ago.”

He treated her to his Hollywood grin. “A week ago I was pissed off at having to go.”

“But you’re not anymore?” she prodded.

“Yes, but I’ll be there with you,” he said simply, like that explained everything. It only confused her more.

He turned the conversation to work, and she told him the studio had asked her to start a week early. She was excited to finally get back to doing what she loved, and it meant that when Sander stopped paying for Freda, Chloe would be able to hire her.

The car stopped at the front of a hotel just outside the city. A red carpet led to doors manned by security with a gaggle of press at either side waiting to snap the celebrities. If she didn’t know any better she’d think it was a movie premier she was attending and not an engagement party. Waiting until Sander rounded the car and opened the door, she sucked in a huge breath to steady her nerves.

Being photographed on the fly was one thing, but was she expected to pause a few steps down and strike a pose, or did she just walk in ahead and leave the posing to Sander, the real celebrity? He offered his hand. She took it and slid out as gracefully as she could, praying all the while she wouldn’t fall flat on her face. Instead of leading her into the hotel straight away as she’d imagined, he pulled her into his arms and dropped a chaste kiss on her cheek.

A zing of heat flared through her as the cameras went off like strobe lights behind them. But when he pulled away his focus was on her, and she saw pride in his expression along with something else that made her heart stutter, although she couldn’t figure out what it was. It seemed more than lust and she had to wonder if he was starting to feel a lot more for her than she originally thought.

She didn’t have time to consider for long. Sander led her down the red carpet, her hand in his firm hold. Whipping out her best smile, she pulled her shoulders back and sucked her tummy in, remembering the old saying about the camera adding ten pounds.

Journalists screeched questions as they made their way toward the hotel, and flashes went off all over the place, making white spots appear in her vision again. About halfway down Sander stopped, wrapped his arm around her waist, and turned them both to face a journalist who had asked how long he’d been dating the waitress.

She noticed his stiff jaw and hoped he could hold it together. She’d rather he wasn’t in the news for insulting a member of the press for her.

“Chloe and I have been dating for a few weeks, but we’ve known each other for several months,” he informed the journalist.

Chloe thought
she served me coffee
would have been more accurate.

“So you don’t have any bad feelings toward your friend and your ex-fiancée?” the nosey woman asked, leaning over the rope to shove a mic in his face.

Chloe wanted to tell the woman to bugger off and leave him alone. Still, he didn’t tense like she had expected him to. Instead, Sander answered the question with a calm voice that made her wonder if he really did need professional help. She wanted to smack the journalist and the woman wasn’t even goading her.

“Not at all. I hope they’ll be very happy together.”

That seemed to catch the attention of the rest of the vultures who all started firing questions off at a rapid pace. Her head buzzed with all the noise and flashing lights from the cameras. All she wanted to do was jump back in the car and run home, but she couldn’t do that to him. She’d made a deal, and she wasn’t about to run away scared now.

“Let’s get inside. You must be freezing,” he said to her, and she nodded.

They made their way into the entrance hall, all red gold and antiques, and Chloe couldn’t stop her nose from wrinkling at the place. It would be fine for a wedding, she supposed, but was a little extreme for an engagement party.

“Ugh. This has Sienna written all over it.”

She followed his gaze to the eighteenth century-styled dining hall complete with marble dance floor. A seven-tiered chandelier centered the ceiling, and when she looked up, the carvings on the wood looked a bit medieval to her. She just couldn’t picture the glamorous blonde being into all this. And to make it worse, the centerpieces at the tables dotted around the room were fake gold ornaments, some of Buddha, some horse heads, and Chloe didn’t want to look too closely at the rest of them.

“She likes this kind of thing?” she asked, because it still didn’t fit with her perception of the model.

Sander chuckled. “Yes, but she likes to think of it as setting trends. Henry the Eighth meets Blackadder with a few gargoyles thrown in. She probably thinks mixing old and new is retro.”

She kept the fact she thought it was hideous to herself.

“Don’t tell me you like it.”

She looked up at him to see his eyes shining with humor. “God, no.”

For the second time since they’d arrived, Sander dropped a kiss on her cheek. Instead of pulling away though, his lips lingered and then made a path down to the corner of her mouth. Chloe’s breathing sped and her heart rate shot up.

When his lips finally brushed hers, she had to remind herself this was for show and the tender way his mouth moved over hers meant nothing more. But it was hard to hold back when her lips parted and his tongue slid in to tangle with hers. She resisted the urge to slide her hands into his hair and grabbed his lapels to steady herself. Her spine had gone a little bendy and the four-inch heels he’d bought her weren’t the sturdiest things to wear.

When he pulled away her breath came in desperate pants, like she’d been starved of air. Though she feared the truth was worse, that she’d been starved for him. One little kiss and she wanted it all, wanted him with a passion that made her wonder why she’d pushed him away last night when she could have spent the night making love to him. She’d survived a broken heart before and knew Sander wouldn’t hurt her intentionally, and when he kissed her like that it made it hard to think of all the reasons they shouldn’t just book a room.

Then again, she was already in too deep and they had an expiration date. Could she survive another broken heart?

His lips brushed her forehead. “I got a bit carried away.” She nodded and sucked in a breath, just as Sander sighed. “I suppose we better go and greet the happy couple of bastards,” he whispered so low she wondered if she’d heard the last part right.

Chloe’s gaze drifted across the room, and she spotted Sienna and Paul at the far end near the balcony. They stood next to a table with a few other men and she had to grind her teeth to stop her mouth falling open at the sight of the two together. Paul was tall, every bit as tall as Sander, but he was leaner with dark hair, yet it didn’t make him any less stunning.