Scandal (Tainted #1) (23 page)

‘You can talk to me, Licia. You know that, don’t you?’

She took a bigger gulp of coffee this time, trying to rid the lump in her throat. ‘I know, and I will. It’s just …’

‘You can’t now.’ Daria didn’t sound cross, which was a relief.

‘No, not now.’

‘OK, hire
Taylor Made
for my wedding on whatever condition you want. Blair and I don’t want any money for it.’

‘Thank you, Daria,’ she said, with her throat all choked up.

‘Anytime. Just promise me one thing. Take care of yourself.’

‘I will, I promise.’ Another reminder that she shouldn’t get close to Sebastian – like she needed it.

‘See you on Friday!’ Daria said, a little cheerier than before.

Alicia wasn’t feeling as enthusiastic. How could she when she and Sebastian would be under her father’s watch every second of every day they were there?

Chapter Seventeen

‘Something on your mind, pretty boy?’ James asked as Sebastian missed the ball.

Again.

He wasn’t exhausted, but since he’d left the warmth of Alicia’s bed the consequences of the day before had come back to haunt him. If this latest story got out, not only would his sponsors be even more likely to pull, but Alicia would be publicly humiliated.

So he’d made a decision. When the story came out he was going to deny it with everything he had and tell the world the truth – that he’d read the article Mai sold and wanted to apologise. At least then there would be two sides and people would see Alicia standing by him. Maybe they’d wonder if any of what Mai said was true.

But it wasn’t part of Alicia’s master plan to save his career, and wondering how she’d react to the news was making him lose focus today.

‘How about we come back in a few hours?’ he suggested.

After all, he still had to get home and get a change of clothes. He liked going back to her place after training and today he’d head straight there. No more stupid ideas for him.

‘Fine, but get your head back in the game. The French Opens are coming up fast and you need to give it your all,’ James said.

The reminder was timely. He shouldn’t be worrying about what the press were saying or wondering if what little time he had with Alicia would be enough. He should be researching his opponents, finding out their handicaps, and getting ready to whip their arses on the court.

All good in theory, but practice was more difficult. ‘I get it. See you in a few.’

After packing up his racket, he headed for his car. A red Chevy parked down the street caught his eye and he frowned. Wasn’t that the car he saw yesterday outside Mai’s? He ditched his bag on the backseat and crossed the road. Before he got close enough to make out the driver the thing pulled away. As the car turned, the early afternoon sun shone through the window and he saw a glint of gold hair.

He remembered Alicia saying she had seen a blond-haired man outside the party just as he had arrived. If it was any other time in his life it would be crazy to put the coincidences together. After what had happened the day before, Sebastian wasn’t so sure.

When he was back in his car he pulled out his mobile and called Alicia.

‘Hi,’ she answered cautiously.

Distracted, he asked, ‘Is everything OK?’

‘I was about to ask you the same thing.’

His first thought was that the story was out already. But then
Taylor Made
didn’t release daily. Still, they could have sold the story to someone else. ‘Are the pictures out?’

‘No, I meant … you left.’

The last part was said so quietly he wasn’t sure if he heard her properly. But he grinned. ‘You were snoring so hard you didn’t pause when I tried to wake you up.’

‘I don’t snore!’ Her voice was stronger now, filled with annoyance and it made him chuckle.

‘It’s a cute snore. Girlie.’

‘Sebastian!’

‘Chill, Blondie. I think it’s adorable. Anyway, teasing aside there’s something I wanted to ask you. That man you saw at the party, did he have wavy blond hair?’

‘I think so. Why are you asking?’

He sat back in the seat, thudding his skull against the headrest. Shit. ‘I think he’s following me. Unless the photographer you hired has a partner?’

She didn’t answer for so long he knew the answer. ‘No. I told Sam I’d get in touch when we had something worth printing.’

Shit, shit, shit. ‘
Taylor Made
or someone else?’

The guy in the park yesterday was dark-haired, which meant it had to be someone else. Christ, could he not go five fucking minutes without someone wanting enough scandal to destroy him?

‘Definitely not
Taylor Made
. I just got off the phone with them. They’ve agreed to give me all the photographs taken yesterday,’ she said.

‘How did you pull that off?’ he asked, and if there was awe in his voice he didn’t care. She’d done the impossible, and he thought Dynamo was good.

‘My sister. She agreed to let me make the deal.
Taylor Made
get full coverage of Daria’s wedding if I get the photographs and a promise from them they won’t print anything bad about you again. Well, after the month feature, anyway.’

She didn’t sound happy, which meant there was a catch. ‘Did you tell her the truth?’

Alicia sighed. ‘I didn’t lie, but I wasn’t completely honest either.’

He realised then why she wasn’t thrilled. Alicia was honest and sweet. She’d probably never had to keep secrets from her family before. Just one more tick in her favour. If he’d met Alicia before Mai …

Sebastian stopped that thought dead. He’d have hurt her, like he hurt every woman who got close to him.

Changing gears, he asked, ‘Why did they agree? I mean, your father is newsworthy but scandal versus a squeaky clean wedding?’

‘Squeaky clean, yes. But Daria’s marrying Blair Roberts. His father is retiring this year, which makes Blair the sole director of Roberts Industries.’

OK, now he got it. The company had a hand in everything from alcohol to sponsoring up-and-coming sports brands and designers. A Simpson daughter marrying into a multi-billion pound family would definitely rank higher than a kiss between exes.

It also meant Alicia had to rely more on the family connection she’d been so freaked out about using in the beginning. All to save his arse. He didn’t have words to express how grateful he was. ‘I don’t know what to say.’

She laughed a little. ‘You don’t have to say anything. I’m just doing my job.’

Was she, though? Part of him was beginning to wonder, and playing on her emotions to save his career wasn’t fair. ‘I really appreciate it, I do. But I don’t want you to have to bring your family into this.’

‘I’m not going to. You can thank me by behaving yourself from now on.’

He smiled at the bossy, prissy tone. ‘Yes, ma’am.’

He relaxed back against the seat and all the tension drained from his muscles as he listened to her breathing on the other end of the line. He should say goodbye, hang up, but he couldn’t force the words out.

‘So, are you … er …?’ She didn’t say anything else.

‘Am I …?’ he asked.

She whispered, ‘Coming over later?’

Closing his eyes, he wondered if she was wary about saying it because she’d rather he didn’t. He didn’t want to look too closely at why her rejection hurt like a bitch.

‘Not if you don’t want me to.’

‘I do,’ she said too quickly.

He sighed with relief. ‘Then I will. I’m going home to get a change of clothes first.’

‘You can bring a few if you want to stay until we leave for Cumbria,’ she said.

His smile got wider. ‘Better shift all those vibrators to make room for my shoes.’

Alicia laughed and it was the loveliest sound he’d heard all day. ‘I’ve a feeling I won’t need any.’

‘Nope, not one.’ Well, maybe
one
. But he didn’t think now was the time to bring that up. ‘See you later, Blondie.’

‘Not if I see you first, Collins.’

He ended the call, grin still in place and feeling a lot lighter than he had earlier. Now there was no chance of taking her down with him, his stress levels could return to normal. Tonight he’d make it up to her, but now he could give it his all on the court. Which, he reminded himself, was what he should be focusing on instead of all the ways he’d thank Alicia later.

The week had gone by too quickly for Sebastian and the buzz he’d been running on after practice every day had almost fizzled out. Even the cameras flashing in his face and the constant fire of questions the media reps kept up didn’t stop him yawning.

Alicia stood next to him and his arm around her shoulders was practically holding him up. A late-night press conference on a Thursday drew swarms of those responsible for stressing him out the last few months. But that wasn’t why exhaustion was creeping in.

Training was getting intense and though he was shattered by the time he got to her flat each night, he couldn’t keep his hands off her. Not that there were any more twice in one night performances, and he’d yet to make things up to her properly after the deal she’d struck with
Taylor Made
, but he tried to make up for it in other ways and hid his fatigue as best he could.

One of the reporters from a national newspaper asked him something about the charity, but he couldn’t quite make it out. Literally dead on his feet was not the best side of him to bring to a press conference, but if he hadn’t insisted on going with her tomorrow to her family home, he’d have finished training earlier and wouldn’t be so exhausted.

Alicia answered, saving him again. ‘Sebastian was really keen to set this up. As you know, his grandfather worked two jobs to keep a home for his grandmother and father. They didn’t have much and his dedication to his family meant Sebastian’s father could do what he loved, and it paid off. If it wasn’t for a kind older man’s help, he’d never have got that far. The Collins Trust means kids who can’t afford it will get professional help and support for free.’

That set off another round of questions and Sebastian wondered how she found out about his grandfather. It was long before he came along and his father didn’t talk much about his upbringing.

Alicia amazed him every day, and feeling crappy about the lack of attention he’d been paying her after his promises of unlimited endurance, he wanted to give her something for her. Credit was a good place to start.

‘Actually, if it wasn’t for Alicia, the Collins Trust wouldn’t be here. With me training morning, noon, and evening, she’s been a lifesaver.’ He pressed a kiss against her temple, only then registering how rigid she was.

Her trademark calm expression was back, but there was tension in her body. ‘What did I say?’ he whispered low enough so only she heard.

She smiled at him, but he caught a flash of fear in her eyes. ‘Later,’ she breathed.

His mind shot to high alert like he’d been injected with caffeine, even though the rest of the conference dragged. On the ride home he waited for her to say something, but she kept quiet and he had the crazy sensation that she’d shoved something invisible between them. A line he couldn’t cross, which only made him more determined.

‘What went on back there?’ he asked, glancing at her briefly before returning his concentration to the road. She stared out the passenger side window. Her spine was too straight and her expression was fixed in that mask he hated.

‘You shouldn’t have said I was involved. Remember rule three? Don’t talk to the press unless you run it by me first.’

What the …? ‘Alicia, are you pissed because I broke one of your rules? For Christ’s sake, we’ve already tossed the first two. What’s one more?’

He felt her glare, but kept his attention on the road in front of them.

‘I think the rules are moot. What I’m talking about is telling the world I’m pretty much running the charity for you. What happens when we officially split? It’s just going to make you look worse because I helped you set everything up.’

He turned into her street, conceding she had a point. ‘We can figure something out, make it look amicable and we stayed friends. Tony’s going to scout around for new sponsors and when the money rolls in for that I’ll hire someone to take care of the charity.’

The silence stretched out as he parked and left the car. She didn’t wait for him to open the door for her like he wanted to, but it was raining. They jogged to her building and as soon as the door opened they went inside. The routine of coming back after a long day of hard work and having her there had kept him mellow and on an even keel. Now, with her barely saying a word as they climbed the stairs, he had time to reflect on the conversation.

When they got in she headed straight for the kitchen. A curse sounded and he followed her. She was holding one end of a corkscrew but the metal had snapped and stuck out tauntingly from the bottle of red he’d bought yesterday.

Sebastian put his hands on her shoulders to rub the tension away, but she shrugged out of his hold. Solid proof he wasn’t imagining the wedge she’d put between them. He took the bottle from her. ‘You talk, I’ll open this.’

‘There’s nothing to say that hasn’t been said.’

‘Alicia, just spit it out,’ he said.

‘Fine! I don’t know what makes you the expert on good ways to publicise a break-up, so don’t patronise me for being annoyed.’

The fission of anger coursing through him made opening the bottle easier than it should have been. When the cork popped, he placed the wine down none too gently on the counter.

With a forced grin, he said, ‘That’s what makes me the expert. I’ll do the opposite of what I did last time. Enjoy your wine.’

What really niggled was that she knew what happened but threw the press version in his face just because she was mad at him. For trying to give credit where credit was due!

Still, her words ate at him as he cleared out of the kitchen and left her to it. He thought she’d gotten over his past when she made the decision to start seeing him. Looked like he was wrong, though he shouldn’t be surprised. He wasn’t good with relationships, never would be. This was just more proof that he shouldn’t get any closer to her. What started a fling was moving into dangerous waters.