She could think of nothing better than being naked in his arms. “I have to go out, I’m afraid.”
“You’d better not have another man on the side,” he joked, but his eyes said he was somewhat serious.
“No, of course not.” That was one thing she couldn’t joke about. Not after what she’d gone through with Steve. Heck, even before Steve she would never betray a commitment to someone.
Zac winced. “Sorry, I didn’t mean that. Wipe it from your memory.”
“Done.” Then she pushed herself off him and got off the bed, a little surprised he let her go so easily. Ignoring that, she straightened her blouse. “Just so you know, once a week I have an appointment at the hospital.”
“What!” He jerked upward off the pillow. “Jesus, you’re not sick or anything, are you?”
She was a little amazed by his overreaction. “Would it matter if I was?” she asked warily.
He shot off the mattress. “Yes, it would bloody-well-matter. I can’t bear the thought of you having any health problems,” he growled, pulling her against him, hugging her so tight that she felt him swallow hard. He leaned back. “Do you, Cassie? It doesn’t change anything between us if you do. I swear it doesn’t. I just want you to be okay.”
Her heart shifted beneath her breast and her legs turned to jello. “Zac, thank you,” she said softly. “But you don’t have to worry about me. I’m fine. I go to the children’s ward at the local hospital every Monday and read to the kids for an hour, that’s all.” It had been what had saved her sanity through the lonely years of her marriage.
He let out a slow whistle and slowly loosened his hold on her. “Just when I think I know you…”
She went all mushy inside. “I started it when I was a teenager back in Ohio, and I’ve kept it up here in Chicago. I see how much they enjoy it, so I’ve promised myself I’d keep going, even though sometimes I have a full schedule these days.” There really was a lot to do to prepare for the show at times. Not every guest was as easy as Zac.
He tapped his finger on the end of her nose. “That’s terrific of you, lady,” he said brusquely.
Steve hadn’t thought so. “Thanks, but it’s really no hardship for me.” The hardest thing was being with the kids with life-threatening illnesses. It could be upsetting.
“Mind if I tag along?”
Her eyes went wide. “Y..you want to come with me?”
“Sure. Why not?”
Why not indeed. Steve had never gone with her, not once. He’d said he wasn’t catching any diseases. Moisture pricked her eyes. “I’d love you to come,” she said huskily. “And so would the children.”
He put his hand under her chin, tilting her head up at him. “Tears?”
She blinked them back. “It’s just so nice of you to offer to come with me.”
“I’m happy to do it.” He gave her a quick kiss. “You’re one hell of a woman, you know that?”
Something inside her began to blossom. Something she’d thought long since dead. A renewal of confidence in herself that what she did mattered. That she mattered. Then she realized it wasn’t only about this. Zac’s opinion of her mattered, and that more than anything meant she was now emotionally involved with him despite her best efforts to keep this purely a physical involvement. Just how much, she wasn’t sure. What it implied, she dare not think.
He pulled her closer and tried to nudge her thighs apart, the sexual glint in those blue eyes as evident as his arousal pressing against the material of her trousers. Yet there was a more serious look about him and she knew he was still thinking about her visits to the hospital, even as he teased her. “I might need a hand getting dressed,” he prodded, in more ways than one.
She managed a low laugh. “You’re a devil.”
He nudged her again. “Yeah, a devil with a horn.”
She laughed again but her stomach quivered in reaction to his touch. If they stood there like this for much longer they’d end up back in bed. She ached to have him inside her again, but they were adults. They could wait for their delights.
Mitzy yapped from the open bedroom doorway, and Zac froze a second before giving Cassie a crooked smile. “Speaking of devils, I wondered where that she-devil had got to.”
Cassie laughed. “Mitzy isn’t a she-devil.”
“No?”
“No.” She went to push back from him. “We’d better get going. The children…”
His hands tightened on her hips a fraction, then he reluctantly let her go. “Yes, the children,” he muttered. “We can’t disappoint them.” Stepping away from her, he reached for his pants and began to dress. She tidied her blouse as she watched him. God, he was so gorgeous.
“Do you mind if we go via Adam’s,” his voice cut across her thoughts. “I want to jump in the shower then change my clothes. I’ll only be five minutes.” He winked at her, back to his usual sexually-suggestive self. “Unless you want to join me?”
She was tempted, that was for sure. “No, I think I’d better wait in the car.”
“Your loss, sweetheart.”
“I’ll make up for it later,” she promised.
He looked thoroughly pleased. “That’s what I like. A gal with vision.”
* * *
Steve could feel the tension in his body as he knocked on the door to Robert’s office on Monday morning. Five minutes ago he’d been summoned to appear before his future father-in-law and he had a terrible suspicion he knew what it was about. Had Robert found out about Cassie? Her show was the talk of the office this morning, with the women saying they’d been waiting excitedly all weekend for the radio program this evening so they could hear about Cassie and Zac’s date.
Son-of-a-bitch!
Cassie had apparently gone out to dinner with the Aussie guy on Saturday night, and he hadn’t known because Margo Thorpe-Ashton had made Alicia turn the radio off before they’d gotten to that part last Friday night. If only he’d known, then maybe he would have been able to put a stop to it. He’d have begged Cassie not to go if necessary. Or faked a stroke. Something, anything, to stop her having dinner with Zac Ryan.
Now her “Night Talk” was the “talk of the town”. Her ratings must be sky high, if the women’s reaction around here were anything to go by. She was becoming a celebrity quicker than he could think. And that meant she was becoming a public figure, and everyone knew what happened to public figures - their dirty laundry was often aired for all to see.
Double son-of-a-bitch!
“Come in,” Robert Thorpe-Ashton called out from behind the wood-paneled door, and Steve felt sweat break out on his upper lip. He quickly brushed it away before turning the handle.
“Have a seat.” Robert waved a hand at the chair opposite his oak desk. Steve tried to appear confident but his legs felt like spaghetti as he made his way across the carpet and sat down on the leather chair. Was this how it would end?
“I didn’t get to speak to you in private last night at the party,” Robert said, leaning back in his executive chair like the lord of the manor.
Steve made himself sit tight and not jump to conclusions but his heart was thudding in his chest. “No, you didn’t, but then you had quite a few guests to look after.”
Robert’s mouth twisted. “Margo loves her parties. Last night was the only night some dear friends were in town.” Before Steve could reply, the older man’s eyes lasered across the width of the desk. “I heard you had a bit of a dilemma with Barbara Pelham yesterday afternoon.”
Steve quickly hid his surprise, not about to let down his guard. “Yes, there was a problem but I resolved it.”
“She’s one to watch out for. I’ve known Barbara a long time and she can be difficult when she wants her own way.”
Tell me something I don’t know, Steve thought, still amazed he’d managed to escape her clutches. The woman was a barracuda.
Then he looked at Robert and suddenly it hit him that the other man could have known about Barbara’s little proposition. Had
Robert set Barbara onto him to test him out?
More than likely.
Shit!
Thank the Lord he hadn’t done anything he shouldn’t have done with the woman. Of course if he had, they wouldn’t be having this conversation right now. He’d be out on his ass - with both the company and with Alicia.
He tried not to show any of his thoughts as he shrugged. “Yes, well, I made her see that what she wanted wasn’t necessarily what she should have.”
Robert steepled his fingers and looked across at him over the top of them. “I also heard something else.”
Steve’s heart bounced down to his feet like a ball then up to his throat. “And what would that be?” he managed to say.
“I’m told you’ve been working too hard.”
Dammit! Robert was merely playing with him. Did he have to frighten him this way? The older man was enjoying this game of cat and mouse. If it wasn’t for Alicia…
Then he realized something, and intense disappointment rushed through him at the thought of what she’d gone and done. She’d let him down. Big time. She’d been the only woman to ever believe in him - to have faith in him - even if it wasn’t justified, but he’d hoped for more from her than to run to her father when he’d specifically told her not to mention his exhaustion to Robert.
“I asked Alicia not to say anything to you about that,” Steve said in a lightly scolding tone that belied the throb of pain inside him.
“She didn’t. I overheard her talking to her mother last night during the party.”
“Oh.” So she hadn’t betrayed him after all. The river of relief washing over him was deeper than he wanted it to be. “I see.”
“I want you to know I appreciate all the hard work you do here,” Robert said, again surprising him. “I know you want to get ahead. I used to be the same.” He paused. “And I used to do some things that put all I’d worked for at risk.” Another pause, then like a whip lashing out he said, “I’ve heard you do too.”
Steve swallowed, then nonchalantly brushed some lint off his pants before answering. “Business can be tough.”
There was a lethal calmness to the older man. “But not so tough that you put my daughter’s happiness at risk, eh?”
Steve started to sweat again. “Never, Robert. I promise you that,” he said firmly. And strangely enough, Alicia’s happiness mattered to him right then. That and his own. The two of them would make beautiful music together.
Robert inclined his head, his eyes still flat and hard. “Good, because some things are best kept quiet… especially when it concerns the women in our past. You don’t want to get caught out on a bad lie.”
So Robert did have a report on him. And obviously it didn’t align with some of the things Alicia would have told her father about her fiancé. Yet it appeared that Robert wasn’t going to use it against him. For the moment.
Steve forced a tight smile. “A man should never reveal too much about himself anyway.”
“I agree, but when it comes to family… well, let’s just say that if a person was to say… or do… anything to put my family’s happiness at risk, then they’d be a fool.”
Steve swallowed. “I’ll take that on board.”
“You do that. My little girl loves you and if you’re what she wants, then I’m happy with that.”
His words didn’t exactly instill confidence. “You can be assured I love your daughter, Robert.”
“Yes, I think you do. In your own way.”
“It’s the only way I know,” Steve mused out loud.
His future father-in-law gave a small but cold smile. “How long before the big day now?” he asked, as if he didn’t know the exact day as well as the exact hour the marriage would take place.
“Three weeks.”
“It’ll probably seem like an eternity,” Robert commiserated, but the look in his eyes held a glint that reminded Steve he still had a lot to lose. “Let’s hope nothing goes wrong. I imagine you’d find it hard to get a job in this town ever again if the wedding were to be cancelled.”
It was a threat. One Steve took very seriously. “I promise you I’ll do everything in my power to make sure it goes ahead.”
Robert nodded. “And I’ll do everything I can to help you. As long as that’s what my daughter wants.”
* * *
An incredible feeling of humility filled Zac when they walked into the children’s ward at ten on Monday morning and everyone greeted Cassie like a long, lost friend. They obviously thought a lot of her, and she of them. It made him proud to know her. And if by being here he could make these sick kids day brighter, he was happy to do so.
“Hey, Cassie,” one of the older kids said from a bed a few feet away. “Who’s the fancy accessory?” the boy asked, looking at Zac.
She darted an amused look at Zac then strolled toward the bed. “Hi, Jamie. This is my friend, Zac. He’s from Australia.”
A murmur went around the ward and the boy’s eyes lit up then he shrugged and tried to appear casual, as only a kid of about twelve could. “Has he ever caught a crocodile?”
Cassie smiled. “Why don’t you ask him yourself?”
Jamie looked at Zac. “I bet you haven’t,” he challenged, as if he didn’t want to get his hopes up.
Zac winced inwardly. He was going to have to do some stiff talking with this kid. “No, but I once had a… snake chase me,” he said, not looking at Cassie. He was going to take some poetic license here.
Jamie’s eyes flickered with interest. “Did it bite you?”
“Almost.” Even now he had nightmares about visiting his uncle’s sheep station and how that wild dog had come after him, hunting him like an animal. “It chased me all the way to the house, but thankfully my uncle killed it with his shotgun before it could get me.”
“Too bad,” Jamie said, and Zac glanced at Cassie then. She was frowning at him and he knew she had figured out that the “snake” he mentioned was actually the dog he’d told her about last night.
“I hate snakes,” a little girl with a bandage wrapped around her stomach said, drawing Zac’s gaze away from Cassie. Time to concentrate on the children.
“Do you have spiders?” another boy asked.
“Yes, and some of them are deadly ones,” Zac said, pleased to see the boy’s eyes begin to light up. “And our snakes are the most deadly in the world.”
“Maybe one day I’ll get to Australia and see them myself,” Jamie said, sounding nonchalant but obviously interested despite himself.
“Sure you will,” Zac said, wanting to give the kid some hope. He didn’t know what Jamie was suffering from, and the blankets tucked up to the boy’s waist didn’t tell him anything either, but he hoped to God it wasn’t terminal.
“Not me,” the little girl said. “I don’t want to get eaten by a snake.”
“They don’t eat you, stupid,” Jamie said. “They just bite you and put poison in you and that kills you.”
Cassie held up her hand. “Much too graphic for me, Jamie,” she said, going over to the little girl and giving her a hug.
Zac realized he might have frightened some of the children instead of impressing them. “Snakes really aren’t so bad. They like to keep to themselves and if you leave them alone they generally leave you alone too.”
“I’d like to cuddle a koala bear,” one of the other little girls said. “They’re so cuddly.”
“Yeah, me too,” another boy said. “Do you have any at your house, Zac?”
“I’m afraid not.” Koalas usually didn’t live in the cities, but he didn’t want to disillusion the kids too much. Koalas weren’t actually bears either, they were marsupials, but he wouldn’t go into that here either.
Just then, one of the nurses came into the ward. Cassie had earlier introduced her to him as Maggie. “Okay, who wants to hear Cassie tell a story?” Maggie said, and shouts of “I do!” and “Me too!” exploded from the children.
With a wry twist to his lips, Zac walked over t
o Cassie. “A story? I thought that’s what I’d just told them.”
Cassie chuckled, but he noted she still had a worried look in her eyes for him as she indicated a children’s book she’d just chosen from a shelf. “You can’t compete with a little wizard boy, I’m afraid,” she said, making him smile.
An hour later, they said goodbye to the children and to Maggie and left the ward. Zac had a new admiration for Cassie. She’d held those kids in the palm of her hand and they clearly adored her.
She squeezed his arm as they stepped in the vacant elevator. “Zac, I’m sorry if I didn’t take your fear of dogs as seriously as I should. I didn’t realize it had been quite so traumatic for you.”
“Hey, no problem.” He slipped her arm through his, and changed the subject. “You handled those kids beautifully back there.”
Her concerned eyes began to glow with warmth. “They’re really very easy to handle. I love coming here.”
“And they love you.” She was the sort of person who gave so much of herself that it was hard not to love her. In a purely platonic way, of course.
CHAPTER EIGHT
“G..O..O..D……evening, Chicago. Welcome to “Night Talk”. I’m Cassie King and once again my very special guest is that superstud from Sydney, that marvel with the microphone, the very sexy Zac Ryan. Yes, ladies, he’s back.”
“Just like a bad penny,” he quipped.
“You said it, pal.” She was still stunned that she’d made love with this guy. Talk about surrender!
He sent her a wicked look that should be his trademark. “For that, I’m going to tell everyone about our incredible night on Saturday.”
Taken by surprise, her smile faltered a little. For all his assurance that he wouldn’t, was he going to blab about their affair after all? Was he really no better than Steve? Or the jerk who’d used her? Surely not.
“There’s nothing to tell,” she said, hiding her growing anxiety. “We ate, we talked, we both survived the evening without killing the other. And believe me, folks, that was a major accomplishment.”
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