He walked down into the spa. As usual, the corridor was filled with burning candles, pleasant smells, and tranquil music. A few of the staff were hanging around the main reception desk in their white uniforms, a few others were walking back and forth between rooms, their arms piled high with towels. He switched off the music and grabbed the PA system, usually reserved for paging staff members. The piercing shrill of feedback making everyone around him jolt.
He held up his hand, climbed on a chair, and stood on the nearest table. He wanted to be sure he’d every single person’s attention. “Hi, everyone, it’s Dr. Travers.” He waited until all of the faces in the room had turned toward him. “Most of you know I’ve been looking for Selena for the past week. I have something here she needs to see.” He waved the piece of paper he’d written the interview details on in the air. “It’s a job interview at a place she’d love to work and a job she’d be great at, but the interview is in two days. I need to let her know, or she’ll miss this opportunity.”
There was silence all around him. He could see members of staff glancing at each other rather than look at him.
“Please, folks, someone out there must know where Selena is. And if you know her as well as I think you do, you’ll know how much this would mean to her.”
A few murmurs. But no one spoke up. He put the microphone back on the counter, and his shoulders sagged. This was hopeless. She could be in any suburb of Los Angeles and he would never find her. She might even have taken a plane back to Scotland. He just wanted to see her. He wanted to talk to her. He’d do anything to get that chance. A chance to tell her how much she meant to him.
That was it.
That was what he had to do.
People had started to walk away, to go about their business.
He grabbed the PA system again, smiling while its squeal reverberated around the clinic.
“I’m not finished.” His voice rose a little as his desperation increased. Several curious heads stuck out around treatment-room doors. “I want you all to know something. Selena Harris is the first thing I think about when I wake up in the morning and the last thing I think about at night.” He held up his hands. “I even miss the way she left chopped fruit all over my worktop counters and most of her shoes lying around the house. Women, tell me, why is it only ever one shoe, never a pair?”
He could see the chins drop around him and the eyes widening. This wasn’t what they were expecting. Colt Travers the plastic surgeon would never behave like this. He was always the ultimate professional, charming, polite, if a little flirtatious. He kept his cards close to his chest. No one ever really knew anything about him or his personal life.
He’d captured their attention—now, to keep it. “In fact, thoughts about Selena Harris pretty much invade my senses day and night. You see, I never really had the opportunity to share with someone before. Selena kind of crept up on me, and I’m glad she did.
“You all know Selena. She’s bright. She’s beautiful. She’s sparky.” He paused, “She’s snarky.” There was a titter of laughter around about him as a few extra people appeared from some of the nearby rooms, walking toward him, their faces piqued with curiosity.
“But most importantly of all, she’s honest. She’s honest about what she thinks about people. She’s honest about how she feels. And she’s honest about how she works.”
There was a movement to his right. Helen Ridgeway and Jeremiah Lazarus appeared in his view. Laz had a smile on his face and Helen? She just looked exhausted. They must have heard him over the PA system.
How would Helen react? He really didn’t want to hurt her, but Selena was too important to him right now. He’d already told Helen that he loved Selena a few days ago. She hadn’t said anything to him since, and she didn’t like anything to disrupt the smooth running of the clinic. The last few weeks had been hard on her.
He turned to face her. Helen didn’t look mad. In fact, although she had her arms folded, she was leaning against the wall with a smile on her face.
He took a deep breath, more determined than ever. “We might have lost Selena from the clinic, but I don’t want her to lose this opportunity for herself.” He held the piece of paper up again. His voice dropped a little. “More importantly, I don’t want to lose Selena. Because let’s face it: if we love someone, we should tell them, shouldn’t we?”
He stared at the paper in his hand. Selena had done more than get under his skin. She’d gotten into his heart.
He moved, landing on the floor with a thud. He had to find her. It wasn’t just something he wanted to do. It was essential. He didn’t want to spend another day without her.
He could remember every part of her. Every touch, every brush of skin, every kiss. The way she hadn’t shied away from his disfigured skin, just accepted it as part of him.
The expression in her eyes when she’d climaxed saying his name.
Selena had brought color into his life in more ways than one. Color he couldn’t live without.
He could hear the murmurs around him. People were starting to move. To go back about their business.
His shoulders sagged. Was this even more hopeless than he thought?
“Colt?”
He looked up. Lucille was standing in front of him.
She gave him a weary look. “I think we need to talk.”
Chapter Fourteen
Selena slumped down on Lucille’s lumpy sofa. Today had been awful. The interview had been a bust. The man who’d conducted the interview had spent most of his time with his eyes constantly on her breasts and legs, and had called her “window dressing.” Some parts of LA were still stuck in the 1960s.
She was getting desperate and had to find a new job in the next few days. Lucille had managed to intercept a few e-mails that had gone to the clinic for her. Two had been interviews and three had been rejections.
She pulled out the map. Today, she was going to pretend to be the world’s best barista and pimp her way around all the local coffee shops. There were no other hours available at Starbucks, so she’d have to try elsewhere.
She stood up and walked through to the box room where she was currently sleeping, slipping out of her designer dress and heels. Somehow they wouldn’t be required in a coffee shop. She put on her jeans and a pale pink V-neck top, complete with a few sequins. Just enough to draw the eyes away from her breasts.
Lucille had been great, but Selena couldn’t stay here forever. She had to pay her way.
It was funny. Paying her own way had hardly even occurred to her while she’d been staying with Mark. But the credit card refusal at the clinic had been the wakeup call she’d needed to try and get her life in order. She hadn’t paid Mark back in full, but at least she’d put a little dent in what she owed.
There was no point sitting around all day. She had to keep on trying to get a job.
The doorbell rang, and she paused. What had Lucille ordered online now? Yesterday it had the new powder form of foundation, the day before a bra for workouts. The woman was a serial TV-shopper. You name it, she’d bought it. All within a defined budget, of course. Lucille was fastidious about it and she was training Selena well.
Selena pulled the door open with a big grin on her face, ready to sign for the delivery. Only it wasn’t a delivery.
It was Colt.
She could barely see him behind the huge bouquet of flowers he’d brought with him.
Her stomach was instantly in knots. What was he doing here? Her breath caught in her throat just as the tears started to form in her eyes. She couldn’t deal with this. She couldn’t deal with him. Not while she was still trying to get her act together.
“What do you want?” Her voice should have sounded strong, but it came out squeaky. She wasn’t prepared. She wasn’t ready for this. In her head, the next time that she’d see Colt she would have a fabulous job, a fabulous apartment, a male model on her arm, and look like a million dollars.
Instead, her hair was in a ponytail and she was barefoot, wearing je
ans and a top. Hardly the things dreams were made of.
“To talk?” His voice was muffled behind the flowers.
“No. Go away, Colt. I’ve got nothing to say to you.”
He pulled the bouquet to one side. “So, I guess it’s Snarky Selena today.” He was obviously trying to start casual. It wasn’t going to work.
“You can guess whatever you like.” She pushed the door to slam it shut, but he was too quick, wedging his foot inside the door.
“Ouch! That’s not very hospitable.”
She stalked over to the sofa and slumped back down, drawing her knees up to her chest. “What do you want, Colt?”
The busted day was making her weary, exhausted, and a touch emotional.
He came in and closed the door behind him, laying the flowers on a nearby table. He hesitated, and it irritated her. Her patience with Colt was all gone. This was the man that hadn’t leaped to her defense that day. This was the man that hadn’t trusted her the way he should.
He walked over and knelt in front of her so their eyes were level. “I wanted to see you.” His voice was quiet, gentle, and it brought tears to her eyes.
“What for?”
“I think we need to talk.”
“It’s too late. Helen Ridgeway practically accused me from stealing from Seacliffe. And you,” she pointed her finger at him, trying to pretend her hand wasn’t trembling, “said nothing.”
She stood up and started pacing around, her blood pressure rising at the mere thought of it.
“Selena, I came here to say sorry.”
“Well it’s too late. You should have thought of that a week ago,” she snapped.
“Please don’t say that.” He fixed her with his big blue eyes. “You’ll break my heart. And I did think of it a week ago. I just couldn’t find you. I do trust you. Of course I trust you. I just didn’t say it soon enough.”
Her breath caught in her throat and her stomach fluttered. She sagged down onto the sofa. “What do you mean? What do you mean I’ll break your heart?”
He took a deep breath. “I mean I’ve missed you. I’ve missed us. I’ve missed having you wake up next to me in the morning, even though you had your own room. I’ve missed making you breakfast. I’ve even missed your shoes lying all over the floor and the wet towels in the bathroom.” His eyes fixed on hers. “I’ve especially missed your underwear hanging from the light fixtures. But most of all, the house feels empty without you. I hate it.”
She held her breath. Had he really said all that? She straightened on the sofa. “Just because you miss me doesn’t mean we should be together. Too much has happened, Colt. You didn’t take my side against Helen. She still thinks I had something to do with what’s going on at the clinic. I don’t want to be involved in any of that.”
He stood up and moved, sitting on the sofa next to her. “I know. And I’m sorry. Helen Ridgeway is really special to me.” He touched his side, where his scar tissue was. “I have a lot of loyalty to Helen, but it’s all getting to be too much for her and she recognizes that now. She looked at the folder you left her. Now, it’s all in black and white. She can’t ignore what’s happening underneath all our noses.”
“So, what does that mean? She believes me?”
He nodded. “She believes everything. She sat down with the accountant today. You should know that he spoke very highly of your skills and the fact you’d managed to interpret the figures.”
“Oh.” She should be happy. She should be over the moon that she’d been proven right. But somehow it was all rather irrelevant to her. She’d already known her theory would be proved by the facts.
But it didn’t take away the horrible feeling pressing down on her chest.
He continued, “The investigation at the clinic will keep going. We still haven’t found out who is responsible for the leaks. We’ll keep going until we get to the bottom of it.”
She looked up at him. “So, does that mean that you believe me now?” She glanced downward. “Because if it does, you should know, that’s not what I want.” She pressed her hand against her chest. “I needed you to believe in me straightaway. I needed you to say that in your heart you trusted me.” She shook her head. “And that’s not what happened. I know I don’t have the best history, but I thought we had something together.”
“We do. At least I think we do.” His hands were pressed firmly on her shoulders. “You have no idea what you’ve done for my life in the last month. You’ve had the biggest impact ever.” His eyes fixed on hers. “Even bigger than the arrival of the Borg.”
She tried not to let the edges of her mouth turn upward. “Didn’t they have a bad impact?”
He shook his head. “Not if you’re a fan. It was the greatest move in TV sci-fi history.”
Her voice was shaking. “And are you a fan?” It was a roundabout conversation, a way of saying all the things she was too scared to ask out loud.
“I’m your biggest fan. I’m sorry about the stuff at the clinic and with Helen. I want you to know that I believe in you. I will always believe in you. And I will always be here for you.”
Her brain was jumbled. She’d left Seacliffe. She wouldn’t be back. Neither of them knew what the future held.
“I came here today to give you something. Something that could change your life.”
Butterflies erupted in her stomach. What did he mean?
“Look at this.” He handed her a piece of paper.
She took it from him and turned it over, then raised her eyebrows. Bertram and Bain. Her dream employer. With a time and date scribbled on the piece of paper. “What is this?”
“They called the clinic. That’s your date and time for interview.”
Her mouth fell open. “What?” She stood up and started pacing around the room as she scanned the letter. “This is mine?”
He nodded encouragingly as she read his scribbled notes.
Everything else was chased from her mind. The opportunity she’d been waiting for. The chance to turn her life around. “A presentation and a quiz on management accounts beforehand. Wow. What will I wear? I need to start preparing.” Then she saw the date. “Two days! Two days until the interview? That’s crazy. How will I be ready on time?”
“Would you like some help?”
She’d forgotten he was sitting there. Watching her talking to herself and pacing around. She wanted this job. It could be the answer to all her prayers. A salary. The chance to put a deposit down on an apartment. Regular hours again. Working for a company she’d admired for years.
She sagged back down on to the sofa next to Colt. “I’ll never get this. There must have been hundreds of applicants. Just about everyone I know will have applied for this job. The competition will be fierce.”
His hand covered hers. “But they picked you. They short-listed you. That has to mean something. Now, you only need to show them how capable you are.”
“But what about my résumé? It’s hardly impressive in the last few months.”
Colt stood up and held out his hand toward her. “You say that you’ve been advising on accounts as an intermediary for Helen’s House to ensure the funding continues.”
She frowned. “Isn’t that untruthful?”
He placed his hands on her hips. “Why? It’s exactly what you’ve done. If you hadn’t spotted the problems in the accounts, Helen’s House would have suffered. The clinic needs to do well in order to continue funding the house. Who knows what would have happened if you hadn’t come along?”
His words made sense. Even though she’d worked at the clinic to pay off a debt, she didn’t need to tell them that. Colt made it sound much more professional, much more acceptable.
“I want you to be happy.”
“You do? You hardly know me, Colt, we’ve only known each other for a month.”
“That’s long enough.”
“Long enough for what?” Her heart was thudding inside her chest wall.
“Long enough to know that I miss
ed you. I’ve never been interested in sharing my life with someone before. Not until you.”
“So what’s changed?”
He gave her his damn sexy smile that turned her insides to mush. “I fell in love.”
“You did?” She was squeaking again.
“I did. Please come home. Because it doesn’t feel like home anymore without you there. It doesn’t feel like home without your clothes and shoes scattered all over the house.” Heat coursed through her as a myriad of thoughts whirled around her mind.
He ran his hands up and down her sides. “That first night we spent together, the night that you saw my scars and didn’t flinch, didn’t hesitate, I knew, Selena. I knew it was a turning point in my life.” He gave her a smile. “It only took you moving in to make me realize how much.”
Wow. This was the point where she should be shouting with joy. He loved her. And he’d actually said it. But one tiny part of her couldn’t do it. Not yet.
She touched the side of his face. “I’d love to, Colt. But I have to learn to look after myself. I have to stand on my own two feet. I need to be independent. I need to find a job. Earn a salary…and pay off my debts.” She shook her head quickly. “I don’t want you to do that for me. I need to do it for myself.” She hesitated, then looked at him again, her voice breaking. “I don’t have anything to offer you, Colt. I don’t have a house. I don’t have a job. You have everything. You’re the full package: rich, gorgeous, intelligent. You could any woman that you want. Why are you here for me?”
His eyes widened, and he shook his head. “I don’t want any woman, Selena. I just want you. You’re the full package to me, no matter what point you’re at in your life.” He stroked his fingers down her cheek. “You are the only package I’ll ever be interested in. I promise I’ll support you. I won’t interfere in your choices.” He growled in her ear. “You can be as independent as you like. Just as long as it’s in my bedroom. I love you, Selena. Please tell me you’ll stay with me.”
She pulled back a little. The thought of spending every night with Colt was breaking every part of her resolve. Waking up to a spectacular view of the man who made her heart sing could do that to a girl. “Did I tell you that I love you, too?” She placed her hands beneath his ribs. “Every part of you.”
Hollywood Temptation Page 17
