Illusions of Love

by Michelle Betham

  Kenny looked away, pushing a hand through his hair again. ‘She won’t start anything with Dominic MacDonald.’

  ‘It’s already started, Kenny. And you’re just gonna have to deal with that.’

  ***

  India crouched down and hugged her tiny daughter tight, reluctant to let her go, knowing that these flying visits home from movie sets weren’t always a good idea. They only made her realise how much she hated being away from Ellie, away from Los Angeles. Away from home.

  She’d had no more than a few hours in total with her little girl since arriving from Las Vegas – what with the video shoot, and Dominic – and now she was about to board Reece’s private jet and head back to Vegas with Dominic, to resume work on their movie. But at least her daughter would be with her daddy, and with JJ on a break from filming his new movie at least he had plenty of time to spend with her. It made India feel just a little less like she was abandoning her completely.

  ‘She misses her brother too y’know.’

  India stood up, watching Ellie as she ran off in the direction of Emma, off to get ready for pre-school, turning round briefly in the doorway to wave frantically at India who did her best to blink away the tears as she blew a kiss at her beautiful baby girl, mouthing ‘bye bye’. Words she hated having to say to her at all.

  ‘Don’t start on me, Joe. I’m tired, and I’m not in the mood.’

  ‘You should have tried getting some sleep then, instead of playing out with your new boyfriend.’

  ‘Oh, grow up! He isn’t my new boyfriend. We went out, we had some fun, you gonna deny me that now?’

  JJ walked over to her, his hands in his pockets, his handsome face dominated by a frown that didn’t suit him. ‘I’m not denying you anything, India. I’m just curious as to why he came all the way to L.A. for such a short period of time, for absolutely no reason, if there’s nothing going on between the two of you.’

  She didn’t say anything, just turned away, unnecessarily rooting round in her handbag for something she didn’t need. Whatever was going on between her and Dominic – and so far that had been nothing but incredible sex – it was nobody’s business but theirs.

  ‘So?’

  She swung back around to face JJ. ‘So, what?’

  ‘You and Dominic MacDonald?’

  ‘What about us?’

  ‘Well, I’m guessing – and it doesn’t really take a genius to work this one out, seeing as you were photographed coming out of his hotel at 6.30 in the morning – that you’ve become yet another one of his leading-lady conquests?’

  India picked up her bag and slipped her sunglasses back down over her eyes, checking her watch. The plane was leaving at eleven and it was getting close to that now. She really didn’t have time for this. ‘There’s nothing going on between me and Dominic MacDonald, alright?’

  ‘So, you didn’t sleep with him?’

  ‘Come on, Joe.’

  ‘Did you sleep with him, India?’

  She swung round to face him again, pushing her dark glasses up onto her head, staring right at him. ‘Yes. I slept with him. Is that what you wanted to hear? Huh?’

  ‘Jesus…’ JJ turned away, pushing a hand through his hair.

  India sighed heavily. ‘I’m sorry, Joe, okay? I’m sorry. You didn’t deserve that. But, why ask a question when you already know the answer?’

  ‘We’re still married, India.’

  She looked at him, pushing her oversized dark glasses back down over her eyes. She didn’t really want to talk about this now. She didn’t really want to talk about it at all. ‘For now, Joe.’

  Suddenly, all the memories of their time together came flooding back, crashing into her mind like an unwelcome tidal wave of emotions and for another of those fleeting seconds she began to wonder just why they hadn’t been able to make it work, because there’d once been a time when she’d thought she couldn’t live without him. And then she remembered. She was the reason. She hadn’t let it work. Deep down inside, she hadn’t wanted to give it that chance. Jesus, she was such a bitch! And that realisation was like a kick in the solar plexus.

  ‘We can try again, baby,’ JJ said quietly, almost reading her mind. ‘Forget everything else… forget Dominic MacDonald. We can call off this divorce, it’s not too late. We can put all of this behind us, get back to the way we were…’

  ‘And what way was that, Joe?’

  He moved closer to her, his hands still in his pockets as he looked at her. ‘We were in love, India.’

  She smiled, reaching out to touch his cheek. ‘Yeah. We were.’

  Past tense. Done. It was over.

  ***

  There wasn’t much that could render Michael Walsh speechless, but what he’d just been told had floored him. It had come right out of nowhere, hitting him like a speeding train, because he’d had absolutely no idea.

  Whatever he thought they’d unearth about Dominic MacDonald, whatever he’d assumed they’d find out, Michael hadn’t been anywhere near prepared for what he’d just heard. Because it changed everything. And explained a lot.

  He’d been sitting at his desk in his office at the villa for what seemed like hours, but it had only been a few minutes since he’d been told the news, and he was now trying to work out just how he was going to deal with it. But until he really got his head around it all he couldn’t even think straight, and that was something that didn’t sit well with Michael. He liked to be in control, and in this situation he wasn’t. Not yet. And he needed to be. Soon.

  Dominic was due back in Vegas in a matter of hours and he’d really wanted to be ready to face him, to have something to throw at him but it hadn’t quite worked out to plan at all. Although it was now very much obvious to Michael what Dominic’s plan had been. And why he’d needed to carry it out.

  He got up and walked over to the sideboard in the corner of the room, pouring himself a small bourbon, knocking it back in one. He could’ve done with a second but now more than ever he needed to keep a clear head because, when Dominic finally arrived back in Vegas, Michael needed to be ready to play him at his own game. And the stakes had just got a whole lot higher.

  CHAPTER 16

  Bobby looked at India out of the corner of his eye, then over at Dominic who was standing at the back of Reece’s private jet as it made its way back to Vegas, flicking through a script he quite obviously wasn’t reading.

  ‘Something wrong?’ India asked, curling her legs up underneath her.

  ‘You’re wearing a dress.’

  ‘And your point is?’ She looked over at Dominic, who smiled a smile that made her stomach flip over a dozen times, something which didn’t go unnoticed by Bobby. ‘What? What the hell’s wrong with you, Bobby?’

  ‘You wearing any underwear?’

  ‘Jesus, what kind of a question is that?’ She looked up again, just as Dominic disappeared into the bathroom at the back of the plane.

  Bobby just pursed his lips in a disapproving manner, pushed his reading glasses back down over his eyes and continued reading emails on his phone. ‘I’m saying nothing, Princess. I just don’t want to have to say “I told you so”, that’s all.’

  ‘I thought you were saying nothing,’ India said, getting up out of her seat and shaking her hair out, leaning over to kiss Bobby on the cheek. He just snorted in an even more disapproving manner and carried on with his reading.

  She walked calmly up the aisle of the plane, smiling at the discreet way in which the rest of her small entourage was ignoring something so obvious, but it only made it more of a turn on. And as she pushed open the bathroom door she’d never been more ready to go.

  ‘What took you so long?’ Dominic smiled, leaning back against one of the marble sinks, his arms folded.

  India smiled back, quickly slipping out of her underwear, kicking them aside before walking towards him, sliding a hand round the back of his neck, pulling him down for a long, slow kiss.

  ‘I take it you haven’t joined the Mile High Clu
b yet then?’ he asked, still smiling that incredible smile. She shook her head. ‘Then I think it’s about time we got you enrolled, don’t you?’

  He slid his hand between her legs and she moaned quietly, moving them further apart to let him in, his lips on her neck as he touched her down there, feeling just how ready she was for him.

  ‘Oh, Jesus, Dominic…’

  He was as hard and ready for her as she was wet and waiting for him, so the sex was going to be quick and hard but it was sex, and that was all he wanted. Just to have her again, that’s all he needed.

  He pushed his hand up against her and she pushed down, running her fingers through his hair as his mouth met hers again, the kisses getting harder and faster as he swung her round, lifting her up onto the counter top, pulling her legs apart, finally entering that warm and welcoming heaven once more. It was like coming home, a new home, but one he was quite happy to move into.

  But this had been a quick visit. Just a handful of pushes, a barrage of kisses and it was over, but he stayed inside her as they caught their breath, her forehead resting against his, her fingers lightly stroking the back of his neck.

  ‘That was good,’ she breathed, pulling away slightly so she could look at him, this handsome, younger man that she’d never really given a second thought to before. She’d known of his existence, of course she had. He was a Hollywood movie star; he was right up there on the A-list now. She’d just never thought for one second that she’d ever be having sex with him in the bathroom of her father’s private plane. Incredible, mind-blowing sex. ‘That was really, really good.’

  He smiled, leaning forward to kiss her again; a slower, more gentle kiss that she found herself falling into, each move of his mouth on hers sending shivers right through her.

  ‘But we’re back to reality now,’ she said, playing with the hair at the back of his neck. ‘Back to making movies, back to being in the spotlight. Back to all eyes on us.’

  He lifted her down off the counter and she turned to face the mirror, running her fingers through her hair.

  He stood behind her, watching her. ‘Do you have any idea how beautiful you really are?’

  She looked at his reflection behind her, smiling slightly. ‘Coming from one dangerously handsome man, I’ll take that as a compliment.’

  He came closer, pushing her hair away from her neck, kissing it gently, one hand on her hip and she fell back against him, closing her eyes as his lips moved round to her shoulder, his fingers snaking up under her dress.

  ‘You know, if you’re gonna join the Mile High Club, sometimes it’s best to get two visits under your belt in one go.’

  ‘Oh, really?’

  ‘Yeah, really.’

  His fingers were touching her again, making her gasp out loud, giving her no other option but to go with it, to follow his lead, and let this crazy ride go on for as long as it could. Because she could quite easily fall for Dominic MacDonald, movie star. Whether she liked it or not.

  ***

  Charley didn’t know whether to feel relieved that everything seemed to be relatively normal, or whether to feel uneasy about a situation that could very well rear its ugly head at any time.

  She was loving being with Vince in Vegas, even if he was almost totally consumed with keeping an eye on filming. It was just nice to feel somewhere safe. If it was somewhere safe. Because Charley had no idea where Jimmy was or what he had planned, if anything. No, he had to have something planned or what would have been the point in him turning up at the salon? If she had some idea of what he wanted then maybe this would have been easier to deal with, but as it was she was completely in the dark, living every day wondering when something was going to happen. If something was going to happen.

  Vince still knew nothing about Jimmy’s reappearance, and she still hadn’t found the courage to tell him, because she was scared of what her husband might do. He was extremely protective of her and Lily and the one thing she didn’t want was him going up against Jimmy Cash – not after what had happened with Terry. She didn’t want to lose another man she loved at the hands of someone so evil. She couldn’t let that happen.

  So she’d stayed quiet, saying nothing, pretending everything was alright when, in reality, it was far from that. She spent every day looking over her shoulder, never moving far away from crowds for fear of Jimmy turning up again, because he would. Of that she had no doubt. And what she’d do when that finally happened, she still had no idea.

  ***

  Dominic threw himself down on the bed, staring at the ceiling, trying to take in the events of the past couple of days. He had everything he wanted now, he was almost there. He was so close to taking the one thing Michael Walsh wanted away from him – for good? He didn’t know yet. He didn’t know how he really felt about India, all he knew was that she was this incredible woman, this walking wet dream that he could fuck all day and never get bored doing it. She was sexy-as-hell, a full-blown fantasy, and being with her had been the most exciting thing he’d ever experienced in a long time. All those other actresses, all those other women he’d bedded, none of them even came close to India Walsh. This beautiful English angel sent from heaven to fuck him up.

  He closed his eyes and remembered how she felt, how she tasted, what it felt like to be there inside her; that body of hers that belied belief. Jesus, she wasn’t even here and she was making him hard again.

  Jumping up off the bed he walked into the bathroom and switched on the shower, turning the temperature to cold, pulling off his clothes and stepping underneath the icy jets of water. He didn’t have time to feel this way right now. He had to think, get his head straight; decide what his next move was going to be. Because he had to do something. Michael Walsh still needed to know the truth. Dominic just had no idea that Michael already knew.

  ***

  ‘Everything go okay in L.A.?’ Reece asked, handing India a coffee as she stood by the kitchen window, looking out onto the private terrace of her Las Vegas villa where Ethan was playing with Lily in the pool while Bobby looked on.

  ‘Everything went fine. The video shoot was great, Kenny’s doing good, Ellie is beautiful, Joe tried one last time to get me to call off the divorce…’ She turned round to face him, leaning back against the window, ‘… and I slept with Dominic MacDonald.’

  Reece just looked at her, and India didn’t break that stare.

  ‘Well, that’s what you really wanted to hear, wasn’t it? I mean, you knew he’d followed me to L.A.’

  ‘I hate it when you get this defensive, India. No, of course it wasn’t what I wanted to hear. So, we’re jumping head-first into yet another relationship, are we? Before divorce number three has even had a chance to be finalised? Why, India? ’

  She looked over her shoulder, back outside, shielding her eyes from the blazing sun, smiling at her seven-year-old little boy as he jumped into the pool, splashing Bobby. ‘Because I fancy him like crazy.’

  ‘That simple, huh?’

  She looked back at her father, a man who’d given her so much – he’d given her this life, for Christ’s sake, and the only thing he’d ever wanted in return was for her to be happy. He didn’t deserve what she put him through, he deserved better. She loved him so much but she couldn’t help but be defensive whenever he got involved with the men in her life. But then, he had a right to be nervous, didn’t he? After everything she’d been through. And most of it her own fault. ‘I didn’t set out for it to happen, Dad…’

  ‘No, you never do, India.’ Reece had known Michael hadn’t really been the one he should be worrying about, because ever since Dominic MacDonald had arrived here in Vegas he’d sensed something had been going to happen. And now it seemed like it finally had.

  ‘I didn’t even want a relationship, y’know?’ She pushed a hand through her loose blond hair, pushing it back off her face. ‘With anyone. Because there’s a part of me that knows what I really need is some time on my own, time to think about what’s best for me.’

&nb
sp; ‘So do that. Take some time out, what’s stopping you?’

  She walked over to the kitchen table, putting down her coffee mug, picking up her phone and scrolling down some photographs she’d taken of Dominic in L.A., stopping at one where he was smiling that smile, looking away from the camera, those blue eyes of his so striking. He really was the most incredibly handsome man, typical Hollywood movie star – sexy-as-hell, and she could vouch for that.

  ‘Nothing’s stopping me, Dad.’

  ‘Really?’

  She looked up at him again, putting her phone down. ‘I thought you’d just be pleased I’m not going back to Michael.’

  ‘I can’t say I’m not relieved at that, my darling, but, if you are going to get involved with Dominic – and I can’t stop you, if that’s what you really want – then, please, just keep your eyes open, and know what you’re doing. Okay?’

  She nodded, piling her hair up on top of her head before pulling off her robe to reveal a black bikini, all ready to join her little boy and her Goddaughter in the pool.

  ‘I know what I’m doing, Dad.’ She smiled that incredible smile of hers – a smile so much like his – and he returned it. She was almost forty-three-years-old; he couldn’t look after her forever, even if that’s all he wanted to do. ‘I’m gonna join Ethan and Lily in the pool, are you coming?’

  He shook his head. ‘No, sweetheart. You go ahead. I’ve got a couple of things to take care of here.’

  And having a word with Dominic MacDonald was one of them.

  CHAPTER 17

  With filming on his movie finished in L.A., Kenny headed straight to Vegas, just like he’d promised India he would, although just how much time she was willing to spend with him was another matter, now Dominic MacDonald was apparently on the scene. But it would be good to catch up properly, to re-live some of their old party days. That would be great. Because he really needed a distraction right now.