Madison looked at him with blazing green eyes. Who the hell did he think he was?
‘It’s usual to leave a woman’s choice of dress to her, Gideon,’ Claire put in hastily as she saw the angry colour mounting in Madison’s cheeks. ‘And I’m sure Madison is more than capable of dressing suitably for the occasion,’ she added, with a placating smile in Madison’s direction.
Madison was grateful for the other woman’s words of encouragement, but at this moment she could cheerfully have knocked that arrogant smile off Gideon’s sculptured lips! How dared he tell her what to wear, and how to do her hair and make-up? When he directed her in the film he might have the right to do that, but tonight was her own time, and she would damn well dress and look how she liked!
She gave Gideon a saccharine smile as she picked up her bag in preparation for leaving. ‘In that case, I had better go home and get myself ready.’
Gideon nodded slowly, looking at her with narrowed eyes. ‘Are you staying at Edgar’s house in town?’
Her head went back as she met his gaze defiantly. ‘Of course.’ Did he still have a problem with that…?
He nodded grimly. ‘I’ll call for you there at seven o’clock.’
Yes, he obviously did still have a problem with her relationship with Edgar. Oh, well, that was his problem, not hers.
She had a film première to ‘suitably’ dress for!
‘I would be careful how far you push her, Gideon,’ Claire murmured softly, gazing after Madison. ‘One thing I’ve learnt about Madison these last three weeks is that she has a definite mind of her own!’
Gideon had watched Madison leave too; she was even more beautiful than he remembered!
Madison had accepted the excuse that he had come back earlier than expected because he wanted to attend the film première this evening, after all. The truth was much deeper than that.
He’d been in the Isle of Man for three weeks, and not a day had gone by when he hadn’t thought of Madison and the kiss they’d shared…!
He was thirty-eight years old, of course there had been women in his life, but none that had lingered in his mind when he wasn’t with her. He’d only kissed Madison McGuire, and yet he couldn’t get her out of his mind!
And so he’d come back, using the excuse of the film première this evening, even to himself, only to be totally thrown when he’d found Madison here at his office with Claire. Maybe he had been a bit tough on Madison, as Claire said, but he hadn’t expected to see her quite that soon after his arrival.
‘She can take it,’ he dismissed.
Claire turned to look at him scathingly. ‘You look like hell,’ she told him bluntly.
‘Thanks!’ He ran a hand through his overlong hair, smiling ruefully at his assistant as he turned to leave. ‘If my ego ever gets too inflated I’ll just come and talk to you!’
‘If!’ Claire called after him pointedly.
He laughed softly as he went to his office, but that laughter faded as soon as he shut the door behind him.
Madison McGuire; what the hell was he going to do with her…?
He knew what he wanted to do with her three hours later when he called for her at Edgar’s apartment—but, with Edgar standing protectively in the background, carrying her off to bed and making love to her was obviously out of the question!
Madison looked absolutely stunning!
Her dress—not the red one he had asked her to wear—was a mixture of shimmering silver and the palest of green, the material clinging to her body as she moved, darkening her eyes to emerald, her hair to a rich silver-gold; the latter was worn loose as he had requested, but in a long abundance of curls that cascaded down the length of her spine.
She might not be dressed as he had requested, but she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen in his life!
‘I thought you assured me there was no such thing as mermaids,’ he murmured appreciatively.
Madison moistened coral-painted lips. ‘I—’
‘My God, Gideon, if I didn’t know you better, I would have said that almost sounded romantic!’
Gideon turned glittering grey eyes on the older man; he wished Edgar a million miles away. He could do without his mockery at this particular moment!
Or could he? If he’d sounded romantic to Edgar just now, goodness knew what he would have said next! And Madison was not a woman he should become involved with.
For the next eight months, anyway…!
His mouth twisted scornfully. ‘Don’t be ridiculous, Edgar,’ he snapped derisively. ‘Are you ready?’ He turned back to Madison. ‘I think we should try and arrive before the royal guest of honour, don’t you?’
She looked at him. ‘And here was me thinking that was you!’ she drawled mockingly, her gaze admiring his own appearance in the black dinner suit and snowy white shirt.
Gideon looked back at her with narrowed eyes, and Edgar’s explosion of laughter—at his expense!—was not conducive to him holding on to his temper, either! Well, he couldn’t say Claire hadn’t warned him; obviously telling Madison earlier how to dress for the evening hadn’t gone down too well…!
‘That’s next year,’ he drawled.
Madison’s smile faded as Edgar helped her on with her short silver-coloured jacket, causing Gideon to look at her with questioning eyes. What had he said to make her lose her sense of humour…?
‘Have fun, children,’ Edgar encouraged as they turned to leave.
‘Oh, we will,’ Gideon assured him with husky innuendo, gratified when the older man’s humour turned to a frown of concern.
But Gideon’s own humour faded once he and Madison were seated in the back of the limousine that would drive them to the film première. Madison sat silently at his side—an unusual enough occurrence; she usually had an answer or something to say about everything!—and she was also chewing distractedly on her bottom lip.
‘What’s the problem?’ Gideon prompted hardly.
‘Problem?’ she came back sharply, her eyes shimmering silver-green in the half-light from the street lights outside. ‘Who said there was a problem?’
He sighed, turning with his arm along the seat behind her tensed shoulders. ‘Okay, so I was wrong earlier to tell you what to wear this evening. Claire was obviously right; you have a better idea of what’s suitable than I do.’
Her eyes had widened at his apology, but she looked no less tense because of it.
He let his arm drop about her shoulders. ‘Madison—’
‘Please don’t do that, Gideon,’ she snapped, moving away from him to the far side of the leather seat. ‘This is business, remember?’
His mouth tightened. ‘And it’s going to be a complete and utter disaster if you don’t lighten up!’ he threw back harshly, stung by her obvious aversion to his touch.
He had found his concentration constantly interrupted for the last three weeks by thoughts of this woman, and it annoyed him intensely that she couldn’t even stand to have him touch her!
Angry colour heightened the perfection of her cheekbones. ‘This was your idea, Gideon, so don’t—Oh!’ Her indignant gasp was lost as his mouth claimed hers.
He had been hungry for this since the last time he had kissed her, lost in the pleasure of the soft nectar of her lips, of her breasts pressed warmly against his chest as his arms held her locked tightly against him. She was enticing him, filling him with heated desire—
‘We’re almost there, Mr Byrne,’ Jim, the driver, murmured from the front of the limousine.
Gideon moved sharply away from Madison, but not before he had seen the desire that darkened her own eyes—a desire that was quickly hidden as she turned to look out of the window at the crowds of people lining the entrance to the theatre.
Gideon closed his eyes briefly as he too saw those people. Thank goodness Jim had brought him to his senses with that polite reminder of where they were and where they were going—otherwise he would have drawn more attention to himself, and Madison, than even he had plan
ned!
But he had to admire the calmness with which Madison slid gracefully from the back of the limousine as Jim held the door open for them both, straightening to shake back those long, golden tresses, the kiss they had so recently shared adding a glittering sheen to those dark emerald eyes, a flush to her creamy cheeks.
At this moment Madison looked every inch the star Gideon hoped she very soon would be!
It was only as he laced his fingers through hers, prior to walking along the red carpet and into the theatre, that he felt the trembling of her body, and knew she wasn’t as composed as she appeared to be…
‘You’re doing just fine,’ he told her softly, even as he smiled for the cameras that were clicking away madly, capturing their appearance here together.
‘No thanks to you!’ Madison’s own smile didn’t waver for a moment, that silver-green dress shimmering as she swayed gracefully along at his side, her slender fingers still entwined with his.
He chuckled softly. Claire was right; this woman was more than capable of standing up for herself! ‘I only kissed you, Madison; don’t make a federal case out of it!’ he drawled derisively.
‘Then don’t repeat it,’ she ground out, her eyes flashing with warning.
Oh, he was going to repeat it. Just not for several months. But once he and Madison were no longer working together…!
He felt a shiver of anticipation run through his body.
‘Don’t tell me you’re nervous too, Gideon?’ she drawled as she felt that shiver run down his arm into their linked hands.
Certainly not in the way she meant! This sort of thing meant nothing to him, although, of course, he had a professional interest in seeing the film.
The film world had held a fascination for him ever since he was a child, and in spite of what he had once told Madison he remembered his childhood years in Hollywood very well, and had vowed long ago that he would return there himself in triumph one day. Last year he’d done that, when he’d walked off with the Oscar for Best Director, but with Rosemary he hoped to better even that…
And this woman at his side was going to help him do that!
He turned to give her a bland smile. ‘Not at all,’ he dismissed coolly.
Madison shrugged. ‘Then someone must have been walking over your grave—or jumping up and down on it!’ she added with feeling.
Gideon chuckled softly. ‘Are you offering to do the deed yourself?’ He was aware of the professional smile that continued to curve her lips as they entered the theatre, but he was close enough to see the light of battle in her eyes.
She arched blonde brows. ‘To put you there? Or to do the jumping?’ she retorted.
His mouth quirked. ‘You—’
‘Maddie!’ A loud greeting interrupted Gideon. ‘It is you, isn’t it, Madison…?’ The question followed that first ecstatic cry of recognition. ‘Of course it is.’ The man answered his own question dismissively. ‘I can’t believe it! And I saw Jonny last week, and he didn’t say a thing about your being in England. My word, Maddie, you look wonderful!’
Gideon had stiffened defensively as soon as he realised the Maddie in question was, in fact, Madison. Gideon turned slowly to look at the man rapidly approaching, drawing in a sharp breath as he recognised Simon Cauley, the male star of the film they were about to see.
And this man seemed to know Madison well enough to call her an affectionately abbreviated Maddie. He also knew her well enough to tell her how wonderful she looked! And who the hell was Jonny?
But all of those questions went completely out of Gideon’s mind as Simon reached Madison’s side, sweeping her up off her feet into his arms, even as his mouth came down possessively on hers.
A black tide of rage swept over Gideon, seeming to rob him of all reason, as once again he asked himself, Who the hell was Madison McGuire…?
CHAPTER SIX
MADISON pulled back breathlessly, laughing up into Simon’s welcoming familiar face; a few minutes ago she had been feeling very uncomfortable and out of place, and Gideon certainly hadn’t been helping to alleviate that feeling. ‘Put me down, you idiot,’ she instructed Simon affectionately. ‘People are staring!’
‘So what?’ he grinned. He was tall and blond, and as handsome as a statue of Apollo. He was also one of the most talented actors Madison had ever seen, and his career had soared into stardom in the last five years. ‘I just can’t believe you’re here.’ He shook his head dazedly, smiling his pleasure at the unexpected meeting.
Madison sensed rather than saw the icy displeasure of the man who had brought her here this evening. The man who stood silently at her side. Obviously Gideon did care that people were looking at the three of them with open curiosity!
She gently disengaged herself from Simon’s arm, turning to introduce the two men. ‘Simon, this is Gideon Byrne. Gideon, Simon—’
‘We’ve already met,’ Gideon cut in harshly, shaking the hand the younger man held out to him.
‘We even worked together once, a couple of years ago.’ Simon nodded lightly, seeming unaware of the other man’s coldness.
‘So we did,’ Gideon acknowledged distantly. ‘I wasn’t aware the two of you knew each other, though.’ He looked at them both with narrowed grey eyes.
‘For years,’ Simon told him dismissively, still maintaining a hold on one of Madison’s hands as he continued to grin at her, his pleasure at seeing her again so obviously genuine. ‘Are you coming to the party afterwards?’ he pressed Madison eagerly. ‘I have to go and do my thing in a moment.’ He lightly dismissed the fact that he was the star of the film they were about to sit and watch the première of. ‘But I would love to sit and talk with you again later.’ He squeezed Madison’s hand affectionately. ‘Catch up on what’s been happening in each other’s lives.’ He arched blond brows pointedly in Gideon’s direction.
Madison turned to look at Gideon too, questioningly, not in the least encouraged by the way in which he included her in that cold look. Well, she couldn’t help that; Simon was a long-standing friend, and she certainly wasn’t about to be rude to him simply because Gideon looked so annoyed that the two of them were talking together! Besides, she genuinely liked Simon.
‘We’re leaving straight after watching the film.’ Gideon was the one to abruptly answer the other man’s question. ‘I’m not into celebrity parties,’ he added with a scornful grimace.
Simon turned to look at Madison once again. ‘How about you, Maddie?’ he prompted softly. ‘Want to come to a party?’
The coldness emanating from Gideon now was enough to freeze anyone within a two foot radius of him—which literally meant Simon and herself!
Gideon obviously didn’t want her to accept the other man’s invitation, and as she had come here this evening with Gideon it would be extremely rude of her to go off with another man.
She was well aware she had signed a contract that gave Gideon certain rights over her professional career for the next eight months, but, by the same token, she was not going to have Gideon telling her what she could and couldn’t do in her private life…!
‘Not tonight, Simon.’ She gently turned down the invitation, squeezing his hand in apology. ‘But dinner tomorrow evening would be lovely,’ she encouraged warmly as she saw his disappointment.
Simon brightened immediately. ‘Great! Give me a telephone number where I can reach you,’ he said quickly as someone signalled to him across the room.
Madison shook her head regretfully. ‘I don’t have a pen or paper.’ Her bag was only big enough for her lipstick, a hairbrush, and a few notes of money.
Simon took a pen from his inside breast pocket, pulling back the sleeve of his jacket to reveal his shirt cuff. ‘Fire away,’ he said laughingly.
She shook her head as he scribbled the number she gave him onto the pristine white cuff of his shirt. ‘You always were incorrigible!’ She laughed disbelievingly.
‘See you tomorrow.’ Simon bent and gave her a brief kiss on the lips. ‘Gideon.
’ He nodded to the other man before hurrying off to resume his seat.
The silence Simon left behind him was decidedly more uncomfortable than anything Madison had been feeling before that meeting, and a brief look at Gideon from beneath lowered lashes revealed stonily set features and glittering grey eyes.
What on earth was he so damned angry about? Madison wondered, beginning to feel angry herself. What had Gideon expected—that just because he’d only just ‘discovered’ her she’d lived in seclusion the first twenty-two years of her life, that she knew no one, and consequently no one knew her, either? That wasn’t even feasible, let alone believable!
‘Gideon—’
‘Let’s go and find our seats,’ he rasped harshly, his grasp on her arm just short of being painful.
Which Madison was sure he knew only too well. He really was annoyed that she knew Simon…
Well, he had no damned right to be! Gideon hadn’t given her any choice about accompanying him here this evening, let alone allowed her time or opportunity to tell him she knew the star of the film they were to see!
And the fact that Gideon had kissed her—yet again!—did not give him the right to be rude about her friends.
It had also been nice to see Simon again, she had to admit, smiling to herself as she remembered the fun they had had together in the past. Dinner tomorrow evening promised to be enjoyable.
‘How the hell do you know someone like Simon Cauley?’
She turned to look at Gideon as he sternly voiced the question, the two of them walking down the aisle to their seats, Gideon’s attendance there obviously causing quite a stir in itself as the audience, of people mainly from the world of film and television, turned to openly look at the two of them with undisguised curiosity.
Madison found that curiosity made her feel a little like a goldfish in a bowl. Didn’t that attention bother Gideon? Obviously not, if all he could do was question her about her friendship with Simon!
She gave him a warmly glowing smile—for the benefit of their watching audience; smiling at him was actually the last thing she felt like doing! ‘Why shouldn’t I know someone like Simon Cauley?’ she returned with controlled anger.
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