Dazzled (35 page)

…And walked straight into an ambush of photographers.

“It’s him! Miles! Miles! Over here!”
Bloody hell!

“Are you and Lilia together again?”
Fuck, no!

“Are you in love with Lilia?”
NO!

“Is it true she’s pregnant?”
What the fuck?

“How do you like
London?”
Seriously?

“Have you forgiven her, Miles?”
Fuck off.

“How does it feel to be a hero?”
Arsehole.

“When are you filming the sequel?”
Who gives a flying fuck?

“What do you think of British girls, Miles?”
Tosser.

“Have you been with Lilia? Did you spend the night?”
Mind your own fucking business.

“Where were you last night?”
Sod off.

“What do you think of the new Prime Minister of Australia?”
What?!

Fucking hell!

I put my head down and tried to get through without punching anyone, as they pushed their cameras right into my face. Some of them were deliberately shoving into me and trying to get a rise. Pictures like that would have been worth a lot more.

The doorman tried to clear the entrance with one arm and create a space with the other as I inched toward him.

Finally, I fell into the lobby, breathing hard, and feeling like I’d been mugged.

The door swung shut behind me, but I could still hear the calls and yells, softened by the barrier of glass.

“Are you alright, sir?” the doorman asked, looking genuinely concerned.

“Shit! That was… thanks, mate. I mean it, thank you.”

He gave a small smile. “That’s quite alright, sir. Just doing my job.”

I was definitely making sure he had a fucking fantastic after-Christmas bonus.

As my heart rate started to return to something like normal, I realized that everyone in the lobby was staring at me, although several discreetly turned away when I caught their gaze.

Then I saw Melody walking toward me – she didn’t look happy. She jerked her head quickly and took my elbow, steering me behind a pillar and into a small alcove furnished with a plush settee and an aspidistra.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah, fine,” I said, rubbing the back of my neck to relieve some of the tension. “I just wasn’t expecting
that
.”

“Well, yes,” and she paused. “Have you seen the papers? You’ve made quite an impression: hence the welcoming committee.”

I threw her an irritated glance.

“You weren’t answering your phone,” she said, a slight note of accusation in her voice.

“I left it in my room before the premiere.”

I’d answered automatically before it occurred to me how much information I’d just given her, bearing in mind I was still dressed in last night’s clothes.

“I see,” she said shortly, glancing up and down at my wrinkled tux. “Well, your interview will be in the Park Suite Right, ground floor. One hour. They’ve been told not to ask about your private life or who you’re dating, but you’d better be prepared to talk about last night. We need to rehearse.”

“Yeah, yeah, sure. Just give me 20 minutes.”

She nodded. “Twenty minutes. And Miles… wear a clean shirt.”

Her mouth hinted at the ghost of a smile, and I grinned back at her.

“Yeah, that I can do.”

The shower was just what I needed to calm down, but it would have been a thousand times better if Clare had been there, too.

I couldn’t stop thinking about her. The more time that passed, the more dreamlike the whole night seemed. A small pinch of concern made my heart rate spike. I hoped like hell she wasn’t going to change her mind once she’d had time to think about it. I wouldn’t blame her if she did.

I resented having to do another round of goddamn interviews, but I reminded myself it was part of the job, and beat being unemployed and living off baked beans and instant soup. Something I remembered all too well.

Even so, I didn’t bother shaving but in deference to Melody, I dug out a clean shirt, as instructed, and found a pair of jeans that seemed presentable. Anyway, they’d be filming me above the waist – I could have worn lederhosen and no one would notice. Well, the interviewers might.

I’d just run some gel through my hair when Melody knocked on my door. And, God bless her, she’d brought room service with her and a cafetiere of coffee.

“I thought you’d need it and I damn well know I do,” she said.

“Have I told you how bloody wonderful you are?”

She smiled. “No, but I’ll remind you on my next invoice.”

Melody went through the list of probable questions based on the topics provided for the interviewers. Then she helped me prepare answers and, finally, escorted me to the room where the interviews were being held. Hell, maybe she was even going to sit there and hold my hand, or get ready to hoick my foot out of my mouth, should the need arise. She probably sensed that my personal safety catch was on the verge of being released, and she didn’t know whether or not my trigger finger was getting twitchy.

Cameras, lights and recording equipment were already in place, and the first interviewer was touching up her lipstick when we walked in. She gave me a killer smile and licked her lips.

Shit.

It was going to be a long afternoon.

Clare

As soon as Miles left, I went back to bed and slept for three hours. I was knackered, exhausted, worn out, used up, fatigued, tuckered out and just plain tired.

But looking on the positive side, my vocabulary was in better shape.

Frankly, if I was going to be having sex with Miles on a regular basis, (and I couldn’t help looking around for a black cat so it could accidentally on purpose run across my path), I was going to have to do something about my level of fitness. Not that I had a level. A couple of basements, perhaps.

I mean, I’d been flat on my back most of the night, although not the
entire
time, but I was still weary beyond words. Miles, on the other hand, looked like he’d just had eight hours of uninterrupted beauty sleep when he walked into my parents’ kitchen.

But you know – so what if I was five foot nothing and weighed 140 pounds? Miles was beautiful enough for both of us.

He could have had a supermodel. Hell, he probably
had
had a couple of supermodels – maybe at the same time. But he’d chosen me – and after waiting all these years, I was
not
letting him go. If the world ended tomorrow, they’d have to pry me off him with a grappling hook.

Hmm. Grappling with Miles
.

Yeah, sorry. Hard to stay on track.

The point was, he was
mine
.

Of course, that wasn’t what the newspapers were saying. Most of them were carrying front page pictures of Miles charging into the crowd to save Lilia, and they’d all leapfrogged to the same conclusion.

The online accounts were even more fanciful.

“A source close to the couple said, ‘They’re in a really good place right now. He’s forgiven Lilia, and they’re more in love than ever before’.”

Ugh. Vomit.

What ‘source’? How did they make up this crap and keep a straight face? It was such bollocks! Sheer fabrication, because nobody knew the truth except me and Miles. Oh, and mum and dad. Probably Prue, too. But that was all. Oh, and Lilia – she knew how he really felt.

But then I saw something that made my stomach drop into my shoes, by way of my bed socks.

“They’re really looking forward to working together again on the sequel to ‘Dazzled’. They met making the first film, and that was a very special time for them. They’re hoping that they’ll rekindle their magic on set.”

A sequel?! That was the first I’d heard of it. Miles hadn’t mentioned a sequel. Why the hell hadn’t he said anything about that to me? How could he face working with that cheating chav again?

I tried not to stay angry, but I was upset.

I was the last to know, and that hurt.

Miles

It was nearly four o’clock and I’d had enough of talking. Besides, the questions were all the same:

“How did you enjoy the premiere?”

“What made you walk into the crowd like that?”

“What do you think of your fans now?”

“How’s Lilia this morning?”

“What will it be like working on the sequel with her?”

“What else are you working on?”

The answers were all the same, too…

Good.

It seemed the right thing to do.

Great.

Fine, I think.

A sequel hasn’t been confirmed.

Nothing definite
.

…but with a lot more smiling, and a few dumb jokes like they expected from me.

I’d done so many of these short interviews now that I was practically on autopilot.

But the last question of the day threw me.

“So, Miles, I hear you’re getting married. What can you tell me about that?”

How the fuck did she know? I hadn’t even asked Clare yet?

She must have seen the shock on my face, and the bint smiled, pleased with herself.

And then I realized that she hadn’t got a clue about Clare – the stupid bitch was trying to get some shock value out of her pathetic question.

“I think that’s enough questions for today,” Melody said, quickly.

I appreciated her help, but I was putting the fucking lid on
that
line of questioning.

“No, I’d like to answer that one,” I interrupted.

The interviewer looked like she was having an orgasm.

“I don’t know where you heard that,
Carmel,” I said, my voice controlled and level, “but it’s completely wrong. I’m not even dating anyone at the moment. Anyone.”

She looked faintly disappointed and then a look of calculation followed it.

“Well, that was a great interview. Thanks, Miles. Maybe you and I can go… somewhere and grab a cup of coffee?”

“Sorry, no can do. I’ve got wall to wall meetings, but thanks,
Carmel.”

She looked annoyed – not that I gave a flying fuck.

“Maybe next time you’re in London.”

“I always like being interviewed by you,
Carmel,” I said, a huge fake smile on my face.

Stupid cow believed it, fluttering her eyelashes and pouting.

Even Melody raised her eyebrows and shook her head in amusement.

“Well, that was entertaining,” she said, once we left the room. “You’re getting good at this, Miles.” Then, more sincerely, “How are you holding up?”

I was tired of people asking me that, but yeah, I understood why they did it. And I knew Melody wasn’t just being nosy. I trusted her – she’d given me my break.

“I’m okay. It’s just when people say crap like that, it pisses me off. But yeah, I’m fine.”