He gave her a wry smile. ‘I guess so. In the back of my mind I’ve always thought maybe we would, you know, one day.’
‘But if we were meant to be, you wouldn’t have waited. You couldn’t have waited, because the brain doesn’t get to choose who we fall in love with.’
‘And is that how it is between you and Zac?’ He didn’t look hurt, which proved her earlier point. ‘Do you love him?’
She thought of how she’d tried so hard to resist Zac, yet ultimately found it futile. She’d been the iron filing to Zac’s powerful magnetic force. Unable to hold off, unable to resist. ‘I’m not sure. Possibly, probably.’ She sighed. ‘Yes, okay. I love him.’
***
He was fine. It would be fine. Everything was … fine.
Zac knew if he repeated the words often enough, though they might not come true, they would at least take his mind off the alternative.
He glanced sideways at his driver. He’d never seen Kat so focused, her face so serious.
‘I’m not going to be distracted by you,’ she muttered, her eyes glancing quickly at the rear-view mirror. ‘Your pretty face can stare at me all you like, but I’m not taking my eyes off the road.’
Smiling, he started to undo the buttons of his white Tom Ford shirt. ‘Good God,’ she spluttered. ‘What on earth are you doing?’
‘Proving I can distract you.’
It was only when she didn’t laugh, he realised Kat was feeling the tension as much as he was. ‘You know you can,’ she whispered, eyes staring straight ahead. ‘But please, I need to concentrate.’
He glanced down at his open shirt, feeling foolish. ‘Sorry.’
‘Don’t be.’ Another check in the mirror. ‘Any other time I’d be more than happy to see you unbuttoning your shirt. Just not … now.’
‘Not when you’re trying to ascertain whether a trained killer is following us.’
There was a beat of silence before she answered quietly. ‘Yes, that.’
Everything is fine. He repeated the words to himself, though now they sounded hollow, lacking any real conviction. He’d meant what he’d told Kat, he trusted her implicitly. It didn’t mean he wasn’t fully aware of the potential danger out there. No matter how good she was, how good Mark and the police were, it only took one lucky shot.
‘We can always revert to plan B. Usher you in through the back entrance.’
They’d discussed it with him this morning, but Zac hated the idea of scuttling inside like a scared rabbit. ‘No. If I do that this time, what about the next time, and the one after that? If someone out there is being paid to kill me, they won’t just give up.’
‘True, but equally you can’t blindly carry on doing what you would normally do.’ Her expression tightened. ‘Unless you’re deliberately trying to draw him out.’
He couldn’t deny the thought had crossed his mind. He’d had enough of living the life of a nomad, a life so restricted he couldn’t even pop to the shops without having to put in a request. And then finding his request turned down on the basis of it being not worth the risk.
‘I want this to be over.’ It was as close as he could come to admitting he wanted to put himself out there. He wanted the bastard to have a go, so they had a chance of catching him.
‘I know.’
‘What was the result of this morning’s trip out with Mark?’ There, he’d kept his voice nice and even.
She smirked, the tiniest lift of the corners of her mouth, yet enough for him to know his acting wasn’t quite as good as he’d hoped. ‘You make it sound like we went for a walk in the park.’
Another mirror glance, this time accompanied by a shift of lanes. ‘Is anyone—’
‘There’s nobody following us. I’m just being super cautious.’
‘Okay, good.’ He allowed his heart to settle again. ‘Back to the question.’
Another smile, this time with a hint of secrecy about it. ‘It was … enlightening, I suppose you would call it. I’ll tell you about it later, when—’
‘We’re not dodging bullets.’
‘I was going to say when we’ve got more time.’ She nodded to the sat nav. ‘We’re nearly at the hotel.’
‘Right.’ His heart began to batter against his ribcage.
‘Are you okay?’
‘Sure.’ He discretely wiped the palms of his hands on his Tom Ford trousers.
‘Not nervous about all those dances?’
This time it was her trying to distract him, and he latched onto it gratefully. ‘Are you questioning my ability to give value for money?’
Her smile was calm and steady. ‘I can’t imagine you providing anything less than full value.’
Kat indicated to pull up outside the hotel where there was a waiting crowd of fans several rows deep. Flashlights popped from the half a dozen photographers as the car came to a stop.
‘I guess we should get out of the car.’
‘I guess we should.’ The Kat he knew and loved was back, her bravado found, her bearing confident and self-assured. ‘We don’t want to disappoint those rich ladies.’
‘Quite.’ Once again he ran his hands down his trousers. Then he took a deep breath, and another, before turning to her with the best smile he could muster. ‘After you.’
Chapter 31
Kat had seen Zac Edwards act on the big screen, and she’d seen him act on set. Now he was acting his socks off right in front of her. The smile he’d given her in the car had been a little off, a little wobbly, but as soon as he’d stepped out and onto the pavement, the dazzle was in full force. To look at him now, smiling and laughing with the crowds, nobody would guess he’d just been wiping his sweaty hands all over his designer trousers.
He was, quite simply, magnificent.
She on the other hand, felt like a wreck. Everything she saw made her twitchy. An arm movement, a telephoto lens. A guy at the back of the crowd, who seemed to be just watching.
Watching.
The hairs on the back of her neck started to twitch and she spoke into her microphone. ‘Not sure if I’m being paranoid, but there’s a guy four rows deep in the crowd. Average height, short dark hair, grey lightweight jacket.’
Mark’s voice came through her earpiece. ‘On it.’
Glued to Zac’s side as he posed for photos and scribbled autographs, she scanned the rest of the crowd. When she glanced back at where the guy had been standing, he was gone.
‘Damn. I can’t see him anymore,’ she said into her mic. ‘Have you got eyes on him?’
‘Negative.’
Heart racing, she whispered to Zac. ‘We need to move this along.’
He flashed her a quick look of alarm before nodding and giving the woman whose scarf he’d just autographed a practised smile.
They were now only a few yards from the hotel entrance. Kat knew Mark was in the crowd, checking everyone out. Knew too, that the police were watching surveillance footage from a van parked just up from them. None of it helped.
In the end, she felt she was almost pushing Zac towards the entrance and into the foyer which was decked with balloons and banners in the charity colours.