‘Would you like some?’ she offered.
‘No, you eat it. Think of it as a sweetener,’ he said, moving into the lounge area.
‘What do you mean?’ She popped another square into her mouth.
‘I want you to call Janey.’ Nathan set his wine glass on the coffee table and sat down in the armchair closest to her.
‘To fire her? To tell her what a complete bitch she is for sleeping with my boyfriend?’
‘No. You don’t know about that. I want everything to be normal. I want you to call her and get her to arrange a party tomorrow night. Contact all the press, all the influential people you know, your producer, Juan, the guy that cuts your hair, everyone you would normally invite to an event.’
‘That isn’t how these things work. Events are planned months in advance,’ she said, breaking off another square of chocolate. ‘What sort of event anyway? What’s the occasion? You don’t get influential people turning up for just anything.’
‘Brand new song you’re going to perform at the awards ceremony—performed live, an acoustic number for the elite to see before the worldwide premiere,’ he said.
She was concerned by the enthusiasm in his expression. It looked unnatural for him.
‘I haven’t written a brand new song.’
‘Not yet,’ he glanced at his watch, ‘but you’ve got almost twenty-four hours.’
‘Songwriting doesn’t work like that. It isn’t a process. It’s organic!’
‘So’s the chocolate, but does that really make it better?’
‘I don’t understand. Why would you want to arrange a party? The whole idea of you bringing me here is so I’m out of the public eye, away from the threats, isn’t it? Where has this come from? Have you had orders to do this or what?’
‘In a controlled, maintained environment, I need to put you at risk,’ Nathan stated.
She watched him bring his eyes up to meet hers, and she tightened the muscles in her stomach and sat up straight.
‘That doesn’t sound like such a good plan,’ she said, the words slipping from her lips. A visible shiver waved over her and she moved her fingers to pull at the hem of her dress.
‘Listen, I promise you, I wouldn’t be doing this if I didn’t think it was necessary.’
‘I don’t understand. How is this going to help?’ Her throat was coated in chocolate, and a ball of emotion was trying to slither its way up into her tear ducts. She was a layer of cocoa away from crying.
‘I think there’s more than one threat,’ Nathan stated. He stood up after that announcement and made his way over to the doors that led out to the deck.
She watched him put his hands to the back of his head and take a long, inward breath. ‘What do you mean?’
He didn’t answer. He was facing the lake, looking out into the mid-distance, in some sort of reverie.
‘Tell me what you mean,’ Autumn begged.
He turned around sharply and his thunderous expression spoke a thousand words.
‘Phone Janey; get her to arrange a party at the Ricardo Hotel in Charlevoix for tomorrow night—eight o’clock. Get Baldie there. Get your producer there, Janey, other celebrities, the usual sort of mix—however it’s normally done. Get her to organize drinks, the catering, everything. And get the press there, British, as well as American—the glossy magazines, the tabloids, everyone,’ he stated.
‘It isn’t that easy. Those sorts of people have longstanding commitments and prior arranged schedules. One preview of a song isn’t going to make them drop everything and fly across the world.’
She was trying her best not to become flustered at his tone and the way he barked out the orders. She was starting to realize that was just the way he was. He didn’t seem to know how to behave any differently. He didn’t know light and shade. He just had dark and darker.
‘We’re going to give them something else, as well as the song,’ Nathan said with a determined nod.
‘What?’
‘We’re going to introduce the world to your new boyfriend.’
‘But I don’t have…’ As she started the sentence, reality dawned on her, and she met his gaze, her bottom jaw dropping open.
‘More wine darlin’?’ Nathan asked, offering her the bottle.
Twelve
He watched her as she looked at his cell phone. He’d given it to her a whole five minutes ago, and since that time, she’d paced the room, gone out onto the deck, and then counted the number of fronds on the fir trees outside. He’d deliberately left the door open so he could hear everything. But now she was staring at the phone as if she was wondering what to do with it. All she had to do was make the call, be all business about getting her PA to arrange the party. But when she’d just found out her PA had been shagging her bloke—well, women let their emotions rule them, didn’t they?
*
This was never going to work. No one would ever believe that she, Autumn Raine, was dating someone like him. He had to be at least ten years older. Yes, he might have scrubbed up well after a shower and a shave, but it wasn’t enough. He’d probably never heard of Dolce & Gabbana, and there was no way he would know how to spell it. He wasn’t her usual type and everyone would see that.
She let out a breath and looked out over the lake. The heat of the day had subsided and there was a cool breeze coming off the waves. She sucked in the air and held it as long as she could.
Pretending to be with someone like Nathan would practically kill Juan, even if he was sleeping with Janey. She could publicly humiliate him in front of the world’s press—teach him a lesson for playing her. She could make people believe anything. She had that power because of who she was and where she
