Читать книгу Prince's Pleasure - Кэрол Мортимер, Carole Mortimer - Страница 7

‘ARROGANT bastard!’ Perry scowled as the two of them made their way across the large hotel reception area to the huge revolving door that led out onto the street.

Tyler couldn’t exactly blame him for being disgruntled at Zak’s decision not to have a photographer following him around all week; the two of them had worked together on and off for six months now, and nothing like this had ever happened to them before.

Posing the question, had Zak realized there was more to this interview than at first appeared?

‘Don’t worry about it,’ she assured Perry as they stepped out into the warming sunshine. ‘I’m sure you’ll be able to manage without his cooperation; you always have in the past.’

‘And I’m sure I will this time,’ Perry acknowledged with satisfaction. ‘Although I would much rather have spent the time openly with the two of you rather than creeping around in the background.’

Tyler was well aware that for most of the last six months Perry had wanted to make their relationship into something more intimate, which she had so far resisted.

It wasn’t that she didn’t like Perry, and he was certainly a good-looking guy with his overlong dark hair and warm blue eyes, she just didn’t feel that way about him and considered him more like a brother than anything else. Much to his chagrin.

But she couldn’t in all honesty become involved with someone, especially a friend like Perry, without telling him everything about herself—and that she had no intention of doing. No one was to know who or what she was; as far as anyone in England was concerned she was just Tyler Wood, rookie reporter, and that was the way she wanted it to stay.

‘Although I should watch yourself with Zak Prince this week, if I were you,’ Perry added teasingly. ‘From what I’ve heard the man can’t be alone with a woman for five minutes without trying to seduce her into his bed!’

Tyler grimaced. ‘Going on his mood this morning, I don’t think he can succeed too often!’

She knew that wasn’t true, though…Of the three Prince brothers Zak was the good-natured charmer. The oldest, Nik, had remained arrogantly aloof from involvement until his recent marriage. The younger brother, Rik, was the more reserved of the three, keeping himself to himself most of the time.

But obviously nine o’clock on a Monday morning, after what had obviously been a full weekend, was a time when Zak was all out of charm!

It had been Nik Prince, before disappearing on his honeymoon yesterday, who had been the one to set up this morning’s meeting for nine o’clock…

Had it been deliberate? That would have been a little unkind on Nik’s part—to both Tyler and Zak. But, then, kindness wasn’t an emotion very often attributed to the legendary Nik Prince!

He had done it on purpose, Tyler realized with dismay. It wasn’t an auspicious beginning to a week spent in Zak Prince’s company.

* * *

‘Tell me,’ she asked later that evening once she had finally managed to meet up with Zak Prince again in the hotel lounge; he had still been sleeping when she had rung him at four o’clock. ‘I know what I’d done to anger your brother enough to arrange such an early meeting that it was guaranteed to annoy you, but what did you do?’ She quirked dark brows over mischievous brown eyes.

‘Very astute of you, Tyler.’ Zak Prince smiled, much more relaxed this evening as he lounged back in one of the capacious armchairs, wearing ragged denims and a loose black tee shirt. ‘With Nik—’ he shrugged ‘—who knows? Although I actually think it was his idea of a joke.’

‘Ha ha.’ Tyler grimaced.

‘Yeah.’ Zak grinned.

Tyler could see exactly why this man had won three Oscars. His smile was charismatic, almost mesmerizing when taken into account with the rest of his looks: overlong hair the colour of ripe corn, eyes the blue of a perfect summer sky, his features rugged, as if hewn from stone.

Whoa! Tyler brought herself up short. She was here to find a new angle on Zak Prince for her story, not fall under his spell herself.

Because she was sure there was more to this man than the charismatic charmer he was usually portrayed as. There had been rumours, of course, of involvements with married women, and even the possibility that the success of the Prince brothers’ movie company owed much to connections with the shady underworld—which was patently absurd! But there were always rumours about anyone successful; Tyler wanted to get to the truth.

‘Anyway—’ she straightened briskly ‘—I apologize for any misunderstanding this morning and I suggest we move on.’

‘Move on to where exactly?’ he teased.

Tyler frowned, knowing she hadn’t quite phrased that correctly somehow. ‘Background stuff this evening, I thought,’ she ploughed on. ‘Where you were born, family, what you’re working on at the moment, things like that.’

‘Look, Tyler, I don’t want to tell you how to do your job—’

‘But you’re going to anyway?’ she guessed.

He shrugged broad shoulders, seeming completely impervious to the female attention his presence was engendering. Most of the other women in the lounge were unable to take their eyes off him, not quite with their tongues hanging out, but pretty close, Tyler noted disparagingly.

‘Most people already know the background stuff,’ he dismissed, pausing to smile up at the waitress as she brought over the two mineral waters they had ordered.

He was right, of course; the three Prince brothers and their younger sister were the children of the legendary Damien Prince, an actor who had held the public in thrall for over thirty years, before his premature death over twenty years ago.

During the brothers’ youth, Zak had always been the bad boy of the family, in and out of trouble during most of his teens, dropping out of school to take up acting like his father, and then finally finding his niche and settling down to being the charming rogue that he was now known for worldwide.

But all three Prince brothers, the principals in the movie company PrinceMovies, were as successful in their own individual fields, Nik as movie director, Rik as screenwriter.

‘You’re right.’ Tyler nodded, accepting that he was just stating a fact rather than being arrogant. ‘I can probably look all that up.’ She settled back in her armchair. ‘So what do you have planned for this week?’

‘Planned?’ He took a sip of his mineral water.

She had seen Zak being interviewed, had watched several recordings of him on one of the leading chat shows. She knew that he wasn’t usually this much hard work, that he normally responded easily and smoothly to questions put to him, his charm always in evidence.

But it wasn’t this evening—again.

Did he know something? Did he suspect that this interview wasn’t quite as straightforward as she wanted it to appear?

‘The reason why you’re here in England.’ She smiled, determined not to let him know she was bothered by his lack of cooperation. ‘After all, you’re usually based in the States, so—’

‘My older brother was married at the weekend, Tyler; isn’t that reason enough for me to be here?’

She felt embarrassed colour warm her cheeks. ‘Of course,’ she acknowledged evenly. ‘I just wondered at the reason for your still being here.’

‘You did?’ he murmured incredulously.

She shrugged. ‘I doubt anticipation of this interview was enough to keep you here!’

‘You doubt correctly,’ he said. ‘The première of Gunslinger is showing on Saturday; I think I’m expected to be there!’

She had done it again, Tyler recognized with an inner groan. Of course the English première of Zak’s most recent movie was taking place this coming Saturday. She had known that. She had just forgotten it.

Because she was too anxious to get to the real story? Probably. Well, she wouldn’t make that mistake again. She needed an exclusive—something new to the market, a different angle, a story no one had written before. And she was convinced that this interview with Zak could give her the exclusive she was after.

‘I’m sorry, Zak,’ she apologized. ‘I—’

‘Tyler—’ he sat forward in his chair, his expression almost pitying ‘—might I suggest, in an effort not to waste any more of my time, that you go away and do a little more research before we continue with this?’

She deserved the rebuke, she knew she did, but that didn’t alter the fact that he didn’t need to have made it. The legendary Prince charm! Huh, so far she had seen little evidence of it!

Which only convinced her all the more that this man was hiding something, that there was more of a story behind Zak Prince than anyone had ever discovered. But she would discover it!

She straightened. ‘That won’t be necessary, Mr Prince,’ she told him tartly. ‘I’m aware of the première at the weekend, I was simply enquiring as to whether or not you are working on something else in England at the moment?’ She met his mocking gaze unblinkingly.

* * *

She had guts, he would give her that. Guts, and a little anger too at the moment, if that glint in those chocolate-brown eyes was anything to go by.

Not surprising, really. He wasn’t exactly giving her an easy time of it this evening. But then it wasn’t in his job description to make life easy for reporters. The fact that he normally did didn’t mean that he had to do so in the case of Tyler Wood.

He had no idea why she should be so different, and yet something about her made his hackles rise, his normally relaxed approach to the media deteriorating to this barbed exchange of barely concealed animosity.

He shrugged. ‘I’m meeting with a director for lunch tomorrow to discuss the start of filming next week—no, you cannot be present at the meeting,’ he added as he saw her eyes light up in anticipation.

A light that instantly went out as her gaze narrowed angrily. ‘My agreement with your brother was that I would be allowed complete access to you for a week—’ She broke off as he raised a sardonic eyebrow. ‘Not that sort of access, Mr Prince,’ she snapped.

‘I usually make my own choices when it comes to that sort of access,’ he gibed. ‘And your agreement was with my brother, not me.’ His voice had hardened. ‘So there will be no inclusion in my meeting tomorrow.’

She opened her mouth as if to argue the point, and then closed it again to stare across at him in total frustration.

Zak gave her a considering look. ‘Tell me again what sort of magazine this interview is for, Miss Wood?’

‘The usual sort of Sunday supplement,’ she answered abruptly.

Was it his imagination, or had those brown eyes become slightly guarded again? ‘The “usual” sort,’ he repeated softly, once again having the feeling that Tyler Wood was acting evasively. And she wasn’t very good at it.

Her chin rose challengingly. ‘I thought I was the one conducting the interview, Zak, not the other way round!’

‘I’m just curious to know a little more about the woman I’m expected to take around with me all week. After all,’ he added as she would have spoken, ‘most people are going to assume that you’re the latest woman in my life.’

‘The latest in a very long—’ She grimaced her dismay as she realized what she had just said. ‘I shouldn’t have said that. It’s just that—’

‘It’s the truth…?’ he jeered.

‘No! I mean—well, yes, it is the truth. But I still shouldn’t have said it.’

‘No, you shouldn’t,’ Zak acknowledged dryly. ‘But it’s probably the most honest thing you’ve said all evening!’

Her eyes widened. ‘I beg your pardon?’

‘Granted.’

Her mouth firmed. ‘I have no idea what you’re talking about, Mr Prince. Are you implying I’ve been dishonest with you?’

Were her hands trembling slightly? He couldn’t be sure as she hastily clasped those hands together. ‘You aren’t the only one with connections, Tyler,’ he added, sure now that she had definitely gone paler. ‘And this afternoon I made a few phone calls in order to check up on you.’

The colour did drain completely from her cheeks now. ‘Oh, yes?’ she said airily. ‘And what did you learn?’

Zak looked at her with narrowed eyes, more convinced than ever that she was hiding something. ‘Not a lot, as it happens. The press, it seems, can be pretty close-mouthed when it comes to one of their own. However, I did learn that you’re considered a good reporter, if a little inclined to get too emotionally involved.’ He paused before making his next statement. ‘Also, that you had a blazing row with your editor a couple of weeks ago, which apparently culminated with him threatening to fire you…’

Her eyes were huge brown pools of melted chocolate as she met his gaze unflinchingly. ‘Well, he doesn’t seem to have carried out that threat, does he? Because I’m still employed,’ she retorted.

‘Apparently not,’ he conceded, his mouth tightening. ‘Out of interest, what did the two of you argue about?’

Tyler shook her head. ‘I really don’t think that is any of your business.’

He shrugged. ‘I just wondered if it might have had anything to do with the little agreement you came to with my brother?’

‘Of course not,’ she snapped. ‘Now if we could stop talking about me and concentrate on you…?’ she said pointedly.

He sat forward. ‘I’ll keep asking until I find out the truth about you, Tyler,’ he warned.

Tyler closed her notebook with a decisive snap before secreting it away in one of those many pockets on her combat trousers. ‘Until today, I really believed all the things written and said about you in the media: that you’re charming, not in the least difficult to work with, affable even!’ She gave a disbelieving snort of derision. ‘When in fact you’re really exceptionally rude, extremely difficult to work with, and not even the tiniest bit affable!’

Zak reached across the tabletop and easily clasped her arm as she would have stood up, his fingers like steel bands. ‘Is that what you intend writing in your article?’ Despite the fact that he had set out to be as unpleasant as possible, he wasn’t used to people disliking him, and found that he didn’t particularly like the experience.

He also discovered that he liked the feel of Tyler’s skin against his fingers. It was soft and silky to the touch, making him wonder if the rest of her body felt as sensuous and warm.

‘Relax, Tyler,’ he told her gently. ‘We haven’t finished talking yet.’

She looked across at him coolly. ‘Do you want me to hang around just so that you can insult me some more?’

His mouth twisted into a smile. ‘I’m all out of insults at the moment—but if you give me a few minutes…! Besides, we’re drawing attention to ourselves.’ He looked pointedly around the lounge to where quite a lot of people, several men included now, were openly staring at them.

‘You’re the one drawing attention to us,’ she corrected him tautly, at the same time sitting back abruptly, releasing her arm from his grasp as she did so.

Zak watched as she ran the fingers of her other hand over the spot where he had held her. Both of her hands were completely bare of rings, and were long and slender, with delicately tapered fingers. He found himself wondering what it would feel like to have those fingers moving caressingly over his bare chest and back. And other parts of his body…

‘We were discussing the argument you had with your editor,’ he reminded her, angry with himself for having those thoughts about Tyler; she was a reporter, for goodness’ sake!

She shook her head, her spiky hair gleaming almost auburn in the overhead lighting. ‘You may have been, I don’t believe I was.’ She met his gaze boldly over the rim of her glass as she took a sip of the mineral water.

Zak suppressed his feelings of irritation with difficulty, finding that this woman pressed buttons in him that he normally kept well away from the public eye—and he didn’t mean physical ones! Although God knew she was attractive enough…

‘What shall we talk about, then?’ he mocked. ‘The fact that you and the handsome photographer Perry Morgan are apparently inseparable? Or shall we—? Going somewhere, Tyler?’ he asked as she put her glass down on the table with obvious force before moving to stand up.

Except she didn’t quite make it, all the colour draining from her face before she collapsed back into the chair, her eyes closed, her breathing shallow.

‘What the hell?’ Zak had been propelled forward as she fell, moving down on his haunches beside her chair now. ‘Tyler!’ He shook her shoulder slightly. ‘Tyler, speak to me, damn it!’ he ground out forcefully.

She seemed to find the strength to open one eye and glare at him. ‘Go away,’ she muttered weakly.

He ignored that, and straightened before bending down and easily sweeping her up into his arms.

She weighed next to nothing, he discovered as he began to stride purposefully across the lounge with her still in his arms, totally immune to the avid stares the two of them were receiving, his expression one of grim determination.

‘What do you think you’re doing?’ Tyler gasped, both eyes open now as she began to struggle in his arms.

‘I would have thought that was obvious!’ Zak didn’t even glance down at her as he stepped into the waiting lift.

‘It is, but—where are you taking me?’ She was struggling even harder to sit up in his arms.

‘My hotel suite,’ he informed her. ‘And stop struggling like that; you’ll only end up hurting yourself,’ he said as his arms tightened about her. He had no idea what was wrong with her yet, and until he did she wasn’t going anywhere!

‘You’re definitely making an exhibition of us now,’ Tyler protested as the two people waiting to get into the lift stared at them in shocked surprise as Zak stepped out with her still cradled in his arms.

‘Do I look as if I care?’ he dismissed impatiently as he used the key-card to get into his hotel suite, kicking the door shut behind him to stride over to the sofa and lay her down on it. ‘Don’t move,’ he instructed her before moving over to the mini-bar, all the time keeping one eye on her as he searched through the array of alcoholic drinks there.

Although she didn’t seem to be making too much of an effort to get up now, once again lying back with her eyes closed, her cheeks still deathly pale.

Either she really was ill, or this was some sort of elaborate ploy on her part to keep this interview alive. It certainly wouldn’t be the first time a woman had tried something like this on him in order to get into his hotel room, although, he had to admit, it wasn’t usually with an interview in mind!

But if it should turn out that was what Tyler Wood was doing, then she was going to find out exactly how ‘exceptionally rude’ he could be!