Alec strode along beside her in silence.
Sadie wouldn’t risk looking at him. She didn’t want to see what surely had to be a solid look ofhow in the hell did I ever want herplastered across his face. Stinging humiliation flashed through her. What must he be thinking? Delia’s usual shitty treatment was bad enough, but Sadie had endured it for so long it had become the norm—the dysfunctional continuation of the only family life she’d ever known. And now Alec had seen firsthand where Sadie fell in the pecking order. Great. She bet he was just thrilled. Probably thinking Delia had saddled him with a real loser.
Flinching against the old, familiar churn of uncertainty, Sadie swallowed hard and walked faster, internally giving herself a neck-snapping shake. Bullshit! She wouldn’t go there.She was not a loser.Therapy and her psychology degree had done wonders to set her on an even keel. She would not lose the sanity or self-respect she’d worked so hard to obtain. One obstacle at time. Delia first. Explain things to Alec later. She finally stole a glance at him. Oh, that was just great. What a fucking expression!Alec was stone-faced and looked angered to the nth degree, and Sadie didn’t blame him.
The busy CEO of Highland Life and Legends . . . and a damn good lover, she might add. . .shouldn’t have to lower himself to the pettiness of the Williamses’ family squabbles. Sadie pointed toward the Jeep. “If you want to wait in the Jeep while I talk to Delia—”
Alec caught her by the arm and jerked her to a stop. He stared down at her. Silent. Brooding. The emotions flashing in his eyes were unreadable—well, maybe not too unreadable. Maybe she just didn’t want to acknowledge what that dangerous mix of ice and fire was really telling her in his heart-stirring Morse code. He pulled her closer as he spoke, his voice deep and raw with emotion. “Ye no longer have to battle alone, Sadie. Not as long as I draw breath.”
Damn.All coherent thought left her. No one had ever said anything like that to her. Not ever. She had always been alone. Always. Slowly, struggling to regain her composure, she forced her mouth open to speak. “I—”
He pressed a finger across her lips and shook his head. “Nay.” The pressure of his warm, callused finger against her mouth softened, making her catch her breath. “There is noI.There is onlywefrom now on.”
Her heart came dangerously close to thumping its way out of her chest. How could she argue with that?Sadie eased in a deep breath, momentarily losing herself in Alec’s steady gaze.
“We,” she obediently repeated, shivering with the warm tide of feelings crashing through her. Such a strange thing, this being cared for and defended.
He smiled, pressed a gentle kiss to the tip of her nose, then tucked her hand into the crook of his arm. “Aye. That sounds much better.”
As they moved toward Delia’s bus, Sadie gave his arm a squeeze while struggling to regain her composure and figure out exactly what she was going to say to Delia. “But I really need you to let me do the talking—okay? It’s up to me to stand up to Delia.”
Well . . . to sort of stand up to her sister. Financially and career-wise, she couldn’t sayeverythingshe wanted to say. Delia not only held the purse strings, but she also owned the keys to the screenwriters’ kingdom. If she angered Delia too much, big sister would make good on her threat, and she had enough connections in the business to ensure Sadie’s writing would never be discovered.
Alec’s jaw tightened and Sadie braced herself for the argument she could see stewing. He had to understand. Delia could permanently kill the dream Sadie had been nurturing since she was big enough to hold a pencil. “Please, Alec?” They came to a stop at the base of the retractable metal steps leading up to the door of the bus. “Please?”
His mouth tightened into a displeased line and his nostrils flared as he drew in a breath deep enough to make it appear as though he’d wakened the demon within and was tripling his already massive size in preparation for unleashing the beast. He glared up at the bus, then looked back down at Sadie. “I will remain silent unless I deem it necessary. I can promise ye no more than that.”
Part of her wanted to throw herself into his arms and thank him for wanting to protect her. But another part of her shoutedrun like hell.She’d never been sheltered by anyone. She’d always had her back against the wall and fought her battles alone. And that part of her didn’t dare trust this sudden turn of fate. How could he be real? And even more importantly—how long could this possibly last?
The door to the bus slammed open and Dwyn emerged, red-faced and scowling as he stomped down the steps. He came up short when he realized Sadie and Alec were there. “I strongly suggest we install more surveillance cameras around the perimeter of Castle Danu. I dinna trust that woman. She’s as fickle as the sea.” He jerked an apologetic nod in Sadie’s direction. “No offense to ye, mistress, but yer sister is a lying bitch.”
“No offense taken.” Sadie shrugged. “I could’ve told you that a long time ago.” She climbed the steps, sympathetically patting Dwyn on the shoulder as she passed him. “We’ll meet you back at the Jeep after I’ve had a few words with my dear sister.”
“Hmpf.” Dwyn stomped away, muttering under his breath.
The overwhelming stench of Delia’s essential oil diffusers hit Sadie head on before she’d even walked through the door. Ugh. Eucalyptus.Delia must’ve been a koala in a past life, because she adored the scent of eucalyptus. Said it rejuvenated and energized her. As far as Sadie was concerned, it just made the room smell like cough drops. She wrinkled her nose against the pungent aroma filling the opulent interior of the travel bus.
Delia sat behind a table of rich, chocolate-brown marble flecked and veined with gold striations. A pair of leopard print readers were perched on the end of her nose as she squinted at the laptop in front of her. Without looking up, she flicked her fingers in a bored wave back toward a kitchen so well fitted with every state-of-the-art accoutrement that any chef would drop to his knees and give thanks he’d been chosen to use it. “If Mr. MacDara would like some refreshments, I’m sure youcan find something to suit him. The kitchen’s well stocked.” Still concentrating on the computer, Delia continued. “You can have a water but get one out of the cabinet. The chilled ones are mine.”
Sadie turned to Alec standing silently behind her. “Would you—”
Alec stood with teeth bared and eyes narrowed to murderous slits.
Sadie pressed a hand on his arm. A silent thrill pulsed through her as Alec’s rock-solid muscles flexed beneath her fingertips. “Remember our deal,” she whispered.
Alec’s jaw flexed as his glare remained locked on Delia. “Best be quick about this, lass,” he responded in a strained whisper.
“Quick about what?” Delia asked as she scooted back from the table and loosely crossed her arms while sinking into the creamy depths of a thick-cushioned leather couch.
“I spoke with Abe, Seth, and Holly.” Sadie waited, watching Delia—preparing for what instinct and past experience warned her was coming. Her sister was a great deal like a cobra. If you watched her closely enough, you could usually tell when she was about to strike. “None of them knew about me joining the team.”
Delia lifted one shoulder in a noncommittal shrug and regally lifted a long-stemmed glass of sparkling water with a paper-thin slice of lemon floating among the ice. “I sent the memo. You’d think writers would also know how to read.”
“Show me the memo.” Delia was lying, and it was almost disappointing that she was making this so easy. Sadie pulled the laptop around, typed in Delia’s password, then opened the email program. A quick scan of the sent folder revealed what she already knew. There was no memo. “If you’re going to lie to me, at least put some effort into it.”
Delia smirked, chuckling to herself as she sipped at her water. “Getting brave, are we, little sister?”
The luxurious hardwood flooring of the bus creaked as Alec stepped forward.
