“So you’ll take the house to court?What will you accomplish?If you win, if the house is forced to publish your book, it won’t be published well.They’ll let it die on the shelves.Correct that—they’ll let it die in the warehouse.Is that what you want?”
It certainly wasn’t.She wanted sales and PR behind her.She wanted every bookstore in the country pushing her book.She wanted it on every bestseller list.None of that would happen if the house wasn’t with her.
Feeling frustrated beyond belief, she cried, “Dammit, it’s not fair!Templar can’t screw around with his writers that way!And John can’t screw around with me!”
“Tell him that.”
“I just might.”She pictured it, and the picture looked good.“I will.”Reaching for Arlan’s phone, she punched out John’s number.
“Hey, that’s long distance.”
“Tough.”She listened to several rings, then listened toChristian telling her that she’d reached the St.George residence.“Hi, Christian,” she said with utter nonchalance.“It’s Hillary Cox.I have a quick question for John.Is he around?”
“I’m sorry, Miss Cox, but he’s still at the office.”
“What time do you expect him home?”
“He said he’d be back by four.He’s going out again at six.Would you like me to leave a message that you called?”
“Uh, you could.Then again, I’ll probably be out when he gets home.Why don’t I just try him another time?”
“That sounds fine, Miss Cox.”
“Thanks, Christian.”
Wearing a tight smile, she hung up the phone, rose from her chair, and made for the door.“I’m on my way.”
“Now?”
She checked her watch.It was nearly two.“If I can make the two-thirty shuttle, I’ll be on John’s front step when he gets home.”
“Wait, Hillie.”He stood.“Maybe you ought to think about this.Bearding the lion in his den may not be the wisest move.Maybe—”
“Save it, Arlan.”She knew what she wanted to do.“I’m on my way.”
The traffic to LaGuardia was heavy.She missed the two-thirty shuttle, but made the three o’clock.So instead of sitting on John’s front steps, she walked right up and rang the bell.
Christian’s brows rose at the sight of her.“Weren’t you calling from New York?”he asked politely.
“Uh-huh.”She slipped past him into the house.“Is he upstairs?”
“Perhaps you ought to have a seat in the parlor while I—”
“He is home, isn’t he?When John says four, he means four.He’s never late.”
“If you would make yourself comfortable in the—”
“And give him a chance to sneak out the back?No way.”She went to the foot of the stairs and gave a loud call.“John?”She was starting up when John’s level voice came from behind her.
“Here, Hillary.”To Christian he said, “I’ll see her in the library.”He turned and walked off.
At first sight of him, she was hit by the same visceral tingle as always.But the tingle fell prey to the hurt his rudeness caused, then to anger.Holding her head high, she went after him.In the short time that it took to walk through the living room to the library, her anger mushroomed.If his good looks registered in the back of her mind, she was unaware of it.
“I just came from my editor’s office.He told me what you did.”
“You didn’t tell me you were writing a book.That wasn’t very honest of you, Hillary.”
“How dare you threaten Simon Templar.”
