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Lucas bristled, but hated that Elle had a point. ‘OK, OK, I’ll smooth things over. Then we can talk afterwards.’

‘Good,’ Elle said, and hung up.

Lucas lay in bed, watching as the sun came up, mind racing. His business partner had gone AWOL, he suspected he’d been involved in the death of his father, and now his ex-girlfriend was pregnant with his baby. At least there was no way the day could get any worse.

Elle rolled over in bed, smiling to herself, as Paulo strode into the room wearing nothing but his boxer shorts. He had a great body, Elle thought lazily as she watched him walk towards her. It was tight and muscular, like a boxer’s, with tribal art tattoos covering his arms and a snake curling its way across his chest. He climbed into bed and kissed her hungrily.

‘Did you tell him?’ he asked, biting her neck playfully.

‘Yeah,’ Elle said, giggling. ‘He reacted exactly like you said he would.’

‘I guess it’s a big day for you tomorrow,’ he said, as he moved his attention lower, his tongue trailing a path down to her cleavage.

‘Once that model calls in sick, I’ll be waiting to step in. Thanks for helping me with that,’ Elle murmured, gasping as his hand slid inside her bra.

‘It was easy – I just sprinkled laxative in her drink. Lucky that you knew which bar they were going to in Palma.’

‘My friend, Anouk, is walking in the show, so she called me yesterday. We shared an apartment in Milan when we were both starting out …’

‘Tell me more,’ Paulo grinned. ‘I want to hear about everything you and your model friends did together.’

‘Paulo!’ Elle squealed, playfully slapping his firm backside. She knew that this was a form of revenge for both of them, but there was nothing to say it couldn’t be fun, too. ‘So what about you? What’s your big plan?’

‘You’ll see.’

‘I thought you were Lucas’s best friend?’

Paulo snorted dismissively. ‘Goes both ways, right? Once upon a time, maybe. When we were kids. But things change. Life isn’t a fairytale, and Lucas needs to learn that. But let’s not talk about him now. I can think of something else I’d much rather be doing,’ he grinned, as his hands slid down her body. His fingertips trailed over her flat stomach, stirring heat between her thighs, and Elle moaned loudly, all thoughts of Lucas firmly pushed from her mind.

Chapter 27

When Camille’s alarm went off at six a.m., she was instantly awake. She was surprised to find that she’d managed to doze, but the events of the previous night came rushing back. She still felt just as confused and disturbed by everything as she had a few hours ago.

She pulled on her robe and quickly checked her appearance in the mirror. She looked exhausted, with dark bags under her eyes, and felt grateful she had a team of skilled make-up artists on hand for the show. She would ask them to work their magic on her.

Camille went through to the living room where Nicolas was getting up from the sofa, his face as crumpled as his clothes. It lifted her heart to see him there; just his presence reassured her.

‘How are you doing?’ he asked her, his tousled hair and stubble making him look younger, and painfully reminding her of their early lives together.

‘Truthfully, I’m not sure yet. Still trying to take everything in.’

‘Just concentrate on the show – the most important thing is launching the new collection and the show being everything it should be. Clear your mind, focus, and I’ll take care of everything else.’

‘Thank you, Nicolas.’ Camille wanted to throw her arms around him, but neither of them moved.

‘I’d better go back to my room, take a shower. I’ll be back in around an hour, OK? And Camille?’

‘Yes?’ She looked up hopefully.

‘Be careful. There’s someone out there making threats against you, and we don’t know what they’re capable of.’

A chill ran through her as she realized Nicolas was right. ‘I will. But Nicolas … Hurry back.’

After Nicolas had left, Camille took a shower, then dressed in a pair of wide-legged beige slacks and a loose-fit white silk shirt. She would change before the show, but this morning she needed to be comfortable and casual – by her standards at least. She called room service to order a light breakfast of tea and fruit. She wasn’t sure whether she’d be able to eat anything – her stomach was churning, and she didn’t know whether it was the usual pre-show nerves, or if Nicolas’s dark warning had affected her more than she’d realized.

Camille had just finished blow-drying her hair when a room service attendant arrived with her order, knocking on the door and entering with a tray. It was a different staff member to the one who’d brought the note last night, and she was glad. He left the tray on the coffee table as directed, then wished her a good morning and left. As Camille poured a cup of green tea, she noticed a small, white piece of paper folded on the tray beside the fruit plate. A bolt of fear shot through her, her gut clenching as she picked it up and opened it, noticing that her hands were shaking.

One million dollars before the show starts, or I tell the world the truth about Andre’s death.