Page 226 of Modern Romance Collection December 2024 Books 5-8

She did. But somewhere inside her head she could hear that note in Carver’s voice when he’d told her that Tiger was no angel.

‘About the IP, yes, but then he said that it wasn’t the first time you’d stolen from him. Only that was after I’d already agreed to work for him. He didn’t need to give me another reason, so why did he?’

‘I don’t know. More importantly, I don’t care.’

Except he did, she realised. She could see it in the sudden stiffening of his shoulders, and she remembered the comment that woman had made after the race, the one that had started off this whole inquisition.

‘Carver said it was personal between you two.’

Tiger straightened. ‘But this, you and I, we aren’t,’ he said coolly. ‘We might have held hands and kissed and looked into each other’s eyes all afternoon but that was a performance. You are not my girlfriend. You’re the hired help. And your services are no longer required.’

She stared at him in disbelief, fighting for control. ‘You’re sacking me? No, that isn’t going to happen. You don’t get to drag me halfway round the world just to dump me over some detail—’

‘Detail.’ His features contorted. ‘This is not a detail. And we are done here.’

He stalked past her, and she watched him go, her body rooted to the floor with frustration and disbelief, her brain somehow still conscious of the lethal, masculine grace with which he moved despite his anger.

And he was angry.

His anger felt defensive, almost as if he needed to keep her at arm’s length.

She knew that feeling, that need to have high walls around her. Make that high walls and a moat. It was how she had lived her life for five years. Until Tiger had gone to look for her the other day. Not to have the last word. Or to punish her. Or make her ‘see sense’, and if that didn’t work, then make her see stars. He had wanted to make sure she was okay.

Didn’t he deserve the same level of care?

She didn’t have to stay with him, just check that he was all right.

The house was quiet, just as it had been that first night when she’d crept downstairs in the darkness to find something to eat, but Tiger wasn’t in the kitchen. Nor was he in the living room or in his bedroom or any of the other rooms. Which meant he must be outside, somewhere on the island.

Through the window, the sun was slowly sinking towards the horizon. It would be dark soon and she wasn’t a big fan of the dark. But for some reason she wasn’t frightened here on the island. She felt oddly safe.

The air was still warm but it would be cool soon and she ducked back into the villa and grabbed a throw from the sofas. Outside, she slipped off her espadrilles. There was no sign of him on the terrace or in the tented gazebo at the edge of the lawn.

Could he have left the island? She made her way down to where the speedboat was moored, and that was when she saw him, standing at the end of the jetty, his elbows resting on the balustrade, his head bowed over the water. He had rolled up his sleeves and lost the loafers and he looked like a model doing a photoshoot for some upmarket clothing brand or watch.

‘Why are you still here? Didn’t you get the message?’

She froze. Even though she was barefooted, he had heard her, but he spoke without looking up at her, which made it easier to keep walking towards him.

‘That you fired me? Yeah, I got that. But I just wanted to make sure you were okay.’

He looked over then. ‘You don’t need to pretend any more, Sydney, and I think we both know that you don’t give a damn whether I’m okay.’

‘I never had to pretend in private.’

‘I’m fine. Go back inside, it’ll be cold soon.’

‘I know. That’s why I brought you this.’ She held out the throw, which he ignored, and, after a moment, she draped it over the balustrade, then rested her hands against the smooth rail.

A muscle pulsed in his jaw and there was that note of impatience in his voice. ‘I told you to go inside.’

‘I will if you will.’

It was the first thing that came into her head. Her brothers always used to say it to one another when they were younger and they were daring each other to do something stupid or dangerous or both. Her throat tightened as Tiger looked over at her, his golden eyes dark and narrow, and she wondered which category this fell into.

‘What are you? A child? Go back to the villa.’

‘What are you? My dad?’

---