Page 40 of Under A Sicilian Sky
She wobbled again and clutched his arm. ‘You’re a journalist? But… how…?’
He slipped his arm around her. ‘Oh Ruby, you really are so very naïve, aren’t you? Blindly putting trust in people you don’t know. You’re so desperate for attention, it’s pathetic. But that’s okay. I like pathetic.’ He shrugged and smiled at her as if she was supposed to appreciate his comment. ‘And thanks to my role, I have my sources. It didn’t take long for me to find out where you were staying and then to find somewhere close by. I’ve always wanted to meet you, to interview you. But mostly to get close to you. I knew we could be good together once Tyler was out of the picture. And I didn’t even need to do anything to make that happen. Bonus.’
She shook her head, but the room seemed to follow every movement. She shivered at the realisation he may have spiked her drink, but she tried to shrug off the thought. She was being paranoid… wasn’t she? ‘I should’ve realised with your stupid love story. You took the plot right out ofHigh Fidelity.’
He laughed again. ‘That’s when you realised?’ He reached out and brushed her hair aside and his smile disappeared. ‘But we’ve had a good time together, haven’t we? And I figured today was the day to take things to the next level. Announce to the world that we’re a couple. Now that you’re all nice and relaxed, I can do the interview properly and then I can put it out there and tell our story.’ There was sincerity in his gaze, as if he genuinely didn’t think he had done anything wrong and that they could actually be an item, and that terrified her. ‘I can forgive the lies, Ruby. I’ve been watching you for years. I’vewantedyou for years, so when this opportunity arose, I grabbed it with both hands.’
Ignoring his words, she focused on not passing out, even more positive that the orange juice wasn’t what it seemed. ‘Do you even own a record store?’
Again, he laughed, and at that point she thought she might vomit. But perhaps that wouldn’t be a bad thing. She needed to purge whatever he had spiked her drink with. She pushed him and tried to get past. She needed to get out of there. She felt foolish, angry, but most of all terrified.
He stopped her and gripped her arms, causing Nero to bark. He glanced down at the dog again and took a different tack. ‘Hey, little fella, it’s all good. Me and your mommy are just talking.’
Ruby’s head was swimming, she was too warm, too weak, he was hurting her. ‘I want to go. Please just let me go,’ she slurred.
He shook his head slowly and fixed her with a rather sinister gaze. ‘Come on, Ruby. Now we’re both in possession of the facts, we can drop the act. Just be ourselves. I… I bought you a ring. You don’t have to wear it right away but…’
She gasped. ‘You’re ill. You need help. You can’t just drug people to get your own way,’ she slurred.
‘But I love you, Ruby. And I know you’ll learn to love me. I… I didn’t drug you, not really. It was just a little herbal thing to help you relax. You’re always so uptight, watching over your shoulder, and I wanted to help. I can help you to get your career back on track. It doesn’t matter to me what you said in those posts, I still love you, just like I told you when I sent the flowers.’
So he’s H. H for Hamilton Harlow!Ruby shook involuntarily, but as if oblivious to her discomfort Clark, or ratherHamilton, continued.
‘We can buy a house here in Sicily.’ He pleaded at her with his eyes. ‘Just kiss me and you’ll remember how good we are together.’
He lowered his face to hers, but she wriggled in his hold. ‘Get your hands off me! You need to let me go.’
He pushed her up against the door jamb, so the wood pressed into her back and she yelped. He didn’t seem fazed by it. ‘Come on, you need to give me a chance. I’m willing to do the same for you, even though you lied to me. You and I were getting to know each other, let’s not spoil that. Why don’t we pick up where we left off at the restaurant a few days ago? I’m sure your fans will be happy to see you moving on from Tyler Harrison. He didn’t deserve you, I told you that in the flowers too.’ He made to kiss her again.
Clearly sensing Ruby’s distress, Nero lurched forward and clamped his mouth on Clark’s leg, and he cried out. ‘Get him off me!’ But he still had a grip on Ruby’s arms.
She summoned every ounce of strength she could muster, raised her knee sharply and connected with his groin. He dropped to his knees, holding his crotch, groaning in agony, his face beet red.
He made gurgling, pain-filled noises but managed to choke out, ‘You bitch! I gave you a chance to be happy, but I’m going to ruin you!’
Nero released his hold on the man’s leg and went scuttling for the door, barking as he ran.
Adrenaline kicked in and she followed the dog and yanked the door open. Her heart was pounding at her ribs and she almost tripped as she lurched for her shoes by the chair where she had been seated. Nero yapped as if telling her to hurry, but her head was filled with cotton wool and everything seemed to have slowed down. She gulped in fresh air, picked up her belongings and ran for the gate.
What happened next could only be described as incredible timing. Fate. Kismet. Things like it only happened in movies, but she was a movie star, after all.
‘Ruby! You need to get out of there!’ Mitch shouted as he appeared at the gate. ‘He’s been lying to you! He’s a fecking stalker!’ His face was bright red with rage, his eyes wide and menacing, and in his hand was a crumpled newspaper.
Clark, or whatever the hell his name was, appeared from behind, hobbling and holding his groin. ‘I’m not a stalker,’ he coughed out. ‘I’m a journalist. I’m writing a story on Ruby, that’s all. Tell him, Ruby. This has all been a misunderstanding. Tell him, Ruby!’ He reached out to her, but she whacked his hand away and Nero snarled again, threatening more of the same punishment he had dished out before. Clark pointed to the dog. ‘That thing is crazy! I’m going to report you for owning a dangerous animal.’
Mitch cocked his head to one side and narrowed his eyes at Clark. ‘Really? That’s convenient, because the polizia are on their way already. When you report the dog, don’t forget to add the information about the kidnapping and false imprisonment. Although maybe you wouldn’t want to ruin your sparkling media career?’
‘He spiked my drink too,’ Ruby said as she turned her head to see Clark, akaHamilton Harlow, and watched as his skin paled.
‘I… I didn’t drug her,’ he said, pointing at Ruby but addressing Mitch. ‘That’s a lie. And she hasn’t been kidnapped. She’s free to leave,’ he insisted, stepping back and eyeing the little dog warily.
Jacopo and Luca appeared behind Mitch.
Jacopo cracked his knuckles and Luca stretched his neck. They were more than ready for a confrontation.
Jacopo sneered. ‘Se hai fatto del male al mio cane te la farò pagare…’ he growled.
Clark held up a hand. ‘Mi ha morso! Guarda la mia gamba!’ he exclaimed, pointing to the bite mark on his leg.
