Page 5 of Shy Innocent In The Spotlight

Elspeth lifted her eyebrows in an exaggerated manner. ‘My, oh, my, what an appalling opinion you have of me—someone you’ve only just met. But don’t worry, Mr MacDiarmid. It’s not my intention to outshine the bride. This is her wedding weekend, not mine.’

‘I heard about your ill-fated wedding day. Tell me—how did your fiancé feel about being left standing at the altar? Are you still on speaking terms?’ There was a note of censure in his tone that, in all honesty, Elspeth had heard in her own voice when asking her twin about why she had done such a thing. That awful day was still etched in her mind. Seeing the look of bewilderment and then thunderous fury on Elodie’s fiancé’s face. The shocked embarrassment of the guests, the horror on their mother’s face. Everyone turning to her and insisting she must have known something as Elodie’s identical twin and why hadn’t she let them know, blah blah blah. It had been beyond upsetting and embarrassing to admit she had known nothing. She had been just as blindsided as everyone else.

‘It was seven years ago,’ Elspeth said with a parody of her twin’s nonchalance. ‘He’s forgotten all about me now.’ That wasn’t a lie either. Lincoln Lancaster had only ever had eyes for Elodie and would have probably forgotten the existence of her shy twin after all this time. And hopefully everyone else at the wedding that day. But whether Lincoln had forgotten Elodie was another matter.

‘How well do you know Sabine?’

‘Clearly well enough for her to want me to be one of her bridesmaids.’ Elspeth gave him another plastic smile straight out of the party girl’s playbook.

‘And my brother, Fraser?’

Elspeth was aware of heat pooling in her cheeks and her smile fell away. ‘Wh-what about him?’ Her voice didn’t sound as steady as she would have liked. And nor was her heart rate.

Mack’s eyes became diamond hard. ‘Describe your relationship with him.’

Elspeth pinched her lips together and held his gaze with a defiant glare. ‘What are you implying?’

He gave a low deep grunt of cynical laughter that made her bristle from head to foot. ‘You know exactly what I’m talking about.’

If only she did know. Elspeth was furious with her twin for putting her in such a compromising situation without giving her the full picture. How was she supposed to do a convincing job of pretending to be her twin when she didn’t know what her twin had been up to? ‘I hardly think it is any business of yours, Mr MacDiarmid.’ Her voice was so tart it could have done a lemon out of a job.

Mack stepped a little closer and her breath caught in her throat and her cheeks heated up another notch. But it wasn’t just her cheeks that were hot—her whole body was on fire, as if he had triggered an inferno in her flesh. ‘I’m making it my business.’ His tone had a gravelly edge that sent tingles down her spine, so too did the smoky grey-blue of his eyes.

‘If you’re so keen on finding out, why don’t you ask your brother?’

‘I’m asking you.’

‘I refuse to discuss this while there are people about.’ Elspeth began to move away before she got too far in over her head but one of his hands captured her slim wrist on the way past. She stopped dead, not because his grip was forceful—it wasn’t. But because his touch was electrifying and it sent tingling shock waves through her entire body.

Elspeth looked down at his long, tanned fingers curled around her wrist, her heart slipping from its moorings in her chest. She hadn’t been touched by a man in a decade. His touch set fire to her skin, every whorl of his fingers searing her flesh like a scorching brand. She brought her gaze back up to his and injected icy disdain in her voice. ‘If you’re so keen to avoid making a scene at your brother’s wedding rehearsal, I suggest you take your hand off me this instant.’

The air was charged with a strange energy like a tight invisible wire stretching, stretching, stretching almost to snapping point.

Elspeth held his gaze with a strength of willpower she hadn’t known she possessed. She would not be intimidated by him. She would not scuttle away like a scared little rabbit in front of a big bad wolf. She would stand up to him and enjoy every heart-stopping moment. Never had she felt so exhilarated, so alive and aware of her body. Flickers of lust stirred between her thighs, her breasts tingled and tightened, her blood rocketed through her veins at breakneck speed.

But as exciting as it was to stand up to Mack MacDiarmid, she couldn’t quite forget she was playing a role. She was pretending to be Elodie. And as empowering as it felt to interact with such a dashingly handsome man, she had to remember it was a charade. She could never be part of the world her twin lived in. She could do a walk-on part for twenty-four hours but that was all. It was crazy to think otherwise.

Mack’s fingers loosened a fraction but only enough to reposition so his thumb could measure her racing-off-the-charts pulse. ‘Why do you I make you so nervous?’ His tone was silky, his gaze penetrating.

Elspeth hoisted her chin. ‘I’m not intimidated by you.’ Or at least, she was pretending she wasn’t intimidated. Pretending she wasn’t rattled, unnerved, intrigued and bewitched by him.

He gave an indolent smile and stroked his thumb across her blue-veined wrist, her sensitive skin tingling, fizzing in delight. ‘Meet me in the library in half an hour. We’ll continue our discussion in private.’ He released her wrist and turned and walked away before she could think of an answer. Or a reason not to meet him.

Elspeth let out a long wobbly breath like someone squeezing the last bit of air out of a set of bagpipes. Meet him in private? To discuss what? Things she had absolutely no clue about? Being anywhere alone with Mack MacDiarmid was asking for trouble. He only had to look at her to send her heart racing and her blood pumping. She looked down at her wrist where his fingers had touched her and a frisson passed through her body. Her skin felt as if it had been permanently branded—it was still tingling, all the nerves rioting beneath her skin.

At least her twin would be here first thing in the morning, so she could get out of this farce before she made a complete and utter fool of herself. If only Elodie had prepared her a little more. Why hadn’t her twin told her what had occurred between her and Mack’s younger brother, Fraser? For something had gone on, of that she was sure. She picked up another glass of champagne off a passing waiter and took a sip to moisten her powder-dry mouth. The last hour had given her a taste for top-shelf French champagne and a brooding Scotsman.

And she didn’t know which one would do the most damage—the demon drink or the devilishly handsome Mack MacDiarmid.

Mack cornered his brother a short time later in what used to be the music room. It was now a spare sitting room but it wasn’t used that often. He had sold his beloved piano years ago and had never got around to replacing it. He had given up his dreams of a musical career and concentrated on salvaging the family’s estate instead. Mack closed the door with a resounding click and eyeballed his brother. ‘Tell me what’s going on between you and Elodie Campbell.’

Fraser’s gaze darted away from his as he walked to the other side of the room to pick up an ornament off a side table. ‘Nothing’s going on.’ He put the ornament down again and then straightened a photo of their mother.

‘But something did go on between you.’ Mack framed it as a statement because he knew when his brother was lying. ‘I thought you were worried Elodie Campbell might dance on the tables or drink too much and act a little inappropriately with the father of the bride or something. But this?’

Fraser loosened his tie with one hand as if it were choking him. Beads of perspiration dotted his forehead. ‘It was nothing.’ He clenched his fists and added with greater emphasis, ‘It meant nothing. She meant nothing.’

Mack drew in a breath and slowly released it. ‘I’m the last person to judge someone for having a one-night stand but were you engaged to Sabine at the time?’

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