A Second Chance (19 page)

He was an enigma that couldn’t be solved
, his
choice of leading a solitary life away from
the
spotlight sending a clear and unmistakable message to the world. Liam Latimer didn’t want to be involved in anything more than friendship, his offer of camaraderie the only one she could count on. And like a moth blindly following the light of the lamp that would eventually burn it to death, Jade knew she couldn’t resist the allure of being closer, even if it meant heartache and
an absolute lack of a happy ending. She felt like a beggar
who
greedily
gathered the crumbs that fell from
a
rich man’s table, aware
that she would never get enough
to be fully satisfied
,
yet desperate for each and every miniscule piece that landed in
her
hands.

Engrossed in her thoughts she barely noticed the song
’s
ending, Liam’s hands steadying her as he asked
with amusement
,
‘
Do
we go on? Since I haven’t gotten stepped on
yet
, I
’
m all
set
to continue, if you are
.
’

‘
I don’t think so, mate
.
.
.
’ Rocco’s voice
inter
rupted
, the lanky Australian materializing out of thin air at their side. His blue eyes sparkled as he pointed to Laura
who was
swaying to the
rhythm
of the music with some visibly smitten
young man. ‘
I have been officially left alone, and I think it
’
s only fair for Jade to comfort me a bit. You can go and sit at the table for a change.’

For just the shortest split of
a
second Jade wondered if Liam would protest, something in his face telling her that he wasn’t very happy with this interruption. But it was gone before she had a chance to analyze it, replaced by his usual calm expression, the wall around his emotions high once again.

‘Sure thing
.
’
H
e
dipped his dark head in agreement,
disappearing into the crowd like some silent ghost that never was.

Jade found herself alone with Rocco, his lopsided smile warm enough to
dispe
l
any misgiving
s
she might have had about the sudden intimacy they were sharing. His arms pulled her closer, the slow tune that surrounded them as they swayed slowly to the music perfect for this closeness. Yet, as they mov
ed
in perfect unison, Jade felt absolutely safe and not in the least awkward. Rocco was not dangerous
to
her, she realized
;
his tall, blond good looks that had more than a few heads turning
left
her absolutely cold. He was handsome, nice
,
and
ooz
ed
sex appeal,
and
she searched her insides for the slightest response to his charm, only to find nothing at all. She might have been dancing with a cousin, she thought bitterly, the unfairness of her stubborn heart making her angry with helpless fury.

Why
she couldn’t
find him attractive was beyond her understanding, his
good-natured
attempts
at
flirting crashing against the wall of indifference that guarded her heart like a bullet
-
proof
vest. Deep
down, beyond the point of lies and
self-deception
,
she knew why
,
of course
.
T
he
reason
for
her total lack of interest was no further than a few
feet
away, sipping a drink at the table, his long legs stretched casually in front of him. She tried not to look at him,
forcing her head to stay lifted up, her neck muscles aching with effort to look past him, each time he came in her field of view. It was easier
th
at
way, she thought as she made a conscious effort to listen to Rocco. She had to give him at least one coherent answer before he would start
wondering
what
kind of friends
Laura
had
.

He was
funny;
his hilarious stories about the troubles that he had encountered in his first few years in America
ma
de
her giggle and forget for a moment about Liam.
She
effortless
ly
lost
herself in his jokes, some of the tenseness she had felt ever since she had spotted Liam’s tall figure walking down the hospital corridor finally easing
away. Around Liam
,
her body seemed to be programmed entirely different
ly
, every
nerve
ending
involuntarily
urging her to
turn to him and his
mov
ement
,
like
the
head of a sunflower searching for the sun. She didn’t want to compare it to anything like that, she thought mutinously, aware of
its
implications. He certainly shouldn’t be considered her sun, the
center
of the
solar system
, giving away her true feelings.

Rocco was blissfully unaware of her inner struggle, his blue eyes twinkling
mischievously
as he
gestured with his
head to something behind her back.
‘Oh, crickey!
She’s here.
Liam
’s going to
be mad as hell
.
’

‘What do you mean?’
S
he
was impatient to see
wh
o
he
was talking about
, the sudden rush of adrenaline in her veins an instinctive response to his words. Who was ‘she
,
’ and why would
her presence
make Liam mad? They turned around in slow motion, the rhythm of the music sluggish enough to make her scream with impatience. Instead she clamped her mouth shut and waited for the moment when she would get a view of their table and Liam
.
A
s she did, her heart almost stopped, the sinking feeling in her chest making her clumsy
, and
she stepped on Rocco’s foot.

‘I am sorry
.
R
eally
,
’ she apologized hastily.Thankfully, the dance floor was quite dark
,
and her reddened face must have escaped his attention
, for
he smiled indulgently and kept chatting about his own lacking dancing skills.
That
wasn’t true at all, given
his
agility and gracefulness
as
his tall body effortlessly
guid
ed
her all around the floor. She should have told him so, she thought later, aware that a compliment was in order and well deserved. But she was too preoccupied with Liam and the woman who had appeared at his side to notice anything beyond the way
the woman’s
pale hair shone in the semi darkness, almost alien in its
silvery
,
moonlike quality.

She was breathtakingly beautiful,
Jade
thought wretchedly, the quick glimpse she managed to catch enough to
notice the way
the woman
had
lean
ed
into Liam.
It was a
s
if she was used to be
ing
close to him,
and
pangs of jealousy
gnaw
ed
at
Jade’s
suddenly heavy heart. Dressed in a
miniscule
black dress that left very little to one’s imagination, the woman certainly
fit
into the club scene
better
than
Jade did
in the sedately prim red dress. She
hadn’t gotten
the chance to really look into
the woman’s
face, the long, lo
o
se mane obscuring most of it as she turned to Liam in a
n
unmistakably pleading gesture. Still,
Jade
would have bet her bottom dollar that it was remarkable as well
.

‘Who was that?’ she asked, hoping that her voice sounded as normal as it should, given the completely
non-romantic
relationship she had with Liam. The last thing she
wanted
was for Rocco to realize that she was eaten up by jealousy, the sense of peace that she
had
felt for the last few minutes completely destroyed. ‘
Why
would he be mad?’

‘Melissa.’ It was funny how much dislike
she could
sense in this one clipped word. Whoever she was, Rocco didn’t like her, that much
was
obvious
. Suddenly, she felt her feelings for him going up one notch, his obvious contempt for the other woman
further
endearing him to her.

‘Melissa who?’ she pressed, their next move allowing her to cast a cautious glance at the table once more.
The
other two
were seated now, their body language telling a story of its own. While Liam sat back, visibly eager to put some distance between himself and Melissa, she was bending to
ward
him with
single-minded
purpose. They were talking, Liam’s mouth barely moving in response to a passionate, quick waterfall of words that came from her lovely, red
-
painted mouth.

‘Melissa Johnston, his agent, my dear
.
’ Rocco grinned unrepentantly as he
rolled his eyes in an exaggerated gesture. ‘
Only
she would like very much to be more than that, as far as I know. ‘

‘
Is
that so bad?’
S
he
had to ask this question, even though she felt her body tensing as her stubborn brain conjured images of the two of them, intimate and perfect in their combined beauty.

‘
Yeah
, very much
.
’ Rocco shook his head, his blue eyes turning serious
.
‘Liam
ha
s
made it obvious
that
he
i
sn’t
interested. You would think that any sane person would get it by now, but she keeps trying anyway
.
’

‘
So
why doesn’t he change agent
s
?’
I
t
seemed logical, she thought as she watched
Rocco
shake his head in comical despair. ‘
If
he doesn’t enjoy her company, he should find someone new, I think. It
’
s not as if he had signed a contract for life, right?’

‘It isn’t as simple as that, Jade.’ Rocco sighed and smiled into her expectant eyes, his easy lopsided grin calming her
high-strung
nerves a bit. ‘
Her
father owns the
first
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ing
company Liam
ever worked
for, and they
’ve known
each other for ages
.
’

‘
You
mean he can’t tell her
“
no
”
without losing
his job?’
S
omehow
she couldn’t quite believe it. It wasn’t like Liam at all to let himself be manipulated into something he didn’t want to do. Not even for the sake of his job
.
Especially after
his success in his profession, where offers of contracts and deals must have been plenty enough to allow him to pick the ones he wanted. Courting
a daughter of the
man who
used to be
his boss
just didn’t add up, even if he had
threatened him with
wrecking his standing in the
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ing
field
.