it’s not as though you’re gonna be sleeping together before the champagne’s finished, is it?’
‘And what if we were?’
Bobby looked at her, narrowing his eyes. ‘Are you just a teensy bit attracted to our handsome movie star, Princess?’
India shrugged, looking over at Dominic who was deep in conversation with one of the wardrobe assistants – a young and pretty dark-haired girl who was quite obviously flirting with him. It didn’t look too much like he was reciprocating but it didn’t stop a flicker of something – was that jealousy? – taking her over for a brief second. And when he suddenly turned, caught her eye and smiled at her she felt her stomach turn a tiny somersault. Followed by a warning shot from the sensible part of her brain. ‘No, Bobby. I’m not in the least bit attracted to Dominic MacDonald. Okay?’
‘Whatever you say, Angel. Whatever you say.’
***
Michael had seen Dominic make his move, walk over to India and take her hand, kissing her on the cheek. Just a bit too over-friendly for a first introduction as far as he was concerned. That level of familiarity needed to be kept under control.
‘Everything alright?’ Reece asked, watching Michael closely as he observed India talking to Dominic MacDonald.
‘Everything’s fine,’ Michael replied, looking down at his pile of notes. The distraction of India and Dominic had caused him to momentarily lose track of exactly what he was doing.
‘I’m glad to hear it,’ Reece continued, still watching his ex-son-in-law very closely, not missing his slightly flustered demeanour, and Michael was never usually one to get flustered. Reece had worked with him many a time before and he knew that this was unusual for a man like Michael. Unless India was around.
Michael quickly pulled himself together and looked at Reece. ‘Nothing’s going on, Reece. Between me and India. I promise you that.’
‘I don’t care what you promise me, Michael. I only care about what you do to my daughter. Something went on in the past that I still have no idea about…’ Reece noticed a tiny but all-too-evident flinch from Michael when he’d said that, ‘… and I’m concerned about history repeating itself. You can understand that, can’t you?’
Michael nodded, briefly looking over towards India and Dominic again, her smile as she talked to the handsome younger actor lighting up her whole face and he felt his stomach twist itself in knots as that painful obsession once more took its grip on him.
‘India told me you made a move, the other night.’
‘And she knocked me back.’ Michael looked at Reece, knowing those were words he’d waited so long to hear – that India didn’t want him anymore.
‘Then respect her decision, Michael. Because this isn’t just about the two of you anymore. You’ve got Ethan to think of now, so try not to confuse the hell out of him, okay?’
Reece’s response agitated Michael slightly. What did any of this have to do with him anyway? India was a grown woman, and they were more than capable of knowing what was best for their son.
He sighed, a heavy sigh of resignation, knowing he’d never stop Reece from worrying about India; there was nothing he could do about that. But one thing Michael knew he could do was make sure her co-star didn’t get too comfortable around her. She may not want him anymore – not yet, anyway – but she sure as hell didn’t need Dominic MacDonald. ‘Everything is fine, Reece. Alright? Everything is just fine.’
Reece stared at him for a few seconds. ‘Just make sure it is, and we won’t have a problem.’
Somehow though, Michael had a feeling that he wasn’t going to be the problem this time around. That job was going to belong to an altogether different person.
CHAPTER 8
‘You look amazing,’ Dominic smiled, kissing India’s cheek as she sat down opposite him at a table on the terrace, the late evening sun still warm on her back. ‘I took the liberty of ordering some champagne, I hope you don’t mind.’
She smiled too, taking the glass he handed her. ‘I love champagne. Thank you. And thank you for this afternoon. You were a real pleasure to work with, considering we had some scenes that could well have been quite awkward, for our first time working together.’
He gave a quiet laugh, and India liked the way his eyes crinkled up when he did that. He had a very expressive face. A strong face. ‘Hey, spending the afternoon kissing you wasn’t exactly a chore.’