‘Private words; we need to talk.’
Under the impact of his brilliant blue eyes her aggression slipped silently away. ‘I suppose we do.’ Exhilaration and trepidation fought for supremacy.
‘Meet me at my trailer at, say…’ he glanced at his wristwatch ‘…seven-thirty.’ Without waiting for her reply, he was gone.
Her feet still hadn’t quite touched the ground when she bumped into Magda Gilmour from Make-Up. ‘Love conquers all’ wasn’t a concept she’d ever placed much faith in, but Lindy was determined to give it as much help as she could. She and Sam could have something very special.
‘Sorry, I didn’t see you,’ she apologised.
‘I was looking for your sister.’ Magda had one of those little-girl-lost voices that men appeared to find attractive. The appeal of the soft, high tones was lost on Lindy. This wasn’t a woman she instinctively warmed to; despite the helpless air there was a hardness about the pretty face that she didn’t like.
‘She was looking for you the last time I saw her.’
‘How annoying. I know what you’re going through.’
The statement, out of the blue, captured Lindy’s wandering attention. ‘I beg your pardon?’
‘I mean, I’ve been in the same situation as you—with Sam.’
Lindy’s expression did not invite further confidences. She recalled some piece of gossip Hope had once relayed that seemed to confirm this assertion. ‘That’s none of my business.’
It was pretty evident that Magda hadn’t stumbled across her accidentally at all. She could almost feel sympathy for the jealousy that could drive a woman to de-mean herself in such a way. I hope this doesn’t get messy, she silently prayed.
Magda gave a sympathetic smile and patted her arm. ‘You’re going to need all your friends.’ She saw the tiny flicker of uncertainty in the English girl’s eyes and continued, in a voice that overflowed with saccharine sincerity, ‘Superficially he’s so warm and charming, but underneath he’s totally ruthless. He uses people—especially women.’
For a split second Lindy felt trapped by her fears. Had she been blind for the second time in her life? But it only lasted for the blink of an eye, then she was seeing Sam the way she had the last few weeks. There were no murky depths to the man she knew—he was painfully open. She mentally shook herself, feeling ashamed for the moment’s weakness.
‘I appreciate your concern, but if I want to know anything about Sam’s life I’ll ask him,’ she replied quietly. She deliberately kept anything which might be construed as aggression out of her voice.
She had a lot to come to terms with herself before she started worrying about a stranger’s jealousy. It didn’t really matter whether Magda’s interest stemmed from malice or mischief because she, Lindy, wasn’t interested.
The dignified confidence brought a flare of anger to the other girl’s face. ‘And you think he’ll tell you?’ She gave a scornful laugh. ‘You think you know all about him, don’t you? Then he must have told you about his kid?’ Malicious satisfaction curved her full red lips as Lindy froze, all the colour seeping out of her skin. ‘I’m not surprised. He doesn’t tell many people. He wouldn’t marry her, of course. He doesn’t even acknowledge the boy! It’s all very hush-hush—it wouldn’t be good for his image at all if people found out.’
‘I don’t believe you.’ Lindy’s lips felt like ice as she forced the words out.
‘Go ask him, then.’
‘Quit bellyaching,’ Sam advised a fellow actor. ‘We’re all hot and we’re all tired.’ He turned to a technician and said something which appeared to galvanise the small group into action.
Lindy ignored the voices that told her they were shooting and walked straight up to Sam.
‘I want to talk to you.’
‘Cut!’ he snapped, turning to her.
Lindy’s whole attention was focused on him. The fact that he was holding onto the shreds of his temper with difficulty made no impression on her. She felt no embarrassment that people were watching her and Sam, waiting for him to blow up. She didn’t even hear her sister’s anxious voice.
Sam looked at her face and his expression shifted from anger to concern. ‘Are you ill?’
She avoided the hand he stretched out. ‘No,’ she denied. ‘I just need to talk to you—now.’ She walked away, leaving him to follow her.
‘Do you want to tell me what this is all about?’ Sam had only paused long enough to give instructions to the crew.