Sins of the Father (12 page)

Alicia touched her glass
to his. “I’ve missed working with you, Carl. I forgot how much fun
you can be.”

“
It’d be like
old times if Sarah could join us. I haven’t seen her all
day.”

“
Don’t worry,
she’s back tomorrow.”

Jennifer swung her arm
around Alicia, leaning a little. “For someone who’s rumoured to
have an army doing her bidding you seem incredibly short
staffed.”

“
Yeah, my
entourage of one – she’s so good they should clone her or
something.”

Carl almost choked on his
beer. “I don’t think the world can cope with more than one.” He
clapped his hands together to demonstrate a collision. “She’s a
whirlwind, there’s no stopping her when she sets her mind to
something. It’ll be fun tomorrow, that’s for sure. Dougie’s got a
crush on her.”

The first assistant
director was usually the senior member of the film crew and pretty
scary by most people’s standards. He was putty in Sarah’s
hands.

“
Hey, Alicia,
we’re having a game of pool, do you want in?” Tim shouted across to
them.

“
I’m in.” She
sent an apologetic look to Carl and Jennifer.

“
Watch her,
she’s a hustler,” Carl shouted across.

“
Do you want
in too?”

He pulled Jennifer by the
arm, giving her no choice. “I’m on Al’s team.”

Brad fell into step
behind her, listening intently to the noise on his
two-way.

The time it took to
choose the teams was long enough for an actual game. Carl was the
only one who knew about the hours Alicia had spent in Gray’s game
room. She’d been taught by a pro. Still, it was a surprise when
they appointed her captain of the first team. Tim was chosen to
captain the second, mainly because everyone else
refused.

Brad agreed with some
reluctance to even the teams out. He was on the opposing side, and
it became a two-man match, though Alicia reluctantly accepted that
he was playing a little better than she was. It wasn’t easy to claw
it back.

“
You’re
toast, Morgan,” she teased when they came to the deciding
match.

Brad grinned at her,
enjoying a little healthy competition. “Game on.”

He watched her move
around the table as she prepared to break. He was impressed by her
skills, the way she controlled the cue with quiet competency. It
had been a surprising challenge to play against her. He wanted to
prolong the game just so he could see the laughter in her face –
watch it light up when she made the shot.

But she surprised him
again. From the first thwack of the cue ball he began to suspect
he’d been duped. She let out a whoop when a striped ball shot into
the top-right pocket exactly where she’d intended it to go. A few
others joined it.

“
Ah, oh,”
Carl said, making a sign of the cross. “Unless she misses, my
friend, you can kiss the game goodbye.”

Brad looked at the table
and saw immediately he’d been right – this was her party trick. He
didn’t doubt she could do it. Her confidence was evident in the way
she was leaning on the cue, calculating the best angle for her next
shot. The slight nod to punctuate an internal discussion was
incredibly sexy.

She knew he was watching
her before she turned in his direction. She always knew.

When their eyes met, she
felt an excitement that had nothing to do with her love of the
game. For a split second, his expression was open and in it, she
could see the unbanked desire. Then it was gone, trapped behind the
shutters of his self-control.

She dropped her eyes to
the table, feeling a tug of disappointment. There were six shots
left, including black. She usually savoured this part, milked it a
little, but Brad was putting her nerves on edge. The last thing she
needed was to overthink the shot.

She shut out the sounds
around her and lined up the cue. The angle of the ball was perfect.
No doubt about it, it was going in. The rest followed one after the
other, earning a cheer from the crowd.

“
Yes!” Carl
came forward to reward her with a high-five. She gave him a victory
hug instead.

“
Great game,
everyone,” she said, giving Brad a sheepish look.

“
Let’s rack
em up for another round.” Tim was already digging for
change.

Alicia shook her head.
“You guys play. That’s all the excitement I can take for one
night.”

Brad gave their status as
he moved forward. He was angry with himself for the reaction he
felt seeing Alicia in Carl’s arms. It was jealously pure and simple
and he had no right to feel it. He couldn’t afford to lose his
head.

“
I’ll make
sure she gets back,” Carl said, swallowing the rest of his drink.
“You can’t be on duty twenty-four hours.”

“
My
responsibilities don’t end until a member of the team is in place.”
The harsh tone pricked along Alicia’s nerves, but she knew he was
right.

“
It’s true,
honey. He has a job to do. But I appreciate the offer.”

“
Okay, I get
it. He’s the real action hero and I’m just a guy who likes wearing
the suit.”

“
Come on,
Carl, don’t over-egg the pudding. We both know you’d much rather
stay for another drink.”

“
Well, maybe
just one.” He searched the room and found what he was looking for.
“JEN!” he shouted across the bar. When she turned, he was wiggling
his glass along with his eyebrows.

Alicia shook her head,
pleased that there were no hard feelings. “See you tomorrow, bright
and early.”

She waved to the group as
she followed Brad out.

There was a buggy waiting
for them when they got outside. “Good evening, gentlemen,” Alicia
said as they climbed aboard.

“
Evening,
Miss Gladstone.”

She’d expected Brad to
fill the ensuing silence, but when he didn’t she let it settle
around her. It wasn’t unpleasant.

The cool breeze blew
through her hair, making Brad’s stomach clench when he caught the
scent of her – dangerously sweet. It was a long ride back to the
trailer. The close proximity was not helping him bank his desires.
If anything he felt a clawing panic. It was a relief when they
arrived.

“
I’d like to
do a walk through before I go off shift,” Brad said, following her
to the door. In truth it was the last thing he wanted to do. He was
afraid of being alone with her.

Alicia waved him in ahead
of her, a little irked at his tone.

It took him less than a
minute to check she was secure. They stood facing each to her,
Alicia with her back to the door and Brad itching to be on the
other side of it.

“
Well,
everything seems to be in order. I’ll be back on duty at 0600. Have
a pleasant evening.” He took a step towards her but she didn’t move
aside.

“
You’re
kidding, right?”

He narrowed his eyes,
annoyed that she was preventing him from putting a little distance
between them. “I don’t understand.”

“
I thought
we’d moved past the formality. Have I done something
wrong?”

“
I’m just
trying to find some even ground. It’s difficult to strike a balance
because you insist on dragging me into your world.”

“
You’re
already in it. Is there somewhere in your code that states we can’t
be friends?”

“
You have
enough friends. Why is it so important for everyone to like
you?”

“
Are you
saying you don’t like me? Is that what the problem is?”

Brad cursed her for
pushing him. He wanted to pick her up just so he could clear an
escape route. “You know the answer to that. It’s the exact
opposite.” That was all he would say. He wasn’t going to spell it
out for her. He was in enough trouble.

“
And that
compromises you in some way.” She took a step forward, ignoring the
wall of chest to look up into his eyes. “You’re shutting yourself
off from feeling because you’re attracted to me?”

“
I’m not a
robot. It’s not that easy.” It was getting harder, having her so
close.

“
It feels
like it.”

He wasn’t sure if it was
the challenge in her voice or because of her proximity. He acted
before he could stop himself.

Alicia waited in
anticipation. She knew he was going to kiss her. She could see it
even if he couldn’t. When their lips met, she felt a slither of
panic run up her spine. Not because she was afraid of him, but
because of what he made her feel.

She couldn’t think. Her
mind was empty of everything except the feel of his mouth on
hers.

To Brad it felt like
drowning; he was lost in the taste of her. It wasn’t until he heard
the soft moan deep in her throat that he realised what he was
doing. He let her go abruptly, then cursed again when she stumbled,
as dazed as he was.

“
Alicia...I-”

“
No, don’t
say anything.” Despite an unsettling ringing in her ears, her other
senses were returning. She seemed to have mastered speech. “I
shouldn’t have pushed you that way. I’m sorry.”

“
If I don’t
have enough self-control to resist crossing a line, then I
shouldn’t be doing the job.”

She felt her heart do a
slow roll in her chest at his words. But she could see he was
battling with his conscience so she did the only thing she could.
“Look. Let’s take a step back. There’s got to be a way to deal with
what’s between us.”

He was afraid that the
only way forward was to pull himself off the case. “I need to
think.” He could still taste her on his lips and it was driving him
crazy.

“
I’m not sure
where we go from here, Brad, but the kiss doesn’t have to prevent
you from doing your job.”

“
It already
is, because right now that’s all I can think about.”

She ignored the way that
made her feel because they both needed breathing space. “For now
let’s rewind a little.” It took an effort but she stepped aside so
he could move past her. “Goodnight, Brad. I’ll see you at
0600.”

He felt like a coward for
accepting her peace offering but it was the only sane thing to do.
He resisted his need to touch her and walked out into the night
before he did something he’d regret.

Chapter
9

It should have surprised
him to walk into his room and find Kelvin sprawled out on the
couch, but it wasn’t the first time.

“
Should I
even bother locking up?”

“
Nah, it’s
not worth the effort, big man.”

Brad turned to see JJ
helping himself to a soft drink from the fridge. “Hey, JJ, I don’t
suppose there’s any left in there for me?”

JJ grinned as he threw
the bottle over. “Not many. We’ve been here hours.”

Kelvin raised an eyebrow
at the comment. “We’ve been here twenty minutes, tops.”

“
If I’d known
you were breaking in I would’ve stocked up.” Brad cut across to a
chair and lowered himself into it on a long sigh. Kelvin’s eyebrows
rose again in question, but he didn’t get time to follow up on
it.

The door swung open
dramatically. “Am I late for the party?” Susannah asked in her
usual way. “It’s nice of my boys to start without me.”

They would always be her
boys, and had been since the four of them turned Brad and Kelvin’s
dream into a reality. She was the whirlwind behind their
operation.

“
There’s one
cooling for you, Suez.” JJ pointed to a bottle on the table
opposite Brad.

“
You’re an
angel.” She blew him a kiss and went to grab the water.

Brad watched her kick off
her shoes and curl up beside Kelvin. Their impromptu get-togethers
were becoming a habit; it was like they homed in on the time and
place and tipped up without the need for arrangements.

“
This is a
sorry excuse for a kitchen,” JJ complained as he rummaged in
drawers for snacks.

“
It’s called
a kitchenette. What do you expect them to do with a space this
size?” Kelvin asked, grinning over at him.

“
We’re at
Lundwood Studios, baby. I expected to be impressed.”

Susannah chuckled as she
patted the seat next to her. “Come and take a load off. You’re
making the place look untidy.”

He complied, but not
without grumbling something about party food under his
breath.

Brad sat back and watched
the three of them – his world felt right again whenever he spent
time with his family.

“
So...”
Kelvin said, using his firmest stare.

Brad let out another long
breath. “Tough one. She’s...”

“
Yeah, she
is.”

JJ almost choked on a
mouthful of beer. “I hate it when you guys do that. Do you have to
talk in code?”

“
All guys talk in code!” Susannah’s soft chuckle was almost
musical. “Allow me to interpret their little tete-a-tete. How’s it
going so far?
It’s not easy.
I didn’t expect her to be so distracting
. I can imagine. She’s a knockout, I’ll give you
that.”