He swore again. Why on earth would she get into a car with such a man? She didn’t belong there. It made his skin crawl just to see her sitting inside it.
And why buy that piece of garbage? She lived in a lavish penthouse apartment for God’s sake, with a mesmerizing view of the marina and the vast Timor Sea beyond that. A view that even the most jaded would appreciate.
And then he figured out what she was really up to. She’d known he’d come here this afternoon and had somehow planned this, waiting in the afternoon heat and humidity, wanting him to feel sorry for her over the car and her condition. She’d probably counted on charming her way into his life. His nostrils flared with fury. She had about as much chance of that as of it snowing here in Darwin.
He was about to start the engine and go back to the office when he remembered his promise to Connie. If he went back now without speaking to Danielle, the older woman would hand in her notice. And then it would take too much time and trouble to find anyone half as efficient, let alone that he’d darn well miss her around the office.
Just then Danielle opened the car door and started to get out of the vehicle. Against his will, his pulse shifted upward when he glimpsed a pair of slim ankles encased in pretty white sandals more suited to getting out of a Mercedes than a run-down wreck. But it was the other car door being flung open and the jerky way the driver got out of the car that suddenly drew his attention.
Something was going on here.
Something not right.
Instinct told him this wasn’t part of Danielle’s plan.
Danielle had just been for the ride of her life. Not only was her stomach still trying to catch up from where “Turbo” had left it back there on a lonely stretch of the Stuart Highway, but her heart was still in her mouth. Living up to his name, he’d scared her half to death by crossing the other side of the road then coming to a screaming stop in front of her building.
Holding on to her stomach, she took a breath and opened the car door. Nothing would make her buy this car now, no matter how cheap. Her dear mother had always said you got what you paid for, and Danielle wasn’t about to use some of her precious savings just to drive her baby around in a bomb like this one. She’d rather catch the bus into the city center the way she did now, where she worked three days a week helping Angie in the boutique. Of course, once she had the baby she’d need to stop at the day-care center before and after work.
“I’m sorry, but this really isn’t what I’m looking for.” She pushed herself off the passenger seat, wanting to get out of the car and away from this man who was making her uneasy.
He hopped out of the driver’s side and looked at her over the roof of the car as she got to her feet. “I could probably take a couple of hundred off the price,” he said, desperation growing in his tone.
She didn’t want to think what he needed the money for. There was something about him that didn’t sit well now. Heavens, she’d been a fool to get in the car with him, no matter that Angie said he was a friend of a friend.
“It’s really not what I’m after, Turbo,” she said in a placating tone.
“But you said—”
“The lady said she’s not interested.” A hard male voice came out of nowhere, and Danielle’s gaze flew to the man standing a few feet away on the footpath. She sucked in a sharp breath, her heart hammering foolishly for one brief second. Flynn Donovan stood there, looking as if he wanted to do someone harm.
And that someone was probably her.
Turbo spun around, his mouth closing when he saw Flynn. All at once the young man appeared even skinnier and shorter, especially up against Flynn’s well-muscled body dressed in a gray business suit.
Funny, but she actually felt sorry for Turbo then. The tattoos, the pierced nose and the missing tooth were merely a front so that people wouldn’t notice his acne and too-thin body.
Flynn took a step closer and any suspicions she had about Turbo being up to no good disappeared under Flynn’s intimidating stance. She glowered at him. Couldn’t he see the younger man was nothing more than skin and bones?
“Flynn, don’t—”
“Forget it, lady,” Turbo interjected, his eyes wide with fright as he jumped in his car, gunned the engine and sped off, leaving behind a trail of exhaust smoke that sickened her in the humid tropical air.
But Danielle ignored it and glared at Flynn. “There was no need for that.”
Reciprocating anger flared in those dark eyes. “Of course there was.”
She bristled, half-afraid he was right but not willing to admit she’d acted foolishly. Not when she’d been trying so hard to do this all by herself.
Her chin tilted. “I could have handled him.”
He arched a brow. “Really? It may have escaped your notice but you’re pregnant.”
“I know a man’s weak parts as well as the next woman.”
“Obviously.” His mocking gaze traveled down the length of her floral shirt and white capri pants to the white sandals on her feet. For all his anger, she felt as if he’d just whispered kisses all down her body, right down to the tips of her toes.
Her hands balled into fists. “Mr. Donovan, just because I’m pregnant doesn’t mean I’m helpless.”
“Glad to hear it,” he taunted.
She squared her shoulders. “Oh, I get it. You’re one of those men who can’t help but interfere in a woman’s business. Well, I’d appreciate it if you’d stay out of mine in the future.”
“Oh, I intend to.” He started walking toward her, a dark glitter in his eyes. “After this.”
She watched him warily. “What are you doing?”
Another two strides and he had her by the arm. “Getting you off the road before you get run over,” he muttered, then started leading her back toward the building. “Or is that considered interfering, too?”
She was about to reply with something equally sarcastic, but all at once a funny feeling washed over her. Her head began to swim and, just as she reached the footpath, she felt the blood drain from her face and her knees turn weak. She clutched at Flynn with her other hand. God, she felt strange. Very, very strange. It must be the heat.
Suddenly both fear and panic that she’d done something to hurt the baby came crushing down on top of her. She took deep, calming breaths. No, she and the baby would be all right. It’ll pass in a moment or two. She only had to wait.
“Danielle?” he said sharply.
She moistened dry lips. “I’m okay. I feel a little faint, that’s all.”
He muffled something under his breath.
“I should be fine now,” she said in a small voice, and pushed herself away from him, but was unsteady on her feet.
He swore again and slipped his arms around her waist. “Let’s get you upstairs.”
Swinging her up in his arms, he punched in the security code he’d memorized from his last visit to the luxurious penthouse and headed inside to the coolness of the building. The elevator was available and he strode over plush carpet and into it, the lump of fear in his throat almost strangling him.
It was her he should strangle, he decided, as she rested her cheek on his shoulder, the soft fragrance of her perfume surrounding his nostrils. She didn’t make a murmur.
Once inside her air-conditioned apartment, he laid her down on the leather couch in the living room, noting the faint sheen of perspiration covering her soft, almost translucent skin.
“Stay there,” he grated, and headed for the telephone.
She lifted her head off the cushion. “What are you doing?”
He began punching in the first digits of the phone number. “Calling my doctor.”
“What? Don’t you dare!” She started to sit up, and he slammed the phone down and strode back to her side.
“You need medical attention,” he growled, helping her to sit up fully. She was so light, even with the baby growing inside her.
The baby! Alarm rocketed through him again until he saw some color had returned to her cheeks.
“It was the smell of the exhaust fumes, that’s all,” she said, brushing some blond strands out of her eyes.
Powerful relief filled him, followed by a burst of irritation. How could she take this so casually? He hated to think what may have happened if he hadn’t decided to come here today. No one would have heard her screams if that thug had roughed her up a little.
Or a lot.
He straightened, then impaled her with a stare. “You were taking your life in your hands with that idiot back there.”
The pink in her cheeks reddened defensively. “His name was given to me by a friend.”
His lip curled. “Terrific. The police will know exactly where to go after they find your mutilated body in Darwin Harbor. That’s if the crocodiles don’t get you first.”
“Ever thought about writing bedtime books for children?” she mocked, sounding almost back to normal, if there even was such a thing as normal for her. She was the most ambiguous woman he’d ever met.
And he was in no mood to appreciate a sense of humor right now. “People don’t always go around with Murderer tattooed on their foreheads.”
She stirred uneasily, her beautiful face clouding over. “I wouldn’t have gone with him if I’d really felt threatened. I have my baby to protect.”
Flynn’s eyes were drawn to where her hand rested on her stomach. He swallowed tightly, his gaze moving up and resting back on her face as he squashed the urge to pull her into his arms.
“That guy wouldn’t have taken no for an answer,” he reiterated, knowing that if he got her in his arms he would shake her first. Then kiss her.
Fear came and went in her eyes. “I know that now.”
Some of the tension eased out of his shoulders but he still couldn’t let go of the suspicion that she’d do something foolish.
“Why are you here, Flynn?”
Absorbed in his angry thoughts, it was the sound of his name on her lips that broke through to him.
But it was her words that reminded him of the paperwork inside his jacket…Reminded him that she’d do almost anything to get his attention. This was all about getting her own way. She was definitely high maintenance—in more ways than one.
He smiled unpleasantly. “I’ve come to give you something.”
She blinked warily. “You have?”
He took the contract out of his jacket and tossed it onto the sofa next to her. “Consider the loan paid in full. You no longer owe me two hundred thousand dollars.”
For one moment something flashed in her eyes, before she quickly looked confused. “I don’t understand.”
He watched her with cynicism. He’d seen her eyes lit up with what he suspected was satisfaction. “Of course you do. Your letter…the checks…the run-down car…were all a bid for sympathy to get my attention and win me over. Why not just admit it?”
Her eyes flared wide. “What?”
“I’m one step ahead of you.” He glanced pointedly at the paperwork. “Go on, pick it up and take a look. It’s the contract. You can rip it up or burn it. Do what you will for all I care, but let’s just cut our losses and get on with our lives. Separately.”