Page 79 of Masquerade

“I was planning to tell you tonight.” She patted his crotch under the table. “In bed, after we’d made magic in your garden.”

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Excitement was a humin Kate’s blood and a tap in her toes. Like a slinky, curled and pinned Sandy inGrease,she sang the words “and my heart is set on you” under her breath. She did a step and shoulder drop dance move along the pavement towards Galena and Co. with as much flair as the unfamiliar stilettos allowed, navigating her way through the lunchtime crowd and grinning at perfect strangers. Her nerves tingled. Every bit of her tingled.

A last-minute call from the publisher meant she was dressed as Ms. Sexy Higgins today. Minus the inch of powder and paint the makeup artist would apply to create the perfect image. The extra promotional photo shoot on the day she was due to collect her author’s copies was a coincidence.

She’d told Liam about her parents, her childhood and Andrew. Telling him about Kate Higgins was tiny in comparison. Last night, with the shadows between them lifted, he’d made love to her until she’d lain limp and exhausted in his arms. His touch had carried the promise of permanence and tomorrows. A few weeks ago, the very idea would have been stomach-churningly terrifying, whereas now, the impossible was within reach.

Fluffing her short blonde wig into Ms. Sexy disorder, she halted outside the high-rise. She’d almost told Liam this morning, but he’d loved her until she’d forgotten her own name. Then, he realised his alarm had failed and was gone before she could string two intelligible words together. Beaming at the world, her smile expanded to include the slick young gun who stepped aside to allow her to enter the building ahead of him.

He chatted her up all the way to the fourth floor. Meaningless nonsense she only half-listened to.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Kate sank into a chairin her editor’s office. Two hours in front of a camera was her definition of torture. The professional makeup for the shoot was gone, replaced by her own subtler style. Eyeing the box on the side of the desk, her stomach rode its own roller-coaster. She couldn’t wait to see Liam’s face when she handed him her book. A risk—she pressed a hand to her misbehaving belly—no. Liam would be her chief cheerleader and inspirer of fantasies.

Her personal hero. She let herself smile.

Her editor’s eyebrows shot up. “What now?”

“Once upon a time, I thought I’d celebrate tonight with Anna.”

“And now there’s someone else?” Suzy lived for gossip. “Give.”

Kate hugged the secret of Liam to herself. “Not telling.”

The woman pointed to the box. “Five author copies of your first.”

Kate lifted a copy from the box, handling it with as much care as the Koh-I-Noor diamond. Running her hand over the cover, she barely touched the surface, absorbing the power of print through the pads of her fingers. “The design really works, doesn’t it?”

“It captures the mood, a subtle threat in the colours. Twilight and danger. The designer’s got preliminaries for your second and third. We’ll make connections through the colours and mood.”

“Does everyone bounce down the street waving their book and saying ‘look at me’?” Pressing the book to her chest, Kate took her swivel chair on a giddy twirl.

“Yes. Even though it’s already on our website, your website and the major booksellers’ sites. We have a satisfying number of preorders thanks to the lavish reviews from three of last year’s top five bestselling romance authors.” Suzy’s gaze was drawn to her computer. “I need to check this. You’ve got a minute and half then we’re back to business.”

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