Page 76 of An Accidental Love Affair

Nicole didn’t fail to notice it. “What now?”

Clarissa intervened, patting her knee. “Nicole, please don’t worry. I’m handling the situation. I’ve already contacted . . .”

“What happened to my manuscript, Reece?”

His knuckles whitened against the countertop. “I hate when you call me Reece. When are you going to call me Colin again?”

“Not until you tell me what I want to know. Probably not even then.”

He stepped out from behind the bar. She jumped from the stool, moving out of his reach.

“It’s best you tell her, Colin,” his mother stated.

“I’ve been offered a new movie role. I haven’t received the script yet, but the basic plot is my character is a movie star who meets an aspiring writer in unusual circumstances.”

Nicole sank down on the arm of a chair. “Mrs. Woodhouse, could you pass me my glass, please?” The moment it touched her hand, she knocked it back, swallowing the contents. “You’re making a movie from my manuscript?”

“Not exactly,” he said, gripping the back of his neck. “There’ve been a few tweaks made to it.”

She closed her eyes in dread. “Such as?”

“The couple have a torrid love affair, but when my character finds out the girl is only with him to gain his fame and fortune, he dumps her.”

Nausea rose in her throat. She covered her mouth. “I suppose that was the slime-ball’s idea?” she asked in a strangled whisper. “That freakin’ Wanker!” she yelled stridently.

Clarissa frowned. “Slime-ball?”

“Marcus,” Reece and Nicole replied together, their eyes focused on each other. He smiled, but she frowned, glancing away.

“So, the story I wrote, but for the basic premise, no longer exists,” she surmised.

“That about sums it up.”

Nicole stood, her stance a bit wobbly. “Thank you for telling me. I think I’ll be going now.” She moved around Clarissa’s seat, offering her hand. “I’m so glad we got to meet at last, Mrs. Woodhouse. I’m sorry it wasn’t under more pleasant circumstances.”

“Likewise, dear, but . . .”

Nicole barely glanced at Reece as she moved down the hall. He followed silently. She paused with her hand on the doorknob. “Goodbye, Reece. I hope your play is a success.”

“If I send tickets to the flat, will you come?”

She shook her head. “I’m not sure how long I’ll be in London.”

He frowned. “I thought you said you were here for research.”

Her lips twisted. “Yes, on how best to get my manuscript back from you, but that’s a moot point now.”

He touched her arm. “We’ll figure a way out of this, Nicole.”

She flinched away. “Yeah, sure we will.” With a shake of her head, she glared up at him. “I bought a house, Reece. You and your brother set out to ruin my career.”

He ground his teeth together. “I had no idea what he was doing. You have to believe me.”

Her foot was tapping against the carpet. “I may want to believe you, and I may choose to believe you, but I don’t have to believe you. You’ve ruined me, Reece. My career is pretty much over. A romance writer can’t spin stories about love conquering all when she doesn’t believe it anymore.” She opened the door, walking away.

He watched her retreating form before closing the door, leaning his head against the wood.

“She’s truly lovely, Colin,” Clarissa called down the hall.

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