Snowbound Cinderella Read Free

stood. “I need to unpack and get some sleep.”
    When he looked toward the master bedroom she shook her head, reading his mind. “I’ve already staked my claim on that room.”
    “Is there another bedroom?”
    She shrugged. “Not exactly a bedroom. But there’s a loft. I think there’s a bed up there.”
    He glanced up, then without a word picked up his bags. As he did she spotted the sophisticated digital camera and laptop computer. An alarm went off in her mind. “Tell me, Jace Lockhart. Just what is it you were doing while you were traipsing…here and there?”
    He settled the strap of the bag over his shoulder. “I reported on the world in crisis. The latest dictator’s madness. The latest terrorist bombings.”
    “You’re a reporter?” She was suddenly on her feet, her hands twisting the sash of her robe with furiousenergy. This was slowly becoming her worst nightmare. Trapped in a cabin with a reporter.
    He looked up, wondering what in the world had set her off. “That’s right. A TV reporter.”
    Her tone hardened. “And you want me to believe you just arrived here tonight by accident, without any knowledge of the fact that I was here?”
    He didn’t bother to hide the weariness in his tone. “That’s right. Am I supposed to care that you’re here?”
    “Are you saying you don’t know who I am?”
    “Should I? You told me you’re…”
    She saw the look that came into his eyes the moment he made the connection. Heard the disdain in his tone.
    “I guess I’m even more tired than I realized. Oh, yeah, I know who you are. The actress. Even in wartorn countries your face regularly makes the headlines. So what are you doing up here? Slumming?”
    “Getting away from people like you. I’m not feeling very friendly toward reporters these days. They’ve been hounding me unmercifully.”
    “Isn’t that what you Hollywood celebrities thrive on?”
    “Some do. I just don’t happen to want them in my life right now.”
    “Right now? Does this mean you’re involved in some sordid little scandal?” When she didn’t say anything more, he shook his head. “Well, you can relax. I’m not that kind of reporter.” His tone hardened.“Believe me, I’m not the least bit interested in who you are or what you’re up to.”
    “That’s what you say now. But when some tabloid TV show offers you a quarter of a million dollars to tell the world that you spent the night with Ciara Wilde, you’ll be just like all the rest.”
    He gave a snort of disgust. “A quarter of a million? You put a pretty high price tag on your scandals, don’t you, Hollywood?”
    She bristled at the demeaning nickname. “You’ll take the money. And you’ll give them every juicy little detail you can dream up.”
    “Like I said, I wouldn’t waste my time reporting on some…unsavory Hollywood gossip.”
    “That’s what they all say. But I’ve been betrayed by too many so-called friends to trust anyone. Do I really look that gullible?”
    “What you look like is—” He clamped his mouth shut and gave her a long, insolent look before he turned to climb the stairs.
    Stung, she gritted her teeth. She knew what she looked like to men like Jace Lockhart. He didn’t have to say it. His expression had said it all. It was something that had been made abundantly clear from the moment she’d arrived in Hollywood. The bimbo. The slut. And all because of the body that nature had given her, and the characters she’d portrayed in her films.
    To his retreating back she called, “I don’t care who you are or what your connection is to this cabin. Iwant you out of here in the morning. Is that understood?”
    Jace paused. Over his shoulder he said, in a cool, controlled voice, “As soon as the storm lets up, one of us will be leaving. And you can bet that quarter of a million you think you’re worth that it won’t be me, Hollywood.”

Two
    C iara huddled under the blankets and listened to the howling of the wind outside the