Standing near the gate exit, Logan couldn’t ignore the churning in his stomach. He was anxious to see her. Eager to apologize for taking his frustration with Madison out on her.
And then she was sauntering in his direction. Accustomed to her vibrant energy, he wasn’t prepared for how pale and subdued she looked and hated the worry lines etched between her eyebrows. His heart thundered against his ribs as she spotted him waiting for her. Before his lips formed a hello, she held up her hand to forestall whatever he’d been about to say.
“Don’t be mad at me for coming,” she said. “I’m just as worried about Madison as you are and I know it’s my fault she’s here.”
“I was wrong to blame you. Madison is strong-willed and once she sets her mind to something, there’s no swaying her.” The need to find his niece weighed on him, but so did the damage he’d done to his relationship with Scarlett. “About our last conversation...”
She shook her head, but wouldn’t meet his gaze. “Not until we find Madison.” When he began to protest, she cut him off. “Promise me. We need to keep the focus on her.”
“Fine,” he told her, cupping her face and staring into her beautiful eyes. “But I’m not happy about it.”
“I didn’t expect you to be.” The throb in her voice gave away more than her expression. She was wary of him in a way she’d never been before.
The end to their last conversation sprang to mind and his joy in her arrival dimmed. Why did he feel as if she was only here to tie up the loose ends of their relationship so she could have a clean break with him?
Logan relieved her of the overnight bag she carried and took her free hand, gratified that she didn’t try to pull away. “The car’s parked this way.”
“Have you had any luck locating Madison?”
“No. I’ve called the boy she followed out here last spring and made contact with the private detective my brother-in-law hired once before, but no luck.”
“You should never have let me near her,” Scarlett said. “If she’d worked with either Violet or Harper she never wou
ld’ve met Bobby and been encouraged to pursue acting.”
“Maybe.” Logan drew her into the warm Los Angeles evening. “Or maybe she was playing all of us this summer and never intended to go to college in the fall.”
“But she said...” Scarlett trailed off and frowned. “If you’re right, she’s a better actress than I ever was.”
“I know that’s not true.”
Scarlett laughed. “You’ve never seen me act.”
“I’ve seen everything you’ve ever done.”
“That’s impossible.”
He felt the weight of her disbelief as he unlocked the doors on his rental car and ushered her inside. Before he closed the door, he took ahold of her gaze. “What can I say? I’m a fan.”
Shutting the door on her stunned expression offered him a moment of amusement. She had shifted sideways on the seat and was poised to get answers as soon as he slid behind the wheel.
“Since when?” she demanded as he started the car.
“I think I saw you for the first time when you starred on That’s Our Hilary.”
“Don’t tell me you watched that.”
“Not me. My sister, Paula. Her, Lucas and I used to fight over who got to watch what. We outnumbered her, but she was older by a year and always got first choice. I really learned to hate that show.” He flashed her a wicked grin. “Lucas thought you were hot.”
Her eyes narrowed. “I thought you said you were a fan.”
“You were really amazing in Sometimes Forever.”
“Do you really expect me to believe that you watched that show? It really isn’t your thing.” Her self-assurance began to slip a little, exposing her quieter, fragile core. “And there weren’t more than eight episodes. It never even made it to DVD.”
“When you first came to Las Vegas, as much as we rubbed each other the wrong way, I couldn’t stop thinking about you. I found and watched everything you’d done because I had you pegged as just some woman who read lines someone else had written.” He took her hand in his and lifted her fingers to his lips. “It really bugged me that not only were you beautiful and fascinating in whatever role you played, you also brought great depth to your characters.”
“But ever since I’ve known you, you’ve been nothing but critical of my career.” Her green eyes went soft with confused hurt. “Why, when you felt like that?”