'He can make her famous,' Jay said and then held up his hands when Grayson glared at him. 'I'm just playing devil's advocate here.'

'She said she had to stay with him.' Dakota frowned. 'Why would she say that if she doesn't love him?'

'Because he has some kind of hold over her.'

Dakota sat up straight. 'Yeah, but what? She's not the kind of woman who'd go down without a fight. Despite what she said, it's not as if she craves money or fame anymore.'

Grayson got up and retrieved the file of papers from his desk. He sifted through them until he extracted one. 'Maybe she's not doing it for herself.'

Dakota snorted. 'I can't imagine her doing anything for her mom or sisters. She didn't have a good word to say about them.'

Grayson held up a sheet of paper with an old newspaper clipping printed on it. 'Did she mention this?'

Dakota took the paper and scanned the article. 'She and her sister Leda were involved in a car accident a few years ago, so what?'

Grayson handed him another piece of paper that was an image of a hospital. 'This is where Leda lives.'

'What do you mean "lives"? Is she a nurse?'

'Nope, a patient. After the car crash she went into a coma and she's never come out of it. Her condition is described as stable for a patient in a persistent vegetative state.' Grayson pa.s.sed another sheaf of paper across to Dakota. 'From what we could find out, Robyn is her legal guardian and bill payer after the insurance pays out.'

Dakota gave the papers to Jay to read. 'She didn't tell me about this.'

'She doesn't tell anyone and it certainly isn't public knowledge. It took my guys a h.e.l.l of a lot of work to dig this information out.'

'It still doesn't explain what the f.u.c.k is going on though, does it?'

'But it might.' Grayson held his gaze. 'If you really want her, you need to understand why she feels she had to go back to Damien. This might only be one part of the problem, but it certainly explains why she might need a constant supply of money.'

Jay laughed. 'It's weird, isn't it? You'd think she'd already have a few million dollars stashed away in the bank after all those years of acting.'

Dakota stood up. 'She had a mother who mismanaged the funds, a father who expected regular handouts and an older sister who drank. That's where the money went. It's amazing she even survived.'

Grayson cleared his throat. 'Yeah and don't forget her drug use, alcohol abuse and wild shopping sprees. I'm sure that ate up some of her money too.'

Dakota glared at Grayson. 'I know about all that and I don't f.u.c.king care, all right?'

'I'm just saying . . .'

'You're just saying she might not be the best person for me, but you know what? She likes me. She lets me be myself. I don't have to pretend to be perfect with her.'

Jay chuckled. 'We can see that. She certainly brings out your bad-boy side. If you'd hit Damien any harder you'd be doing time now.'

Dakota sighed. 'I'm not meaning to sound ungrateful, here. You've been really helpful. All that stuffyou dug up . . .'

'Yeah, who'd have thought Grayson would be successful in the romance counseling area?' Jay said. 'After the way he nearly f.u.c.ked up his own marriage, it's almost amusing.'

'Shut up, Jay.' Dakota and Grayson spoke in unison and Jay held up his hands.

Dakota sat back down. 'Now if I only knew where she lived.'

Grayson handed him the folder and slapped him on the back. 'It's all in here, buddy. Good luck. Give me a call if you need anything.'

Dakota held Grayson's gaze. 'I might have to, but I promise I'll pay you back, however long it takes.'

'No worries, that's what families are for, right?'

For the first time Dakota realized that Robyn might understand that irrevocable bond as well as he did. He took a deep breath and stared up at Grayson as the glimmerings of an idea started to take shape in his head.

Chapter Twenty-One.

So she'd done it again. Permanently f.u.c.ked up her life, hurt a man who cared for her and annoyed the h.e.l.l out of Damien, the guy who held her future in his hands. What else could go wrong? Robyn rubbed at her eyes and stared out of the window of the coffee house.

After Dakota had launched himself at Damien she'd escaped through the screaming crowds, picked up her backpack and simply ran. It had taken her four blocks to slow down and find somewhere inconspicuous to hide. Difficult when you were wearing a hooker's dress and your make-up was smeared over your face from crying. But there it was. She'd been sitting there all night.

Her pleasure at watching Damien go down had been short-lived. What would he do to her now? Refuse to help her out at all? And was that a good or a bad thing? She still had to provide for Leda and she needed a job. She put her coffee mug down on the checked countertop.

It was time to move on. Time to get back to her apartment and at least pack up her stuff. If she was able to sell her apartment quickly, she'd at least have some funds to see Leda through until she managed to sort out her own life. With a sigh she contemplated her living options. Her mother or her older sister, Wren? Neither of them would be pleased to see her but, h.e.l.l, she had no choice and they owed her big time.

Robyn picked up her backpack, slid a tip under her mug and headed for the door. Sunlight streamed through the gla.s.s making her wince. Ignoring the curious glances of the early-morning business commuters and tourists, she joined the line for the bus that went out to the coast. A newspaper headline and a photograph of Damien, mouth opened wide as he screamed like a girl caught her attention. She read the words out loud, realized she wanted to laugh hysterically.

'Leaving her nest too soon? Reclusive star causes chaos at local hotel.'

If he was with her, Dakota would've been laughing like a drain. Robyn clamped her lips tight as a pang of longing swamped her. Where was he right now? Had the police locked him up? Did she need to go and bail him out? The bus turned the corner and she hesitated. He didn't need her. His family would make sure nothing bad happened to him. She got on the bus, paid her fare and sat down.

Would Damien be at the apartment? Somehow she doubted it. He had his own place, but he'd probably go into work just so that people would feel sorry for him. Her best option, after cleaning herself up, would be to go to his office, let him say his piece, preferably in front of witnesses, and then disappear. She rested her head against the sun-warmed gla.s.s, felt the throb of the bus shudder through her. The question was, would his hurt pride, or fear of Dakota be enough to make him let her go?

Another thought occurred to her. They said all publicity was good publicity. Perhaps she could swing this sudden interest in her appearance into an opportunity to get what she wanted for a change.

Her apartment was silent, still in need of a good clean, but at least it was hers. Her first act was to call a locksmith, the second to take a shower and get back into her own clothes. By the time the locksmith arrived, she was knee deep in cleaning fluids, determined to erase Damien's obnoxious presence from her s.p.a.ce. From the variety of cheap lingerie she'd found draped around the furniture, Damien had used her apartment for f.u.c.king his many girlfriends rather than actually living there.

'Are you spring-cleaning, lady?'

Brad, the locksmith, whistled cheerfully as he changed the exterior lock, one eye on Robyn as she mopped the hallway.

'You could say that.' Robyn smiled at him and inhaled the heady scent of Mr Clean.

'You look kind of familiar, are you on the TV?'

'Not anymore. I used to be a long time ago. I'm Robyn Sparrow.'

For once, Robyn didn't mind offering the information up. She was moving out today so even if the guy talked to the tabloids, they'd never find her.

'Is that right? I loved your show.' He pointed his drill at her. 'You should write a book, tell all your fans how you ended up cleaning houses for a living.'

Robyn found herself smiling. 'You know? I should.'

After paying Brad and finishing cleaning the bathroom, Robyn called Betty, her realtor, and arranged to put the apartment on the market. She'd decided to leave the furniture for now. Apparently, apartments sold better if they looked lived in and she was one extremely motivated seller.

She slumped down on to the couch and checked the time, couldn't believe it was already three. A huge yawn overtook her and she covered her mouth.

'd.a.m.n, it's way too late to go to Damien's office and I'm too tired to face him anyway. I'll call Mom and take a nap.'

No one could hear her so why was she talking out loud? She'd gotten too used to having Dakota around to answer her. She stared at the phone. Was it worth calling the hotel and checking if he was OK? She gripped the receiver so hard her fingers hurt. No, she had to stop thinking about him and call her mom. Robyn took a deep breath and dialed the familiar number.

'Mom, is that you?'

'Who is this?'

Even though her mother couldn't see her, Robyn found herself forcing a smile. 'It's me, Robyn.'

'Robyn, what on earth have you been doing? I saw you on Entertainment Express!'

'Nothing much, Mom, but I do need to see you. Can I come over this evening?'

There was a long pause, the sound of ice clinking in a gla.s.s, the sound of her childhood being washed down her mother's throat.

'Well, Kevin isn't very fond of visitors, darling. Can I meet you somewhere else tomorrow for lunch?'

'I'm not a visitor though, am I? I'm your daughter and I'd like to see you in your home.' Robyn tried to keep her tone light and reasonable. 'Kevin can always go out if he doesn't like it.'

Kevin was her mother's fourth husband, an idiot about Robyn's age. He wasn't that stupid though; he'd tried to dominate Robyn before and lost out so she knew he wouldn't put up much of a fight. She swallowed hard. Her mother was just using him as an excuse to get out of seeing her own daughter.

'But the pool guy is coming today . . .'

Robyn gripped the phone so hard it almost shot out of her hand. 'It's OK, Mom. I promise I won't fight you for him.'

'There's no need to be crude, Robyn.'

'Mom, I just need to talk to you, OK? It's important.' She shut her eyes tight. 'There might be some money in it for you.'

'All right, then.' Her mother sighed. 'What time will you be here?'

'About eight. I'll see you then.'

Sometimes it was a mistake to try to force a meeting on her mother. She had a talent for avoidance that amazed Robyn. But she had three spare rooms in her house and Robyn only needed one of them.

'Bye, Mom.'

Robyn put the phone down and yawned again. She'd take a nap, dump her things over at her mother's house, presenting her with a fait accompli, and move on from there. She stared at the phone. Did Dakota even know her home number? What if he tried to call and she didn't answer?

Feeling slightly stupid, she quickly recorded a new outgoing phone message, erasing Damien's voice and put the phone back. Dakota wouldn't call and she wouldn't answer if he did, but it seemed she couldn't completely give up hope.

Bright and early the next morning, Robyn removed her sungla.s.ses and stepped into Damien's office. She'd been surprised to be ushered straight in. She'd expected him to make her wait as some kind of punishment. To her secret delight, Damien still looked a little puffy in the face. A large swathe of sticking plaster decorated his cheek and top lip. She pretended to gasp.

'Damien, what happened to you?'

'You know d.a.m.n well what happened.' He scowled at her and then winced. 'Your f.u.c.king boyfriend physically abused and threatened me and what did the cops do? Nothing!'

'They let him go?'

Damien sat back down. 'They let him off with a f.u.c.king misdemeanor. I was thinking of siccing my lawyers on him, but, that's not going to happen now.'

'That's good to know.' Robyn took the chair opposite him and settled herself into it. No point in standing up when he laid into her. She smiled. 'So what happens now? Isn't this the part when you scream at me that I'll never work in this town again and have me thrown out on the street?'

Damien bared his teeth. 'I'd like nothing more than to do that to you, you stupid b.i.t.c.h, but it seems I can't.' He gestured at some paperwork on his desk. 'I've got a letter for us both to sign ending our professional relationship. So sign it and get the h.e.l.l away from me.'

Robyn stared at him. 'What did you say?'

'I said sign and leave. Are you deaf as well as stupid?'

'But don't you want to work with me now? After all that publicity last night don't you think people might be interested in what happened to Robyn Sparrow? We could go after that book deal I mentioned or send me on the talk-show circuit.'

She'd hate having to work with him, but for the money and her own agenda? She'd force herself.

Damien shoved the sheet of paper in her direction. 'I'd rather work with a scorpion. Sign this and we're done.'

Robyn got up and walked across to the desk. She picked up the paper and read it. 'This all looks perfectly legal and straightforward.'

'Yeah, so what?'

'So I don't trust you.'

'Christ, lady, it's not hard to understand. I just want to be rid of you, OK?'

She studied him for a long while, noticed he was sweating and the trembling in his fingers. 'Why?'

He shrugged. 'Because you're a liability, that's why. So sign the paper and f.u.c.k off and that's the end of it.'

Robyn slowly signed her name on both copies and dated them. Damien grabbed them, signed below her name and handed one back. Still frowning, Robyn folded the paper and put it in her purse. This was going way too well. Did he plan to have her murdered on the way out?

'There's one more thing, Damien.'

'What's that?'

'The p.o.r.n flick I supposedly made with Jack.'

'What p.o.r.n flick?' Damien tried to look confused but he was an agent, not an actor. 'I don't remember any p.o.r.n flick.'

'So Leda didn't see a movie of me and Jack having s.e.x just before she crashed her car?'