Never Say Never (The Price of Fame Series) by Aimée Duffy Page A

treated you like his dirty secret pisses me off.” He met her gaze.
    Emotion’s burned from her melting amber eyes and she swallowed. “He’s not important. Thank you for caring enough to be mad.”
    Blood drained from his face and left the skin numb. Did he care about Chloe? Had it gone beyond pretend? Sure, there was attraction, but feelings? Shit, he didn’t know how to feel those things, and he figured feeling anything when he was leaving soon wouldn’t be fair to her. Wouldn’t be fair to either of them. An image of her this morning at the coffee shop came back and he saw her again with the baby girl and his heart plummeted to his feet.
    “Chloe, this is—”
    “Aren’t you going to greet your mother, Sander?”
    Ice laced through him at the vaguely familiar voice. He turned to the side to see his mother walking directly toward them. It had been five years since he’d last seen her, and he guessed a few surgeries, since she didn’t look a day over thirty-five. Her black bodycon was no doubt a ruse to show the world that even though she had a son, she hadn’t lost her precious figure. Bile twisted his stomach as he looked up into eyes filled with barely concealed hatred.
    “Aren’t you going to introduce us?” She looked at Chloe, one skeptical brow raised.
    He turned to Chloe who had retreated behind her calm, polite expression. “Chloe, this is my mother, Cassidy Chase.”
    Chloe extended her hand, but Cassidy only stared, her mouth twisting with distaste. His blood boiled. She’d been there all of two seconds and managed to put Chloe down without saying a word. Sander rose to his feet so he was towering above his mother. The way she held herself made her appear the domineering one. No wonder she had his father so whipped.
    Still conscious of the crowd around them, he tried his best to keep his anger to himself. “Our meal will be here shortly, so if you don’t mind…” you can fuck off.
    Cassidy eyed Chloe again, then snapped her thousand dollar manicured fingers in the air. A waiter appeared immediately. Cassidy never even met the man’s eyes as she barked, “Two more chairs here. My husband and I will be dining with my son.”
    He saw Chloe’s jaw clench from the corner of his eye. “Mother, we’re on a date. We’d appreciate some privacy.”
    “Nonsense, Sander. Your father and I haven’t seen you in years. Besides, we’re looking forward to getting to know your…” She flicked her gaze to Chloe. “ Date .”
    Chloe didn’t squirm under Cassidy’s cold stare, only smiled politely. He wanted to get her out of there before his parents’ poison hurt her, but he knew his mother wouldn’t let them walk out without causing a scene. She’d already drawn the attention of every person in the restaurant. Plus, Sander didn’t believe in coincidences. Not where his parents were concerned. Cassidy wouldn’t let him leave until she’d said what she came there to say.
    With a sigh, he slid back into his chair and threw Chloe an apologetic glance. She nodded and smiled wider to reassure him, and hell, there was that damn heart squeeze again.
    The waiter returned with two chairs and Cassidy slid in to Sander’s left. She turned to the waiter. “Hold their meal until we are ready to order, and bring another bottle of champagne.” She lifted the bottle he’d bought from the ice bucket and wrinkled her nose. “Please tell me this isn’t all you have.”
    “No, Mrs. Chase.” The man’s face glistened with sweat, the only indication of how much Cassidy unnerved him. “We have something for special guests.” He bowed and left.
    “Your father is in the kitchen making sure the chef tonight knows what he’s doing.”
    Sander wanted to groan. If he’d known his parents were in the UK, he’d have taken Chloe somewhere else. Somewhere like the Views Studio where he knew Cassidy wouldn’t enter if someone paid her—even if she had an ulterior motive. From what little he remembered of his