Last Dance (Rock With You #3) Rock Star Romance (5 page)

But
it was Claire’s hand that shot out, covering Logan’s hand where it lay on the
table. Melody felt a palpable jolt in her stomach at the sight of Claire’s
slender hand touching Logan’s. He didn’t pull away from her touch but he didn’t
return the gesture.

“You
were gone…with the band, on the road all the time. I was lonely. Danny would
come round, just like he did when you were home. We just…it wasn’t planned. It
just happened.”

“And
the baby? Was that planned?”

Claire
shook her head. “No. It wasn’t. Ye have to believe me, Logan.”

Logan
pulled his hand away from Claire, running it through his hair.

 “Ye
could have told me you weren’t happy, Claire. Anything but finding ye in the
arms of my best friend. Anything but that.”

Melody
leaned forward, clearing her throat. She was losing control, of the interview
and her own emotions. She wanted this to end, for Logan’s sake, and her own,
but there was still questions that needed to be answered.

“Claire.
Danny is the father?”

“Aye.
Danny is the father.”

“And
Jack Ashton told you to call Logan, to tell him the baby was his.”

“Aye.”

Melody
tapped her pen on her notepad. “Why? What was the reason for this?”

“It
was to…he said it would discredit Logan, make him look bad. He said I should go
to the papers then, tell them that Logan had denied the baby.”

 “But
the baby has nothing to do with the suit.” Logan turned to Melody. “What sense
does that make?”

Claire
shook her head. “Not discredit you with the courts. With your fans. It would be
all over the papers. He said even if you won the case, you’d have no fans left.
They’d all leave you.”

“And
insisting on meeting in public? That was Ashton’s idea as well?” Logan’s tone
was incredulous.

Claire
nodded. “He said he’d have someone taking photos, of us. Those would be in the
papers too. I was supposed to cry, make a scene.”

“My
God, the man will stop at nothing to see me ruined.” Logan turned to Melody.
“He had to know it would be easy enough to prove I’m not the father.”

Melody
sat back, blowing out a breath. “Logan…you know how the tabloids are. They’d
only print that you’d abandoned your child, with a picture of the crying mother
beneath the headline. No one would care that it wasn’t yours. You’d be tried in
the public’s eye well before anything ever went to court.” Melody turned back
to Claire.

“Miss
Blackwood, I appreciate your honesty. I know this had been hard…for you.”

“Am
I in trouble?” Her eyes darted between Logan and Melody.

“I
don’t think Mr. MacKenzie is interested in pursuing this any further.” Melody
caught Logan’s eye and he shook his head.

“No,
I’m not wanting to make this any more of a mess than it already is.”

Relief
washed across Claire’s features. She reached for Logan’s hand again, but this
time he pulled it away.

“But,
Claire, I will require you to sign a statement…a document that states the facts
as you’ve given them today, taken under oath…that states Mr. MacKenzie is not
the father of your child. And that Mr. Ashton coerced you into making a false
claim of paternity.”

“I’m
not sure…is that necessary? I…I won’t say it again, to anyone.” The confusion
on Claire’s face was clear. She looked at Logan again, her eyes questioning
him.

“Yes.
It’s necessary. It protects you and Mr. MacKenzie. This would be a very
complicated matter if we don’t make it clear, now, what the facts are. It’s for
everyone’s best interest.”

“Claire,
just do as she says. I don’t want this coming back to bite me in the arse in
the future.”

Melody
rose, collecting her notes. “I’ll have this typed and bring you something to
sign in just a few minutes.”

“Melody…who…”

“I
believe Lori is free.” She raised an eyebrow at Logan. He nodded his head.
Victoria was the last person she wanted anywhere near this document and Logan
knew that.

She
moved to the door, looking back at Logan and Claire. It took all her will power
to walk out of the room, leaving the two of them alone behind a closed door.
She shook her head.
He’s not going to ask her to marry him, Melody. She’s
out of his life…you need to trust him on that.

It
took only a few minutes for Melody to dictate the contents of the statement to
Lori, retrieve the printed copy and return to her office. But it felt as if
she’d been gone far too long.

When
she opened the door, Logan was standing by the window, Claire still sitting in
the same chair. Melody mentally chided herself for thinking anything would have
happened. Logan turned, the pain on his face somewhat lessened.

Melody
placed the paper in front of Claire, laying a pen on top of the document.

“Read
this carefully. It’s your sworn statement of fact. If anything here isn’t
accurate, tell me. Otherwise, sign here.” Melody pointed at the document. “I’ll
witness the signature.”

“Is
that it?” Claire turned to Logan. “What about…Logan? About us?”

Logan
was shaking his head. “There is nothing left Claire. You know that. It was over
from the minute you took Danny into our bed.”

“But
I thought that since…you agreed to meet…that you wanted to see me.” The tears
started again and Claire pulled another tissue from the box, sniffling as she
twisted it in her hands.

Melody
took the signed document and walked quietly behind her desk but remained
standing. Logan was still at the window, his eyes on Claire. The anger had left
his face but he looked tired, drained. His voice was flat and emotionless

“No,
Claire. Don’t read into this what’s not there. Go home, go back to your
child…to Danny, if that’s who you’re with.”

Claire
shook her head. “No. I’m not…we’re not together. He left when he found out
about the baby…that I was expecting.”

“Well,
then I’m sorry for that. But there’s nothing I can do.” He’d moved away from
the window, standing behind the edge of Claire’s desk. Melody felt his fingers
brush against hers and she involuntarily wound her fingers loosely though his.

“There’s
someone else now, Claire. I have someone else.”

“Oh.”
Claire’s voice was small, almost inaudible and her eyes moved between Logan and
Melody. “Oh…I see.”

“But
even if there weren’t someone else, ye tore my heart out, Claire. There’d be no
going back, not after what ye did.”

“I
know…I just hoped.” With a final sniffle, Claire rose, retrieving her purse
from the chair beside her. “I’ll go now. I see you’re happy. If it makes a
difference, I am sorry, Logan. I never wanted to hurt you.”

“Aye,
but you did, Claire.” The cold sound of Logan’s voice sent a shiver down Melody’s
back, and she had a brief moment of pity for Claire.

Melody
let go of Logan’s hand, walking toward the door. “Victoria can take you down to
the lobby. Let me remind you the statement you gave is under oath, and a legal
document. I would ask that you keep it confidential as well.”

Claire
turned back to Logan. “But what do I do about Mr. Ashton?”

Logan’s
laugh was harsh. “Ye could tell him to go to hell, if you’d have the mind. Ye
should have told him that in the first place. But you can tell him you’re not a
liar and not interested in ruining my career just to line his pocket.”

“If
Mr. Ashton continues to pursue you, or this campaign of lies, I’d advise hiring
an attorney of your own and handling it that way. I can’t do anything for you,
since I represent Mr. MacKenzie.” Melody glanced at Logan.

“I
think we’re through here. Thank you for your time.” Melody opened the door,
depositing the shaken Claire with Victoria.

When
she turned back, Logan was sitting down, elbows resting on the table, his head
in his hands. Melody closed the door quietly behind her. She walked behind him,
wrapping her arms around his neck, her hands resting on his chest, her head
beside his.

He
raised his head, leaning back against her, his hands over hers.

“Are
you alright?” She whispered the words against his cheek.

“I’ll
be fine. I feel like I’ve been on the losing end of a bar fight though. My head
hurts something fierce.”

“Well,
this is over. We know what she wanted…”

“Aye.
It wasn’t what she wanted though. It was what Ashton wanted…to ruin me. He’s
not satisfied with just stealing my money, he’s interested in making sure I
never make any more.”

Melody
kissed his cheek. “I know. I’m not really sure how much lower that man can
stoop.

“It’s
bad enough that he’s out to ruin me but it galls me that he would use Claire.
She’s just a simple girl from home. You saw her…she’s got no sense about how
things would have turned out.”

Logan
turned, looking up at Melody. “Thank you, Melody. For being here, for being
kind to the girl. I know this was hard for you. But you don’t know how much it
eased my mind having you here.”

The
tears she’d been trying to hold back ran down Melody’s cheeks. “It’s us together,
Logan. Always. There’s nowhere else I would have wanted to be, even though it
was hard…for both of us.”

Logan
rose, pulling her against him. “Aye. But now we know what we needed to. There
is no child, or at least no child of mine. And it was Ashton behind all of it.”

Melody
rested her cheek against Logan’s chest, breathing in the scent of his cologne,
his own warmth beneath that. She closed her eyes, savoring the feel of his arms
around her.

They
were quiet for a moment, Logan slowly running his hands over Melody’s back. As
relived as she was to find out the child was not Logan’s, something tugged at
her mind. A question she needed to ask. But she wasn’t sure she wanted to hear
the answer. She lifted her head, and his gaze met hers.

“Are
you disappointed at all? I mean, that you don’t have a child?”

Logan
brushed a stray tear away from her cheek with his thumb. “Truth? As much as I
want a child, I didn’t want one this way. By deceit or tricks, or with a woman
who slept with my best friend. A woman who dinna have enough respect for me to
stand by me. OR to leave.”

He
held her face in his hands, his eyes searching hers. “When I have a family,
it’ll be with the woman who loves me, who’s been by my side through whatever
hell has tossed at us. And that’s you, Melody. I love ye, ye ken that. You’re
the only woman I want bearing me children.”

He
bent his head, his lips finding hers. His kiss was gentle and soft, his lips
and mouth and tongue reassuring Melody more than his words ever could how he
felt. She melted into the kiss, forgetting where they were, letting Claire slip
from her mind.

A
soft knock on the door broke the moment. Melody pulled away from Logan, moving
behind her desk, as he turned toward the window.

“Come
in.”

Victoria’s
head appeared around the door frame. “Oh, I’m sorry. I thought you were alone.”

“It’s
fine. We’re almost finished here. Mr. MacKenzie was just leaving.”

“Aye.
I’m on my way out. Thank you for your…assistance today, Ms. Lawson. I’ll be in
touch.”

And
then he was gone. Victoria trailed after him for a few steps, but it was
apparent he knew his way to the lobby and wasn’t waiting for an escort. Melody
watched her in the doorway, frowning. Finally Victoria came back into Melody’s
office, papers clutched in her hand.

“Did
you need something, Victoria?”

“I
have this…” She held out a sheaf of paper. “For your review and signature. It
can be filed then, if it’s okay.”

“Thanks.
I’ll take a look.” Melody took the papers, setting it aside. She opened Logan’s
file, shuffling through the documents, looking for the packet of photographs
Ryan had shown her.

Now
that the issue with Claire had been resolved, at least for the time being, Melody
was anxious to deal with Ryan, on several fronts. To have him removed from the
case and to try and seek an out of court settlement from Ashton. And to put to
rest, if she could, the question both she and Logan had over who took the
photograph of Melody with Logan.

As
she pulled the manila envelope from the file, she realized Victoria was still
standing in her office.

“Anything
else?” Melody resisted the urge to tap her fingers on her desk. She still had
the hunch that Victoria was somehow connected with Ryan, but she had yet to put
her finger on the specifics or find a way to prove it. All she knew was that
she didn’t trust Victoria. It bothered Melody that she felt this way, without
any proof, and that it made her short-tempered with the woman. But right now,
Victoria wasn’t…couldn’t be…a priority.

“No…well,
I was just wondering. Mr. MacKenzie…is he seeing anyone?”

Melody
looked at the woman, her brow furrowing in disbelief.
What the hell is she
after now?