by Alexa Aston
Rhett went around to the back of the auditorium and spotted several seat fillers standing around. He caught the eyes of one and motioned him over.
“Hey, can you do me a favor?”
“Sure, Mr. Corrigan, but your seat’s already filled. You’d probably do a better job kicking out the filler than I would.”
Rhett pulled an envelope and a hundred-dollar bill from his pocket. “I need you to get this to the woman I was sitting with. We’re on—”
“—the third row,” the guy grinned. “I can do that.” He pocketed the Franklin and paused.
“Would you maybe take a look at a screenplay I’ve done?” The guy smiled sheepishly and shrugged. “Nothing ventured, nothing gained.”
“What’s your name?”
“Randy Barr. With two R’s.”
Rhett smiled. “Well, Randy Barr with two R’s, call me in two weeks. I’ll see what I can do. Got your cell?”
Randy pulled it from his pocket and Rhett programmed in his office number. After his Rohypnol disaster, he’d made sure he knew his numbers now. All of them.
“Remember—two weeks. Not a second before or all bets are off.”
“Got it.” The wannabe screenwriter grinned and hurried down the aisle to deliver the note.
Cassie met him outside within minutes.
“What’s up, Corrigan? They’re about to announce Best Picture and we’re standing outside? Your note said we’re off to celebrate. I don’t think the after parties start until after the show’s over.”
“I’ve got a better idea.” Rhett grabbed Cassie’s hand and rushed her along the pavement.
“Corrigan, hold up.” Cassie stopped and pulled off her Manolos. “If you’re in that much of a hurry, I can keep up now. Unless we have time for me to stop and shop for running shoes. Then I might actually pull ahead of you,” she teased.
He led her a few blocks away to where Johnny stood outside their limo. The driver swept the door open.
“Congratulations on the big win, Mr. Corrigan. That little man looks made for your mantel.”
“Thank you, Johnny,” Rhett replied.
“And kudos for the Best Picture win,” the driver added.
“What?” Cassie cried out. “Did you say Best Picture win?”
Johnny grinned. “I’ve been watching the telecast on my iPad. They announced the winner just as you two turned the corner. I thought you’d want to know since apparently you left the ceremony early.”
Jubilation filled Rhett. He yanked Cassie to him for a searing kiss. One that he wished could go on and on—but they had places to be. He broke the kiss.
“What’s it like kissing an Oscar winner?” he teased.
She beamed at him. “It’s way better than kissing an Oscar loser,” she quipped and then threw her arms around him again, kissing him hard.
Rhett eased her away. “Get in the car, sweetheart. You, me, and Oscar here have places to be.”
Cassie plopped in the back seat of the limousine as Rhett sat beside her, tossing the golden statue in the seat across from them. “What gives, Corrigan? We might never be back here again. I wanted to meet Hugh Jackman and Bradley Cooper and Kate Winslet and—”
Rhett silenced her with a lingering kiss.
“Okay, I guess you’re better than Hugh Jackman but why the rush?”
“We’ve got a plane to catch.”
She looked baffled. “A plane? Where are we going? I haven’t packed anything.”
“I’ve taken care of everything. I packed for you. Anything I left out, we’ll buy when we get there.”
“Where’s there, Corrigan? If I’m going to miss out on Oscar night bashes then it better be good. Really, really good.”
“We’ve got a wedding to get to. It’s after nine now. We’re barely going to make our flight. To Hawaii, by the way.”
Rhett could see understanding dawn on Cassie’s face.
“Where in Hawaii?” she asked, snuggling up to him.
“Maui. We’ll get there in time for sunrise on the beach.” Rhett pulled two gold bands from his pocket. “We’ll need to give these to Breck and Jo. They should’ve left right after you. Breck had a cab waiting for them. We’ll meet up at LAX.”
He put the wedding bands back in his pocket. “I asked you this a long time ago but I thought I better do it again just in case.”
Rhett got down on one knee in the limo and took her hand in his.
“Will you marry me, Cassie Carroll?”
Cassie’s smile showered him with all the love in the world.
“Maui. At sunrise. On the beach.”
He nodded.
“You are the most romantic man on the planet, Corrigan. How did I ever get so lucky? I thought in the beginning you were nothing but a slick, Hollywood heartbreaker.”
Rhett climbed back onto the seat and pulled Cassie into his arms for a searing kiss.
“That seals the deal, sweetheart.” He poured them a glass of champagne. “Here’s to our future, Cassie Corrigan.”
Rhett knew it would be one filled with love.
About The Author
Alexa Aston
Award-winning and internationally bestselling author Alexa Aston lives with her husband in a Dallas suburb, where she eats her fair share of dark chocolate and plots out stories while she walks every morning. She’s a binge fiend (The Crown and Ozark are favorites) who enjoys travel, sports, and time with her family.
Her historical romances bring to life loveable rogues and dashing knights, while her contemporary romances are light and flirty and sometimes contain a bit of suspense.
Alexa appreciates readers who take the time to leave a short, honest review of her books on Amazon.
Hollywood Name Game
Meet the men of Hollywood and the women they fall for in Hollywood Name Game—five romances sprinkled with humor and a few laced with a bit of suspense—but all guarantee a satisfactory, happily ever after for these couples.
After all, anything can happen in Hollywood . . .
*Each book in the series is a standalone romance that can be read out of order.
Hollywood Heartbreaker (Hollywood Name Game Book 1)
Being late to an interview lands her the biggest job opportunity of her life.
He may be rich and successful—but he’s just this side of miserable.
Can a wannabe be The One for the biggest star in Hollywood?
Cassie Carroll came to Hollywood with big dreams that never materialized. Acting isn’t even on the back burner anymore—it’s completely off the stove. Working for a third-rate agent, Cassie hopes to land a new job that will give her credibility, as well as help pay the rent. Late to her interview, she swerves to avoid hitting a dog—and totals the car of Hollywood’s leading action superstar. Surprisingly, she walks away from their encounter with a job—as the sexiest man alive’s personal assistant.
Rhett Corrigan is bored with the movies he makes and the drop-dead gorgeous model he’s dating. He’s afraid that Hollywood has typecast him—and that he’ll never be able to break out of his action mold and try new acting challenges. When Cassie Carroll literally slams into his life, she brings a breath of fresh air and common sense to his world. She pushes him to be a better actor and a better man.
Can these friends become lovers—and can their love survive—in a tabloid-happy town that thrives on rumors and backstabbing?
Hollywood Flirt (Hollywood Name Game Book 2)
She’s Hollywood royalty whose trail vanished a dozen years ago.
He doesn’t do relationships and thinks commitment is a four-letter word.
They Google each other . . . and sparks fly . . .
Sydney Revere, the daughter of a famous movie couple, left Hollywood behind over a decade ago. Christened The Wild Child by the media, she reinvents herself as a serious student who becomes an attorney and marries a safe, predictable man. When her husband cheats on her and the law loses its glitter, Sydney returns to Hollywood. Her father hi
res her to storyboard his upcoming movie, No Regrets—and then stuns Sydney when he offers her the job as his assistant director.
Dash DeLauria is a rising actor who hasn’t trusted a woman since his mother left. He’s now the guardian of his mentally-challenged brother. Dash is looking to grow professionally and after he wins the lead in No Regrets, he finds he’s lost his heart and soul to Sydney. With both their careers on the upswing, life is sweet.
But Sydney’s ex-husband isn’t finished with her yet. Discovering who she really is—and that she’s wealthy—he tracks her to California, ready to start over with her again.
No matter what it takes . . .
Hollywood Player (Hollywood Name Game Book 3)
She has zero friends . . . and is wary of men, living life as a recluse.
His only friend is 90 and when she dies, he’s adrift.
Can a dyslexic actor and a shy loner find happiness together?
Famous from the time she was fourteen, London Russell lands the cover of Sports Illustrated to cap off her modeling career. Leaving the fashion world behind, she follows her dream of becoming a singer-songwriter. Thanks to an ex-boyfriend’s vicious attack on her, London becomes a recluse who turns out hits but never tours—and can’t trust a man. Her life changes course when she encounters a Hollywood screenwriter and director and agrees to write the theme song for their next movie.
Knox Monroe grew up as America’s darling, a child actor featured on several popular television series. After his mother’s betrayal, Knox drops out of sight, returning years later to make the successful transition to adult roles. A known womanizer and loner, Knox meets London by chance. Through her connections, he winds up with the lead role in a new movie.
Will London be able to open her heart and move past Knox’s player reputation? And will Knox knock down the emotional fortress that he’s built around his heart?
In Hollywood, anything’s possible. . .
Hollywood Double (Hollywood Name Game Book 4)
She’s a Hollywood leading lady who’s never found love – except with Jax, her Basenji.
He’s divorced from a cheating wife and refuses to ever give his heart away again.
Together, their smoking-hot chemistry leads to movie magic . . . and murder . . .
Mac Randall’s life turns upside down when he walks in on his wife and her lover. He finishes his tour of duty overseas and leaves the army, becoming a popular stuntman in Hollywood. When the actor Mac doubles for is murdered, Mac is surprised to find himself cast as the film’s leading man—at the suggestion of the actress who will play opposite him.
Keely Kennedy has built a solid career in Hollywood, rising from supporting roles to leading lady, but she’s been unlucky in love. She becomes close friends with Mac Randall, her new co-star, while she helps him prepare for his first on-screen role. Friendship blossoms into love during their shoot and despite several mishaps on the set, she knows not only has she done the best work in her career on this film, but she believes Mac will become an instant star.
Before production is complete, though, the murderer surfaces—ready to kill the film—and its two stars.
Hollywood Enigma (Hollywood Name Game Book 5)
She’s a legal shark—sleek and deadly—but doesn’t trust anyone beyond her small circle of family and friends.
He’s internationally famous—and yet a mystery to the world as he cloaks himself in privacy.
Can they shed their fears and open their hearts to one another?
Actor Wynn Gallagher is at the peak of his fame, playing superhero Carbon Man in the Alpha Tharra Universe film franchise. While the role has made him wealthy, he’s ready to move on to newer challenges—but his ironclad contract will keep him tied to the role for years to come. Seeking legal advice, he approaches Scarlett Corrigan, one of the top entertainment attorneys in Los Angeles.
Scarlett is the younger sister of Hollywood’s highest paid actor, Rhett Corrigan, but she’s made a name for herself in entertainment law. She thrives on challenges and readily accepts Wynn as a client, but she puts the brakes on the strong attraction between them, not wanting to mix business with pleasure.
Eventually, Wynn and Scarlett become involved but tragedy strikes not once, but twice, threatening to end their relationship before it has a chance to grow and flourish.
Can Wynn and Scarlett overcome overwhelming odds and find lasting love?
Books By This Author
To Heal an Earl (Soldiers & Soulmates Book 1)
Both wronged by their families . . . two souls alone in the world . . .
Instead of making her come-out during the upcoming London Season, Lady Charlotte Nott finds herself tossed from her home after her father’s untimely death by a vengeful half-brother. Penniless, she makes her way in a world new to her, first serving as a companion and then governess to the three children of Lord Crampton. When the earl dies moments after hiring her, Charlotte takes on the running of Gray Manor’s household and estate until the children’s new guardian arrives.
Guilt weighs heavily on Major Danforth Grayson, having lost too many men under his command over the years. When he receives word of the death of the brother who wronged him, Gray returns home, bitter with the hand life has dealt him. He intends to hire competent people to manage the estate and care for his nephew and nieces and retreat to a solitary life in London—until he meets the inimitable Miss Nott.
Charlotte is drawn to Gray but knows she is no longer of his world. When he suddenly becomes the new Lord Crampton, she knows it’s time to leave her charges behind—for what woman would care to watch the man she loves wed another and start a family as she suffers in silence? Yet Charlotte knows Gray is a broken man and her leaving might shatter him forever.
Can Charlotte walk away from a flawed man who desperately needs her, or will she leave before she loses her own soul?
To Tame a Rogue (Soldiers & Soulmates Book 2)
A spy with a guilty conscience. A war widow who works for the government. Both united to bring down a ring of traitors . . .
To prevent her father from marrying her off to an elderly suitor, Lady Gemma Barton begs her childhood friend to marry her, devising a way for them to be found in a compromising position. Gemma weds Rob, who then departs to serve on Wellesley’s staff in the war against Bonaparte.
Gemma’s new father-in-law soon has her working for the British government, deciphering enemy codes.
Burke Nicholson serves in the Peninsular War as a soldier and spy, using his charisma and charm to gather intelligence. After he’s rescued from being captured and tortured, Burke lives with survivor’s guilt, believing he did something to compromise his latest mission which got his partner killed. He returns to London to continue his spy work, where he is partnered with Gemma and tasked to find a group of traitors within the War Office. The trouble is that Gemma is the widow of Burke’s former partner. Not only did he get her husband killed, but Burke fears their dangerous assignment might also end Gemma’s life.
The pair fight their growing attraction to one another as they draw closer to finding the rebels trying to topple the British government.
Will Gemma ever be able to forgive Burke for his role in her husband’s death, and will Burke ever be able to forgive himself?
To Trust a Duke (Soldiers & Soulmates Book 3)
A soldier returning from war. A war widow who’s created a new life for herself. An attraction that brings them together . . .
Forced to marry a stranger after one chaste kiss, Lady Ashlyn Dunwood spends a single night with her new husband before his regiment ships off to war. She gives birth to a son and loses the boy four years later in a tragic accident, only to learn she’s also a war widow. Ashlyn invests her settlement and what’s left of her shattered heart in Dunwood Academy, a school for troubled boys. When a devastatingly handsome duke begs her to take on his wayward half-brothers as pupils, Ashlyn is up for the challenge—but finds herself fighting her attraction to the arrogant
nobleman.
Colonel Reid Baker arrives home from the Peninsular War and finds himself the Duke of Gilford, assuming his new responsibilities and placing his rebellious half-brothers at a local academy. Knowing he’ll need an heir, he sets his sights on the headstrong, confident Lady Dunwood, who claims she’ll never wed again. Convincing the dowager countess to marry him becomes Reid’s mission, as he jumps every hurdle Ashlyn places in his way—and along that way, the cool-headed former army officer loses his heart to the intelligent beauty.
Will Reid break through the walls Ashlyn has erected around her and teach her to live—and love?
To Save a Love (Soldiers & Soulmates Book 4)
Both wronged by their fathers . . . two damaged souls longing for love and salvation . . .
Childhood sweethearts Desmond Bretton and Anna Browning defy their powerful fathers and elope to Gretna Green when Anna is told she will marry a viscount old enough to be her grandfather. Caught before they cross the Scottish border, Dez is shipped off to the army, where he learns of Anna’s suicide. Though a dozen years pass, Dez still loves the girl who always held his heart.