by Cat Johnson
"Sure. No problem."
He glanced back at Nick. "You're going to have to fill out some forms with human resources if you want to get paid."
"Will do. Thanks." Nick nodded.
Rule number one of subterfuge—act like you're supposed to be there and people won't question it.
It worked like a charm today. Dave took off to do one of his one hundred things, leaving Nick behind.
The moment Dave was out of sight, Dani spun to him. "What the hell?"
He lifted one shoulder. "It was the best way I could think of to be able to help you figure out what happened to the bride."
"But can you do that? Be a guard here?" she asked.
"Sure. I'm on medical leave for the next three weeks. I've got nothing else to do."
And besides, working here was a good excuse to be close to Dani. Not to mention, he was already bored out of his mind and this was only day two of his three-week medical leave.
This little show, even without today’s excitement over the missing bride, didn't look like it was going to be boring. That was for sure.
"Okay." Dani shook her head. "You know, I might not like you very much on most days, but you've got some balls on you, Nicholas Nelson."
Dani talking about his balls, even jokingly, hit too close to home. It brushed right up against his feelings about her.
That was problematic because, as she'd said, she hated him on most days. And she frustrated him to no end, in so many ways.
Exasperating. That's what she was.
He didn't know if he wanted to kiss her or spank her. Hell, actually, now that he thought about it, doing both would be hella hot.
And now he had a hard-on.
It was going to be interesting working on set with her. Very interesting.
“So what now?” she asked, bringing him back to the current situation.
"I want to start searching the beach. And her room too, if I can get in there."
She paused and glanced at him. "So we're really doing this? Having you pretend you're a guard?"
"Well, to be fair, I only said I was an experienced operator, and that is perfectly true. Dave assumed the rest. But yeah, we're really doing this."
She drew in a breath and he valiantly did not look at the rise of her breasts beneath her shirt. "All right. Let's do it."
Anywhere, anytime, sweetheart.
The thought flew into his mind, and unlike most times, he welcomed it.
He'd hesitated ten years ago. But now, he was ready. The next step was to see if she was.
TWELVE
Dani watched Nick in his capacity as pseudo-fake security guard take control of the situation, organizing a search party on the beach.
Bridesmaids, groomsmen and the groom were all walking the shoreline with drinks in their hands while calling Katia's name.
It might have been comical, if the situation wasn't so dire.
Considering who Nick had to work with—a bunch of drunk, half-dressed drama queens—the search actually seemed pretty efficient. They managed to cover miles of shoreline, but still no bride.
He returned to the beach house looking grim.
"Nothing?" Dani asked, knowing the answer before he said it.
"Nope." He let out a sigh. "I'm going to call the Coast Guard. We need eyes in the sky and boats on the water looking for her."
Her eyes widened. "I don't think the producers—"
His brows drew low over his ocean-colored eyes. "Fuck the producers. There's only so long someone can be in the ocean before—"
"Before they're dead." Dani finished his bleak thought with a sigh of her own. "All right. Maybe we should call."
There was no maybe about it, and Dani realized even that small hesitation on her part proved this job had changed her. Her values. Her sense of reality.
It was more important to leave no stone unturned to find Katia. Nick was right. Fuck the producers.
She shook her head. "I don't even know how to contact the Coast Guard. Do I like Google the number?" she asked.
Nick pulled out his cell. "I've got a contact."
Of course he did. Nick had already proven in just a couple of hours that he was more skilled than she'd ever given him credit for.
It was annoying as hell.
She'd been comfortably assuming he was just a pretty face, coasting through life by being able to pass the Navy's tests because he'd always been a jock.
But now it seemed he was more than someone who could run fast and do a lot of push-ups. He was smart too. And capable and efficient. A good leader. More than that, he was someone people actually wanted to follow.
She'd have to reevaluate her opinion about Nick later, because she had other things to worry about now. Namely how Nick was probably about to get her fired by calling in the Coast Guard after the producers had expressed, in no uncertain terms, they didn't want this to get out.
Not to the authorities. Not to the press.
Maybe losing this job wouldn't be the worst thing to happen to her. She watched him hit a contact on his phone's screen and press the cell to his ear.
"Oh, my God. It's Katia!"
Dani spun at the sound of the high-pitched cry and she saw one of the show’s three Brittanys standing and pointing toward the driveway.
Her gaze moved past Brittany B and there, stumbling up the drive toward them, was Katia.
“Nick, hang up that call,” she said before taking a step forward, toward the miraculously reappeared missing bride.
Katia definitely looked like she'd been through an ordeal. Dressed in dusty, sweat-stained pajamas, she was barely remaining upright as she dragged her bare, bloodied feet.
Nick sprinted past, knocking Dani in the shoulder and almost off balance in an effort to get to the formerly missing girl.
He was the first to reach Katia, even before her fiancé or any of the show's crew. He made it just in time to catch her as she collapsed to the ground, scooping her up in his arms.
"Camera one, get a close-up of Katia. Camera two, I want a wide shot of the cast watching Katia with . . . who the fuck is that, anyway? Camera three, get me a close-up of Superman there." Her shots set up, Maria spun until her gaze landed on her assistant director. "Dave, find out who the hell that guy is."
"He's the new security guard Dani hired." Dave willingly offered up the information that could get Dani fired if the truth came out.
Dani braced herself for the fallout as Maria turned to her. "You hired him?"
Uh, oh.
"Uh, yes. Dave said you wanted to hire security and I know Nick and he's on medical leave . . . uh . . . so he was available." Dani's nervous diarrhea of the mouth hit her hard.
She almost spilled he was a SEAL. Maria would have jumped all over that angle, and she didn't know if Nick was breaking any military rules working here.
More than that, was he even allowed to be on camera? Were SEALs like undercover or could they be seen?
Shit. So many questions, none of which she had answers for. She'd spilled way too much already.
She could have just said yes. One word. That would have done it. Yes, she'd hired him.
Crap.
"Good job." Maria nodded, looking actually impressed before she turned back to the scene playing out in front of them. "Nick! Take her directly to her bedroom."
Why did the thought of Nick carrying Katia to her bedroom like this was the love scene in a sappy movie make Dani’s stomach hurt?
She took a step forward. "Wait. Don't you think she should go to the hospital?"
"Eventually," Maria said without turning around. "After we get a shot of Prince Charming taking her to bed."
It was nuts. Though it made sense. Nick was born to be in front of the camera. Handsome, but at the same time rugged and real. Manly, with a body built like an ad for a gym. And those eyes of his—they'd look amazing on camera, even as he glared at the lens currently stuck in his face by Wes on camera three.
Maria was positioning him
as another temptation for Katia, in addition to the groomsmen. Dani could see Maria’s plan clearly and she hated it.
She turned to follow behind the cast and crew, determined to keep an eye on this situation.
The arbor, set up for the wedding ceremony that wouldn't happen for another three weeks, if at all, caught her eye.
She was transported back to the heartache, anger and disappointment of ten years ago.
Another wedding. Another opportunity for Nick to swoop in, play the hero, and make her feel all squishy inside toward him, before he rejected her again, breaking her heart and her spirit.
And just like last time, she'd brought this on herself by asking for his help.
The parallels between then and now were too strangely similar to ignore. Only this time, with adult feelings and desires, Dani might not recover when he eventually left her feeling unwanted and unworthy.
Worse, this time she might have to watch him hooking up with Katia.
Crap. What had she done?
THIRTEEN
"She needs to go to the hospital," Nick protested, not for the first time.
The director motioned him to come closer. He glanced back at the bed where the disoriented Katia lay, her doting fiancé Carl hovering over her. Brittany B stood right behind him.
Nick had learned about the three Brittanys during the search and had made a point of remembering their designations.
Brittany B—B for boobs, which were more out than in her shirt—handed the groom a bottle of water. He cracked the top and helped Katia drink it.
Nick turned to Maria. "She needs a doctor. Besides being dehydrated, she should have a tox screen."
"She'll have a doctor."
"When?" he asked, knowing the answer already. When they'd gotten all the camera shots they needed.
"We'll help clean her up and get her dressed," Diamond, hovering nearby, offered.
Brittany S—S for smartass was how Nick kept her straight—nodded. "Yeah. When she's better, she'll lose her shit if we let her go out in public looking like that."
Maria ignored Nick and his concerns in favor of directing camera one to make sure to get a tight shot on the groom's face as he tended to his bride.
"What makes you think she needs a tox screen?" Dani asked.
Nick turned to see Dani had crept up behind him. "There's something in her system. That's obvious. She have a habit or a history of drug use?" he asked.
"No. Not that I know of. She's been fine so far."
He sucked in air through his teeth. "That's almost worse."
"Why?" she asked.
"Because if she didn't take something on her own, that means somebody slipped it to her."
Dani cringed. "That's bad."
"Yeah, it is."
Dani hesitated a moment, watching him and looking like she wanted to say something. Finally she said, "I'm glad you're here."
He couldn't help his smile. He figured he shouldn't feel bad about that. Any sort of appreciation from Dani was too elusive, too rare, to not enjoy it the scarce few times it happened.
"I'm glad I'm here too." He reached out and brushed a piece of hair out of her eye.
Her gaze locked on his as she drew in a stuttering breath through her parted lips. It was all he could do to not bend down and claim her mouth.
Hell, he even leaned in, just slightly, before common sense prevailed.
Not the place. Definitely not the time. But soon, if he had anything to do with it.
"The ambulance is ready," Dave announced.
They could have just driven her to the hospital themselves. But Nick didn't bother to question it. He knew what the answer would be. An ambulance would make for good TV—all those flashing lights and EMTs rushing around.
Yup, half a day here and he'd already gotten the lay of the land. A land he'd hopefully never have to visit again when this was done.
But he'd endure it now, for Dani.
"Okay, I want camera one at the hospital with Katia and Carl. Cameras two and three, stay here. Normal schedule resumes as of now," Maria shouted.
"Normal schedule?" Nick asked.
"Lots of drinking," Dani answered. "And I think there's a volleyball game scheduled for this evening on the beach along with a luau, and of course more drinking. Then there are the private confession cam sessions for all the cast. They're a daily requirement."
And these people got paid for this? And other people subscribed to the channel to watch it? Ridiculous.
Nick shook his head.
He hadn't even commented but still Dani let out a huff and said, "I know. I know. I shouldn't have taken this job."
He reached out and squeezed her shoulder. He didn't like seeing her like this. Down on herself and on her job.
"Dani, you're going to make this shit show great. They need you." He smiled. "And just think. Anything else you do after this will seem like a dream job in comparison, right?"
"If I make it through this show without getting fired."
His eyes met hers. "You will. One hurdle at a time."
Her gaze dropped to his knee brace. "You should know about hurdles."
He laughed. There was his strong, smart mouthed Dani, back again and not letting him get away with anything.
Damn, he'd missed her.
"Nick!"
At the sound of his name, he turned and saw Maria walking toward him.
"What's up?"
"I want you to go to the hospital with Katia and Carl."
He frowned. "Why?"
He'd been planning on looking around for some evidence once Katia was gone. Search her room. Maybe find what she'd taken, or how it had been slipped to her, before the scene got contaminated by housekeeping or one of the cast or crew.
And he still wanted to look at last night’s recordings for himself.
"Why?" Maria cocked one dark brow high as she parroted his question. "Because I'm the director and I asked you to go, that's why."
He could follow orders as good as the next sailor, but not when they came with a dose of attitude and from someone he didn't respect.
Oh, man, was it a good thing this wasn't his real job, because he'd be out of work and on the unemployment line. But he was here for Dani. And he'd suck it up, for her.
A forced smile. A nod. An oh so polite, "Yes, ma'am." Then Nick turned and with one final glance back toward Dani, looking as unhappy as he felt, he followed the path the EMTs had taken with Katia on the gurney.
Beer and boredom while recuperating at his brother's house for the next three weeks was looking better and better.
FOURTEEN
"So we still have no idea what happened to Katia?" Joanne, the big boss from the production company, was on set when Dani arrived, and she was questioning Maria.
After being early every damn day since they’d started, it figured the one time Dani was late, the EP would be here.
Dani was exhausted and had forgotten to set the alarm on her cell last night. The good news was, with Joanne on set from the Burbank office, no one noticed when Dani strolled in last.
The bad news was, Joanne didn't appear happy.
Neither did Maria, judging by her scowl.
Nick was already there. Of course he was. Damn punctual SEAL.
He was probably not happy to be there though, since it looked like Maria was about to throw him under the bus. Stone-faced, she motioned toward him as she answered her boss’s question.
"I hired outside security," Maria said to Joanne. "This is Nick."
Joanne leveled her gaze on Nick. "And what have you found out?"
Uh, oh. Dani held her breath and waited.
At least he didn't really need this job. And she doubted that being fired from a low-level, temporary security guard position while on medical leave would matter to his career in the SEALs.
With a nod, Nick stepped forward and began. "A preliminary toxicology report just came back from the blood they took at the hospital.”
“It did?” M
aria frowned. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
Dani couldn’t blame Maria for being snippy with Nick. This was the first she was hearing of this report too.
“I called in a favor and got a rush put on it. This was waiting here when I arrived this morning. I was just bringing it to you.” He handed over a large overnight delivery envelope.
Maria didn’t look thrilled to be in the dark while her security guard seemed to have all the information, but she took the envelope without comment.
“The initial tox screen shows Katia had Rohypnol in her system,” he continued.
“Somebody roofied her?” Joanne asked, wide eyed.
He shrugged. “Knowing the drug’s half-life in the body, the substance was most likely consumed shortly before she went to bed the night she disappeared.”
Watching him now. So capable. So efficient. The wall Dani had built around her heart when it came to Nick Nelson crumbled a tiny bit.
"I reviewed the recordings from the cameras around the property from the hours leading up to Katia's disappearance and during the night," he continued.
"You reviewed the recordings?" Maria asked, sounding as shocked as Dani by that news.
"Yes, ma'am. I worked with your assistant editor to pull the correct footage."
Maria shot a glare at Dave, who shrugged. “You said to do whatever it took to find out what happened.”
Apparently done with Maria side-tracking the conversation, Nick turned his attention back to Joanne. "The recordings showed her leaving the common area and entering her bedroom. We have no tape for the twenty-minutes she spent in the bathroom. After she came out of the bathroom, she got into bed. She got up again shortly after, stumbled, dropped her phone on the floor, and then left the room and the property on foot. She has no memory of anything after she went to bed.”
Joanne sighed. “So we still know nothing.”
“Aside from now knowing what was in her system, yes, ma’am. That’s correct.”
Joanne nodded. "All right. Stay on top of this. And keep me informed." She handed Nick a business card. "Directly. You find anything, I'm your first call. Got it?"