Dreaming With A Broken Heart (Hollywood Legends #1)

by Mary J. Williams

  “I like that,” Garrett whispered. “Go on.”

  “I close my eyes. The lights are out yet the moon is so bright the room is illuminated. I know you’re near. You circle the bed. I hear your breathing. Inside my head, I’m begging you to pull back the covers. I need your touch. It feels like you’re teasing me.”

  “Anticipation,” Garrett murmured. “You like a slow build.”

  “I want it to last,” she admitted.

  “It’s a safe bet I eventually join you in that bed.”

  “Oh, yes.”

  Jade removed her fingers long enough to show Garrett how wet she was. The sound of his swift intake of breath, the way his hand slowed, almost stuttering to a stop on his cock, gave a boost to her ego and her confidence.

  “We both pretend I’m asleep. You’re careful to ease the covers back. I’m peeking, so I see the smile on your face. You’re amused at my flannel nightgown.”

  “Amusing, but not much protection,” Garrett warned.

  “Depends on what I’m wearing underneath.”

  “A chastity belt? Though I warn you, I’m excellent at picking locks.”

  Jade felt a rise in her pulse. A familiar tingle spread through her body. Not yet. She eased back, delaying her orgasm until Garrett was with her.

  “You’re allowed more than one, honey,” Garrett said.

  How did he know? What gave her away?

  “You see too much,” Jade sighed.

  “We’re lovers. I’m supposed to know your body — anticipate your needs. Let yourself come, Jade. I’ll help you get there again.”

  “We should… you know, together.”

  Hearing Garrett’s chuckle, Jade smiled. He was right. She had a camera pointed at her vagina and she couldn’t say the word come?

  “Fine,” she laughed. “I want to come with you.”

  “Tell me when you’re ready,” Garrett’s voice dropped an octave. “I’m with you.”

  Jade kept her eyes on Garrett’s hand. Faster now, not as measured. Her breath caught in her throat. That was for her. His passion, his arousal. It was about her. The thought sent her flying.

  “Now,” she cried. “I can’t stop it, Garrett.”

  “Put the camera on your face, Jade,” Garrett commanded. His face came on her screen. “Show me what you’re feeling.”

  Jade hoped she aimed the phone in the right direction. When the orgasm hit her full blast, all she could think about was the wave after wave of pleasure radiating through her body. She knew Garrett was there — with her. His shout added another layer of satisfaction as she slowly floated back to Earth.

  Jade’s breathing slowed. Her heartbeat steadied. Her eyes met Garrett’s. No longer steely gray, they were a clear, bright silver. Was that his happy color? The smile on his face said yes.

  “I wish I could hold you.”

  Jade took a deep breath. When he said things like that, she found herself balancing on a slippery slope. Her heart was in the balance. For both their sakes, she couldn’t let herself fall.

  “Do you know how long you’ll be gone?”

  Garrett shook his head. “There are some labor problems that need straightening out.”

  “Ah,” Jade said, understanding dawning. “Unions.”

  “You sound like you’ve had some experience with them.”

  “It’s difficult.” Jade smoothed out the sheet covering her stomach before settling back on her pillow. “In theory, I’m all for unions. They have a history of making life much batter for their members. Still…”

  “When you have to deal with them they can be a pain in the ass,” Garrett finished for her.

  “So says the union member.”

  “No,” Garrett corrected. “Technically, the Director’s Guild is not a union. I had to join one when I worked on sets as a jack-of-all-trades. Back then, I belonged to half a dozen of them. Everybody has their own. If I wanted to learn, I had to pay my dues — literally.”

  “And now?” Jade asked, fascinated. Everything Garrett did while becoming the man he was, seemed thrilling. An adventure. Compared to her formative years, it was.

  “I let them all lapse. I wanted to give the orders, not take them.”

  “You answer to no one but yourself.”

  Jade said the words, savoring their meaning. To be in control of her life. To make her own decisions. That was her goal. It was so close to being a reality, she could practically taste it.

  “When I’m on the set, my word is law.” Garrett chuckled ruefully. “The rest of the time, Wyatt thinks he’s in charge. I suppose as producer, he is.”

  “Does that bother you? Answering to your older brother?”

  “Better him than someone else.”

  She watched Garrett slide down the bed, relaxed. Naked. Jade sighed. Modern technology was wonderful. However, it would never replace having a big, solid, gorgeous man within touching distance.

  “Do you always work with Wyatt?”

  “I’ve been lucky. Wyatt and my father have produced all but one of my pictures. These days Dad doesn’t have much to do with the big budget movies. He prefers what he calls his vanity projects. Last year, he co-produced Wishes with Sam Laughton.”

  “I loved that movie.” Jade’s eyes sparkled with enthusiasm. “The book is one of my all-time favorites. Some vanity project. How many Oscars did it win?”

  “Seven. Including best picture. That was Dad’s third Academy Award.”

  “Mmm. I have every song from the soundtrack on my phone, iPod, and computer. All I need to hear are first few notes of Unconditional to make me a weepy mess.”

  “I know the composer.”

  “You know Rose O’Brian? I was thrilled when she won the Oscar for best song. And best score.”

  “Finally,” Garrett laughed. “The lady is impressive. Rose and her husband, Jack Winston are old friends.”

  It was the perfect opening for Garrett to tell Jade about the investigation he had set in motion. He knew she should know. He planned to tell her. Just not tonight. Why put something in her head she couldn’t control? When Jack called with some news, that would be soon enough for her to know.

  “I loved Grind.”

  Jade listened to the down and dirty song so many times; she sometimes thought the images evoked by the lyrics were tattooed on her brain. Rose O’Brian vividly brought a fantasy world to life with raunchy lyrics set to a pulse-pounding beat. Jade often wondered if anyone really did those things. There was one in particular.

  “Tell me your favorite part of the song,” Garrett said. His smile held a naughty promise. “Then when I’m back in Los Angeles—”

  “Second verse, third line.”

  Jade groaned silently. She should have taken the time to think about her answer. Instead, she came across as a sex-starved fan girl. She waited for him to tease her. Or worse, laugh at her. She should have known better. He wasn’t anyone else. This was Garrett.

  Garrett put his free hand behind his head, closing his eyes. “Play it for me.”

  He didn’t speak until the song was over — the final note faded.

  “It’s been awhile. I’d forgotten how that plea the singer makes to her lover cuts through all the crap. She doesn’t want it sweet. The hell with foreplay. All she wants is a hot fuck.”

  Garrett shifted, rolling his shoulders. When his eyes opened, Jade sucked in a deep breath. The color was the palest smoke. Silvery. Electric. He drew Jade in without a word. The way he looked at her mouth go dry.

  “I want a hot fuck.”

  “I think my corruption of you is almost complete,” Garrett declared.

  His obvious enjoyment, when she used the unfamiliar word, made Jade feel exactly like a student praised by a respected teacher.

  “What else is there?”

  “Jade, honey, we haven’t scratched the surface.” Garrett looked at her, the teasing gone from his voice. “We can go so much deeper. Time is our friend. Soon, there won’t be anything that is taboo. All yo
u have to do is ask.”

  It was a two-way street, Jade realized. She couldn’t imagine denying him — no matter what he wanted. That was when it hit her. There was something he wasn’t going to ask. Something too personal. Too intimate. She knew in that instant it was what she had to do. For him. For herself.

  “Watch.”

  Steadying her shaking hand, Jade took a deep breath. She knew if Garrett were in the room, she wouldn’t have the nerve to do this. No matter how much she trusted him, the fear of rejection kept their lovemaking in the dark. It kept her in the dark. The only way to move out of the shadows was to show Garrett everything. Whatever his reaction. It was time to start living in the light.

  Leaning over, Jade flipped the switch on the wall. She squinted against the sudden brightness. If she was going to do this, she was going all the way. Pointing the phone toward her stomach, she grabbed the end of the sheet. This wasn’t going to be a slow reveal. She wasn’t trying to be provocative. She treated it like she would a Band-Aid. She didn’t ease the sheet off. No. With one more deep breath, Jade closed her eyes, ripping the cloth from her body.

  Jade waited. She didn’t look at her scars. There was no need. They were something she lived with every day of her life. An ugly reminder when all she wanted to do was forget.

  The larger scars were still puckered, their color an angry red. The crisscross of the others showed the man wielding the knife didn’t care what it looked like. His purpose had been to inflict as much pain and damage as possible. In that, he succeeded.

  Luck kept her alive. For which Jade was eternally grateful. The scars would fade. The plastic surgeon at the hospital seemed to think he could practically erase them. If she waited a few more months, Garrett would never have to see the marks that marred her once perfect skin. So why not wait? Because she wanted him to understand. If the scars were to disappear tomorrow, she would always carry them around. They ran deep. To some extent, they always would.

  “I’m going to hunt that fucker down and skin him alive.”

  Jade blinked. That was not the response she expected. It surprised her. Almost as much as her response to his words. Skin Stephen alive? Hell, yes! Then, as quickly as she thought it, she knew it wasn’t what she wanted.

  “What good would that do? He would be dead and you would be in prison. I don’t like the sound of that.”

  “I suppose you’re right,” Garrett conceded with a sigh. “I’ll settle for a slow castration.”

  “Jesus. Have you always been this bloodthirsty?” Jade asked. She didn’t add that the castration part sounded damn good to her. She didn’t want to encourage anything that might get him in trouble. Stephen wasn’t worth it.

  “That bastard seems to bring it out of me.”

  When the seconds ticked by without another word from Garrett, Jade started to turn the phone away.

  “Wait,” he said, stopping her. “Do something for me?”

  “What?” Jade couldn’t imagine what he would ask.

  “Hold the phone steady.”

  “Okay.”

  “Now, put your free hand in front of the camera.”

  Puzzled, Jade did what he asked.

  “If I were there, I would trace every line with kisses. I would show you how much I want you. All of you. However, I can’t do that. Not yet. So I want you to do it for me. Put your finger on one of the scars.”

  Glad he couldn’t see the tears welling up in her eyes, Jade followed Garrett’s instructions.

  “Do you feel the touch?”

  “Yes,” Jade whispered.

  “Close your eyes. Imagine it’s me. Can you do that for me, Jade?”

  “Yes.”

  In her mind, Jade felt Garrett’s gentle caress. And the tears fell.

  “Soon, Jade. No more crappy motel. No more hiding.”

  Could it be that easy, Jade wondered. Could they step into the light together? Tonight, she believed anything was possible.

  CHAPTER TEN

  JADE SPENT THE morning with a spring in her step. Instead of trying to remember the last time that happened, she let herself enjoy it.

  Nothing around her had changed since yesterday. The staff watched her every move. Someone was always dusting, vacuuming, or rearranging in her vicinity. Jade wasn’t certain what they were supposed to do if she had a nervous breakdown. Calling for outside help had to be number one on the Absolutely Not list. If at all possible, handle it internally.

  The image of two men, straightjacket handy, sequestered in a secret room, popped into Jade’s mind. What a boring job that would be. And pointless. Jade’s sanity was firmly in place. If the men existed, she hoped they were served lunch.

  Smiling at her silly thoughts, Jade felt a sudden chill race down her spine. The phantom asylum attendants might not be real. However the threat was. Her father knew people. Getting her committed for observation wouldn’t be difficult. A few greased palms, a little quid pro quo. Before she knew it, Jade could find herself locked away in a rubber room all her own.

  Jade shook off the somber thoughts. The first thing she needed to do was make sure she would be missed. Not that long ago, her disappearance wouldn’t have caused a flutter. She could almost hear the conversation

  Jade’s gone? How long?

  A year.

  That long? Well, what do you know?

  It wouldn’t be as easy now. Jade had people. Regular friends raised questions when someone they cared about went missing. Important, influential friends insisted on answers. The Landis family carried weight, not only in Los Angeles. They were known all over the world. Jade knew half of them were in her corner. No questions asked. If Garrett’s brothers jumped in, there would be an ear-splitting din no one could ignore.

  Feeling bouncy again, Jade glided down the front stairs to the foyer as she did every morning. The outside looked the same. Calm. Collected. So different from the woman she showed to Garrett last night. They didn’t say goodbye until dawn. They talked about everything and nothing. From the important to the silly. In between, they guided each other through two more orgasms. Phone sex could never replace the real thing. Still, in a pinch, with the right man, Jade would take it.

  She wanted breakfast. Pancakes sounded good. Jade laughed. That ought to raise a few eyebrows. She never ate this early. And certainly nothing that heavy. It was bound to get back to her father. Turning toward the kitchen, she shrugged off the thought. Let them scurry around like the rats they were, reporting how Miss Marlow not only had pancakes, she used butter and maple syrup. Shocking! Once she was gone, they could spend their days searching for someone else to gossip about.

  “Miss Marlow.”

  With a sigh, Jade turned. Great. Mandy. One of her father’s two assistants. The snarky one. She enjoyed treating Jade as if she was a few clowns short of a circus.

  The trick was to let Mandy think she had the upper hand. Jade didn’t care if she knew the truth.

  “Let me guess. My father wants to see me.”

  “Immediately,” Mandy huffed.

  The woman was pretty. Blonde. A little plump. A clone of every other assistant Jade could remember. This one seemed a tad cockier than the rest. Perhaps she was expecting to get up off her knees in the office and move to the bedroom. After the honeymoon.

  Fool. This peroxide cutie was no closer to that gold ring than any of the others. Anson Marlow would never remarry. Jade was certain of that. There was a good reason he had never divorced her mother. She was the magic get out of relationship free card her father pulled out when one of his woman hinted for him to put a ring on it.

  Mandy, like all that came before her, had a short shelf life. Six months, maybe a year. If they didn’t raise a fuss on their way out, there would be a tidy bonus in their bank account. If he really liked them, he passed them on to one of his business associates. Very last century. Early last century. Think Mad Men meets Best Little Whore House in Texas.

  Normally, Jade tried not to think of other women in derogatory ter
ms. In this case, that was difficult. None of them were forced. They had a choice. Move on to the next boss, or walk away. Most of them picked curtain number one.

  Not waiting for Mandy, Jade headed to her father’s office. Better to get whatever it was out of the way.

  “You are supposed to knock,” Mandy called to Jade. The other woman’s much shorter legs chugged as fast as they could considering the four-inch pumps on her feet. Another of her father’s demands.

  Ignoring her, as she always did, Jade turned the doorknob.

  “I won’t need you this morning, Mandy. There is a list of errands on the table by the front door. Lincoln will drive you.”

  “Of course, Anson. Call me if you need anything.”

  Anything, Jade wondered. Dictation? Foot massage? Blowjob?

  “Jade. Jade!” Anson barked. “I would ask where your mind is these days, but I already know the answer.”

  Deciding this was going to be one of those conversations — one sided — Jade took a seat.

  “I don’t know what you mean, Father. I haven’t let my duties slide. Is there a problem I’m unaware of?”

  “I was willing to turn a blind eye,” her father continued. “Let you get it out of your system.” He pulled an envelope from the top drawer of his desk. “After yesterday, I’ve decided it is time to put an end to it.”

  “First, yesterday was about me taking some time to myself. What is wrong with that? Second, I have no idea what you are talking about. Put an end to what?”

  Anson tapped the envelope with one finger.

  “Did you think you could sneak out of the house without anyone noticing?”

  Jade stiffened.

  “From the expression on your face, I’d say the answer is yes.”

  Whatever her father knew, it didn’t matter. Jade wasn’t going to let him bully her. Not this time. Never again.

  “It shouldn’t be necessary for me to sneak out,” Jade pointed out. “What does that say about my status in this household? Am I your daughter? Your servant? A virtual prisoner? Tell me, Father. How do you see me?”