“As always,” Mark said with a humorous snort.
“I don’t know what I would do without you,” Jesse said, her tone softer.
“Probably end up living under a bridge.” Mark shrugged. “Now get out of here, go get ready for your interview!”
Jesse smiled at him, and he returned it, just before she headed out of his office and down the hall toward her own desk. With a new sense of resolve, she mentally prepared herself to make all the necessary edits and preparations to conduct her interview.
Chapter 6
Hal
Hal briefly looked over his collection of ties before selecting a simple black and gray paisley pattern to go with his gray suit. He easily tied it and adjusted it in the mirror before letting his eyes sweep up and down his whole body. Satisfied, he gathered up his wallet and headed out the door.
“Good morning ...” He was greeted by his friend and bodyguard, Adam, as he stepped out into the parking garage.
“Good morning,” Hal responded, Adam falling into step beside him as they headed out into the garage, Hal’s eyes scanning his vast collection of cars.
“What’s on the agenda for today?” Adam asked as they approached Hal’s Jaguar.
“I have that interview for The Edge,” Hal answered with a tired sigh.
“Is this the one about the movie?” Adam asked as they both got into the car, Adam in the driver’s seat and Hal in the passenger’s.
“Yeah,” Hal answered.
Adam was quiet for a moment as he pulled out of the parking space and then out of the garage.
“I guess it’s about time that you allowed interviews about it.” Adam shrugged.
Hal grunted in response. The movie had been an exhausting and very involved affair for him. His body was still not fully recovered from the things he had done for that role. A part of him wanted to simply disappear from the spotlight. He certainly had the money for it, after all. Still, he vowed to himself that this was a one-time thing. He had gotten it out of the way, and he would spend the rest of his life advocating men’s shampoo for all he cared. He had left his mark, and that was enough. Now he just had to feed other people’s curiosity.
“You can’t be successful without throwing people a bone every once in a while,” Adam said.
“Yeah, I know,” Hal sighed. “I’m just ready for this to go ahead and die down so I can move on with my life.”
“I don’t get you, man.” Adam laughed and shook his head. “You spend years on this project and then you just want people to ignore it.”
“Not exactly.” Hal shook his head. “It’s complicated.”
“Whatever,” Adam murmured, his tone wry. “I guess I’ll just read the article and get my answers like everyone else.”
Hal let out a harsh bark of a laugh. He had known Adam since they were in high school together. While Hal had taken the more artistic route, Adam had gone into the military. And while Hal had been successful in his pursuits, Adam had been equally as successful in his own. Adam had been trained as a member of the Special Forces and had earned high ranks in the military.
The two had been reunited at their five-year class reunion, and really hit it off. Adam had mentioned that he was working as a bouncer for some club, and Hal had immediately offered to give him a job as head of his personal security. Though he had been reluctant at first, Hal had eventually succeeded in convincing him to take the job. Adam had really succeeded in the task of organizing Hal’s security team, which had until then been poorly managed by somebody Hal’s agent had hired.
Especially as Hal rose to even greater heights in his fame, Adam’s expertise in organization and personal protection became invaluable. It only helped that they were such close friends. Adam often served as Hal’s personal consultant, and Adam kept an apartment in the building that Hal owned.
Adam was also a huge part of the reason that Hal was able to stay grounded, even as he became more and more successful. Every time Hal got too self-important, Adam was there to remind him that not everyone was so fortunate and that luck had indeed played a large part in Hal’s success. Adam never failed to give Hal a swift reality check whenever it was needed.
Now, they arrived at the building from which The Edge magazine was run. Hal looked up at it and scowled. If he was honest with himself, he knew that granting this interview was the last thing he wanted to do. Chances were, it would be conducted by the ever-famous Elaine Beck, who was nothing short of an absolute nuisance. He had to admit that she was good at her job, but certainly at the cost of his peace. It seemed that for the past several years he had been all but harassed by either her or one of her contacts.
Still, he knew that he had to appease her somehow, and it seemed that this was the only way to do so. So, once Adam had parked the car in the expansive garage, they both entered the building.
“Don’t look so grim,” Adam smirked at him. Hal huffed his irritation.
“It must be so hard to be in such high demand,” Adam quipped, and Hal felt his irritation subside.
The two men made their way into the building, and Hal glanced around at the various journalists running around. Some looked incredibly frazzled, clutching cups of coffee as they bustled about the building. Only a few even bothered to look up at him, and those that did seemed to look in shock, and then hurry away in alarm. He couldn’t help chuckling to himself as he observed their behavior.
He followed Adam over to a receptionist’s desk, where they were greeted by a young woman in a blue dress. Hal glanced up and down her body, noting that she was fairly attractive, and gave her a soft smile. The woman looked at him open-mouthed, her lashes fluttering as she blinked up at him.
“Hal Roberts is here for his interview,” Adam spoke strongly, his expression flat, and his tone brooking no room for any unnecessary conversation.
The receptionist snapped to attention.
“Of course,” she said, her fingers busily typing at her keyboard. “You will be in conference room D, on the eleventh floor. One of our interns, Tiffany, will escort you.”
Hal watched as the woman nodded toward another young woman that was seated at a smaller desk behind the main one. The other woman looked up, both parts alarmed and excited. She rose from her desk and moved toward them. Adam gave her a stony glance even as Hal smiled warmly. The woman looked between them, and her eyes were wide. Hal enjoyed watching people struggle with how to react to his presence.
“Right this way,” the woman finally said, her voice high and shaky.
The men followed the woman as she led them over to the elevator. They stood together in silence, and Hal couldn’t help being amused by the whole situation. Adam’s face was stony, having donned his bodyguard persona, and the woman seemed a nervous wreck.
Finally, the elevator reached the eleventh floor, and the woman led them out and down the hallway to a small conference room. It had been set up with two comfortable chairs facing one another, with a table between them.
“Here you are,” Tiffany spoke again, gesturing to the chair. “I am sure someone will be with you very soon. Is there anything I can get you in the meantime?”
“Could you bring me three coffees and three bottles of water? And another chair for the gentleman here,” Hal requested with a smile. The woman gaped up at him, momentarily at a loss for words. Hal raised an eyebrow, and she shook her head.
“Of course,” the woman said with a faint smile of her own, and with that, she was off.
Hal chuckled to himself, and Adam shook his head with a scowl.
“What?” Hal laughed, pacing into the room to take a seat on one of the chairs.
“You know what,” Adam groused, crossing his arms and leaning against the wall.
“What’s the good of being famous if I can’t fluster pretty young women,” Hal joked, and Adam rolled his eyes.
“You know, you would have better luck with women if you didn’t look so intimidating all the time,” Hal said with a shrug, crossing his legs.
Hal held up his hands in surrender and let out a chuckle.
“Okay, you got me.” He laughed, and Adam looked off into the distance, content to brood in his irritation. It was not long before Tiffany returned with their drinks, and a young man came bearing a chair.
“Anything else?” the woman asked, seeming more composed now.
“No, thank you,” Hal answered picking up his cup of coffee. “What about you, Adam?”
Adam merely looked at them both with a stony expression, and the young woman gulped.
“That’ll be all,” Hal said kindly.
“Alright.” Tiffany nodded. “If you need anything, just be sure to send word for me.”
With that, the young woman scurried out the door, making sure to give Adam a wide berth.
“You know,” Hal said once she was gone, “you scold me for enjoying people’s reactions to me, but you have just as much fun as I do with your intimidation tactics.”
Adam said nothing but gave Hal a shrug and a smirk as he moved to sit in the third chair that had been brought up for him. Hal laughed and handed his friend one of the cups of coffee.
“I am not looking forward to an interrogation from Elaine,” Hal grumbled.
“Well, that’s just the price of fame.” Adam shrugged as he mixed sugar and cream into his coffee.
The men sipped at their coffee for a few minutes, and finally, Hal glanced down at his watch. It was only nine twenty-five yet, but he fully expected Elaine to be there within the next five minutes, or he would be leaving. Hell, maybe even within the next three. That woman should know better than to play games with him.
The three minutes elapsed, and Hal released a sigh.
“Well, this was a waste of time.” Hal stood and buttoned his coat.
“It’s not even nine-thirty,” Adam sighed, rolling his eyes.
“Well, maybe I’m just being overdramatic.” Hal shrugged while Adam grumbled and moved to stand as well, placing his half-finished coffee on the table in front of him.
No sooner had both men headed toward the door than it began to open. In the doorway stood a young woman, obviously not Elaine. Hal looked down at her and smiled.
“Tell Elaine that if she can’t be on time, she cannot have this interview,” he said simply, moving to exit the door.
“I’m sorry,” the woman said boldly, blocking his path. “Elaine won’t be joining us today. My name is Jesse Clarke, and I’ll be conducting your interview this morning.”
Hal was slightly taken aback. He looked the woman up and down. She carried herself with strength and confidence. Additionally, she was exceedingly attractive. She had light brown hair that was pulled up in a nice, low bun off to the side of her head. She wore a beautiful, and yet very appropriate burgundy dress. Her eyes were a gray-blue, and they looked up at him with confidence, rather than the scared awe of most other women. Hal couldn’t help feeling slightly in awe himself. He racked his brain, wondering if he should know who she was.
“Oh,” he finally managed to say. “Well, it’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss Clarke.”
“Would you care to take a seat?” the woman asked, gesturing to the chair. “Or are you still intent on leaving?”
Hal glanced back over at the chair, his mind whirling a bit. He was not used to facing a confident, assured woman.
Hal raised an eyebrow as he returned to his chair, knowing this interview was about to get much more interesting than he anticipated.
Chapter 7
Jesse
Jesse’s heart pounded as she looked up at Hal Roberts. She could not even think for how nervous and sick she felt at this encounter, but she locked onto Elaine’s words for her and used them to give her strength. Until she found her own, true, strength, she would just have to fake it through.
“This is my head of security, Adam,” Roberts said, gesturing to the other man in the room. Jesse looked over and granted him a smile, only to be met with a brief nod and a flat expression.
“I can ask him to step outside for the duration of the interview if you’d like,” Roberts offered.
“That shouldn’t be necessary,” Jesse smiled up at him, shocked that her voice had remained so steady as she spoke.
She watched as Roberts took a seat across the table from her, taking up his cup of coffee. Jesse took great pains to beat her anxiety and calmly arrange her materials in front of her.
“Do you mind if I record the interview?” she asked, withdrawing her recorder from within her bag.
“Not at all,” Roberts answered, and Jesse felt her stomach clench at his smooth voice.
In all honesty, she had no idea how she was being so calm and collected on the surface. Inside, her heart was pounding, and her stomach was fluttering. Hal Roberts was attractive onscreen, but in real life, he was absolutely immaculate. He was tall, at six foot two, and broad. She could easily tell his muscular frame from his well-fitted gray suit. In addition to his appearance, his smell was overwhelming, being exceedingly masculine and distinctly spicy. It was all Jesse could do not to swoon.
In fact, she was somewhat grateful for the presence of his bodyguard with them. Somehow, Jesse felt less pressure than she would have if it had been a one on one situation, and she felt a sense of relief knowing that this man was here with them, making the whole experience much less personal and more businesslike, as well it should have been.
“Whenever you’re ready,” Jesse said, hitting the record button on her recording device and gathering up her notebook and a pencil, setting them in her lap as she leaned back in her chair.
“Ready as I’ll ever be.” Roberts flashed her a smile of blindingly white teeth, and Jesse had to work hard to keep her jaw from dropping.
“Perfect,” she said and looked over at her list of questions on the table before her. “As you know, everyone is really raving about your movie. You spent years on this film, and you committed yourself so much to your performance. How did it feel when you finally wrapped it up?”
Jesse watched as Roberts’ eyebrows met in a frown.
“For the most part,” he started, “it was just an immense relief. It was very stressful to work on such a large project, and it was very taxing for me. I had played roles in movies before, but I had never really directed one or produced one for that matter. It was really just a lot more than I had originally anticipated, and in retrospect, I’m not sure I should have made such a big leap as young as I am.”
“Well, I don’t think anyone will be second guessing your capabilities after the success of this film,” Jesse remarked, and Hal gave her what seemed to be a rueful smile. Jesse couldn’t help noticing the expression, and her mind erupted with questions. She knew, though, that it would be best to stick to the questions she had brought and keep deviation to a minimum.
“Which brings me to my next question,” Jesse continued. “Do you have any plans to direct any more films any time in the future?”
Roberts blinked once at the question and seemed to think for a minute.
“Well, the future is very ambiguous,” he answered. “But as of now, no. I have had my fill of that particular endeavor for the time being.”
Jesse scribbled his answer into her notes. She felt Roberts’ eyes on her as she wrote and felt a small flush creep over her cheeks.
“And why not?” She proceeded with the interview, looked across the table at him and saw his brows meet again. It was obvious that he was not happy to be answering these questions.
“As I said before, it was extremely taxing,” he said, his voice short and clipped.
Jesse felt a spark of irritation at his tone, but she decided to keep herself calm for the time being and move on to the next question.
“This movie dealt with an extremely sensitive subject,” Jesse said smoothly, simply moving on to the next of her questions. “What was the personal inspiration for this film?”
<
br /> Jesse saw Roberts clench his fist on top of the table.
“There was none,” he said, his voice tight. “I wanted to make the movie to bring light to a much larger issue than the issues of just one person. The issues dealt with in the movie are universal, and an enormous problem in our society. There doesn’t have to be any personal reason for making a movie like this when the state of society lends itself to making these problems so widespread.”
Roberts seemed to spit his answer out at her, and Jesse felt her annoyance with his tone reach an all-time high. She decided to deviate from her specified questions after all.
“If that is the case,” Jesse responded, keeping her tone as level as possible, “I think a lot of people will be very disappointed.”
Jesse saw a flash of anger pass through Roberts’ green, gold-flecked eyes.
“And why is that?” he retorted, resting his elbows on the table and leaning toward her.
“This movie spoke to people in a very personal way,” Jesse said.
“As it was meant to,” Roberts said shortly.
“And yet here you are,” Jesse heard her voice rising in pitch and volume. “Telling me, you have no personal connection with this movie at all.”
“I’m an actor,” Roberts snapped. “I connected with this movie like I connected to all the others. You have to throw yourself into a film, no matter if you directed it or not.”
Jesse gritted her teeth. Somehow, she knew that Roberts was lying. She could see it in the way his eyes flashed.
“Why have you been avoiding an interview for so long?” Jesse asked.
“I haven’t been avoiding them,” Roberts said. “I have been refusing them.”
“Again, why?” Jesse pressed. “It definitely gives the impression that there are personal reasons for doing so.”
Jess heard Roberts release a huff of breath.
“It’s called advertising,” he finally answered. “It was a new technique devised by me and a highly competent marketing staff. And I think it paid off, don’t you?”
“That’s all well and good,” Jesse said. “But that doesn’t explain why you refused one for so long after it came out.”
Bedroom Rodeo: A Billionaire Romance Page 38