by Fifi Flowers
Please let Maya be okay.
Chapter Twenty
Maya
The last thing I wanted to do was an interview but maybe the studio had set something up with the new changes. “Where are we going?” I asked as we walked inside an empty building.
“To the rooftop where you filmed a few scenes.” We headed up a few set of stairs. “It’s perfect for your character to be interviewed up there. Always flying from building to building. The crew is set up.”
When we reached the top, it seemed unusually quiet.
“This doesn’t look like things are ready?” The roof was stark, lacking any decorative elements. It looked more like the rooftop when I had filmed some establishing shots before my stunt double took over doing the badass stuff. Only there wasn’t a crew and equipment all over the ground and overhead. There were no people at all. “Where are the journalists?”
“Around the corner is the set.”
Walking forward, we rounded a brick wall and finally I saw other people… They looked nothing like journalists and there wasn’t any furniture to sit on. No cameras either. “What’s going on here?”
“You’re going to prove that you can’t fly.” My assistant stepped away from me to the side of the building while one of the three men on the rooftop walked behind me. “Or maybe you can.” She was looking over the side. “Let’s hope you can.” She laughed. “It might be disappointing to some but everyone will get to see your true character online.”
My assistant was making no sense and I realized that there was no way this was a studio thing. She had to be the one behind sending me the notes…and the poor birds.
“You’ve been hurting birds and sending them to me. How could you do something so cruel?” I was thinking of the helpless creatures and probably should’ve been more worried about myself.
“Not me. I’m not the only one behind this—”
“Don’t blame me. This was all your idea. I agreed she shouldn’t fly but it was your fucked up idea to torment her with birds.” It sounded like she didn’t have the full support of the men partially surrounding me.
“Move her over here.” My assistant instructed.
“I’m not touching her and I’m surely not pushing her.” One of the men said off to the side of me.
Where were my protectors? Why didn’t I insist that Hawkman come with me? I had been so stupid to tell him I was okay. He shouldn’t have listened to me. It wasn’t his fault. I had no one to blame but my stupid self.
“Maya’s going to fly all by herself. Aren’t you, Maya?”
Fuck! She was absolutely out of her mind if she thought I was going to attempt to fly off the roof. I wasn’t crazy. I knew I couldn’t fly. They would have to pick me up and throw me off. I was standing my ground. How could she want me dead over a movie? A movie that was being changed…
“If you’d been around lately, you’d know that—”
“You’ve cut me off since that man came around.” That wasn’t completely true and it wasn’t intentional. I just didn’t need her services as much. “You do what you want to do. You’re not authentic. You’re not true to your craft. If I had you’re role, I would’ve made them do it right. You’re a fraud.” She laughed in a disturbing tone. “Or maybe you’re not. Come jump.”
She nodded her head and I turned to see another big man approaching me.
“Wait! I’ve been filming new scenes.” I moved back and to the side, giving me a view of all three men. “The studio has pulled the movie from special screenings until my character is seen jumping. No more flying.”
“Yeah, right. Good try.”
“Maybe she’s telling the truth.” The bird killer spoke up.
“Whatever.” She didn’t sound convinced and started to walk toward me. “Come on, Maya.” She didn’t come any closer. In fact, she seemed to be caught on something and began to teeter. “Damn it, Maya! Move your ass! Cameras up!”
“Maya, stay still! Don’t move!” I turned to see Logan and Hawkman with guns drawn and did as they said watching the men around me cave.
“We’re not going to hurt her.”
“We were just here to film.”
“Don’t try to say you had no part! You killed the birds!” My assistant pointed a finger but she had already said too much. I knew she was the ring leader.
“She’s behind all of this.” He wasn’t going down, taking the blame.
Things from that moment seemed to move in slow motion. The guys all held up their arms and slowly got down on the ground, ready to be detained as armed studio security flooded the roof. It was my assistant who refused to come down or couldn’t and seemed to get more rattled as security moved to her.
“She was wrong. She didn’t deserve that role…” She kept on speaking out against me and I was so shocked.
When I met her we hit it off so well and I really trusted her. I was concerned about her safety and wanted to keep her in the dark so she wouldn’t get upset. She was right I was wrong; so wrong about her character. She was a disturbed person. And I watched her come completely undone, raising her voice higher and higher. I wasn’t even sure what her words were and then all at once they stopped and were replaced by a blood curdling scream. She had yanked herself loose and tried to move out of the reach of Hawkman who appeared to be trying to talk her into coming with him. But it was no use, he couldn’t reach her before she tumbled over the edge of the building, disappearing from our view.
“No!” My voice echoed across the rooftop. No matter what my assistant had done to me or how she wanted to harm me, I didn’t want her to die. She was obviously a sick individual and needed help.
I felt responsible…
“If only I let her know what was going on…” I couldn’t catch my breath.
“She would’ve known that everything was changed…” My chest hurt.
“I tried to tell her but she wouldn’t listen…” My throat burned and tears streamed down my face as thoughts of her lying on the ground where she wanted me to end up.
“She wanted me to jump off the building… I’m supposed to be in her place…” My body trembled and my head shook from side to side trying to get that sick vision out of my head.
“Hush, baby. She wasn’t in her right mind.” Logan had moved quickly to my side and had taken me into his muscular arms. Soothing me with his comforting words, “you’re safe…that’s what matters,” I clung to him and broke down with trembling sobs that wouldn’t stop.
I wanted to crumble to the ground right there on the rooftop. My legs felt so heavy and yet I wanted to be anywhere but there.
“Please take me home.” My fingers dug into the fabric of his shirt.
“Please I just want to be with you.” I couldn’t get him close enough.
“Please don’t leave me.” I couldn’t manage losing him.
“I’m never letting you go.” He disengaged my fingers from a tight grip on his shirt, tipped my face up and looked down at me with his blue eyes. “I love you, Maya.”
Those were the best words ever and I said them back, “I love you too.”
Epilogue
Logan
Back at the film festival two years later with my gorgeous wife, Maya Bexley—Mrs. Hammond in private—I’d like to tell you that she was carrying our child. Unfortunately, due to her filming schedule, we’re only in the practicing phase. No room for a baby when you’re married to a super hero who needs to wear form-fitting costumes and jumps from building to building in order to save the day.
We were busy for months traveling to film premieres once the production was complete with the new scenes. Thanks to Maya’s assistant and her three accomplices no longer being a threat, we were free to roam around again without added protection surrounding us. Things were back to how I liked them; only I was protecting Maya—as a husband should.
I had gone back to working a few assignment details with Maya off filming parts in action films and working on a new project that she was most e
xcited about. I was back to protecting politicians mainly while she was living the sweet life. She had always wanted to star in a romantic comedy and she finally got her wish. I think she may have been swayed by the script alone since the story involved an ice cream heiress.
Tasting ice cream on the set sounded like a dream come true for her. It also required far more hours of cardio. For the second half of that filming schedule, I joined her on location and had her up at sunrise every morning running.
“Rise and shine! Oh six hundred hour! Let’s hit the pavement, Mrs. Hammond!
“Let’s workout in bed. An hour of steamy cardio.” She tried that several mornings.
As much as I wanted to give in to her, there was plenty of time for that after our run. I had eased her into adding a few extra miles since I was used to running ten to fifteen miles most mornings when I was alone. Keeping it interesting seemed to work the best. She loved to talk up a storm about things around us while we jogged along at a nice clip so I constantly changed up our route. It was a wonder that she never stumbled and fell since our first run together. She rarely paid attention to her pace or footing when pointing to things.
Being back in the desert, we stayed in the townhouse—our cold weather in LA getaway. “Getting you means getting a vacation home in the desert.” Not the exact words you want to hear when you propose marriage to a woman, but Maya was one of a kind. If she wanted me as a total package, that was fine with me.
“We need to clean out the one bedroom for family… That color over there would be great in the room and it will still go with your professional decorated stuff… Oh, maybe you can see if that design team can do the room.” She was pointing to lavender flowers blooming on several cactus plants right before we headed for home.
“Oh no, the little dictator has arrived.”
Maya slapped my arm and told me to be nice. Her new assistant was bossier than her last—a real thorn in my side—but at least she was my kid sister, Jordan, and I knew Maya was safe with her.
They became instant friends when they met at Jordan’s graduation from film school where she was learning every aspect of movie making to one day produce. Maya hired her on the spot and let her move into the guesthouse in LA. In the desert, we put her up in a hotel close to the festival action which she loved. Jordan liked to be in the mix and know what the latest trends were and how she could capitalize on them. She was already putting whatever amounts of money she could afford into indie films. She, also, had Maya investing too. Jordan loved to be in authority and tell people what to do. It never worked well with me, but Maya loved her madness—I say that lovingly.
“Good, your back.” My sister had just gotten out of her car with a folder bursting at the seams in her arms as we neared her standing just outside our garage. “Maya, I figured out the schedule and made sure nothing will pop up to surprise you. Did you talk to him about the room prep yet?”
“Oh hell, no! You are not moving in with us here. You have a hotel suite.”
Maya and Jordan both laughed at me. “Okay then… Apparently there has been no talk… So, I will just leave this information with you, Maya.” She pushed the folder toward Maya. “I know when I’m not wanted.” Jordan grinned and stuck her tongue out at me before stepping back toward her car door. “Remember to get him onboard gently and the schedule for interviews is in there too.”
I let out a big breath of oh-no-what-am-I-in-for air.
“Relax. Come make me breakfast and throw in some potato wedges.” Maya and her fries—I would never deny her.
In the kitchen I got everything out to make her favorites along with some other healthy choices, egg whites and lean bacon. I loved seeing her across the way from me, sitting on a stool with her arms propped up on the dark-stained concrete island. I didn’t love that she was about to hit me with the big plans she had been scheming with my sister.
“Here is the schedule…” she began. “Today is the suite-filled interview circuit. A screening tonight. Tomorrow morning show interviews…” Nothing I wasn’t familiar with. “A few dinners… a special screening of my film with a Q and A…” She took a breath between pulling out more sheets. “Call sheets for filming that begins in a month… the starting location involves travel… During that time we can have the room done…” She stopped.
“Go on.” I turned and tossed the wedges in the oven with my back to her. “We can discuss the room later.” I didn’t want to see disappointment in her face, but I really wanted our privacy.
“As I was say…” Maya continued and I noticed a grin threatening to appear on her face as I turned around and whipped the egg whites and herbs together a bit too aggressively. “The final part of shooting is local so there won’t be any trouble with my delivery.” She stopped again and sat looking at me, definitely grinning.
“Delivery?” She nodded her head. “The room’s not for my sister?” She shook her head and I dropped the fork in the bowl and walked around the island.
“You put a baby in me!” Maya exclaimed as I pulled her from the stool into my arms. “Your new assignment involves protecting mommy and baby.”
That was the best detail I could ever hope for!
THE END
Acknowledgements
Thank you to Susan Stoker for creating the Special Forces: Operation Alpha world and thank you to THE READERS interested in reading more books in this world.
Thank you to the people that helped bring this book to life… Lizzy of LKO Designs, BB Formatting, Nickiann, Debbie, Roxanne, and Tammy, along with everyone that has supported me… ma maman, bloggers and my Cafélicious Reader Group—you are ALL truly appreciated.
Be sure to join Susan Stoker’s Kindle World – Special Forces group to find more great authors and books.
About the Author
Fifi Flowers, an internationally known artist turn author from the Los Angeles area of California, writes romance novels and paints fantasies with a Parisian flair while daydreaming of her time spent sipping cafe crème in the cafes of Paris.
She penned her love of Paris and romance to the pages of her first novel, A Window to Love, published in 2013, when she sat down, and instead of putting paint to paper, put her pen to paper and began her first novel. Since that first novel, Fifi has self-published several steamy contemporary romances and has many more in the works.
To keep up with Fifi’s next releases, sign up for my newsletter.
Be sure to follow Fifi on social media: Website – Facebook – Instagram – Twitter – Goodreads
Other Books by Fifi Flowers
WINDOWS:
A Window to Love
DOWNTOWN:
Just A Number
BROTHER DUET:
Drawn to a Cowboy
ENCOUNTERS:
Reclining Nude in Chicago
Taming the Curator
Falling in Paris
ENCOUNTERS HOLIDAY:
Love Me Now
HOOKUP CAFÉ:
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
HEARTS:
Clashing Hearts
FOOLISH HEARTS:
Arranged (Imperfect Love crossover)
Deceived
UNEXPECTED DELIVERY:
Unexpected Bliss (Yeah, Baby Crossover)
BILLIONAIRE COMMUNICATION:
Controlling the Billionaire (Billionaire Universe Crossover)
STAND-ALONES:
Awakening to You Trilogy
Making Waves
Martini Sunday
For more updates: www.FifiFlowers.com
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