by Shayla Black
Another couple of hours dragged on. While keeping a watchful eye on Shealyn, he glanced over the security system proposals he’d received, shot back questions, and got mercifully quick answers. During the last break on set, he’d followed Shealyn to her trailer and talked to one firm whose reputation was solid. After a little sweet talking and name dropping, they agreed to come out and look at Shealyn’s house on Saturday morning.
Thank god. Now he could focus on her safety—and whatever happened between them next.
As the final take of the day wrapped, everyone scurried away as if they all had lives they couldn’t wait to live, except Tower. He eyed Shealyn in her revealing lingerie and swallowed. “I’m sorry about . . . earlier.”
Cutter frowned. What was he apologizing for? He hadn’t shown up late or flubbed his lines.
Shealyn shrugged her co-star off. “Don’t worry. It happens. Haven’t you had a chance to be, um . . . busy lately?”
Tower looked around the sound stage for nearby ears, but everyone else had already gone. Even Cutter tucked deeper into the shadows, making himself scarce so they could be alone.
“I saw Nicole last night. She’s always willing but . . .” Tower murmured in low tones and shook his head. “I broke it off for good. She and I, it’s just not happening anymore.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I know this week has been rough on you.” Shealyn reached for him, her face full of empathy.
“I wasn’t in love with her.”
“But she gave you some company and a much-needed outlet.”
“Yeah, but I’ve been thinking a lot since Monday. I was hoping we could talk. If you have time for dinner tonight, I’d love to take you out.”
Shealyn cast a sidelong glance to the spot Cutter had occupied mere feet away just moments ago. When she found the space empty, she frowned. “Actually, I would be terrible company. I didn’t sleep last night. How about a rain check? Tonight, I’d just like to head home and—”
“I need this. Please.”
She paused. “What’s going on? Seriously, don’t give what happened during filming today a second thought. If it’s about Nicole . . . Well, I guess it was time. But if you’re thinking I can help you with Norah, I can’t.”
“Don’t be so sure. There’s a reason you gave me an erection today.”
So that explained Tower’s half-assed apology. Funny, but he sounded more surprised by his arousal than contrite.
“Wasn’t that just a reflex all guys have at some point?”
“I’m thinking maybe it was because of my feelings.” Tower sandwiched her hand between his. “Look, I need to move on from my fixation with Norah. I know it. You’ve said it. She’s pregnant, and I’m trying to be happy for her and Joe. It would be easier if I could be with someone I care about. Someone I’m attracted to.” He tugged her closer. “Someone like you.”
After all this time, Tower was making a fucking move on Shealyn?
“You’re serious?” Shock sharpened her question, mirroring Cutter’s own.
“Don’t look so surprised, babe. It was probably bound to happen since we work together and we’re always touching each other. We already know a real relationship would be good for the show. And we could make all the tabloid stories about our fairy-tale romance true while making each other happy.”
“You don’t love me,” she pointed out.
“I think I could, if I tried. Maybe I’ve just had my mind too set all this time, and it’s just a matter of opening it, along with my heart, to see if—”
“I don’t love you,” she countered softly, easing her hand free from his grasp.
“Maybe you just need to open your mind and your heart, too.”
Did he actually think that Shealyn didn’t know how she felt? Or that his pep talk would change that? What a tool.
“Dean . . .” She said with both pity and pleading in her voice. “You’re a good friend and I—”
“Don’t say that. And don’t finish that sentence,” he bit out. “Don’t reduce what we could have to a ridiculous platitude you think will make me feel better. You’re not looking at the possibilities between us. How do you know for certain you don’t love me when we’ve never kissed?”
“We’ve kissed hundreds of times.”
“Never for real. Let’s change that. Let me kiss you now,” Tower all but begged her. “At least once. Try.” He moved in closer.
“Don’t.” Shealyn put her hands on the massive slabs of his chest to ward him off. “I’m interested in someone else. I-I’m sorry.”
Tower didn’t back off, and Cutter tensed. If the small screen stud did anything against Shealyn’s will, he would quickly find himself castrated.
“Who?” Before she could answer, he hummed a sound rife with comprehension and disapproval. “It’s that bodyguard of yours, isn’t it? Be careful, Shealyn. You’re a sweet girl. And he’s a very dangerous man. I’ve seen the way he looks at you.”
“You don’t know anything about Cutter.”
“I know men. Just like I know that, despite the badass part of him, he’s an average Joe. Most of them would kill to sleep with someone as famous and beautiful as you. Every man has his price, and one who isn’t rich comes cheap. So if he could sweet-talk you into bed, then get paid to tell the story of his conquest? He’d think he was the fucking king of the world. Don’t let him take advantage of you.”
Interesting that Tower’s mind had gone there . . .
“I’m not stupid.” Shealyn paled, then jerked away. “And he’s not like that.”
“Every man, deep down, is exactly like that.”
“Stop being a righteous ass. You’re condemning him because you think he’s using me, but aren’t you doing the same? Aren’t you hoping I’ll distract you enough to be a good substitute for Norah and mend your broken heart so you can forget she’s having your brother’s baby?”
In the shadows, Cutter fist-pumped after her smart, gutsy comeback.
“Thousands of women want me. Don’t treat me like a random loser!” Tower hissed through clenched teeth. “And don’t make the mistake of thinking I’m anything like Bryant. I know you. I actually care about you. When you were first cast for this show, I took you under my wing—”
“Not just out of the goodness of your heart. It helped your career, too. You also did it because I know your secret.”
“But I’ve protected you because you need me. And because you matter.”
Shealyn softened. “Okay, so we’ve benefited each other. But—”
“We could do more of that. I’ll always be here for you. And I would never use you for a thrill or a payday, like your bodyguard will. Babe, he’s temporary. He’s probably out for pussy, money, fame—or all of the above. That kind of guy sleeps with half his clients and—”
“That’s not him at all. And he’s risking his life for me.”
“Because you’re paying him to,” he snapped as he grabbed Shealyn’s shoulders.
Cutter wanted to tear his fingers off of her. Other far more violent urges followed, but he swallowed them down. She probably wouldn’t appreciate his interference. But Tower had less than ten seconds to let her go and back off.
“That doesn’t make his motives mercenary. It’s just how we happened to meet.”
Tower tsked at her. “Shealyn . . . you’re from a place where the population of the entire town is less than one square block of this city. Not everybody knows everybody here. They aren’t lifelong friends and neighbors. They don’t all have your best interests at heart.”
She jerked away. “I might be from the country, but don’t mistake my upbringing and accent for a lack of IQ. I’ve made it in this industry for the last few years by paying attention and being smart. So don’t make whatever you’re trying to pull about me needing your help or guidance. Don’t make it about whatever you think Cutter
’s motives are. This is about you, Dean Reginald Jones. You’re afraid of getting older, being alone, and looking pitiful because you’ve told me so. I agree that you need to find a way to move on from Norah, but don’t choose me because you think I’m easy and convenient. I’m not. And I’m not a Band-Aid for your broken heart.”
“That’s not what I meant at all, babe,” he backpedaled.
Cutter rolled his eyes—until Tower brushed the hair from Shealyn’s face with a caress.
She dodged his touch. “Then what did you mean?”
“Hey, don’t be angry. What I’m saying is, whenever I try to picture myself with anyone else, the only woman I see is you.”
Shealyn stared, confusion knitting her brow, along with worry. She didn’t want to hurt Tower in such a vulnerable moment with her rejection. He took her lack of protest for assent and brushed his knuckles across her cheek, sweeping his fingers back as if he intended to cup her nape and move in for a kiss.
Cutter had seen enough.
Pretending to round the corner and pocket his phone, he approached the two. “You ready to go home, Shealyn?”
Not Ms. West, and if the spray-tanned baboon wasn’t an idiot, he would hear the distinction. To ensure Cutter got his point across, he also speared Tower with a narrow-eyed warning.
Sure enough, the actor stiffened and released Shealyn. “I guess it’s getting late. Hey, I’ll call you later so we can talk more.”
“Tomorrow would really be better,” she demurred. “I’m going to bed early.”
Tower glanced between Cutter and Shealyn, speculation rampant. The guy clearly wondered if she was going to bed alone or with her new bodyguard. “Sure. Tomorrow.”
“Talk to you then.” Shealyn pasted on a smile that looked nothing like the real ones Cutter had seen her flash. “I think I left my phone in my trailer. I need to grab it.”
When she glanced at him expectantly, he touched a hand to the small of her back. It probably looked like a gentlemanly gesture, but he was pretty sure Tower would grasp that he was both helping her out of a sticky situation and staking his claim.
“All right. I can see out the sound stage door all the way from here to your trailer. Will you be all right if I watch you until you get inside, then meet you there?”
Yes, he was asking her permission to butt in. This was her personal life, and Tower was supposedly her friend. If Cutter had his way, he’d lift the asshole up by his neck, shove him against the wall, and let his feet dangle until the dick got the message.
“Um, I guess. I only need thirty seconds but . . . yeah.” She nodded, sending him a subtle, feminine warning to go easy on Tower, then turned to her co-star. “Bye.”
She left, casting a worried glance over her shoulder at the two of them as she neared her trailer. Cutter kept his body language and expression neutral until she disappeared inside.
The moment the door shut behind her, he glared at Tower, refusing to waste a single one of his thirty seconds. “Now that we’re alone, let’s drop the pretense. If Shealyn doesn’t want you touching her, I strongly advise you against doing so.”
“That’s between her and me. Back off. And don’t touch me. Raoul will be here in less than five minutes.”
So Tower was chickenshit enough to let someone else do his fighting? Where Cutter came from, warriors fought side by side in teams that functioned like well-oiled machines. They didn’t foist their battles off on someone else. And Cutter couldn’t help but wonder if this prick actually thought he was afraid of the big, zoot-suited bodyguard.
“It won’t take me that long to make myself clear. Unless Shealyn specifically invites you to touch her, I’ll make sure you don’t. I intend to protect her personal safety and sense of security using whatever means necessary.”
“Because you want to fuck her. Let’s be honest.”
Brows raised, Cutter responded to the jab with a moment of cold silence. “If she’s truly your friend, I would hope you have more respect for her than to talk about her like she’s a sex object. The woman I’ve come to know is interesting and kind. And maybe a little naive, yeah. But then a good friend wouldn’t take advantage of her innocence and generosity.”
“Oh, aren’t you fucking noble?” Tower scoffed.
“My responsibility is to take care of Shealyn, not your fragile ego.”
“Whatever, Boy Scout. You won’t be here long. After you’ve taken a tumble or two with her, she’ll figure out that she’s too good for you and tell you to pack your bags. While you’re at home pulling up your memories of her from your spank bank, I’ll still be here, right beside her. And I’ll wear her down until she sees reason. I’ll take your place in her bed.”
“But that’s all you’ll give her. I was always taught that, as a man, I was supposed to provide companionship and caring, not just pleasure, in order to make a woman happy. I’m still single because I’ve spent the better part of five years in Afghanistan. But I’m pretty sure I know why you’re still alone.”
Cutter didn’t wait for a reply. He was done talking, and his thirty seconds were more than up, so he turned his back on the actor and headed for Shealyn’s trailer.
“I work a billion hours and I know what relationships are about, so fuck you.”
He didn’t acknowledge Tower’s jibe, just kept walking toward Shealyn.
Tower Trent’s newfound “love” for Shealyn was one more complication Cutter didn’t need. Besides the danger, her secrets, and the attraction to her he couldn’t shake, now he had to worry whether her leading man’s sudden devotion was the emotional tourniquet she had accused Tower of turning . . . or whether the actor had something more—like blackmail—up his sleeve.
CHAPTER 9
Pacing the length of her trailer, Shealyn nibbled at a ragged nail that Tom would chastise her for if she forgot to fix before filming tomorrow. What words had Cutter exchanged with Dean? His expression hadn’t looked angry . . . but his vibe had been protective, pissed-off male.
The fact that he’d gone out of his way to defend her both warmed her and made her shiver.
Maybe she should have stayed and finessed the situation, but Tower’s erections and the reason he’d deduced for having them left her feeling somewhere between speechless and uncomfortable. She’d always been able to pretend passion on camera with Tower because he was completely safe.
Not anymore.
Behind her, the door opened suddenly and Cutter stepped into her trailer. “Did you find your phone?”
She nodded, unable to read his face. “What did you say to him?”
By the way he worked his jaw, Shealyn suspected violence had crossed his mind. “I reminded him that he wasn’t behaving like a gentleman. You ready to head home?”
Their conversation couldn’t have been that simple, but she doubted questioning Cutter further would encourage him to say more.
Her papa believed man-to-man conversations should be straightforward and blunt, but he would never speak to a woman that way. As decidedly un-PC and old-fashioned as it sounded, Shealyn appreciated that. Her grandfather always used calm, even tones with her and Maggie. She didn’t remember much from her time with her mother, but she’d never forgotten the screaming, the ear-splitting music, or the chaos. Cutter reminded her of Papa. Even when he said hard things to her, he didn’t have to yell to get his point across.
She’d bet Dean had discovered today that Cutter could be dangerous without raising his voice at all.
“Home sounds good.” Shealyn gathered up her phone and her Hermès purse that was more for show with the paparazzi than it was practical and shoved her phone inside. “How did Tower take your . . . feedback?”
Cutter opened the door for her and, hand at the small of her back, ushered her outside. As the last of the day’s rays hit her face, he followed, hovering behind protectively. “He doesn’t like me much, but that
doesn’t concern me.”
No surprise there. “And?”
“Depends. I’ve got more than one answer.” When he took the keys from her hands, he locked the trailer for her. “As your bodyguard? Since it’s unclear where his loyalties lie, except with himself, I’m advising you to tread cautiously. I don’t think he’s physically violent, but I believe he’d do almost anything to get his way. As a friend? I’d suggest you consider long and hard how much energy you want to invest in someone willing to bed you simply to avoid his own unrequited feelings for another woman. As your potential lover? I’d tell you to steer clear of him, work aside, because he wants what’s mine. He can’t have it as long as I’m here, and I intend to satisfy you so thoroughly you won’t be able to spare him a second thought.” He handed the keys back to her. “That answer your question?”
Shealyn gaped at him. He’d given her a lot of common sense to chew on, sure. But his intentions pinged around her brain, making her body flush and her womb clench. As he headed for his rental, she glanced up at Cutter’s strong profile. Knowing the quiet certainty with which he did everything, she didn’t doubt he could sate her completely and leave her reeling.
“It does,” she breathed.
He stopped mid–parking lot and curled a finger under her chin. “To be clear, I didn’t do or say anything that would jeopardize your working relationship or friendship with him.”
That hadn’t even crossed her mind. “I believe you.”
“And if you need me to elaborate on anything I’ve said—anything at all—I’ll be more than happy to.”
Strong, stoic Cutter gave her a sly grin to lighten the mood. He was flirting with her. Since she’d spent every moment between takes daydreaming about what tonight might bring, if she asked him to elaborate on how he would satisfy her, his description would probably make her swoon or combust.
“I believe that, too,” she drawled as they headed for the vehicle again. As he helped her inside, she waited for him to fold himself into the driver’s seat and back out of the space. “But I’m still shocked by Tower’s suggestion.”