“Your job sucks. You should come work for me instead.”
“Yes, photographer to the stars, I’m sure I’d be a huge asset as your…what, exactly?” It wasn’t there. Where the hell…? Shit.
“You could be my oil girl—get the boys all nice and glossy for the shots.” Jade paused as Vicky’s shoulders slumped. “What’s wrong?”
“Remember the comedy of errors?” At Jade’s nod, she continued, “Apparently it isn’t over. I knocked my purse off a table in his room and somehow missed picking up my work ID. It has my name, my picture…if someone returns it to Elegant and happens to mention it was found in a guest room, I’m so very fired.”
“Sure you don’t want the oil girl gig? I can’t offer much in the way of real benefits, but there are a lot of hot men and the comedy stylings of yours truly on a daily basis.”
She didn’t want a job; she wanted a career. Elegant offered her that. It was a long road from entry-level waitress to party planner, but it was a good road. And if she blew it at Elegant, every company in the area would know why—she’d never get another shot. It’d be one menial job after another until she maybe found something else she was good at, something else she loved to do. “Jade…”
“Kidding. So, what do you think? Should we stage a break-in while they’re deep in their meeting?”
Vicky knew her friend was joking, but at the moment it seemed like the best option they had. Especially considering the other one involved contacting Dante. She’d managed to mostly stay away from him last night like Evan had warned her to, but even their two brief exchanges had led to Dante-as-fantasy-guy this morning. Did she really want to risk seeing him again?
Did she have a choice?
Groaning, Vicky pulled her phone from her purse and started typing.
Hey. Left my work badge in your room. Mortensen might have been okay with me staying late, but if any of the staff find it and “help” by taking it to Elegant, I’m fired.
It only took a few seconds before Dante sent his response.
Found it this morning. How about I drop it by your place tonight and we can catch up for real?
Considering she was terrified of what effect seeing him for even a few seconds would have on her libido, anything longer would end with her doing something stupid and having no choice but to take Jade’s job offer. She’d never known anyone who affected her like Dante did. It was time to nip this in the bud before she lost control of the situation completely.
I’d really feel better once it’s back in my purse. I know it’s silly, but I’ve been paranoid about losing this job ever since I got it. Can I fly by the mansion and pick it up? I’m not far right now.
She expected him to argue, and when his response came, she was equal parts relieved and disappointed.
Sure thing. Meeting is wrapping, and I was going to head out for a run before I discuss some stuff with Saul this afternoon.
He’d given her an out. She’d better take it and count her lucky stars.
Perfect. See you in a few.
Vicky set the phone down and met Jade’s quizzical expression. “Turns out the B and E isn’t necessary. I just have to walk into my own personal level of hell instead. Want to come as backup?”
Jade set her coffee down and cocked her head sideways. “Now?”
“Yeah. I know, I know, I’m ditching you for a guy. Chicks before dicks and all that, but I need my job.”
“You also need some dick, so I’d understand either way.” Snorting, Jade snapped her fingers and the waiter came running like a trained dog. “We’ll be taking our order to go. And cups for the drinks, too. Thanks.” She turned back to Vicky and arched an eyebrow.
“I’m not going to get laid right now, Jade. I just want my badge.”
“I know, sweetie. I was still hoping.”
Maybe bringing her along was a bad idea. Jade was already like a dog with a bone in regard to Mission Re-pop Vicky’s Cherry. Now, with the potential to close the deal within reach, she’d never let it go. Vicky had to try, though. “Do me a favor and stay in the car.”
“I thought you wanted backup.”
She had used that exact term, and Jade was a stickler for details when something had her attention. “I might need backup, but I’ll wave you over if it comes to that. And if it does, please remember, this is about saving my job.”
“Nope. Saving your job is just a bonus. As far as I’m concerned, this is still all about getting you a little something. Preferably a big something. Actually, I’m kind of hoping it’s a Magnum-sized something.”
She’d forgotten that Jade kept a condom selection to put most pharmacies to shame. “Can we please not go there right now?” Mainly because it had her thinking of a very specific penis—one that would need at least a Magnum.
“Well, expecting a Durex XXL guy might be pushing your luck.” When Vicky shot her an angry glare, Jade just shrugged and said, “What? It would. Also, if that’s what you’re into, I should have bought you bigger toys.”
They spent the rest of the drive in blessed silence. Now Jade was parked across the street from Mortensen’s driveway, and Vicky was standing by the gate, waiting on Dante. She’d texted him the moment they’d arrived, but he hadn’t come out yet. Loitering outside a Hollywood producer’s mansion so hadn’t been on today’s to-do list. If a cop came by, she really had no good excuse. Saying she was meeting someone wouldn’t go over well. As she was ready to text Jade for an assist, a man on foot came out the gate and started jogging down the sidewalk.
He tugged out earbuds and pulled off the stocking cap that had masked his long, dark hair when he stopped in front of her. “Hey, Vicks.”
Two words and her insides were already turning to Jell-O. Time to do what she came for and get out of here. “Hey. So…do you have it?”
Dante chuckled. “You’re making it sound like a drug deal is going down.” He lowered his voice as he furtively pulled her badge from his pocket. When she went to grab it, he moved it out of reach. “But since we’re dealing, I think that letting me take you to dinner tonight is a fair exchange for this little piece of plastic.”
At the word “dinner,” she made the mistake of looking at his mouth, and thoughts of his lips on hers—and on other, more sensitive bits of flesh—made heat coil inside her with need. She started to inch toward him without meaning to. No, just being near him was making her lose control, making her want to give herself to him. She had to stop this—right now—and there was only one way she could think to make that happen.
…
“Sorry. I already have plans with Reed tonight.”
Had she not gotten the message last night? No. She hadn’t been there when Saul had mentioned the other women.
“Did you miss me telling you he was bad news? The kind of guy who screws underage—” She laid a hand over his lips, and the touch was electrifying. The idea of her wasting that on fucking Reed Russell was infuriating.
“It doesn’t matter. He asked. I said yes.”
It did matter. She might have just been looking to get some post-divorce nookie, but Reed Russell was not the guy to do it with. There was no way he was leaving her alone with that kind of danger. Somehow, Dante had to put the brakes on this. If he didn’t, and Evan found out he could have… Well, he didn’t want to be involved in that kind of conversation. But clearly, Vicky wasn’t interested in the truth, at least not right now. That would just lead to her arguing and leaving, more determined than ever to meet up with Reed and attempt to prove him wrong.
Which meant, as much as he hated it, Dante had to play this the way Reed would. Which involved doing something so ugly his lunch threatened to come back up. “You know, it wouldn’t take much for me to tell the whole truth about last night.”
Vicky’s eyes widened as she stared at him. “What?”
“You left this in my room.” He waved her badge up over her head. “Same room you were in minus your panties and wearing a gorgeous lacy bra. I wonder how your boss w
ould like hearing about that when I drop this by his office.” She stopped leaping for the badge, and he caught her gaze again. “Or you could cancel on Reed and go to dinner with me instead.”
“You’re blackmailing me?” The words came from between teeth clenched tight. “To date you?”
To date…?
He’d been thinking to blackmail her just to stay the hell away from Reed and the kind of trouble he represented, and he’d hoped one night would do that. But could he really pass up a chance to let Vicky get to know him? After all this time? That window of opportunity he’d recognized the night before opened wider, displaying a view filled with all sorts of chasms and dangers. It wasn’t a pretty one, but if it kept her out of Reed’s clutches, it was still the right choice to make.
“Something like that.”
Fury and panic warred on her face, painting it in reds and tight lines. She grabbed his arm, but when he didn’t drop the badge, she stood on her tiptoes and whispered in his ear, her voice heartbroken more than angry, “Since it seems what I heard five years ago was right, I’d rather lose my job.”
Ouch. Regardless of what she’d heard about him, it still wasn’t enough to convince Dante to hand her over to the guy who would happily destroy more than just her new career. “Good to know. I guess my run can wait until later.” He turned as if to go back through the gate.
Her fingers tightened on his biceps, holding him in place, and her face screwed up in a mask of frustration and anger. “Why do you have to be such an ass?”
“What can I say, Vicks? You bring out the best in me.” He laid a hand over hers, ready to peel back her fingers one at a time to really drive home the illusion that he planned to run and tattle on her. “So, dinner tonight, or am I going inside to ask Saul the name of the guy at Elegant?”
She twisted around as if looking for an escape, then let out a furious screech as a tour bus rumbled slowly past. “Just dinner?”
“Dinner tonight and you get your badge back. A few more nights out over the next couple weeks and you have my word that no one will know about the little birthmark on your left ass cheek.”
A blush crept up her skin as she cast a glance toward the gate, then another toward the road. Whatever she was looking for must not have been there. She bit her lip in a way that made him want to pull it free. “You’re not exactly leaving me much choice.”
Saul was in the process of firing Reed from the movie as they spoke, so it wasn’t likely Vicky would run into him any time soon. As long as he kept her away tonight, she’d probably be safe. “It’s just dinner, Vicky.”
“And a couple more nights.”
“Let’s just worry about tonight. Badge back, and then your boss would have to make you strip down to prove I’m not a lying son of a bitch anyway.”
She snorted a laugh and shook her head. “I forgot about your way with words. Fine. I’ll do it.”
“That way with words is called honesty. And so is this.” Emboldened by their ridiculous deal, he leaned in and pressed his mouth to hers. He didn’t know what he expected, but having his whole body light on fire sure as hell wasn’t it. She’d been in his bed just last night, and it hadn’t felt this intense. For a split second, her lips softened beneath his, as if she felt it, too, and was surrendering to the energy flowing between them.
Then she stiffened again.
Any fleeting hope that she’d felt something deep and real vanished. Post-divorce kiss, he’d seen it before—the need for connection so intense that in the right moment anything would suffice. He was going to have to do better than that with Vicky if he wanted this to last beyond the ruse, beyond the moment when he admitted the blackmail itself was the lie.
For now, he simply drew back from the kiss and combed his fingers through her hair. “I’ll call you about dinner in a couple hours.”
Then he stuffed her badge in his pocket, yanked on his cap, and took off at a jog. Earbuds back in place, he almost laughed at the song that had shuffled onto his warm-up mix, wondering if his old friend Lee had reached down from the afterlife to voice his opinion on the matter. The chorus of “If That’s What It Takes” by Bon Jovi summed up the last ten minutes of his life. As his feet slapped the concrete, he found himself humming along. Maybe by the time their two weeks were up, Vicky would understand his intentions, too.
Chapter Four
Vicky’s ass hadn’t touched the leather seat before Jade said, “Are you kidding me?”
“What?” As soon as Vicky shut the door, Jade was pulling from the curb and executing a tight U-turn.
“You almost hooked up with the Inferno? And you failed to mention that part? I swear, that kind of omission makes me question our friendship.”
The Inferno. Dante’s nickname from his pro wrestling days. He’d been one of the “good guys”—the entire shtick around his character was that he’d been sent from hell to punish evildoers and make them turn from the wickedness of their ways. He’d rocked the guyliner and a thick bloodred streak in his hair. He still used the look for certain events…and it still made Vicky’s panties wet. She’d never let anyone know, though, especially not her brother. Or Dante.
“It’s not nearly that simple. And he’s mainly acting now. He’s kind of ditched the nickname.”
Jade cast side-eyes at her. “Only you could complicate sex with a man like that.”
“We haven’t had sex, so it’s not complicated…yet. It’s just not as simple as you like to make everything.” When Jade only snorted in response, Vicky continued, “He’s Evan’s best friend, and before I married Brandon, my brother told me Dante was bad news.” His blackmailing me with my damn badge kind of proves it. And to think, I’d been all worried about how I’d give in to him and lose myself in a relationship again.
“Meh. Unless he tests positive for something icky, I can’t imagine how a little bump and grind with him could be bad.” Pausing at a red light, she tapped her nails on the steering wheel. “Unless he has a micropenis. That could be bad.”
As if Jade’s words had conjured a phantom dick into the car, Vicky could feel his thickness and length in her hand again. Her insides tightened around nothing, complaining about the sexual release she’d been denied. “He doesn’t.”
“How close are they that Evan knows that?” Jade laughed. When Vicky didn’t join in, she cocked her head to the side. “Your brother never would have brought that up. You know it. How close to sex did you get?”
“Close enough I know how big his dick is, and that’s probably as close as I should get.” The light turned green, and Vicky prayed Jade would let it go.
“Uh-uh, sugar. You have a timeline, and based on what I saw, that was a man who would be more than happy to help you prove me wrong by showing both of us that you can do just sex. Stick it to me while he sticks it in you.” A horn blasted behind them, and Jade shoved her hand out the window, flashing him the bird, but she did pull back into traffic.
Vicky wished she could sink into the leather and disappear. This entire situation had spiraled out of control. “Rushing into something with him just seems like a colossally bad idea. I mean, if Evan of all people warned me off, shouldn’t I take that as solid advice?” Besides, she could already feel herself getting lured in. It wouldn’t be just sex—not to her.
“Yes. And you did. Before you got married. Times change, people change, and it’s not like you’re looking for a forever romance here. You’re just trying to get a good, solid, not-mechanically-induced orgasm. Maybe even a couple. You need it, and you deserve it. And really, you could do a lot worse than the Inferno. There are women who would literally kill to be in your position.”
“I told you,” she said, sinking a little lower, “he doesn’t like people using that name anymore.” And neither do I. I don’t need reminders of how hot he is—it’s been branded in my head for years.
…
Dante needed a plan.
Saul hadn’t fired Reed after all. The little asshole’s lawyer had argued t
he “indiscretion” had happened at a private party and none of the women involved were upset about anything other than the interruption. Due to that, the lawyer helpfully mentioned an announcement of Reed’s termination would have to be followed with a statement from the actor, which would include spilling the details about where the incident had taken place.
In the end, Saul had caved. The film didn’t need any more bad press. They’d already had to recast the female lead due to their first choice landing in rehab after a particularly violent drug-induced episode that left her boyfriend in the hospital.
Bad enough they had to put up with Reed and his shit on set. This also meant that he’d be around for every event Dante had hoped to attend with Vicky. If it were an option, he’d just bail and take her somewhere else—anywhere else—but the only ones that weren’t contractually obligated were charity events, and he wasn’t about to skip those.
On the plus side, he had a couple days to figure it out before they needed to deal with Reed—if she stuck around that long. And soon, he’d have Vicky all to himself at dinner. She’d insisted on driving separately, but a lot of women did that these days. He’d hoped to avoid the potential-creeper label based on his friendship with Evan, and the fact that she’d known him for several years, but he wasn’t about to give her grief about being cautious.
He only wished she had applied the same logic to her interaction with Reed.
Late evening sun beat down on the concrete, blasting the last of the day’s heat like a furnace. He could have waited inside, but a stupid part of him relished the idea of taking Vicky’s arm as the valet held her car door open.
“Are we waiting for sunset or something?”
Her voice would have made him jump if Lee hadn’t trained him to not react to unexpected sounds. “Where did you come from?”
Turning, he drank her in. Gone were the miniskirt and white blouse. Gone, too, were the shorts and T-shirt from earlier. In their place, she wore a flowy dark peach dress. It was long in the back, but shorter in the front to show off her amazing legs. He couldn’t have picked a more perfect outfit to accentuate her coloring and body. She was, in a word, stunning.
Blackmailed by the Hero Page 4