Bulletproof

by Melissa Pearl

  “What’s going on, Morgan? Is there anything I can help you with?” Her long fingers rested gently on my shoulder.

  My eyes burned, but I refused to them glisten with tears.

  “No.” I cleared my throat, trying to eradicate that thickening in my windpipe.

  “Morgan, what’s happened?” I wanted to open up to her right then, to let all my tears fall and tell her my tragic news, but I couldn’t. If I fell apart in that dance studio, I’d never be able to pick up the pieces.

  “Look, it’s kind of private, Ms. Finnermore. I appreciate you wanting to help and everything, but you can’t. Things have changed, and I have to be there for my family. Dancing will just have to wait.”

  And it did.

  “Why’d you give it up?” Sean studied me carefully in the dusky light.

  My bottom lip stuck out and I shrugged, not sure why I felt like telling him. I rarely mentioned this to anyone. “My mom left and I had to look after my little sister. There just wasn’t time to fit in dance rehearsals around grocery shopping and cooking and cleaning and helping a ten-year-old with homework.” My voice hitched. I sniffed and took a large bite of my sandwich, hoping to avoid talking for a minute.

  “Where was your dad?”

  I brushed the crumbs from my bottom lip and swallowed. “Working. Mom took her part-time wage with her and things got a little tight.”

  “Where’d she go?”

  My chest restricted, the muscles pulling so tight I thought they might ping straight off my rib cage.

  “I don’t know where she went then, but last I heard, she sings at this little lounge in a Las Vegas casino.” I placed my sandwich on the table, a bitter taste filling my mouth.

  “You ever see her?”

  “Nope.” I accentuated the P.

  “How old were you when it happened?”

  “Fourteen.”

  “Whoa, that’s kinda harsh.”

  I shrugged. “It made me strong, I guess. Bulletproof.” I smirked, needing this conversation to be over.

  “Bulletproof?”

  “Yeah, it’s a good way to live. It’s helped me get over numerous breakups and whenever life gets particularly shitty, I can just give it the finger and start singing.” I immediately launched into “Bulletproof” by La Roux.

  Sean’s laughter rose as I worked my way through the verse, bobbing my head and lifting my finger. When I got to the chorus, he joined me, even harmonizing on the long notes. Man, he had a good voice. I stopped singing and let him finish the chorus by himself.

  “What?” He grinned at me.

  “You’re just...” I shrugged. “Really talented.”

  “So are you.” His quiet voice was silky, making my skin tingle.

  Words filled my mouth, but none of them could break free. I was paralyzed by his soft blue gaze, unable to look away from it, desperate for it to never end.

  Loud laughter from across the grass made me jump.

  Glancing at my watch, I realized it was already ten-thirty, probably not the best time to be out in a park.

  “I guess we should head off.”

  “Yeah, I guess so.” Sean started gathering up the trash. I went to help him, but he raised his hands. “No, ma’am. Let me do the dishes, please.”

  Laughter shot out of my belly and I raised my hands, stepping away from the table. I fished out my keys as I waited for him to finish cleaning up and then stepped in beside him as we walked to our cars via the trash can.

  Our arms kept brushing, our hands occasionally hitting each other’s. I felt like I was in middle school again, that giddy feeling flickering through my stomach as I wondered if he was going to take my hand.

  He never did.

  We got to my car, and he stood a pace away from me, his hands in his pockets, his eyes gently caressing me.

  “Thanks for joining me for a late-night snack.”

  “Anytime.” I smiled. “You owe me anyway.”

  “I owe you?”

  “Yeah, you somehow managed to wrangle a little family history out of me, and you now owe me some history of your own.”

  “I’m surprised you don’t know it all already.” He frowned, scratching behind his ear.

  “I only know what the Internet tells me, and that’s not always true.”

  His lips pursed to the side before breaking into a smile. “I knew I liked you for a reason, Morgan Pritchett.”

  I could feel my insides glowing as he winked at me, reaching past me to open my door. I slid into the seat, buckling my seatbelt and waving goodbye as he turned for his car. He followed me out, honking farewell as I turned off toward Pasadena.

  I guess it couldn’t really qualify as a date or anything. He didn’t kiss me goodbye, didn’t even try to hold my hand. In fact, there was nothing date-like about our evening. It was just two people having a bite together.

  As I slowed to a stop at the intersection, it occurred to me that I hadn’t done that with a guy in years. I had basically been dating since I was fifteen. Guys were never friends with me, because they always knew they could get more.

  I couldn’t decide whether to be happy or sad.

  On the one hand, being friends with Sean would be amazing, but man, I wanted so much more.

  “Who the hell are you kidding?” I looked at my eyes in the rearview mirror. “Sean Jaxon! Take whatever you can get, Morgan.”

  I rested my head back against my seat as I waited for the light to turn green, a smile slowly stretching my lips wide.

  Sean Jaxon.

  Unreal.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  SEAN

  “And that’s a wrap for today. Sean¸ you can go whenever.”

  “Thanks, Con.” I gave him a quick salute and headed straight for my dressing room. I was so ready to be gone. This week had been huge, but thankfully I didn’t have any more shoots. I had a recording session in the studio for one song the next morning, and then I was free until Monday. Man, that felt good.

  I moved sideways to let a harried runner through. In contrast to Morgan, she wore her heart all over her sleeve, and everyone knew when she was having a bad day. For some reason, Travis didn’t seem to notice her as much. I didn’t know what it was about Morgan, but he really seemed to have it in for her.

  I hadn’t seen her around much throughout the week. She’d been in and out a lot more. The two times she pulled a full day here, I managed to catch up with her after work. The first time, I saw her leaving as I was unlocking my car. She came over and we ended up talking in my car for nearly two hours, just shooting the breeze, mainly about my family that time around. It wasn’t until my watch beeped eleven that we even noticed the time.

  Then on Wednesday, I managed to stop her before she drove out the gate. I was really stopping her to say goodnight, but she asked if I wanted to follow her for some chow. She took me to a little Mexican restaurant in Pasadena. We sat in a back booth and once again time disappeared until, at midnight, the proprietor kicked our laughing butts out the door. I was so drunk on tiredness and my one beer, I don’t even know how I made it home.

  Working long days took its toll, but it was also energizing, and ending my day with a fix of Morgan was never a bad thing.

  She fascinated me, she enchanted me, and the days I didn’t get to see her were always disappointing. I still couldn’t believe I hadn’t gotten her phone number yet. What a damn fool.

  I was tempted to ask Lisa but didn’t want her nosing around or jumping to any conclusions. It didn’t matter that they were the right ones; on-set gossip was a pain in the ass, and I didn’t want to fuel it. What I wanted was to find Morgan in a quiet little corner and ask her out on a date. A real date.

  I had planned on asking her that day, but the one time I spotted her, she’d been rushing out the door while I’d been heading into makeup. I hadn’t seen her since.

  With a heavy sigh, I glanced at my watch and figured there was no point sticking around for three hours on the off-chance she might come
back. I might as well just head home and kick my feet up.

  Running a hand over my head, I glanced up and noticed Rhonda leaning against my doorframe.

  “Hey.” I smiled. “What are you doing here?”

  “I was driving past.”

  “Everything cool?”

  “Yeah, just wanted to book you in for a couple of things.” She flipped open her iPad Mini case and punched in her code. “So, the cologne ad is set up for two weeks from today. I’ve checked your filming schedule and you’re free. It’ll just be a one-day shoot, probably nine ’til three, something like that. Nothing too taxing.”

  I couldn’t think of anything worse, but I nodded and forced a grin.

  “And things here seem to be going pretty well. You have a lighter filming schedule next week, so I thought we could actually catch up for a meal or something; there are some dates coming up that I want to plan for. I also checked in with your talent agent, and she has a couple of things in the pipeline I think we should discuss.”

  “Sure. Whatever. You look after my calendar, so go ahead and book me in.”

  “Will do.”

  I pulled off my shirt and hung it in the closet before rummaging in my bag for a fresh T-shirt. Collecting my stuff, I threw Rhonda another smile and headed for the exit. She followed me, her clipping heels sounding like gunshots on the hard floor.

  “Are you free tomorrow night?” she asked over my shoulder. “Maybe we could catch up then.”

  I shrugged, about to say yes, when I saw her. It was only a flash of blonde, but I knew that stride anywhere. “Actually, no.”

  I paused, my eyes traveling to where Morgan might be going.

  “What’s the matter?” Rhonda frowned, her small glasses sliding down her nose.

  “Nothing. I just saw someone I need to talk to.”

  Her eyes narrowed, her big lips pulling into a half-pout.

  “What?”

  “You dating someone?”

  I rolled my eyes, not really wanting to get into it. “No.”

  “Who was that girl who just came in?”

  “Huh?”

  Her left eyebrow arched. “That girl. The one who made you stop walking, the one who made you suddenly change your mind about our meeting tomorrow.”

  “Oh her; that’s, um...”

  “Don’t tell me it’s no one.”

  I sighed. “Her name’s Morgan and it’s no big deal.”

  “Your face tells me otherwise.” Rhonda huffed, flipping open her iPad again. “Who is she?”

  “No one you need to know about.”

  “Actress? What role does she play?”

  I licked my bottom lip. “Not an actress.”

  “Hmph, so why are you interested in her then?”

  “It’s—Rhonda, you don’t need to know this.”

  “I don’t need to know this?” She pointed at her chest. “Two words for you, Sean— Abigail Tripoli.”

  I bit the inside of my cheek and cleared my throat.

  “Do I need to say more?”

  “This is different. She’s not famous; no one’s interested in her.”

  “They’re interested in you, and if you like her, they’re gonna want to know about it.” She tutted. “It’s too soon for another Abigail situation.”

  “We’re not going to get another Abigail situation.”

  “Look, you know as well as I do that they’re freaking vultures. They’ll jump on anything, and now that Abigail’s been cheated on, she could be coming after you again.”

  “Isn’t she dating some rock star?”

  “They broke up last night.”

  “Huh.” I shrugged, feeling very nonplussed about the whole thing. I couldn’t give two shits who Abigail was seeing, and if she ever showed up on my door again, I’d tell her exactly where to go.

  Rhonda tipped her head, giving me an exasperated look. “You’re not going to drop this, are you?”

  “One date, that’s all.”

  “Okay, fine. I’m not your booty boss, but make sure you take her somewhere nice and quiet...somewhere private where the press can’t find you.”

  I forced a smile and gave her a nod. “I’ll watch my back, Rhonda. Don’t worry.”

  She gave me a motherly grin. “I just want to look after ya.”

  “I know, and you do a great job.” I wrapped my arms around her small frame and gave her a squeeze. She let me go with a little laugh and then her phone started chirping.

  I took my chance to walk the other way. I didn’t want to let Rhonda down. I knew she had my best interests at heart, but I also didn’t want to have to hide in the shadows, either. I wanted to take Morgan dancing, and there was a hot little club in town I knew she’d love. I was pretty sure the press weren’t allowed in, so if we could sneak in the door, we’d have a private evening; there just wouldn’t be anything quiet about it.

  I grinned, heading the way Morgan had gone. I saw her standing next to Travis, nodding at something he was saying. Not wanting to cause any more trouble for her, I hung back, watching the exchange.

  “I did everything you asked me to,” Morgan said calmly. “I can’t control the traffic in Los Angeles, so the thirty-minute delay was not my doing. Now, is there anything else you need before I leave for the night?”

  He looked his watch. “You’ve still got three hours before I let you go, so don’t think you can skip out early.”

  “I wasn’t asking to skip out early. I was asking if there was a job you would like me to do; otherwise, I’m happy to go and take a coffee break.”

  He glared at her. I couldn’t see her face, but I bet she was smirking back. That seemed to be her best defense against him.

  After a long pause, Travis grunted. “I’m sure there’s some studio that needs cleaning or something. Lisa.” He tipped his head toward Morgan.

  Lisa gave her co-worker a sympathetic smile before mumbling something.

  Morgan pulled her shoulders back and gave a stiff nod before leaving the room. I let her walk straight past me and quietly followed her down to the lunch room. She strode up to the counter and placed her hands on the cool metal, gripping the edge and letting out a long sigh. Then her back went straight. She flicked her head and opened the cupboard, yanking mugs down one by one and slapping them onto the counter.

  “Hey.”

  She jumped and spun to face me. “Oh, hi.”

  “I didn’t think you were in today.”

  “Yeah, I’ve been in and out. The dry cleaning/car wash run took longer than I thought.”

  “Was Travis giving you a hard time?”

  Her jaw worked to the side. “Nothing I can’t handle.”

  She spun back to the coffee machine and loaded up a fresh filter.

  “Job getting to you, huh?”

  “No.” She shook her head. “It’s not the job. I’m grateful to even have one, I just...look, it’s immature.”

  I perched my butt on the nearest table to her. “I’m sure it’s not.”

  “I just...” Dumping a healthy spoonful of coffee into the machine, she slammed the lid shut. “I just hate the way he talks to me, like I’m some worm. I mean, a thank-you would be nice, sure, but I don’t even expect that. I know this is a busy place. I know everyone plays an important role in making this happen, I just— I don’t— Why does he have to make my role feel worthless? Why the fuck did he even hire me, if he doesn’t want me here!” She threw her hands in the air.

  I wanted to reach for them, rub my thumbs over her knuckles as I pulled her into my arms.

  “He needs you here. We all do. You’re right; we’re all part of this big machine and every single person is important to making it run smoothly.” I stood and carefully approached her, sliding my hand across her lower back. “Even the coffee maker,” I whispered in her ear.

  She drew in a breath through her nose, turning to look at me. Our faces were an inch apart, our eyes dancing as we breathed each other’s air.

  A slow smile wor
ked across her lips and I took my chance.

  “You busy tomorrow night?”

  “I’m working until eight...supposedly.” She rolled her eyes.

  “Do you think you’ll have enough energy to go home, shower up, and let some guy take you out dancing?”

  Her brown gaze surged with surprise. Pleasure followed swiftly in its wake.

  “You asking me on a date, Mr. Jaxon?”

  “Yeah, I am.”

  Her lips parted, her eyes rounding as she looked away from me. Her finger tapped on the countertop as the coffee started filling the pot. My hand dropped from her back, and I stepped away from her, eyeing her carefully. Crossing my arms, I decided to go for cocky and see how she’d take it.

  “Come on, you know you want to say yes.”

  Her eyebrows arched, a smirk cresting over her lips. I moved back toward her, sliding my hand along the countertop until it rested against her pinky finger.

  “It’s dancing. I know you can’t resist.”

  Her tongue brushed across her bottom lip as she looked across at me.

  “You’re right; it’s the dancing I can’t resist.” Her smoldering brown eyes said something else entirely. Electricity fired through my muscles like a shock wave.

  I hissed in a breath. “Damn, girl, you’re gonna do me in.”

  She grinned. “Wait ’til you get me on the dance floor.”

  I thought I was going to combust. She pulled off cocky a hell of a lot better than I did.

  “Morgan, where the hell are those coffees!”

  I jumped away from Morgan before Lisa appeared.

  “Hey, Lisa.” I grabbed my stuff and headed out the door as she burst into the room.

  “Oh, hey, Sean.” She barely noticed me, her eyes going straight for Morgan. “Travis is going to have a fit. You’ve already been late today.”

  “I can’t make water boil any faster, Lisa.”

  “I know.” The first assistant sighed. “He just told me to come down here and give you hell.”

  I paused outside the door, peeking my head around the corner to see Morgan’s reaction.

  She spun to face Lisa with a tired frown. “That guy is such a—”

  I caught her eye and did a quick shimmy in the doorway. The last thing she needed to do was insult him. If Lisa ever let it slip, Morgan would be fired...and selfishly, I wanted her to stay.