“I’ll call down to security and have the foyer cleared.”
“Great.”
He pulls his cell phone out of his pocket and makes a call while I watch outside. After a minute, several people exit the building and hover in front. This totally sucks.
Ellis ends his call as he walks over to where I stand, looking down with me. “I don’t like this at all.”
“I don’t either. I’ve never been the object of their interest.”
“That’s not the part I don’t like.” I look up at him, as he cups my cheek. “You’re in this position because of me. Your privacy at risk.”
“It’s okay.”
He averts his eyes for a moment, before looking back at me. “And if I’m truly honest, I don’t want you to go out with someone or me to go on a date. I don’t want it at all.”
I offer a slight smile. “I know, Ellis, but let’s be real. We should. We both should. Nothing can happen between us. At least, not now. Not for a while. This is the right thing to do. I know it is.”
He nods. “I trust your instincts implicitly, and I will follow your lead.”
“That means everything to me, Ellis. Everything.”
He lets his hand slide from my face, down my neck, to rest on my shoulder. “You are right about one thing. If they watched me, if they could see my eyes when I look upon you, they would know without a doubt how fond I am of you.”
Rising up on my toes, I kiss his cheek. “They can’t see that though. We won’t let them. The nature of our relationship, whatever happens or doesn’t, it’s not for them to know. It’s just for us.”
“Yes.” He exhales, stepping back from me. “Shall we go face the bastards?”
“Yeah, let’s go.”
Stepping back on to the elevator, I squeeze Ellis’s hand briefly before we reach the bottom floor. When the doors open, the lobby has been cleared and two guards stand by the entry doors, blocking entrance from anyone unauthorized or uninvited. As I look ahead, I mentally count the people. There must be a dozen of them. A dozen jerks trying to pry into shit that isn’t any of their business. As my eyes scan the crowd, I make note of the faces for future reference. I like to recognize my enemies when I see them.
A guard opens the door, and as we step out into the waiting mass of media, Ellis protectively grabs my arm and pulls me through them, until I’m stopped by one question that rises above the rest. I stop in my tracks, turning back towards them as Ellis watches me.
“No, it isn’t,” I say toward the voice I heard. “Who asked me that?”
A man steps forward with a smug expression. He looks well past his prime with his patchy salt and pepper hair, sagging eyes, and yellow teeth. “I did, Avery.”
“Don’t use my name. We are not friends.” I step closer to him as the crowd silences. “It is not a conflict of interest, because Mr. Worthington and I are not in a personal relationship. We are colleagues and nothing more.”
“You spend a lot of time together,” the man says.
“Of course we work closely together. It’s kind of my job.”
The crowd shifts as a woman moves forward. She has a kind smile, something rarely seen in this profession. “Ms. Kennedy, would you like to make a statement regarding your relationship with Mr. Worthington?”
I smile at her. “What is your name?”
“Candice Moore. I’m not affiliated with a paper. I run my own society blog.”
“I’d be happy to comment.” I fix my very practiced aloof gaze at the crowd. “You guys are barking up the wrong tree. There’s no story here. Mr. Worthington and I obviously spend a great deal of time together due to the nature of our work. I have an office space in the building, and yes, at times I will attend events with him. This is all very normal and routine publicist work.”
“But you’re not dating?” Past his prime man asks.
“Of course not.”
“What about Atlanta Page?” someone calls from the back, making me want to roll my eyes.
“What about her?” I ask as the man pushes forward.
He looks down at his notes. “Says here you were dismissed.”
“True. And?”
“Why?”
“Well documented. Anything else?”
“You normally handle Hollywood celebrities. Why Ellis Worthington now?”
“As I’ve previously shared, I came here for an extended visit with my sister. After meeting Mr. Worthington, we decided to try working together. I wanted to do what I could to clear his name, because I believe without a doubt that he is one hundred percent innocent of the accusations aimed at him.”
“What about the man you were seen with leaving The Fig. Romance?”
I recall Luke, thinking he would be perfect to contact. “Just met him. Anything else?” I glance at the suddenly silent crowd in front of me, then nod my head. “I’ll say again, you’re wasting your time here, but if you don’t believe me, that’s fine. You can watch, but you’ll be bored.” I turn to face Ellis, who lingers behind me watching me intently. As we walk away, more pictures are snapped, but at least we aren’t followed. Once out of earshot, he glances at me and smiles.
“You are incredible.”
I shake my head. “Hardly.”
“No, you are. You carry yourself with such poise in a challenging situation. They don’t ruffle your feathers at all.”
“I’m just a good actress. They bother me a lot, especially now that I’m the target. It’s even more important, especially before Paris, that we get them to associate us differently. I’m going to use their interest in me for our benefit.”
“What will you do?”
“Well, I’m gonna go on a date with someone and hope to heaven that there’s some chemistry so by morning, they’ll know without a doubt that you and I are not a couple.”
We walk on for a moment in silence. “Will you sleep with him?”
“Oh come on, Ellis. Why even go there?”
“Will you? I just need to know.”
“Why? Will it change what you do?”
“It could.”
“What? You’re gonna fuck some woman just because you think I’m sleeping with someone? That’s dumb and immature.”
“Yes, it is both those things, but if I thought…” He pauses in front of a restaurant. “This is the place.”
We walk inside and after sitting down, he stares out the window, avoiding my eyes.
“Ellis?”
“I know it’s dumb and immature and completely inappropriate, but as I’ve admitted before, I cannot stand the thought of you in another man’s arms. I would either have to occupy myself, or act like a fool by tearing you away. Then by morning, the media would most assuredly know that whilst we may not be in a relationship, at least one of us wishes we were.”
Make that two of us. “Ellis, listen to me.” He focuses his gaze on me. “You have to trust me on this, and that extends deeper than just what I want the media to believe. Okay? I will not taunt you, and frankly, I don’t want to have sex with anyone right now, but it’s important, if we ever want peace, if we ever want their attention off of us, that we don’t give them anything to hold on to. Do you understand?”
“Of course.” He shakes his head. “I feel so foolish right now, admitting my deep desire to hoard you and all your attention just for me, when I know it can’t be that way.”
“Trust me, Ellis, all my attention is just for you.”
“I don’t mean professionally, Avery.”
“Neither do I.”
His eyes open wide for a moment. “Thank you for that.”
“You have to know. You have to feel it. It’s not one-sided, but it’s not the time.”
“I do know, I just…never mind.”
“No, tell me.”
He’s silent for a moment, before taking a deep breath. “I have shared previously that I like you.” He smiles. “I don’t like many people, Avery, certainly not many women, so it’s unfamiliar ground for me. I sh
ould keep these thoughts and desires to myself, but I am not able to. I just want to tell you, constantly, how you make me feel inside, and I want to hear how you feel in return. I want to know that nearly every thought you have is of me, as mine are of you. It’s insecure and clingy and disgustingly needy, but it is where I stand at the moment.”
I’m more than shocked at his vulnerability right now, so I stay silent trying to process it all.
“I must be so unattractive to you right now. Spilling my heart all over the table before you.”
“Ellis…” I whisper. “You’re the most attractive man on the planet to me. Your vulnerable confessions open up a part of me that I haven’t felt before. So thank you, so much, for giving me that.”
“But?”
“We have to have a private side and a public side. Privately, we need to figure out where we’re going. Publicly, we’re just colleagues.”
“Right. Got it.”
“So don’t be jealous because I assure you there is not another man who could pull my attention from you. Not professionally and not personally.”
“Thank you.”
I smile. “You’re welcome, Ellis.”
As we both look down at our menus, one thing just became very clear to me. We definitely need to figure out where we’re going, and we need to do it before the media figures it out for us.
Later that day, after saying goodbye to Ellis, I walk outside, looking around briefly for media, before stepping onto the sidewalk and waving for a taxi. Once safely inside, I dig through my wallet for Luke’s card. Staring at it for a moment, I sigh, then dial.
“This is Luke,” he answers.
“Uh, hi, Luke. My name is Avery. We met at—”
“Avery Kennedy, right?”
“Yes, that’s right. You remember me?”
“Definitely. How are you?”
“I’m good. I was calling because, well, my calendar suddenly opened up.”
“And you thought of me?”
“Of course.” I feel just slightly sick to my stomach using him for personal gain. Actually more than slightly sick. “Would you want to grab a drink sometime?”
“Absolutely. When?”
“Saturday?”
“Perfect. I can pick you up?”
“I’d rather meet somewhere. What about the same bar we met at then we can decide what to do from there?”
“That works. Will we be followed by paparazzi again?”
God, I hope so. “It’s possible to be honest. Does that bother you?”
“No, I feel like I’m suddenly famous.” He chuckles. “I did a bit of reading on you. Seems you’re the latest media darling.”
“Which is totally weird.”
“Eh, there are worse things to be. What time on Saturday?”
“Nine?”
“Wonderful. See you then.”
“Bye, Luke.”
“Bye.”
After hanging up, I text Ellis.
Date with Luke set. What about you?
A moment later, he responds.
Julia has agreed to dinner on Saturday.
Ignoring the pang of jealousy that stabs at my heart, I reply.
Have you been out with her before?
No. She’s been on the waitlist.
I laugh, shaking my head as I read his response.
She must be thrilled.
Likely, although she’ll be disappointed when the evening ends with her in her own bed.
Maybe not. What if you like her? What if she captures your attention?
She’d have to steal it from you.
I read his reply several times. No one has ever been as nice to me as he is. He’s the most unlikely person I could have envisioned warming up to, but here I am practically melting. I just can’t fuck this up. If we have a chance at being a couple, I have to bury this drama so we can move forward in peace.
As that final thought replays in my mind, it hits me what I just thought. A chance at being a couple. Glancing back at my phone, I type out a response that both terrifies me and makes me really happy.
I’ll never let her take it.
I only hope Luke doesn’t try to steal yours from me.
He could try, but…you’re safe. We just need to get through this, then we have Paris.
Yes. We have Paris.
◆◆◆
On Saturday night, after a tense week of dodging the ever hungry media outside of Equis and being forced to brief the employees on handling them again, I walk into The Fig hoping to get through this night as pain free as possible.
Talking to Ellis tonight was nerve wracking. He’s just as nervous and riddled with guilt as I am, especially after I told him to be affectionate towards Julia. It’s show time, and unfortunately, our dates tonight are collateral damage.
I’ve tweeted my plans, highlighting the “hunky guy” I’m meeting with, hoping for a bite. If they think I’m with Ellis, even better. If they don’t show up, well, fuck.
Searching the crowd, I spot Luke, looking drop dead sexy in jeans and a shirt that reveals his muscular tattooed arms. It’s too bad I’m not going for the kill tonight. He’s an extremely attractive man. I wave, getting his attention. Even if I wasn’t wrapped up in the Ellis possibility, I couldn’t give in to Luke. He’s a distraction that I just don’t need right now.
“Hey,” he says, when I reach him, hugging me and kissing my cheek. “Good to see you again.”
“You too.” I smile. “How’ve you been?”
“Good. I’m always good.”
“That’s lucky.”
“Nope. Don’t believe in luck.”
“Good point.”
“What can I get you to drink?”
“Scotch and soda.”
We sit down at the bar as Luke gets the bartender’s attention and orders our drinks while I glance around hoping for some media attention. This has to be the only time in my life I’ve wanted that for myself.
Luke sits next to me smiling as he hands me my drink. “I have to say I’m really surprised I heard from you.”
“Why?”
“You didn’t seem interested at all before.”
“I took your number, didn’t I?”
He smiles, nodding. “You did.” He lifts his glass. “Cheers.”
After clinking his glass, I reply. “Cheers.”
He sips his beer then puts his glass down. “So, how was your week?”
“Good. Busy with work. You?”
“Really good actually. I got a proposal for a reality show.”
I pull my head back slightly. “What do you mean?”
“I own the tattoo shop down the street and we have a reputation for fixing really bad tattoos. A few celebs have been by to see us, and we’re making a name for ourselves. We were scouted last week about it.”
“Oh. Cool. Are you considering it?”
“I’m on the fence. On the one hand, it’s good publicity, but on the other, you have to give up your privacy, yeah?”
“Right. It’s definitely a double-edged sword.”
“It is. My team is split. Some want it, some don’t. It’s a lot to think about.”
“Yeah, I get it.”
“That’s what you do, right? Work with famous people in trouble?”
I nod, smiling. “Yeah. That’s what I do.”
“Do you like it?”
“I do.”
“What’s the worst part of being famous?”
“Just like you said, the lack of privacy. Everything you do is scrutinized by the public, and they make assumptions about what kind of person you are based on very little evidence. When you make a mistake, it can be really bad.”
“Yeah. I’ve made a lot of mistakes in the past that I wouldn’t like the world to know about.”
“Something to consider. If you get famous enough, it’ll come out.”
He nods, sipping his beer. “I have two months to think about it.”
“Take them. Consider all of it
, and if the benefits outweigh the sacrifice.”
“Yeah, I’ll do that. Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.” I finish my drink, then touch Luke’s hand. “Want to go somewhere quieter so we can talk more?”
He grins at me. “Yeah. I know a good place.”
Standing up, he helps me into my coat, and as we walk to the doors, I notice outside a small group of paps have gathered. I do my best to hold back my smile. Perfect. They came. Thinking quickly, I move very close to Luke, who puts his arm around my waist.
“Are you nervous to go out there?” he asks.
“No. Are you?”
“No. I’ll keep you close.”
“Thanks.”
He opens the door, and we pause, getting our bearings as camera flashes light up the night around us, and voices shout several questions at me that I can’t make out. Luke grips my waist as we head to his car, quickly opening the door for me as I get inside.
He gets in beside me and starts the ignition, then pulls out into the street where they continue to snap pics at us. After we’re a good distance, Luke glances at me.
“Is that how it would be for me? Being chased by people with cameras?”
“Probably.”
“Something to think about.”
“It is.”
Luke drives for several minutes before pulling up in front of an apartment building. Bending my head, I look up at the structure, then back at him.
“Where are we?”
“My place. It’s quiet here.”
My eyebrows raise. “That’s a little bold, isn’t it?”
He grins, leaning across the seat and pressing his lips on mine. My body stiffens for numerous reasons. I’m not at all interested in him on this level, and really, for fuck’s sake, we just met. I try to push him off of me, but he grabs my wrist until suddenly his cock is in my hand. In. My. Hand.
“Dude!” I push him off of me with a shove. “What the fuck? Seriously?”
Luke looks at me like he’s surprised I don’t want to fuck in his car. “What?”
“What? You’ve got your dick out.”
“And?” He grabs it, stroking it up and down. I won’t lie, it’s pretty impressive, but still.
“And I’m not fucking you. Put it away.”
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