Fool for Love

by Mel Curtis

  Let’s just pull the gloves off.

  Kaya laughed. “It takes a strong man to be with me.”

  “Is that why you tend to jump into relationships?” Blue doggedly persisted. “Because men who get to know you first lose interest in you physically?”

  “Are you saying my personality is a turn-off?” Kaya’s sneer made Maddy nervous.

  She’d told Larry no matter what happened, he had to keep filming. If Kaya jumped on Blue, they wouldn’t play referee in a dog fight.

  “Let me show you something.” Blue hit some keys on his computer and then turned the screen so Kaya could see.

  At Larry’s questioning look, Maddy shook her head. They had to stay on the principals here. Anything Blue showed on his computer they could edit in later.

  Blue played a collection of video clips. Kaya during the Amazing Race, demeaning her partner to the point where he refused to sleep with her anymore. Kaya on Dr. Phil, where she belittled another boyfriend, who walked off stage.

  When Blue’s video montage finished, Kaya still had the cat who ate the canary sneer on her face. “Is that supposed to make me feel ashamed? Because I’m comfortable with who I am.”

  “Do you think your mother would approve of the way you handle your relationships?”

  He’d punched Kaya’s GO button. She leapt across the desk, grabbing Blue by the lapels of his suit. “How about I bring your father into this? He was a real fixer of problems with his Elvis outfits and hula skirts.”

  Blue had taken Kaya’s wrists. He stood, gently but firmly dragging her hands off of him. “I have a present for you, Kaya. I want you to keep this until we film tomorrow. Take it with you everywhere. Promise?”

  He had her at the word: present. Kaya stood, straightening her clothes.

  Blue picked up his dog carrier messenger bag and handed it to Kaya. Inside, a pink and gray dog growled.

  “Mr. Jiggles,” Cora whispered, aghast.

  “Blue,” Maddy whispered, her heart breaking all over again.

  Kaya was nasty and Blue was giving her his most precious possession. She had to stop this. She had to save Blue. She had to…keep the cameras rolling.

  “See you tomorrow night,” Blue said coolly, turning to look out the window. “Bring him with you.”

  Fully aware of the import of her gift, Kaya hugged the carrier to her chest, gathered her things and left, leaving everyone speechless.

  Maddy felt ill. This was her fault. She shouldn’t have said Blue didn’t deserve Mr. J. She wanted to wrap her arms around him and tell him to forget relationship coaching. She wanted him to go back to the way he was the day she’d met him – cocky and sure of himself while he held his pink poodle.

  Cora had tears in her eyes. “How could you?”

  Blue stared at Maddy over his shoulder. “Because she needs him more than I do.”

  “Cut,” Maddy murmured.

  Kaya surprised Maddy by showing up for her dinner dates the next day. Maddy would have bet money the Amazing Race contestant would cut her losses, keep the dog, and stand them up, but Kaya didn’t. In fact, the tough as nails woman seemed a bit nervous.

  “He gave me his dog.” Kaya gestured to the carrier in the corner. “That’s got to mean something, right?”

  “Hold still while I put this mic on.” Maddy thought it meant Blue had gone over the deep end. Granted, adopting his father’s principles when he’d had a difficult relationship with the man had to be hard. But giving up his dog to Kaya? She’d be more supportive if he’d given Mr. Jiggles to the cancer-ridden boy who’d punched Blue in tights.

  “Do you…” Kaya held herself very still, like a good little girl.

  Maddy sighed. “Do I what?”

  “Do you think he’ll be one of them?” Kaya looked at Maddy with the dark, tortured eyes of someone who was in love and on a sinking ship.

  Surprised that she felt sympathy toward Kaya, Maddy shook her head. “Blue said he’d never do that.” And once he broke things off, he never went back for seconds.

  “But anything can happen. You just have to choose your destiny,” Kaya said. She closed her eyes and started to murmur.

  Maddy stepped back and gave Larry their secret signal to start filming. The reality star was saying positive affirmations in the style of the Rules of Attraction. It would be a great addition to the pilot.

  Cora poked her head into the door. “Are you ready?”

  Maddy nodded, stepping behind her camera, refusing to look toward the door. Blue would come in first and hand Kaya a card with her questions. The door swung open. She pretended to be busy adjusting equipment. But she could feel his presence. She could feel him in the squeeze of her heart. She needed time. She needed space. Away from Blue.

  A lot of time and a lot of space. His mistrust burned in her chest even though he had every right to be suspicious. Everyone else had betrayed him. And he’d given her the USB of the Flash tights video. What was the point explaining that it had either been passed on by Gemma or Cora? Maddy was betting on Cora. But that wasn’t the point. The point was that if he loved her, she wouldn’t have to prove her innocence.

  “You know how this works, Kaya.” Blue’s voice, forbidding argument. He stood near the corner. Near Mr. Jiggle’s carrier. “You’ll have three bachelors and you’ll ask them each three questions.”

  Maddy looked to Kaya to gauge her reaction.

  The nervous little girl was gone. The tough-as-nails woman was back. “You don’t have to tell me twice. I know what to do.”

  “Oh, but I did change one thing,” Blue said, ignoring the poodle scratching at the carrier netting at his feet. “Instead of you choosing one man to have dinner with, the men will have the opportunity to choose you. So, depending upon how you play your cards, you can either have three dates or none.”

  “Bastard.” Kaya’s cheeks paled. Blue had cut off all her loopholes. The only way out was to play nice, not something Kaya was good at. She turned to Maddy when he’d left the room. “Can he change things up like that?”

  Maddy dragged in a breath. “He can.” He was a master at changing the rules to suit him. She took several deep, calming breaths. All she had to do was make it through tonight’s filming.

  If the pilot sold, a few weeks or months from now when they started filming the series, she’d have regained her perspective when it came to Blue.

  “Bastard,” Kaya said again.

  Chapter 32

  Blue considered the men sitting in the back booth. He’d covered his bets and gone with four bachelors this evening. He wasn’t sure who was going in first, if he’d send in all four over the course of the evening or just three.

  He was starting to second guess himself. He’d given away his dog for Christ’s sake. His rented house had seemed too empty last night. No Mr. J. No Maddy. He was a wreck.

  He longed to talk things over with Maddy, but he’d burned that bridge, a bridge she’d built with straw and string. If she couldn’t protect her digital property, she probably slept at night with her doors open. A woman like that…He tried to tell himself it was for the best, but his chest was so tight he couldn’t fill his lungs with air when he looked at her.

  “Who wants to start?” Might as well ask. They all knew who they were here for. God bless ‘em for showing up at all. Blue wouldn’t have.

  “Volunteering for stupid shit is what I do.” Mick Rizzo stood up. He was a cast member on the popular show imported from the UK called Assy. It was a take-off on Jackass. He hadn’t dressed for the occasion. He wore a pair of holey blue jeans, a wrinkled T-shirt that looked as if he’d been wearing it since he left the UK, and biker scuffed boots. “She’s babe enough to take a chance.”

  Blue shook his hand, feeling as if he was sending a recruit to certain death.

  Mr. Jiggles growled when Blue entered the dining room. Regret spring-boarded into Blue’s gut, as it had since he’d given the dog up. But how could he create change in Kaya if she didn’t see the softer side of her
self?

  Blue’s glance caught on the swing of Maddy’s blunt-cut hair. He felt as if he’d swallowed a large, dry pill. With effort, he turned his gaze away.

  Kaya gave Mick a hard look as he introduced himself. “Have we met before?”

  “Only in another life. From what I’ve seen of you on the telly, we’re soulmates.”

  “Really?” Kaya glanced at her index card and then gave Blue a deadly look. “Well, soul brother, answer me this. Would you be my sex slave this weekend?”

  Maddy’s sharp intake of breath mirrored the surprise on everyone’s faces. Even the dog in the carrier growled.

  “Oi, that’s a right proper question best left after a round of drinks.” Mick winked.

  “I need an answer,” Kaya persisted.

  “Show me your tits, then. I can’t date a woman with tiny tits.”

  Kaya cupped her hands beneath her small breasts. They weren’t anything to write home about. It was the way Kaya used her body that was effective during sex, not the size of her body parts.

  “Those are small, but they’ll do.” Mick lounged in his chair, tongue in cheek, eyes on the prize.

  “I should ask to see your equipment.” Kaya arched a brow.

  “You’ll have to give me a sec to get my wanker to attention.”

  Kaya laughed the way a woman does when she’s interested. “That’s about as much warning as I want to give a man.”

  Blue had hoped Kaya would realize she and Mick would be a disastrous sinkhole. His gaze collided with Maddy’s. Ick, her gaze said. The ability to read her despite her betrayal had him leaning against the wall for support.

  “Second question.” Kaya smiled, clearly pleased with herself. “What makes a woman sexy?”

  “I think we answered that one already. Tits. You should get bigger ones. Try the third one on that card.”

  Kaya’s smile evaporated. “What’s the most tender thing you’ve ever whispered to a woman during sex?”

  Despite himself, Blue’s gaze strayed to Maddy. Their lovemaking had been filled with laughter and whispered endearments. But he’d never told her he loved her, not with words.

  His chest cinched. Air whooshed from his lungs.

  I love her?

  He drank in her blue jeans and her steady hand on the camera, struggling for air. How could this be?

  Holy shit. I love her.

  Mr. Jiggles grumbled in his what-took-you-so-long voice, drawing a glance from Blue, which only bounced back to Maddy.

  Shit-shit-shit.

  The timing was horrible. She was a loose cannon. But…

  I love Maddy.

  He loved her optimistic outlook on life and the way she ferreted out the good in people. He loved the way she soothed his insecurities and believed he could do anything. He loved the soft sound she made when he kissed her long and slow. He even loved that she was naïve enough to leave an opening for Kaya to steal her film.

  I love her. Blue wanted to gather in his arms and tell her.

  He loved Maddy Polk. And he’d ruined everything.

  Holy fucking shit. He had to struggle to remain standing.

  “Was it good for you?” Mick’s laughter, loud and harsh, brought Blue back to the present. “Come on, Kaya. Let’s go find a room somewhere. You can show me your dominatrix routine and I can show you how a proper Brit gets it on.”

  “I’ve got to play by the rules,” Kaya said, surprising Blue. And then she winked at Mick. “Will you wait for me?”

  “Oi.”

  Blue supposed that meant yes, since Mick strutted toward the back of the restaurant.

  “Why did he make me ask that last question?” Kaya whispered to Maddy when Blue stepped out. “It’s too personal. Blue never said anything intimate to me during sex. What does it mean?”

  “Nothing.” He’d been a talker with Maddy, but not about what mattered.

  She felt Blue’s gaze on her as he returned to the room. Her chin came up. He held her gaze too long. What did that mean?

  Cora opened the door to the private dining room.

  “Here comes the next one,” Maddy said, grateful of a reason not to moon over Blue. “Action.”

  The next bachelor was Tate Johnson, a semi-successful Survivor contestant, although there’d been so many seasons of Survivor that Maddy couldn’t recall which one he’d been on. He was a big man, broad-shouldered and clean-shaven, even his head. Tate was a canvas for tattoo artists, and not particularly consistent about the designs he’d chosen – flames, dragons, quotes, snatches of bible verses. The plethora of tattoos fought for attention with his sturdy, plain features.

  Kaya greeted Tate and they sat down across from each other.

  “I’m an admirer of your work,” Kaya said. “You know how to play a game.”

  “You, too. Loyalty is over-rated.” Tate glanced at Blue. “I hear you’re trying to get back at this dude. How’s that working out for you?”

  “Pretty damn well.” Kaya grinned.

  “Still hung up on him?”

  Kaya hesitated, glancing at Blue.

  Tate shrugged. “Not that it matters.”

  “You’d date a woman who was hung up on someone else?” Kaya sounded offended.

  Maddy couldn’t believe there was a line Kaya felt bad about crossing. Until today, she’d thought Kaya had no limits and no conscience.

  Tate leaned forward and lowered his voice. “Best damn sex in the universe when a woman is trying to recapture the moment with a loved-and-lost one. For that, I could be anyone you wanted me to be.”

  Maddy was relieved to see Kaya’s smile dim. The guy was an ass.

  “I guess that answers the first question.” Kaya stole a glance at the dog carrier in the corner. “What do you find sexy in a woman?”

  “Her willingness to do things.” Tate glanced at Blue again. “You wanted me to be honest, right?”

  “Right,” Blue said emotionlessly.

  “I find turning on women a turn-on,” Tate continued his sexist bullshit. “You ask, I comply, and vice-versa. Any more questions?”

  “Just one,” Kaya said flatly. “What’s the most tender thing you’ve whispered to a woman during sex?”

  “I don’t do emotions.” Tate looked at Blue again. “Didn’t I make that clear?” He swiveled his attention back to Kaya. “I’m too young to get tied down to any one pussy. If it’s a ring you’re looking for, call me when I’m forty.” He stood. “I’m done here, man.”

  “Good riddance,” Maddy whispered before she caught herself.

  Kaya’s smile almost wasn’t a smile at all. “Yeah, well, when I’m forty, he’ll most likely have a sexually transmitted disease. I’ll pass.”

  Maddy gave her a thumbs up.

  Blue was fairly certain Greg Bingham, the bad boy of the nineties, now in his fifties, would work as Kaya’s third bachelor. But he wasn’t 100% certain. And there sat his wild card – a former actor turned cop – the only man in the booth meeting his gaze. He chose the policeman as Kaya’s third candidate.

  Kaya took one look at the clean cut cop with his khaki pants and blue polo shirt, and laughed. Blue wanted to shut down the show and end his misery. But he couldn’t let Maddy down.

  Langdon Price wasn’t pleased by Kaya’s laughter. He crossed his arms over his chest and said, “Better cut right to the questions.”

  Kaya leaned forward. “Would you be my sex slave for the weekend?”

  “You’re talking to a man who owns a pair of handcuffs and knows how to use them. I think the question should be: would you be my sex slave for the weekend?…Ma’am.”

  Kaya sat back in her chair, as surprised as the rest of the room, but she fired right back. “What do you find sexy in a woman?”

  “Confidence. Not bullshit. Bullshit means she’s hiding something or covering up because she feels as if she’s lacking.”

  Blue grinned. Langdon was wiser than he looked.

  Blue glanced at Maddy. That’s me, he wanted to say. Hiding b
ehind the bullshit, he wanted to say. Forgive me, he wanted to say, and I’ll cut the crap. But Maddy wouldn’t look at him.

  “All men want big boobs,” Kaya was saying in a contemptuous tone.

  “You’ve been hanging around the wrong men.” Langdon was almost too good to be true, the evolved version of Blue.

  There was hope.

  Mr. Jiggles growled.

  Kaya huffed. “What’s the most tender thing you’ve whispered to a woman during sex?”

  Langdon considered that carefully. Blue was rooting for him now.

  “You’re beautiful – ”

  “Cliché,” Kaya cut him off.

  “I was going to say – ” Langdon cocked an eyebrow. “You’re beautiful when you make that noise.”

  “Oh.” Kaya was impressed.

  So was Blue. By the way Maddy was biting back a smile, so was she.

  “It was nice meeting you.” Not one to waste time, Langdon stood.

  “Maybe we’ll meet again.” Kaya turned to Blue when Langdon left. “Now what?”

  “You might have two men out there. You might have none.”

  “If it’s not the right man, I’m walking.”

  “Okay, but when you walk, leave my dog.” There was one mistake he could easily correct. “Cora said she could get you one of your own.”

  There was only one man waiting in the back booth.

  The right one.

  Cora opened the door to the private dining room. Langdon was behind her.

  Kaya’s tense features relaxed into a smile.

  Maddy was happy for her. After filming the preliminary conversation between the couple, Maddy called cut, and told Larry to pack up. Then came the hard part. She went to find Blue. Much as she wanted to leave without seeing him, as the show’s producer, she had to face him.

  “We’re done.” Heart pounding, she forced herself to meet his gaze, to look into his eyes and not think of kisses or sex or vulnerable layers of man.

  She failed. Words stuck behind the heartbreak clogging her throat.

  She loved him. She loved him despite his lies, his mistakes, and his stubborn pride.

  Somehow she had to get over him. Somehow she had to forget how that challenging spark in his eyes made her speak up for herself, how hearing him admit he was wrong humbled her, how the way he read her mood and character made her feel loved in return.