Chasing Perfection: Vol. III

by M. S. Parker

  I’d argued with myself, trying to deny what I’d already known was true, but in the end, I’d had to admit it. I was captivated by her. I’d fought against it, using logic and persuasive arguments, dragging up the past to remind me of how bad it could be. None of it had been able to erase what I felt when I thought of her. I was hopelessly hooked.

  The weekend in Vegas had, overall, been amazing. Sure, there’d been that little glitch, but since it had ended up leading to me finding out that she hadn’t slept with Carter, I didn’t exactly count it as a bad thing. I’d considered her fucking Carter to have been a stain on how I’d seen her, but now that I knew she hadn’t done it, she was perfect again. And that was always what I was looking for, what I was chasing: perfection.

  Now, as I’d allowed myself to admit how I felt, I was in uncharted territory. The only time I’d ever felt even close to this way before, I’d gotten my heart ripped out and stomped on. I couldn’t bear to have that happen again, especially not with Krissy. What I’d felt before seemed so pale and weak by comparison, and I knew that meant any hurt I’d feel would be that much stronger. Still, my desire to be with Krissy outweighed my fear. I would be cautious, but I’d move forward.

  I shook my head, a smile curving my lips. It was funny. Before I’d met Krissy, I’d thought that I’d be happy to spend the rest of my life doing the same thing I’d been doing since my previous relationship had exploded. Sex with the most beautiful women in the world with no strings or commitments attached. No real connection. Three, four weeks at the most with a single woman. Long enough to expend quite a bit of sexual energy, but not long enough to form an emotional attachment. I’d thought that was the only way to live.

  And then I’d met Krissy and, for the first time in years, I’d considered risking my heart. Now, I’d made the decision not to just consider it but to do it. I was the kind of person who, once a decision was made, followed through, and I’d made the decision to pursue Krissy.

  I didn’t want to wait to begin, so I picked up my phone and called Tracy, asking her to tell Krissy I wanted to see her. I had to be careful because I had a feeling this was going to be similar to crossing a minefield, but I had a plan.

  Several minutes later, the door to my office opened and Krissy came in. I turned as she spoke.

  “You wanted to see me?”

  If only she knew, I thought. I wanted to see her, all of her, and not just her body. I wanted to see her for all that she was. Instead of spilling my guts, however, I kept my tone professional. “Yes.” I pressed my fingers together. “I assume you’ve heard about Derrick Johnson being fired.” I let one corner of my mouth quirk up when her expression didn’t change. There was that poker face again. Now it was time to see just how good she really was. “I know you’ve been talking to him, and now I need to know exactly what you told him because we don’t want a lawsuit if you had anything to do with it.”

  I saw a split second of surprise flit across her eyes as they widened just a fraction, but if I hadn’t been watching for it, I probably wouldn’t have seen it. Damn, she was good. I found it fascinating that I couldn’t tell what she was thinking when pretty much every other person I dealt with was so empty-headed they couldn’t conceive of, let alone hold, an original thought.

  “Do you know why he was fired?”

  I was surprised that was the question she wanted to ask first rather than how I knew or even denying that she’d done anything. I answered, “He was caught faking test scores for his new pilot.” I raised an eyebrow. “Someone must have told him rumors that made him uneasy. You want to tell me what those rumors were?”

  She took a seat across from me, her expression and posture the very definition of collected. “In exchange for a reading for my clients, Derrick asked me to spy on you. I may not have handled things the best way, but I never told him anything that could hurt Mirage.”

  I hadn’t exactly known what had started the whole thing, but that didn’t surprise me. Derrick Johnson had been trying to fuck me over for years. “I know you didn’t share anything important, but he could still come after us.” I paused, and then added, “Just to let you know, if you had told him anything useful, you wouldn’t be sitting here right now.”

  I met her eyes and she returned my gaze with a steady one of her own. I resisted the urge to shift in my seat. The intensity in her eyes was getting to me.

  I cleared my throat. “Anyway, here’s the deal. Derrick is going to come after us with everything he’s got. I just need to know if he’s going to have a case.”

  Her facade cracked slightly as her lips twitched. “All I told him was that I’d heard rumors. All hearsay and speculation. I never said anything for sure.” She crossed one leg over the other and I tried not to think about what they’d felt like wrapped around me. “As you know, I can’t be responsible for how he took those rumors.”

  I grinned. “And that’s why I knew you being a kick-ass lawyer was going to be perfect for your position. You know exactly how far you could go without crossing the line.”

  Now she did show her surprise. “You’re not mad at me?”

  “Are you kidding?” I leaned forward. “I’ve been wanting payback for years for what he did to that poor woman.”

  Krissy looked confused. “Poor woman? I thought it was you who did something to one of his actresses.”

  I frowned. “Is that what Derrick told you?”

  She nodded.

  My frown turned into a scowl. Bastard. “Emma Snow was one of his actresses, but she didn’t have an affair with me. She was in deep with Derrick. She found out he had something going on with another woman on the side, so she came to me, heartbroken.” I looked down at my hands. I was going to tell her the truth, but I wasn’t proud of it. “I never could resist a beautiful woman throwing herself at me. I knew she was on the rebound, but I didn’t care. We were only together a few days, but Derrick acted like I’d destroyed him. Long story short, we all screwed up and went our separate ways. Last I heard, Emma was engaged to her high school sweetheart back in Iowa and was opening a dance studio. Derrick’s apparently still pissed, though I think it hurt his ego more than any real feelings for Emma.”

  After a few seconds of silence, she spoke, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have believed what Derrick said.”

  Warmth filled me. It didn’t surprise me that she’d believed him. It wasn’t like I had the best reputation when it came to how I treated women.

  “My grandmother always told me not to make a judgment before knowing all the facts.” She gave me a wry smile. “And I did the same thing with what Derrick told me as you did with me and Carter, so I guess this makes us even.”

  Even. My previous behavior had been great circumstantial evidence for her to believe the worst about me and she’d never done anything for me to think the worst of her. I didn’t think that was even at all, but I wasn’t going to argue with her. We were making progress.

  I stood and she did the same. “It’s not the first time someone has assumed something like that about me, and I usually deserve it.” I hesitated, knowing that I wanted to add something deeper, but unsure if I could say it. Finally, I got the words out. “I know this sounds like some stupid come-on, but there’s more to me than what appears on the surface.”

  “Is that so?” She took a step towards the edge of my desk as if she was going to walk around it. Her voice dropped to that husky tone that sent blood rushing south. “Why don’t you give me an example?”

  My mouth was dry. I’d been hoping she’d respond to my honesty, but I hadn’t expected this. I struggled to keep my tone teasing. “You’ll just have to wait and find out.”

  “You won’t even give me a clue?”

  She closed the distance between us until there was only an inch left. She tilted her head back and I could see the expectation in her eyes. I wanted it. Fuck, did I want it. I wanted to cover her mouth with mine, thrust my tongue between her soft lips, use it until she was soft and pliant in my arms. I wante
d to feel her body melt against mine, those luscious curves pressed against my hardness. I wanted to take her right then, and just last week, I would’ve. Today, however, things were different.

  I reached down and cupped the side of her face, brushing my thumb across her lower lip. Her tongue darted out, flicking against the pad of my thumb and sending a jolt straight through me. Dammit. She wasn’t making this easy on me.

  “Remember when I told you that I don’t just kiss?”

  As she nodded her head, my intercom beeped, interrupting. “Danny Olsen is on the line.”

  In my head, I let out a string of curses. Out loud, I said, “Unfortunately, I have to take that.” I dropped my hand. “But we should continue this conversation at a later time.”

  Disappointment flashed across her features and was gone again. “I understand.”

  I was sorely tempted to say ‘hell with it,’ forget all of my plans and the VP waiting on the phone, but I didn’t. I had to do this right and the moment had been lost. “I’ll talk to you later.”

  She nodded and then headed for the door. I waited until she was gone before I sat down and took a breath. It took a minute for me to get my head back in the game, but I managed. I picked up the phone and turned on the charm.

  “Danny, you horny son of a bitch. How’s the lady business going?”

  Chapter 18

  KRISSY

  I’d been staring at the same email for five minutes and I still had no idea what it said. All I could think about was my meeting with DeVon. At first, I’d thought I was going to get fired, then I’d felt guilty when I’d realized I’d done the same thing to him as he’d done to me. That realization had made me understand that it was pointless for us to keep going round and round like this, both of us waiting for the other to apologize or forgive. I’d seen something in his eyes¸ something that had made me walk over to him, fully expecting him to kiss me, and I would let him. Scratch that. I hadn’t just been thinking of letting him kiss me. I’d known that I’d kiss him back. Kiss him and then more. I’d been surprised when he hadn’t and I still didn’t quite understand why or what was happening.

  I sighed and forced myself to focus. If I buried myself in work, maybe I could forget about the almost-kiss and what it meant. The email I’d been not-reading was junk, so I trashed it and moved on to the next. Four emails later, I discovered something that would most certainly help get my mind off of things.

  Blackmore Production, a newer production company, was hosting a presentation of five new television pilots this afternoon at a hotel in Beverly Hills. I buzzed Tracy and she entered my office a few seconds later.

  “Have you heard anything about this pilot screening for Blackmore Production?”

  Tracy looked surprised. “Yes, but I hadn’t realized you’d been invited. It’s got a pretty short guest list, from what I’ve heard.”

  I looked at the invitation again. “I guess I’d better go, then.” I smiled at her and I stood. “Can’t go like this though.” I gestured to my work clothes.

  “Right on both counts,” Tracy said. “I’ll clear your schedule for the afternoon.”

  “Thank you,” I called after her as she returned to her desk.

  I knew that Blackmore was the Hollywood darling. They’d produced two Emmy nominated shows last year and rumor had it that they were working on at least one other that was almost guaranteed to be just as big. I wasn’t sure why DeVon hadn’t mentioned it to me, but for all I knew, he’d just assumed I’d check my email and know what needed to be done. Getting in good with them now would be huge for Mirage. Since he never mentioned he was going to be there, it’d be all up to me to make a positive, unforgettable impression.

  I finished going through the rest of my inbox, then double-checked to make sure I didn’t have anything else to tie up. Once I was sure I wasn’t leaving anything undone, I headed home to change into something that would properly represent Mirage. Now that DeVon and I were on better terms – though what those were, exactly, I didn’t know – I wanted, more than ever, to do a great job.

  I left my car with a valet and walked towards the hotel, feeling the eyes of more than one admiring person on me as I went. I’d chosen a black, ankle-length dress with a conservative neckline, but plunging back. It made it very clear that I wasn’t wearing a bra without showing more than the barest hint of cleavage. I’d had to wear seven inch heels to keep it from dragging on the ground and by the time I reached the lobby doors, my feet were killing me. I looked good, though.

  When I stepped inside, I started to scan the crowd to look for semi-familiar faces, but I didn’t have to look far. I don’t know why it surprised me, but DeVon was standing just a few feet away, his posture telling me that his discussion was starting to get a bit heated. He glanced over my way and our eyes met. A different kind of heat flashed across his eyes and then it was gone. He motioned me to come over.

  “Krissy.” He held out his hand to include me in the conversation. “This is Eric Sorensen.”

  The handsome man with salt-and-pepper hair smiled at me and nodded. “Pleased to meet you.” His dark eyes ran over me, but all I felt from him was genuine admiration and appreciation.

  It was nice to finally meet a straight man who wasn’t trying to get into my pants. My estimation of him went up. I smiled at him and shook his hand. “I love your work.”

  “I’m glad you’re here,” DeVon said. “Sorensen here was the director of Game of the Olympics. Please tell him how wrong he was in insisting on casting Felicity Owen as the lead.”

  I glanced up at DeVon and tried not to laugh as I answered because I knew he wasn’t going to like what I was about to say. “I actually think Owen was perfect for the role, everything I could’ve wanted in Mara Quinn.”

  DeVon scowled, but I could see the humor in his eyes as Sorensen laughed. “Whatever.” He huffed. “I guess everyone is entitled to their own opinion.”

  Sorensen clapped DeVon on the shoulder. “You found a great one here, Ricci. She has excellent taste in movies and actors.” He was still laughing as he walked away.

  I waited until he was out of ear-shot before asking DeVon the question I’d been wondering from the moment I’d seen him. “What’re you doing here? I figured you would be too busy for a screening of a few TV pilots from a small production company.”

  DeVon’s expression grew serious, his tone business-like. “One of the things I always impress on my employees is that everything starts at the bottom. If you treat all people equally well whether they’re your superior, equal or subordinate, then those who work their way up will remember you. Those who remain in what some would consider the lower ranks will remember you as well, and that is often more important. Sometimes, the way to get something you want isn’t by calling on those high up, but rather those whose names you’ve remembered when others have forgotten.”

  I remembered how he’d known the names of junior executives at various productions companies as well as the names of assistants and secretaries. Now I understood better how he’d built such a successful business at such a young age. He didn’t care if a person was rich, famous, or even gorgeous. He judged people by their character. For someone who I’d thought had little character when I’d first met him, he was displaying quite a bit of it now and I definitely liked it.

  I smiled up at him. “I hope you like having me around, because if you hold true to those ideals, I might never leave.”

  He chuckled and the sound warmed me. I saw his hand start to move and, for a moment, I thought he might touch me, but then it fell back to its original position.

  “I’ll hold you to that.” A moment of heavy silence fell, then he broke it. “I have to admit, I’m surprised to see you here. I didn’t know you’d gotten an invitation or I would’ve suggested we come together.” He held out an arm. “Since you’re here, shall we find a seat?”

  I wanted to take his arm, but there was something I needed to do first. “I have to use the ladies’ room. I’ll meet
you inside.”

  He nodded as I walked away. I wondered if he’d save me a seat or if I’d find him next to some busty blonde.

  When I walked into the main ballroom several minutes later, the presentation had already started. The president of Blackmore Productions, Gerald Hunter, was standing in front of a huge projection screen, giving a speech of some kind. As I made my way down the aisle, looking for DeVon, Gerald finished.

  “And now, Blackmore Productions is proud to introduce to you the first of the five pilots we’re producing for the upcoming season. Sit back and enjoy a sneak peek of Falling Away.”

  The lights had just started to dim when I spotted the empty seat next to DeVon.