Dino pulled up to a manned guard station on the studio’s lot, and the man inside the little hut checked his clipboard before waving them through and directing Dino where to go to park. Once he’d pulled into a spot near the stage door, Jan climbed out and waited for Dino to join her. They walked inside and again passed muster with another guard before being led to the hair and makeup area by one of the show’s production assistants.
A petite blonde with obvious hair extensions put Jan into her chair and began fluffing her long brown curls while a man in a tight black T-shirt came over to touch up her makeup. Dino stood near the back of the small room, arms crossed, watching everything.
“It’s really great to meet you, Ms. Winters,” the blonde said as she wrapped a large chunk of Jan’s hair around a gold curling iron. “I love your new song. Play it all the time on my iPod.”
“Thanks.” She flinched as the makeup guy whisked a large powder-covered brush over her face.
“Sorry,” he said, using his hand to shield her eyes. He looked down at Jan and smiled. “Who’s Mr. Hottie over there?”
Jan frowned and glanced in the direction he’d indicated. “Oh, that’s Dino—he’s my bodyguard.”
“Bodyguard, huh? I’d like to guard his body for a night or two.”
She snorted and studied Dino’s reflection in the mirror. The guy was right. Dino was hot. Way hotter even than he’d been in high school, which was saying something. The years and most likely hours at the gym had filled out his boyish physique with lean, hard muscle. His broad shoulders stretched the fabric of his plain gray T-shirt tight, and his biceps bulged with each move of his arms. The strong lines of his torso tapered down to his trim waist and slim hips, and for a crazy second she almost missed seeing his transformation from lanky youth into rock-hard sex-god man.
“Is he yours?” the makeup guy asked, breaking into her thoughts. “Outside of work, I mean.”
No. He’s not mine. Not anymore.
She shook her head and dropped her gaze to her hands clenched in her lap.
A familiar ache pinched her heart, but she thrust it aside. Their break-up had been for the best, for both of them. No matter how hard it had been then. No matter what kind of doubts she might have about it now.
It was over. Done. The end.
Another production assistant poked her head around the door. “Five minutes.”
“Okay.” The blonde made a few more adjustments to Jan’s do then stepped aside as the makeup man finished the last few swipes of mascara on Jan’s eyes. She blinked at herself in the mirror and smiled at the blonde beside her.
“Do you like it? I know you usually wear your hair down, but I thought putting some of it up might be nice for a change,” the blonde asked.
“Yeah, I like it,” Jan said. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome. Break a leg out there tonight.”
“I’ll do my best.” Jan pushed out of the swivel chair and to her feet, thanking the makeup guy as well before following the first production assistant to the stage area. Dino stuck by her side the whole way then stopped when they reached the production floor. He leaned in close to her in the shadows and whispered, “You nervous?”
“Maybe a little.”
“Don’t be. You look beautiful.” He smiled down at her, a crooked little grin that set her heart thumping anew. “I’ll watch from back here so I don’t get in the way.”
“Okay.” She swallowed hard and headed toward the front of the area alone.
Two chairs had been set up on the dais where the host sat, receiving some last-minute prep during the commercial break. She had to be at least in her early forties, but from her bleached-platinum hair to her too-tight skirt, she was trying hard to look at least a decade younger.
As Jan approached, Trixie rose to shake her hand. “Ms. Winters, so glad to have you as my guest tonight. Before we roll, I just want to make sure there are no subjects that are off-limits for you. Your manager didn’t mention anything when he set it up, but I always like to double-check on the night of.”
“No. Not that I can think of.”
“Great.” A devious grin flashed through Trixie’s green eyes before she sat back down. Jan got the feeling she’d just offered herself on a silver tray to the woman, though she didn’t know exactly why. She had nothing to hide.
A producer counted them back from commercial, and before Jan knew it, they were live on TV.
“Welcome back to Viva Las Vegas. Tonight I’m so excited to have country music star January Winters here with us. She’s got a new single coming out soon, but before we get to that, I have some more pressing business I’d like to handle first. Ms. Winters, I’m sure you’ve seen this blog post that broke today on the Internet.” She handed Jan a copy of the story she’d seen earlier on Dino’s phone. “Would you care to comment?”
Jan handed it back without reading it. “There’s nothing to comment on. Nothing’s going on between Mr. Machiavelli and myself.”
“Do you deny that you were once a couple?”
“No. I don’t deny it.” Jan did her best to keep her voice from trembling as badly as her insides. “We were a couple. Fifteen years ago, in high school. We broke up a long time ago.”
“Why?” Trixie leaned closer, an expression of mock concern on her face.
“We were teenagers.” She glanced into the shadows where Dino stood, though she couldn’t see him. “Some things don’t work out.”
“And how does your past relationship affect his current position as your bodyguard?”
“It doesn’t. My manager hired him without knowing of my past connection with Mr. Machiavelli.” She narrowed her eyes at Trixie and flashed her perkiest smile. “Besides, I thought I was here tonight to promote my new single, not rehash old romances. It releases next week.”
“Right.” Trixie glanced down at the papers in her hand then back at Jan. “This song is a bit of a departure from your earlier works, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. We’re going for a different vibe this time. More upbeat and positive.”
“I see. This song in particular, however, is about finding love, correct? You usually sing about the other end of the spectrum, losing love. You wouldn’t have chosen it because Dino Machiavelli walked back into your life, did you?”
Face tight and smile frozen, Jan forced herself to take a deep breath. She was a professional—she’d sat in this interviewee seat a million times over the last two years. She refused to let some glorified ex-showgirl fluster her, no matter how close to the mark her zingers might strike. “As you know, all of the songs on the album are picked months in advance and approved by the record company before I ever hit the recording studio. So obviously, me choosing something due to Mr. Machiavelli’s presence in my life, or not, would be impossible. And my manager, Lou, wrote this song. So unless he’s got some inclinations I’m not aware of, the two are completely unrelated.”
“So you didn’t write this song?”
“No.”
“Awesome. Thanks for setting the record straight, Ms. Winters. Now, can we get a sneak peek of this new single all the critics are raving about?”
“Of course.” Jan rose on shaky legs and made her way across the set to the small area where a pianist awaited. Time blurred as she picked up the mic and sang, grateful the spotlight was now focused on her abilities and not her love life. By the time she finished the first part of the song—the only portion she was allowed to reveal—and they went to commercial break again, what was left of her nerves were shot, and all she wanted to do was go home and bury her head under a pillow.
Dino walked her back to the SUV, and thankfully the parking lot outside the studio was press-free at their exit.
“What was that about in there?” Dino asked once they were in the car.
“What? You mean the part about our past?”
Dino nodded, keeping his eyes on the road.
Jan sighed. “Sorry about that. She blindsided me. Must have seen the photos in
that tabloid paper. Don’t worry, they’ll tire of that as soon as they realize nothing’s going on with us.”
"Right."
They drove the rest of the way to her home in awkward silence, and she laid her head back against the seat, closing her eyes and doing her best to relax, but all she kept thinking about was that the media madness surrounding them had just begun, and for better or worse, she and Dino were linked together once more, at least until this whole stalking mess was over.
Nine
Lou confronted Jan the minute she stepped into Treble Studios the next morning. “Why did you say I wrote that song?”
She winced at his loud tone. Good Lord, she’d barely had a sip of her coffee. “What was I supposed to do, Lou? Lie?”
“Yes!” Wild hand gestures joined her manager’s berating voice. He was on a roll now. “We missed a shot at some great publicity. If your fans thought you wrote Lie with Me out of love, they’d be ten times more likely to buy it. Now, the whole thing is just weird.”
Jan bristled. “What’s weird is skulking around my house trying to get pictures of me and Dino in a compromising position.”
Lou scrunched up his face. “What?”
“Oh, forget it.” Jan brushed him aside and headed for her dressing room. It was just like Lou to try to wriggle out of the fact that he’d been trying to use her and Dino’s past to get media attention, and there was little point in arguing.
She pushed inside her dressing room and tossed her bag on the sofa along the wall then headed to the vanity mirror to check her appearance before going upstairs. She hadn’t paid much attention to her appearance at home since she’d been running late and had hustled downstairs to meet Dino, for the awkwardly silent car ride to the studio.
At least they’d stopped for coffee and she wouldn’t have to drink the swill from the coffee machine at the studio. Dino had paid, making good on their deal from the day before. Maybe he was better at keeping his promises now.
She’d been so rushed she hadn’t even given her outfit a final once-over. For someone who always dotted all her i’s and crossed all her t’s, the thought of sloppy bedhead or a missing button was horrifying.
The muted beats from the musicians in the other studios thudded through the wall as she stood in front of the mirror, patting her hair and checking her teeth for stray lipstick marks. She glanced down at the counter and frowned. Tabloid magazines were scattered across the surface. She never read in here. Hell, with her busy schedule, she was lucky if she even stepped foot in her dressing room more than once a day.
Maybe one of the cleaning people had borrowed them from the lobby to look at on a break then left them behind by accident. She started to gather them up then stopped, her breath catching and her hands trembling so hard she dropped them all again.
Her image appeared somewhere on each cover, except something was missing from every single picture of her. Something important. Her face. It had been hacked out of every single image on every single magazine and newspaper, along with long gashes cut through the images of her body and what looked like red ink, or worse, dripped over them.
Pulse racing as fast as her feet, Jan ran from the dressing room and out into the lobby, spotting Dino as he entered the building after his morning rounds to check the exits. She swallowed hard and did her best to keep the terror from her voice, aware the receptionist watched their every move. “Hey, Dino,” she yelled and waved to get his attention. He stood just inside the door and lowered his aviator shades down his nose to gaze at her over the tops of the lens. “Could you come here for a second, please?”
“Mr. Machiavelli?” the receptionist called from behind her large oak desk. “Lou wanted to see you upstairs as soon as possible.”
“Dino?” She gave the receptionist a quick glance, her tone pleading. “This will only take a second.”
He nodded and started across the lobby toward her dressing room, calling over his shoulder, “Tell Lou I’ll be there in just a second. Thanks.” He reached Jan and placed his hands on his hips, his expression impatient. Today, he looked as tired as she felt, and Jan couldn’t help wondering if he was having problems sleeping too. “Yeah. What is it?”
She dragged him inside by the arm and closed the door behind them, her knees shaking now in addition to her hands as she pointed at the magazines. “I found those waiting when I got here this morning.”
“These?” Dino grabbed a paper off the top of the stack and stared at the disfigured photo front and center. The look on his face slowly transformed from annoyance to concern with each new picture he saw. “Jesus. You weren’t kidding, were you?”
Her eyes widened. “You thought I was kidding before? About my stalker?”
He met her gaze briefly before turning away. “I admit I had a few doubts, but now...” He shook his head and ran a hand through his dark hair. “This could be serious, Jan. Who else has access to your dressing room?”
“I don’t know. Besides me and Lou and the receptionist, the cleaning people at night, I guess. At first I thought maybe they’d left those behind on a break, but none of them would do something like that.”
“Know them all well, do you?” He crossed his arms and narrowed his gaze on her.
“I’ve met most of them before, and they seemed nice.”
“Seemed nice? People said Ted Bundy was nice too.”
“Oh my God!” Jan raised the back of one trembling hand to her forehead. “Do you think someone actually wants to hurt me?”
“I don’t know what to think at this point.” Dino rolled up one of the magazines in his hand then took off for the door. “Stay here. I need to get the security footage from last night.”
The door swung shut behind him, and her agitation grew. She felt violated, vulnerable. All her steely resolve about not needing anyone to protect her evaporated.
She looked around the small dressing room. Her stalker had been in here. She’d always thought of the room as her haven, a place to get away and relax, but suddenly the room did not seem as welcoming. She sure as hell didn’t want to stay here. Not by herself, anyway. Jan yanked the door open and hustled across the lobby to where Dino stood, speaking to the guard on duty.
“Where are the logs from last night?”
“In here.” The beefy guard led them into a small, dark office off the lobby, its walls covered with monitors and the lone desk stacked high with loose papers. A transmitter in the corner softly chirped static as the guy pressed a few buttons on the desktop computer then pointed at one of the screens. “Here’s the footage from last night, but you can see there wasn’t anyone in here from the time the place closed at ten last night until this morning when the receptionist arrived.”
“And the logs?” Dino asked again.
“Um.” The guard shuffled through the mess on the desk then pulled out a clipboard. “Here.”
Dino ran a long, tapered finger down the list then scowled. “I don’t see anything suspicious, but I’ll need a copy just in case.”
“Sure thing.” The guard tipped back his hat with one finger. “What about the footage?”
“Better give me a copy of that too. I’ll have our tech team make sure it wasn’t tampered with.”
“Got ya.” The guard led them back out into the sunny lobby. “I’ll get your copy for you right now.”
“Thanks.” Dino waited until the guy walked away before turning to face Jan once more. “Which part of ‘stay here’ didn’t you understand?”
Even scared as she was, her hackles rose at his domineering tone. “I’m not staying in there by myself. What if they come back?”
“Then you scream and I come running and rescue you.” His face softened at her stricken look. He put his hands on her shoulders, his warm touch creating a calming effect that relaxed her tense muscles. “Look, you’re not in any danger right now. There’s too many people here for the stalker to do anything, and besides, we don’t know that he would do anything to harm you. These wackos typically don�
�t confront their targets in person.”
Jan’s brows drew together. Finding magazines with your face slashed out of them sure seemed like danger, but Dino had a point. No one could get in and hurt her while everyone was here. “Really? You don’t think this person intends to hurt me?”
“Probably not. They usually prefer to skulk in the shadows and send anonymous threats. Don’t worry. I won’t let anything happen to you.” Dino dropped his hands, pulled out his phone, and thumbed in a number, brushing past her to pace the room in front of the security office. She trailed behind him, dogging his steps. “Hey, it’s Dino. Listen, I need a team over here at Treble Studios today. I want security cameras installed inside all of the dressing rooms and additional ones set up in the lobby.” He hesitated. “Okay. I’d say maybe eight to ten. Okay, great. Thanks.”
She knew she was being paranoid, but she couldn’t make herself leave his side. In all this craziness, he seemed to be her one safe harbor, strong and tough and committed to her protection. If anyone would defend her against her unknown foes, it would be her Dino.
Wait. What?
Her Dino?
“C’mon.” He turned fast and barely avoided stepping on her toes, only inches from his as she stuck close by his side. With her hand in his, he led her back to her dressing room then pulled her inside and closed the door. “Seriously, Jan. I need you to stay in here for me. I need to know you’re protected so I can worry about other things right now. Nothing is going to happen to you in here.” He took a bottle of water from her small mini-fridge in one corner and cracked the lid open before handing it to her. “All right?”
Jan took the water, gave him her bravest smile, and nodded, even as her legs wobbled and she collapsed onto the sofa. Tough as she might try to appear, this whole thing had really thrown her for a loop. As if the texts and phone calls weren’t bad enough. Now she had these gruesome images circling through her overtaxed brain on endless loop, not to mention the intruder on her property. Oh God, the intruder…
Deadly Betrayal (The Rockford Security Series Book 1) Page 7
