On My Knees: The Complete Series Box Set

by C. J. Thomas

  “Okay, stop it.” I shuffled my feet. “Can we please just go inside?”

  Kendra smiled and opened the door. It wasn’t like I was the only one dressed to kill. She looked sexy as fuck, too. Once I stepped inside, I was surprised by how busy it was for a Thursday night. But then again, since this place opened up, it was the most talked about restaurant-bar on Rodeo Drive.

  A tall man dressed in a designer suit couldn’t take his eyes off Kendra. And who could blame him? She was a petite little thing who I’d heard was a vixen in bed. Don’t ask me how I knew that, but people talk.

  The hostess greeted her and before she said anything, Kendra turned to me. “Up or down?”

  The bar appeared to be full up here and I wasn’t in the mood for sitting outside on the patio.

  “C’mon, what are you in the mood for?” Kendra was always so impatient. “To be on the top or bottom?” She wiggled her brows, giving a playful smirk. At least she found humor in all this.

  I scanned my surroundings again. We’d been here twice before and had spent one evening up, and another down. The two levels had a totally different vibe. The top was lighter, upbeat; and down was a dark hidden bar that made you feel like you were stepping back in time when prohibition was in full force. “Down.”

  “Ohh, yeah. I like it.” The words rolled off her tongue as she turned on a heel and told the hostess we’d escort ourselves down below.

  “Like we’re doing something illegal.” I leaned my shoulder into hers as we both giggled. Because that was what it felt like when drinking downstairs.

  “Let’s drink the expensive shit.” She hooked her arm in the crook of mine and together we began to move toward the staircase winding down.

  My eyes dropped to the floor. I couldn’t afford this place, even in my dreams.

  “C’mon, hun.” She pulled me tighter to her side. “Don’t worry, I’ve got this.”

  My eyes softened and I said, “Someday I’ll repay you. I promise.”

  She wrapped her hand around my wrist and tugged me downstairs. The air was damp and had a musky smell to it. Not quite like mothballs, but dewy. The light was low as I followed Kendra straight to the bar where she took two open seats on the far side. She ordered two whiskeys and I didn’t want to know the cost. But it was safe to assume, because of where we were drinking tonight, they easily cost well over $20 per drink.

  The handsome young bartender pushed two crystal glasses our way; one in front of each of us. I stirred with my straw before even thinking about taking a sip.

  “So, you going to spill it or what?” Kendra took a sip and made a face.

  “There’s not much to spill.” I barely looked at her when I said it.

  “You made it sound way different earlier. Like you had big news.”

  “Did I?” I didn’t know why I agreed to drink whiskey. There wasn’t anything I liked about it. The flavor was just as harsh as the burn in the back of my throat as I swallowed it down. “It’s just that the director ripped me a new one.”

  “Nash Brooks ripped you a new one?” Her brow formed a perfect arch.

  I nodded and had a feeling where she was going to take this.

  “God, what I’d do to have him do that to me.” She gazed straight ahead as her daydream of Nash Brooks unfolded like a storybook inside her mind.

  I rolled me eyes. Then snapped my fingers in front her face.

  She blinked a couple times and giggled. “He’s probably just feeling you out, Alex.”

  “This felt different.” My eyes narrowed. I could still hear him belittling me in front of my colleagues. “Like he had his sights set on me the moment I arrived.”

  “Maybe he was just having a bad day.” Kendra started scoping the room out for hot guys. “God, I’m so fucking horny. All day, it was all I could think about.” She turned to me. “The only thing that gets me through the day. You know?”

  “How’s the job going anyway?” I wrapped my lips around the tiny straw. It was funny because I wasn’t even sure this was how I was supposed to drink a drink like this.

  She shrugged her shoulders. “It’s good. Lots of bitch work. But hey! Livin’ the dream.”

  I laughed. She was always so sarcastic, sometimes I couldn’t tell if she really liked what she did or not. For all I knew, there was a hot guy at the office that made her want to stick around.

  “What about him, would you fuck him?” She dropped her chin to her chest and gently nodded behind me.

  He was tall, and dark, but looked a little rough around the edges.

  “I bet he’d drive me home.”

  “He looks like a sketch-ball.” I turned to scan in the opposite direction.

  “Oh, no fucking way.” Her jaw hit the floor.

  I spun around to see what she was looking at. My heart stopped. The sip I’d just taken threatened to spill out the corner of my mouth. I knew him, even from all the way over here. He was instantly recognizable and impossible to ignore.

  “Is that—” Kendra stumbled on her words.

  “Wesley Reid.” I set my glass down. Anyone who ever wanted to be an actor and was living in L.A. knew who he was.

  “But who is that he’s with?”

  I twisted around and covered my face inside my hands.

  “No way . . .” Kendra’s voice dropped low. “You know him?”

  “You do, too.” I spread my fingers and peeked at her.

  “Nash?” She mouthed as her eyes rounded.

  “Oh God.” My face planted into my palm. “We should go.”

  “No fucking way. You have to go talk to him.”

  “Go talk to him?” My expression was pinched.

  “Flirt with him.” She leaned closer. “Tell him you want him to take you home so you can—” Her brows rose high on her forehead.

  “Kendra!”

  “What?” She set her drink down and acted like it was nothing. “If you won’t do it, I guess I’ll have to.” She slid off the barstool and was heading in their direction before I had time to stop her.

  I had no choice but to follow or risk looking like an idiot.

  7

  Nash

  “WES—” I leaned forward on my elbows. “You’ve got to fucking believe me.”

  “It’s plausible.” He didn’t flinch. “It’s the same studio.” He shrugged his shoulders and looked elsewhere.

  I couldn’t believe he was even asking me this. After what I watched happen to Blake Stone, no fucking way I would want to be associated with him in any way. “Look, Wes,” I pleaded. “I can keep my eyes open and let my most trusted associates to do the same, but that’s about it.”

  He shot me a wicked glare.

  “It’s all I got.” I opened my palms. “Right now, I’m focused on the movie.”

  He didn’t say anything, but he didn’t have to. Wes was notorious for saying plenty with how he looked at you. Unfortunately for me, I was on the wrong side of the stick today. “I thought all that was taken care of anyway.”

  He swirled the ice in his drink. “Apparently there were some loose ends that slipped past the authorities.”

  I rubbed my forehead in an attempt to suppress the headache I felt coming on.

  “Besides thinking that I already found it and am stashing it away for an early retirement,” I laughed, but Wes didn’t find it funny, “what do you want with it anyway?”

  He stared into his drink long enough to make me believe he was contemplating his words carefully. Finally, he raised his glass and glared at me from over the rim.

  No matter how much this conversation unsettled my nerves, I fought to keep face. There was no such thing as weakness when working with Wes.

  Wes and I knew each other fairly well. He was well respected in the industry, and Ricky Moran, my star actor, was represented, not only by Premier, but by Wes himself. And until his latest woman came around, he let it be known he cared for only one thing—money.

  That was why I didn’t want anything to do with this.
Because if what he was saying was true, there was no question it would trace back to him and Blake Stone.

  I took a sip of my draft beer.

  He never did answer my question. Instead, it was important I changed the subject without it looking like I was the guilty one. It would be tough to do, and even if I did manage to pull it off, he’d never believe me. At least, not until the truth finally did come out and he learned that I wasn’t involved in any way, shape, or form. Just as I was trying to tell him. “I was really hoping you wanted to talk about Ricky.”

  He dropped his elbows to the table and closed half the gap between us. “What’s up with Moran? Everything all right?”

  “Yeah, yeah. He’s fine,” I calmed his worries.

  He leaned back. “And you best believe that I have people on the inside watching your every move.”

  I sighed. This was going nowhere. I knew he was talking about Ricky Moran. I didn’t have anything to hide, so fuck it. But Jesus fucking Christ, a quarter million dollars supposedly stashed away somewhere on my set? It seemed ludicrous. “Wes.” My tone was more serious. “Does anyone else know about this?”

  He dipped the end of his cigar in his bourbon.

  If we weren’t careful, this could blow up. Seriously explode and take a lot of people out with it at the same time. I realized that the only reason he was even discussing this with me was because he knew he could trust me.

  “No one.” He puffed his cigar. “Keep it that way, too.”

  I knew he meant business. “Yeah, of course,” I whispered, staring down into the abyss of my glass. “I’ll take a look around tomorrow, see if I can find anything.”

  Wes’s face softened as it lifted and he looked over my shoulder.

  I turned to see what stole his attention, and when I looked, I couldn’t believe my eyes.

  “Hey boys,” the small woman teased.

  “God damn, if I haven’t died and gone to heaven.” Wes was always quick with the women.

  The woman’s friend stared at me with large doe eyes and I casually looked away, acting as if I didn’t recognize her.

  “Thought I recognized you, so we thought we’d come and say hi.” The small woman tugged on her friend’s arm, making her stand by her side.

  Wes’s face scrunched, trying to place a face. “Can’t say we’ve met, but I’m certainly interested in getting to know you.” He held out his hand as if telling them to sit.

  I slammed my drink down on the table. “You’re interrupting a meeting.”

  Their faces dropped and Wes furrowed his brow.

  “Now, if you don’t mind, go back to where you came from.” I lifted my drink and held it to my lips until I knew they got the hint.

  “Yeah. Of course. Sorry.” They turned and walked away, confused by my sudden outburst.

  “What the fuck was that?” Wes asked.

  “My fucking intern.”

  8

  Alex

  KENDRA BRUSHED off Nash’s rudeness as fast as she found another table of guys to flirt with.

  She had the confidence I could only dream of. Men devoured her free spirit. Even I did. What I’d do to have that very same carefree attitude that came so naturally to her. I admired it so much but it just wasn’t who I was. No matter how hard I tried.

  I spun the ice in my drink and watched her from a couple tables away. She sat in a guy’s lap, twirling his long locks around her finger, luring him in nice and easy.

  The way I felt was about the same as my glass—empty.

  I knew she didn’t mean to ditch me, but that was how it felt as I sat here alone with my thoughts. And after what happened with Nash Brooks and Wesley Reid, I just wanted to leave.

  I mean, what was the point?

  Kendra hadn’t even bothered looking in my direction since she found him.

  And Nash was such an asshole.

  It was like he didn’t even remember me. Like he didn’t chew me out and embarrass the shit out me today. It wasn’t like I was really expecting much from him, but the least he could do was acknowledge my existence.

  Tonight was such a mistake.

  A big fat mistake I regretted.

  I should have never let Kendra drag me to his table. Now I was so royally fucked it wasn’t even funny. There was no way I was going to get through this internship alive. Let alone a position in the industry now that Wesley Reid knew my face.

  I ducked my head and glanced over my shoulder to where Nash and Wes had been sitting. They were just finishing their drinks, getting up from their seats behind the table. I watched them as they made their way through the crowd and toward the stairs. Not once did either of them look in my direction, yet I was so paranoid they would. Like they had nothing better to talk about than me. I’d made a complete ass out of myself—they knew it and so did I—and there was no way I was that forgettable.

  Or at least I hoped I wasn’t.

  When they weaved through the tables not too far from where I sat, I ducked forward, hoping that I was invisible. Against all odds, it seemed as if I was. Once they were headed up the stairs and out of sight, I could finally sit up straight again.

  This was so stupid. I didn’t feel like myself. Then again, I hadn’t had so many big failures in a single day before. And when so much was on the line, too.

  The bartender brought me another drink and said, “This one’s on the house.”

  It couldn’t get any more depressing than that. He even felt bad for me, sitting here all alone. No matter how much I wanted to act like I didn’t need it, I accepted without hesitation.

  Even though I knew the best thing would be to get home, go to bed, and forget today even happened, I reluctantly stayed, hoping something would go right for once.

  I hadn’t even taken my first sip when Kendra jumped on the stool next to me.

  There was no point in saying anything because she had it written all over her face.

  “See that guy over there?” She peered over her shoulder in his direction.

  I acted like I hadn’t been watching her get her freak on and played along. “I see him.”

  “What do you think?” There was a glimmer in her eye that allowed me to see clear into her future.

  I glanced over my shoulder again. “He’s all right.”

  “He’s more than all right.” She leaned forward with a silly grin on her face.

  I raised my brows.

  “I’m going home with him.”

  “That was quick.” My finger circled the rim of my glass.

  “I told you I needed to get laid.” She looked back in his direction. “And you should, too.”

  I rolled my eyes.

  “He’s got friends . . .” She leaned her shoulder into mine.

  I didn’t know why, but I looked over at the table again. It wasn’t like I was going to go through with it even if I thought I had a chance. As my eyes drifted over the outliers, none of them were all that interesting. “Nah, I think I’ll pass.”

  “Pass?” The word hissed as it rolled off her tongue.

  “They don’t portray the kind of confidence I need to convince me they’ll last long enough to get me off.” My face was expressionless. “I might as well take my chances with myself and fuck my vibrator instead.”

  Kendra laughed. “I see my sarcasm is rubbing off.”

  I smiled. “When life gives you lemons . . .”

  “You make lemonade.”

  We both laughed.

  The long-haired slim Jim strode over to our table and asked if she wanted to hit it.

  Ugh. I wanted to gag. He was so gross. She really would try anything at least once. There was no way. Not my type. It didn’t matter how desperate I was, I wouldn’t ever stoop that low.

  “Are you going to be fine getting yourself home?” Kendra’s voice was filled with compassion as she hooked her thumb inside of her purse strap, pulling it in place.

  “Yeah. I’m a big girl.” I forced a smile.

  We hugged and promised
to text when both of us were home and safe.

  He settled his bony arm across her shoulders and she clamped onto his waist. I watched them disappear up the stairs and waited a couple minutes before leaving myself.

  I didn’t bother finishing my drink. I wasn’t in the mood.

  Kendra’s new man’s friends were starting to look it my direction.

  “Not gonna happen. Not now. Not tonight. Not ever,” I said to myself.

  Today was rough enough already. First, I woke up stoked to be starting the internship and getting my hands dirty on set. Then I got reamed by the director for something I apparently did wrong, only to be ditched by my best friend on the one night I really needed a shoulder to lean on.

  Fucking brilliant.

  I started to head up the stairs.

  Typical Kendra to pounce on the first man who spoke to her in a nice voice. Maybe I was just jealous of what she had and I didn’t. I, too, could use a good lay.

  I moved swiftly through the busy upstairs and couldn’t get outside quick enough. What a relief it was when I finally did step out beneath the night’s dark sky.

  I looked around, taking in the scene of Rodeo Drive. There were couples strolling hand-in-hand, laughing and enjoying the night. The air was crisp as it settled fresh in my senses, and since I was in a nice part of town with perfect weather, I figured it was as good as any night to take a mini-stroll and clear my head.

  As I passed the shops and restaurants on Rodeo Drive, it was clear to me that this was the world I wanted to be in. Not with where I was now. Not broke and with no money. But at the top.

  The lights. The cameras. The fame. The glory. All the reasons I’d come to L.A. in the first place.

  It was everything I wanted but didn’t know how to get. My career was in the hands of luck.

  My arms wrapped around my body and hugged my stomach as I rounded a corner and hit a brick wall. “Oh, my God, I’m so sorry,” I said, lifting my head to see who I just walked directly into. When I regained my balance, my heart nearly stopped—just my fuckin’ luck.

  He looked back at me, the corner of his lips tugging into a knowing grin.