by Wendi Zwaduk
Seeing Jaden ripped the scars on his heart wide open. Each time he thought about the love he’d believed they shared, he winced. Common sense dictated she wouldn’t stoop so low as to have their lovemaking posted on the net, but the rawness in his heart begged to differ. She’d readily admitted she’d lied when she’d come to town to break up Logan and Cass’s burgeoning relationship two years previously. At the same time, she’d lied about being involved with Dex Rose. Who knew if she was lying now? As much as he wanted to be with her, his gut dictated he stay far away.
He glanced at the silent television. Maybe today he’d find regular programming to dull his heartache. Maybe today he’d get through the sunlit hours without having a horde of cameras thrust in his face. Or Jaden would stop by to tell him the charade was over.
Fat chance.
When he sat up and closed the laptop, the bell rang at his door. As much as he didn’t think he’d see Jaden yet, a tiny part of him hoped she stood on the other side. Her appearance a couple of months ago had changed his life in so many ways, good and bad, but he wouldn’t trade the memories.
Peeking through the peephole, he sighed. Not Jaden.
He engaged the chain and opened the door. “Hi, Sabrina. What’s up?”
Sabrina stood on his stoop. Although she still looked attractive, the sparkle was gone from her eyes. “Can I come in a moment?”
“I’m not in the mood for company.” He braced his arm on the doorframe and shifted his weight. “What’s the matter? You aren’t going to make a pass? I won’t know what to do with myself.”
“I’m not going to bite.” She nodded. “Open the door.”
Against his better judgement, Marlon flicked the chain loose. The sigh escaping his lips came out in a combination of defeat and disillusion. He felt like a man without a country—without a soul.
Sabrina wrapped her arms around her waist and took a step across the threshold. “Are they really gone? I didn’t see any cameras or news vans outside.”
Marlon dipped his head once. “She’s back in Cali.”
“She moved on? With Bobby?” Sabrina took a deep breath and a wide grin curled the corners of her mouth. “Then she won’t mind me doing this!”
Before he realised what was happening, Sabrina launched herself into his arms. She pressed wet kisses all over his face while her hands smoothed over his chest. His cock hardened behind his zipper. For a moment, Marlon considered letting her have her way with him. A warm, willing female stood in his living room showering him with physical affection.
What was a horny and slightly drunk man to do?
If said man was lucky, he’d stop before things got out of hand and realise that Sabrina only offered physical love.
She wasn’t about emotional connections any more than he was about one-night stands. He clenched his mouth shut when she fused her lips to his. Pressing the issue, she bit him, making him open to her. Her taste, one of too many breath mints, made his stomach churn. He missed Jaden. Longed for her. Loved her.
Fuck, being with Sabrina was wrong on too many levels. He gripped her shoulders and wriggled from her tight embrace. “Sabrina, you don’t want to start something we’ll regret.”
“No?” She grabbed the remote control and clicked the television on. “See your sweet Jaden? She’s out on the town with Bobby. He fucked Addy, and he fucked me. She’s just another notch in his belt.”
Marlon gasped. Pictures flashed on the screen. Jaden arm in arm with Bobby. Bobby holding her. Bobby kissing the side of her head. The bastard making love to her.
“She’s moved on, so you can, too,” she shrieked. “My life wasn’t complete without you. You’re my soulmate.”
“No.” Before he could argue with her further, his cell phone rang. “I need to get that.”
“Is it Jaden?”
He snarled. “No, it’s Logan.”
“Malone? The movie star? Here in Crawford?” Sabrina’s eyes lit up. “You know Logan Malone?” Her voice dripped with sugar sweetness and venom.
Marlon rolled his eyes. Typical. When the grass—no matter how married—seemed to be greener, Sabrina stood first in line to jump ship. He pressed the buttons to answer the call. “Hey man.”
“You’re an ass.” Logan’s words, clipped and curt, resonated down into his soul. He was an ass for letting her get away, for not following through on his promise to keep her safe from the peekers and the invasion of the cameras.
Walking away from Sabrina, Marlon stuck his finger in his ear. “I beg your pardon?”
“You’re a grade-A, number one ass.”
“We’re not exactly bosom buddies, so what the hell?” Ire up, Marlon let his anger loose. “Fuck you, too.” Logan wasn’t the cause of his foul mood, but his call placed him in Marlon’s emotional gun-sights.
“Don’t get lippy with me. Jaden didn’t orchestrate that movie. She’s conniving on occasion, yes, but she loved you. Still does, as far as I know. The interview, if you bothered to really look, was staged, faked, and spliced together.”
He grunted. “I’m sorry. And you know this how? She ruined your life before she waltzed into mine.”
Logan growled. “What do you expect? She’s twenty-three. She made a few mistakes, but if it weren’t for some of those poor choices, I wouldn’t be with Cass. So don’t get holier-than-thou on me. She goofed up, but she didn’t wreck your life on purpose. The voice-overs don’t even match up. It was a shitty cover-up to piss you off and it worked.”
“Get to your point.”
“Give her another chance. She’s not with the rent-a-cop. Read her body language.”
“Fuck you!” With the last word in, Marlon punched the buttons to disconnect the call. Who the hell was pretty-boy Logan Malone to tell him how to run his life? His career wasn’t in the toilet because of a sex tape.
Sabrina appeared behind him and began rubbing his shoulders. “You’re tense, honey bear. Let me work it out for you. I know what you need.”
He let out a long breath. Sabrina didn’t have a clue. “Why do you want me? I’m no good at love. You swore you’d never talk to me when you left because I broke your heart and danced on your dreams in golf shoes. I made you go fishing, tried to teach you how to use a lawnmower, and insisted you go with me to the dirt races. You don’t like any of those things, yet you keep coming back and changing your mind. Why?”
She stepped around him to gaze into his eyes. “Because when you love someone, you make sacrifices. I hate pretty much everything you love, but I’m willing to fake it to keep you happy. Now smile for the cameras.”
Fake it to make him happy? Hated what he loved? Including Jaden? He wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Desperate times called for evasive action, including pandering to her ego. “Sabrina, this is a side of you I never thought I’d see.” He strolled to the door. “And I’m glad I saw it. I understand you so much better.”
A barrage of flashbulbs popped. The cameramen and reporters surged forwards to gain access to the former Mr Jade Weir. Smiling slyly, Sabrina hooked her fingers in his front pockets and rubbed against him like a cat in heat. “When are you coming over to play good cop, naughty girl? We have an audience, just like you like.”
He shook his head. “Never again. I have some heavy thinking to do and I need to concentrate.”
“So you say.” She nibbled the corner of her mouth. “Then find me when you’re done. I’ll be waiting.” She blew him a kiss and stepped off his stoop, into the throng of cameras.
Closing the door, Marlon leaned against the cool barrier.
Well, hell.
Chapter Twenty
Shoring up her courage and smoothing her dress suit, Jaden stepped from the limousine in front of the garish golden Delish building. She’d been away from the dogs, the cats, from Ohio—from Marlon—for thirty-six hours, but it felt more like an eternity. So far, she had nothing to show for her plans.
Her second day in California and all attempts to speak to her father ended up
ignored. Would he ignore her if she made a public statement in front of his magazine empire? Probably. She clicked her tongue. Long ago, the white marble columns had reminded her of a palace. Now, she wanted to throw up. All the excess Rex Haydenweir had spent trying to become Rexx Weir and rise from his humble beginnings. Would her mother approve? Probably not. Darby Hayden-Weir had hated false praise and facades.
Be who God meant you to be, not who money made you.
Jaden nodded. Although she should’ve listened to her mother’s advice long ago, she finally took it to heart. “I’ll be myself, Momma.”
She considered placing a call to Marlon just to tell him she cared. Palming the phone in her purse, she kept on her course. Each time she dialled the phone, clicks popped on the other end of the line. No way would the cretins bugging the phone catch her telling the truth before she was ready to let it out.
A woman passing on the street turned to stare at Jaden. “Oh my God! Jade’s back!” her voice rose above the noise on the busy road. “Jade! Sign my shirt, please?”
Paparazzi swarmed her position as Bobby wrapped an arm around her. Jaden gave the woman the autograph she desired. When the woman withdrew from the throng, Jaden turned and smiled. “I’ll be back, boys. Bobby will make sure you get great shots of me leaving. Deal?” Like hell. Screw the camera-aiming vultures. She planned on using the underground exit and getting away with her dignity.
Before anyone could shout more, Jaden raced on spindly heels into the building with Bobby glued to her side. Once inside, she took a deep breath. No wonder she’d given up the ultra-glam. Being on her glamorous game took too much work, especially when a man like Marlon liked her natural. She clenched her teeth. At least she had fond memories.
“Wait a second.” Bobby wrapped a thick hand around her arm. “Can we talk?”
Jaden nodded to an alcove next to a gathering of potted palms. “What?”
“What do I mean to you?” He stepped closer and drew an imaginary line along her cheek and toyed with her lapel. “We have something between us. It never really died.”
“Something? We had a one-night stand that ended in you leaving before I woke up. That’s not anything to build a relationship on.”
“You’re really in love with him.”
“You make it sound like an accusation.”
Bobby dipped his head, capturing her in a kiss. Instead of curling in to him, she stood rigid. No tingles shot down her spine. No warm fuzzies cocooned her heart. When he broke for air, his heavy-lidded gaze did nothing for her libido.
“You taste like candy,” he murmured.
When she didn’t respond, his gaze hardened. “There really isn’t anything.” He looked away and shoved his fingers into his hair. “I thought maybe my service and devotion would be enough to prove to you I still think about you—more than the others.”
She stared at Bobby. More than the others? Which others? “You slept with Addy and Sabrina, didn’t you?”
“I’ve sowed my share of wild oats, just like you.”
Clips of her life flashed in her mind. The times she’d used men for one night, the times she’d been used in return. The moment Marlon had walked away for good.
Bobby made a good bodyguard, but not at all what she wanted in a long term lover. Wasting time with him wouldn’t fix the problems in her life.
“Marlon gave up his chance. I’m here with you.” Bobby hooked his fingers under her chin. “I’ve got your back.”
“Wait for me outside.” She marched away from her spot in the alcove. “I’ve got my life to settle.”
The woman behind the main desk smiled when Jaden made her way forwards. Though she’d never bothered to acknowledge the woman in the past, she remembered her name. Jaden walked with sure steps to the desk. “Hi Patsy. Is my father in? I don’t have an appointment, but I do need to speak with him.”
Patsy’s blue eyes widened. “You—you remembered my name…”
Jaden stuck out her hand. “I’m sorry for being so rude in the past. You work hard and deserve kindness. Please call me by my given name, Jaden.”
Without tearing her gaze from Jaden, Patsy pressed buttons on the intercom. Rexx’s secretary, Glynnis, answered. “This is the office of Rexx Weir. What can I do for you, Patsy?”
Patsy fumbled for a moment. “I have Jaden here and she’d like to speak to her father.”
“Who?”
Jaden chuckled and nodded to the phone. Patsy angled the device so Jaden could speak in the range of the mic. “It’s me, Glynnis. I want to talk to Daddy.”
Appeased, Glynnis laughed. “Ah, Jade. So you are home. Come right up. Your father has a surprise.”
Patsy pressed the buttons to end the call. “It was nice to meet you.”
“Likewise.” Jaden grinned. “Make sure Daddy gives you a raise. I’m sure he’s not paying you enough. And when he complains, tell him I said to use the crowbar to pry open his wallet.”
As she strolled to the elevators, her spirits lifted, then wavered. Being personable with the Delish folks wasn’t nearly as hard as she remembered. Maybe her mother wasn’t so off when she insisted manners weren’t so bad. But a surprise? What did he know? Better yet, what did he have to do with the internet fiasco?
The man in the elevator waved his hand, ushering her into the car. As they ascended the floors, he cracked his knuckles. “I know this isn’t my place, but why did you make that movie?”
“You’re pushy.” She pressed her lips together. Nice, I’m supposed to be nice.
“Just curious.”
Reaching around him, she pressed the emergency stop button. “You asked, I’ll answer. Do you mean the internet clip?” What did this man have to say that she hadn’t already heard?
He nodded and folded his arms. “Yeah. I’m no gentleman and I like my dirty movies when the mood strikes, but that wasn’t a run-of-the-mill skin flick. You looked like you really cared about him. Why put that on the ‘net?”
Folding her arms, she mocked his stance, but not his intentions. “Plain and simple, I did—do—care about that guy a lot, and I didn’t post that clip. Someone peeped through my windows and taped it. I didn’t find out until it was over, but I don’t see why you care.”
“You can’t shit a shitter, Jaden.” He cocked his head. “You don’t remember, but we went to high school together.”
Studying his features, she remembered the kid with shaggy black hair and vibrant blue eyes who’d always carried around a notebook for doodling and had asked her to go with him to one of the dances. She gasped. “Ron? Ron Harlan?”
He nodded. “One and the same.”
Details flew into her mind. He’d given her drawings in study hall and made it a point to tell her she looked pretty. When she’d left and begun the tutoring, he’d stopped by her father’s office to say hi and keep her up-to-date with gossip. Even as a teen, he’d always had the inside scoop. “You wanted to be a reporter. Why are you working the elevator here instead of writing comics or thought-provoking stories for the ten o’clock news?”
“Comics… I miss those.” He clicked his tongue. “I write in the evenings. I’m in charge of a horror blog called With Teeth and Claws. I reviewed your flick Vampires Unleashed. It wasn’t that good.”
She cringed. “I hated it, too.” Tapping her lip, an idea came to mind. The perfect merging of his talents and her schemes. “Can you write that blog from anywhere?”
“Yeah, why?”
“I’ll need a press officer—someone who can write a great release for a pet shelter. I can’t pay much yet, but I can guarantee a place to stay. Sound like something you’d like to do?”
His blue eyes widened. “Here in Cali?”
“Nope. In Ohio. Want in? The old office building has five floors, three of which will be the shelter. My private suite will be the top floor if all goes as planned.” She grabbed a piece of paper from her purse and jotted down some numbers. “Here’s my cell.”
A grin blossomed on
his lips. “You tell me when and where and I’ll be there.”
“You mean it?”
“Sure. Blogging by night, working as a press agent by day. Might even get some time in to go back to creating those comics.”
“Good. I’ll call you next week if the plans pan out.” She stuck out her hand. “Isn’t it great to have friends in all sorts of places?”
“You bet.”
After Ron started the elevator car back up and took her to her father’s office on the top floor, she rolled her shoulders again. Why did talking to him seem so impossible? Because the man could eat nails for breakfast and shit roses in full bloom. She checked her makeup and hair in the foyer mirror, fluffing the golden strands. I can be me and do something worthwhile.
She pushed open the glass door and mustered her courage. Glynnis, the svelte secretary with piercing brown eyes and hair the unnatural colour of a fire engine, smiled. “So it is you. You’re a bit fuller than before? I assume you’re eating well out in the sticks.”
Jaden narrowed her eyes. “I’d like to speak to my father, please.” Some people deserved human kindness, but after the cutting remark, Jaden wanted nothing to do with Glynnis Martine.
The petite secretary rose from her chair. “I’ll let Rexx know you’re here. He’s not happy about the interruption. He’s very busy making popular culture come to life. But I’m sure he’ll be glad to talk to you.”
“A father should want to talk to his child, but I can take care of myself.” Instead of giving Glynnis and her father the upper hand, Jaden pushed past the secretary. “He’s probably got his flavour-of-the-month girlfriend with him.”
“Excuse me, but his flavour is Pia Reardon.”
“Oh, he’s still with her?” Jaden yanked the door open and spoke over her shoulder. “Great.”
Glynnis gasped when Jaden shut the door in her face. When she turned, her father sat on his couch with a platinum blond crouched over his lap. His-button up shirt barely covered his chest where the woman plastered ruby red lip prints over his almond skin.
