Always Dangerous

by Dee J. Adams

  “Program?” Kim didn’t like the sound of this. “What kind of program?”

  “Diet, vitamins, exercise. It all makes a healthy, happy baby.” Chelsea escorted her out of the office. “I’d come with you, but Royal Oil is coming in for a meeting in a couple of hours and I need to get ready. Will you be okay on your own?”

  Kim scoffed. “Of course. But I feel bad I’m leaving you here to deal with all of this alone.”

  “I’ve got it handled. I hired a temp. She’ll be here in another half hour.”

  “Oh. A temp. That’s the new desk in front. You didn’t tell me.”

  “I didn’t want you to worry. It’s all handled. Do what you need to do.”

  Kim’s phone rang again and she checked the screen. “What is Wilson’s problem?” she muttered as she shoved the phone back in her purse.

  “Problems with your cousin?” Chelsea asked.

  “He’s been calling me nonstop since I left him at the airport. Questions about Carolyn or about the house. Legal issues, house issues. You name it and he has to ask me about it. I wonder if this is what Carolyn went through the last few years.”

  Chelsea gave her a sympathetic smile. “Just collect all the voicemails and answer them in one shot.”

  “Yes, Mom. Thanks.”

  “Haha. You’re welcome. Now go.” Chelsea pushed her out the door.

  Kim made a quick trip to the pharmacy before going back to her condo. Her pulse hammered and her palms slicked with sweat. She’d been pacing in her bathroom for two full minutes already. Not even the soothing earth tones in the stone tile could calm her now.

  She didn’t want to look at the stick. Really, what was the point? She knew the results. She’d felt it in her body. Her breasts were more sensitive, her stomach had been weird and she’d been a little green for more than a couple of weeks. Not to mention the fact that she’d missed two periods. Two.

  “Do it,” she ordered herself. Mustering up her courage, she looked. The air froze in her lungs and the room tilted precariously.

  A plus sign.

  She grabbed the counter to steady herself. “You called it, Chels,” she muttered. Kim sat on the covered toilet seat and put her head in her hands. “Oh man.”

  She should see her doctor. Get her diagnosis confirmed by a professional. Find out how far along she was.

  “Oh, God.” Pregnant. This was not how she envisioned this moment. She was supposed to be married first, preferably for a couple of years. Hopefully to a man she loved and who loved her in return. If living in this state had taught her anything, it was that she missed the big city, but was that the best place to raise a baby? She missed going out and meeting people with her same interests.

  Now her interests included parenthood.

  What else did she have to do? The list seemed never-ending.

  Oh God. She had to call Leo. Kim rubbed her temples with her index fingers then stood and looked into the mirror. “What did you do, dummy?”

  Chapter Four

  Sitting at the counter that separated the kitchen from the den, Leo hung up his phone and dropped his chin to his chest. “Shit.” Vivienne had categorically refused to take Cat. Again. He’d been trying for days. The feline stared him down with stunning yellow eyes from her perch at the end of his leather sofa. A real looker, just like his Porsche had been. He missed Stella something fierce. Cat actually reminded him of Stella in a sleek black way.

  The phone rang and he checked the caller ID. His agent. Hot damn.

  “Hey, Rich. What’s up? You got something?”

  “Leo! How are you, man? We just got wind of a new project from Jess Bryant and we’re working on getting you the script. Everything she does so far is box office gold. The crowds love her.”

  “Tell me something I don’t know,” Leo murmured. His co-star, Julie Fraser, from Dangerous Race had scored an Oscar with Jess Bryant’s first film. One of her movies could put him in the black both financially and critically. “I don’t care what the part is. I want it. I need this job, Rich.”

  “I’m working on it. Don’t worry. I’ll get back to you when I know more. I just wanted you in the loop. Listen, I have to run. I’ve got a meeting in two minutes. We’ll talk soon.” The line went dead and Leo hung up the phone carefully.

  He really needed this job. Something had to pan out soon or he was in the deepest shit of his life.

  Looking around at the few belongings from his old house depressed the shit out of him. Most of his furniture had been sold with the house, but the things that had followed him only reminded him of what he lost. From a ten thousand square foot spacious home to this twelve hundred square foot stacked matchbox. He’d initially liked the dark muted green of the walls, but now it just looked glum. The space seemed to close in on him on a daily basis. Nothing of any value had followed him here, which meant he was stuck with the few pieces of artwork that meant nothing to him, but filled up the dreary spaces on the walls.

  Pathetic.

  Maybe having the cat around for a little while might be a good thing. Which meant…

  “I know I said I wasn’t naming you, but Cat seems so… I don’t know…lame.” Leo crossed into the room and sat next to her temporary bed. He had a litter box in the hall closet with the door halfway open. He had food and water on the kitchen floor per the vet’s instructions. He smoothed his hand over her head and she leaned into the stroke with a purr. “Yeah, I know what you like…Petunia.” He shook his head. “Nope. Never in a million years.” He exhaled a frustrated groan. “Okay, I need a real name for you,” he said, relenting. “So what’s it going to be?” She was black. Sleek. Beautiful. She blinked all-knowing yellow eyes. “What do you think of Stella?” he asked. “I know it was my car, but she’s gone now and you actually fit the profile.”

  The purring got louder.

  Leo nodded once. “Good enough for me. I’m calling that a yes.”

  Strumming guitar notes rang in the room and Leo picked up his phone from the coffee table and checked the screen. His heart did a little double thump when he saw Kim’s name.

  “Hey!” he said, happy to talk to the one person who knew what he’d been through, the one person who knew more about him than anyone else. The only person he’d ever truly missed since she’d jetted out of his life almost two months ago. No woman had ever left him before. It had been just another dose of crappy reality. “What’s new? How are you?”

  Her silence tipped him off and the happy beat of his heart stuttered.

  “A lot is new actually. I was going to fly in tomorrow or the day after if you can squeeze me into your schedule. We need to talk.”

  The four most dreaded words in the English language. We need to talk. Nothing good ever came from those words. “Sure. I’m here. I’m trying to set up a few meetings with some distributors, but nothing’s set yet. Come on in.”

  “Great. Thanks.” She didn’t sound her usual confident, happy self, and warning signs blared in Leo’s head. What if he hadn’t really hit bottom? What if she had news that might sink him even more? Christ, he hardly had anything left to sell. He’d gotten rid of all the homes he had mortgages on. He’d sold his cars, his memorabilia and practically his soul. Renting a piece of shit home in the hills and a previously owned Benz nearly killed him.

  Growing up, he’d watched his mother struggle to pay the bills. Meeting his little sister’s needs had sucked up every last penny. He’d vowed to make enough money to keep all three of them comfortable, but his mom died when he was twenty-two, before he made it big. Everything he’d owned had been a mark of success, a milestone that he savored. Selling it all had been like taking strips of his hide one slow piece at a time. He’d been reminded all too clearly that no matter how hard you tried, everything could change in an instant.

  Stella mewled and rubbed her head into his hand. She tried to get up, but had a hard time negotiating, so Leo took her to the litter box in case she had business to do.

  “I should probably warn
you, I have a new roommate. I think you’ll like her though.”

  Dead silence over the phone. “What?” The word came with her exhale. “Of course…I…I look forward to meeting her. Bye.” She hung up before Leo got another word in and he stared at the blank screen.

  That was odd, not to mention very unlike Kim. What had her in such a rush? Roommate? Oh… Her. She couldn’t possibly think… “Son of a bitch.” Leo called Kim back, but he got her voicemail.

  “Kim, it’s me. My new roommate is a cat. The her is a cat. Not that you would care or anything because I know you and I…um. Well, you and I aren’t…” Shit, he was screwing this up with every word. “Look, you just sounded a little—” Beep. The phone cut him off. “You gotta be fucking kidding me,” he growled. He refused to call back like a pussy who cared. She’d find out soon enough who his roommate—temporary roommate—was. Until then she’d survive. It wasn’t like they were a couple. They’d absolutely parted as friends.

  So why was she constantly on his mind? Why did her soft blond hair and stunning green eyes make their way into his thoughts more than a dozen times a day?

  Stella wobbled over to him and Leo scooped her up carefully before setting her on the sofa next to him.

  “Wait until you meet Kim,” he said, rubbing her head and making her purr. “You’re going to like her. She’s tough. Just like you.”

  Stella looked up at him and blinked with slow heavy eyes. She yawned, set her head on his thigh and promptly crashed.

  “That’s one satisfied woman,” Leo muttered.

  His phone beeped with an incoming email and Leo checked. “Hot damn.” It was the distributor he’d met a few months ago at The Polo Lounge. Maybe he’d get his movie out after all. He just had to finish the damn thing. One location shoot—guerilla style and he could wrap this sucker. He had too much money invested in it to shelve it permanently. The fact that his co-star was in a mental institution would either kill the film or make it a hit. Why the woman had to go off the deep end after making his movie, he’d never understand. She’d not only screwed up her own life, she’d screwed up his.

  He still couldn’t believe that Carrie Ann Laughlin had actually murdered a man. His skin crawled when he thought about it. That she almost killed his co-star from Dangerous Race was an even bigger coincidence. He’d wondered about what Carrie Ann would think of him finally releasing the film. Would she be embarrassed or happy? Would she be able to comment on it at all from where she currently resided? Hell, would she even know about it? Maybe she was locked up so tight she didn’t have television.

  Leo picked up the shot list for the remaining scene. The director who’d started with the film had inconveniently offed himself six months ago, leaving Leo in a massive lurch. Combine that with his lead actress landing in the psych ward for murder and his film was screwed.

  Until he decided to finish it himself. There wasn’t that much left. He could do it. He’d just have to break a few rules. He couldn’t afford the kind of set up he’d managed for the majority of the film. He’d broken cardinal rule number one. Never use your own money for a film. It took hindsight to see what an idiot he’d been. Not that being an idiot was new territory for him, but he just never copped to it.

  He didn’t have the money to finish it, so he’d have to raise money the old fashioned way and find investors and a distributor. All new territory for him. His palms sweat just thinking about it. What if everyone thought the film was cursed? Between a dead director and a mentally unstable co-star, people might not touch it if he paid them.

  Next to him, Stella had a kitty nightmare. Her little paws flailed away and her muzzle crinkled and twitched. Poor thing was probably reliving being in the jaws of a coyote. He stroked her head, her fur soft under his fingers, and she calmed.

  “Not so bad having someone to make it all better, huh, Stella?”

  He wouldn’t mind having someone like that for himself.

  Kim’s face flashed in his head. A blonde bombshell who walked into his life at the worst time. Or maybe it was the best time. Maybe she was the best thing to come his way in…ever. Leo shook off the thought. No way was he letting a female under his skin. He looked down, discovered he was still stroking Stella’s head and snapped his hand back. Not even Stella.

  Wilson hung up the kitchen phone after leaving another voicemail and rested his head in his hands. Did Carolyn—Kim. Did Kim think he enjoyed being ignored? For all its beauty on the surface, the house Carolyn left him with was a money pit. If Kim didn’t float him a loan for a plumber, he estimated two days before the damn water heater flooded the place. On top of that, the washing machine quit and his laundry was stacking up.

  There had to be another way to reach Kim, another number to catch her by surprise. Her office! Of course! He should’ve thought of this earlier. After booting up the computer in the kitchen corner, he found her agency on the Internet and called the number.

  “Hello, Rivers and Jacobs Advertising, can I help you?”

  The fact that she had her own business with her name attached sent a hot thread of annoyance shooting through his stomach. He could’ve had his own business too if Carolyn had given him a loan. He’d mapped out a whole plan to start a silk flower shop. It was the perfect business for desert country. People would clamor for fake green shit they didn’t have to water.

  “Can I speak with Kim?” he asked.

  “She’s not in. Would you like to leave a message?”

  Why would she be in? She had a cool ten million dollars to play with. She probably didn’t plan to work another day in her life. He nearly laughed out loud at the irony.

  “Yes.” He most definitely wanted to leave a message. “This is her cousin Wilson. I’ve been calling her cell phone, but it’s urgent I speak with her.”

  “Oh, Wilson. This is Chelsea, Kim’s partner. I’m so sorry for your loss. Kim told me how close you were to your aunt. I know this must be a difficult time for you.”

  Difficult, frustrating and aggravating barely scratched the surface. He’d never met Chelsea, but he knew she went back to Kim’s college days. “Oh, thank you. I don’t know about Kim, but it’s almost like being orphaned all over again. What did Kim say about me?” Maybe she felt sorry enough to part with some of the money. A couple big wins at the track and he might not have to work another day in his life either.

  “She just told me how much time you spent with your aunt the last few years and that this whole transition has been hard for both of you.”

  He rolled his eyes at the understatement. “I guess we’re never really prepared for death. I mean, sometimes we might think we are, but…” Did he really just utter that inane sentence? “Do you know when Kim will be back in the office? She doesn’t seem to be picking up her calls.”

  “She’s actually headed out of town for a day or two.”

  “Really?” Wilson held back a fresh burst of envy. She was already spending that money. Probably taking a weekend spa trip somewhere. He’d be doing something similar. “Where’s she headed?”

  “Los Angeles.”

  “Wasn’t she just there a couple months ago?” Kim had told him a little about that trip, but he’d read the gory details in the newspaper when the story of her old roommate’s kidnapping went national.

  “Yes. She had some…business to attend to.”

  Business? The hesitation in Chelsea’s voice made it sound like something other than actual business. “Is she okay?” he asked.

  “She’s fine. A little morning sickness, but other than that, she’s okay.”

  Blood drained from Wilson’s head quicker than water poured over Niagara. “Morning sickness?” he repeated numbly. He remembered a few of the mornings in Arizona with Kim and her queasy stomach. The silence on the phone told him all he needed to know. “She’s pregnant?”

  “Oh my gosh. I can’t believe I said that. I’m so sorry. That was a complete slip on my part. I’m sure she’ll tell you. She just found out herself.”


  “Don’t worry about it,” he assured her. “I suspected as much. She wasn’t feeling great when we were together and she mentioned a guy, but didn’t tell me his name.” He had no clue what he was saying, but he didn’t want Chelsea to think he was out of the loop. “So this trip to L.A.…” Kim had confided how Indiana wasn’t really working out for her, so maybe with the new influx of dough she’d decided to move. Or maybe the baby’s father lived there…? “Is she buying a house or… What is the trip for?”

  “You can ask her yourself. I’m sure she’ll be calling you back as soon as she can. She’s got a lot on her mind right now.”

  Right. Like how to spend an extra ten million dollars. His cousin was going to have a baby, was she? And his little second cousin would end up with his money. That burned him like nobody’s business.

  “Chelsea, do you know when she arrives in town? What airline? I’ll be in L.A. myself later in the week, but maybe I can change my schedule to meet her there. I’d love to surprise her.” He still had no idea what he was saying, but the faster he talked the more a plan came to him.

  “Hold on. Let me check. She gave me her itinerary, so I know I have it somewhere.” He heard shuffling before she came back on the line. “Here it is,” she said. She rattled off the airline and flight number.

  “Tomorrow?” What the hell had her flying to Los Angeles at the drop of a hat? “I guess that rules out me picking her up at the airport.” He hoped his chuckle sounded sincere.

  “No worries about that. She’s getting a rental.”

  “Ah. Of course. Well, maybe she’ll stay an extra day or two and we’ll meet up. Thanks for the information anyway. It was good talking to you.” He needed to make the most of this phone call.

  “You too, Wilson. And my condolences again on your loss. I’m so sorry.”

  “Thank you. I appreciate it. Listen, I was thinking since you and I are so close to Kim that maybe I should I have a direct contact to you. You know, just in case of emergency.”