“There are plenty of famous actors and actresses with spouses that aren’t in the business.”
Ross leaned forward and rested his chin on his pointed index fingers. “Julian, I’m your manager. You pay me to know what’s best for your career. And I’m telling you—she is not the kind of woman Julian Cooper is supposed to be with.”
If that was true, Julian wasn’t certain if he wanted to be Julian Cooper anymore. His alter ego was becoming the kind of person he didn’t even like. “You might be right, Ross, but I’m telling you that Gretchen is exactly the kind of woman that Julian Curtis wants to be with. This isn’t a role, Ross, it’s my life. I pay you to manage my career, but my private life is private. I’ll date whomever I want to, and I’d appreciate it if you’d keep your mouth shut on the matter.”
Ross’s cell phone chimed and he looked down at the screen. Julian was happy for the interruption. The energy in the room had gotten far too tense. Ross was a good manager, but he needed to know he had boundaries.
Ross frowned at the phone and then let it down by his side. “You can date whomever you like, Julian, you’re right. But you may want to reconsider choosing Gretchen.”
“Why?”
“Did you tell her about James?”
Julian stiffened. “I had to. She was there when I got the call about him going into the hospital. But I told her she’d need to sign a confidentiality agreement.”
“Did she?”
“Not yet. I was going to have you draw it up today.”
Ross sighed and handed his phone over to him. “It’s too damn late. The tragic story of Julian Cooper’s secret twin has just hit the papers.”
No. That wasn’t possible. Julian scanned over the article, looking for some kind of evidence that would prove that Ross was wrong. The sinking ache in his stomach didn’t fade as he read the article. It was a huge, in-depth story about James, including his illness and recent hospital drama. Whoever had leaked the story had very up-to-date information about his brother.
“Who else knows about James?”
Julian shook his head. No one knew. “Just you and Murray. And Gretchen.”
“Well, I certainly didn’t leak the story.”
He knew that was true, and with Murray on his honeymoon and worrying about anything but Julian and his brother, that left an unacceptable alternative. He just couldn’t believe that Gretchen would sell him out and leak that story. She’d hardly seemed interested in the money he already owed her. But how much would the press be willing to pay for a story like this? Perhaps more than she could turn down?
“No,” he insisted with a shake of his head. “I’ve been with her nonstop until this morning when she went to work. There’s no way she could’ve contacted a reporter and sold that story without me knowing it.”
Ross rolled his eyes. “Don’t be so ignorant, Julian. You weren’t with her every single second. You showered, you used the restroom, you slept. For all you know, she slipped out of bed in the night and emailed a reporter while you were satiated and unconscious.”
Julian dropped into the chair beside him, the doubts finally creeping into his mind. He’d trusted her. Could Gretchen really have sold him out just like all the others?
A sad expression lined his manager’s face as he reached out and patted Julian’s shoulder. “I’m sorry, I really am. I know you think I’m a cold, heartless businessman, with all my confidentiality contracts and arranged relationships, but I’ve been in this business a long time. I’ve seen a lot of my clients get sold out by the people they trust the most. I try to protect my clients, but there’s only so much I can do.”
There was only one person who knew about everything that had happened with James over the past few days. The idea of that betrayal made his protein shake threaten to rise in the back of his throat. He didn’t want to believe it. Every fiber in his being screamed that it couldn’t be true. But Ross was right. There was no other answer.
“We’ve got to figure out how you want to handle this. Ignoring the article will make it seem like you’re ashamed of your brother, which we don’t want. It’s probably best that we set up a tell-all interview of some kind, where you talk about him and explain why you tried to keep him out of the harsh spotlight.”
“That sounds fine,” Julian said in a flat tone. He really wasn’t listening. At the moment, damage control was the last thing on his mind.
“While I’m handling that, you need to talk to Gretchen.” He laid a fat envelope on the table. “Here’s the money we owe her. Pay her and make her go away. Or I will.”
Julian nodded. He knew Ross was right, but he didn’t relish that conversation. “She’s supposed to be coming over here today.”
“When?”
Julian looked at the clock hanging on the hotel room wall. “Soon. She was coming back over before I left for the airport.”
Ross nodded and stood up. “I’m going to head out, then. While I’m in New York, I’ll see who I can talk to about that interview. When you get back to LA, call me and let me know how it went with Gretchen.”
His manager slipped out of the room, but Julian hardly gave him any notice. The pain in his chest had subsided, leaving only the numbness of disassociation and the faint heat of anger licking at his ears. He knew what he had to do, and it was a role he didn’t want to play. But play it he would to remove the malicious cancer from his life.
* * *
Gretchen had a hard time walking down the hallway to Julian’s hotel room. A half hour ago, she’d damn near skipped down the same path, arriving earlier than she’d intended. She’d been so excited to see Julian one more time before he left that Natalie had let her cut out of the staff meeting early.
As she’d raised her hand to knock, she’d heard the sound of two men arguing loudly. She hadn’t intended to listen in, but there was no way she was going to interrupt their argument. She’d decided to wait for a lull, then knock, but instead, she’d overheard more than she’d bargained for.
Ross’s words haunted her, even now. She is not the kind of woman Julian Cooper is supposed to be with, he’d said. That hadn’t surprised her. But when Julian said that he might be right, she’d felt her heart break. He’d done nothing over the past few days but tell her how beautiful she was, how worthy she was. To hear he really felt otherwise was a crushing blow to her fragile ego. She’d rushed to her car, sobbing against the steering wheel until she saw Ross leave.
She took a few minutes to recover from her tears and then headed back upstairs. She hadn’t wanted to go back after that, but she knew it would be suspicious if she didn’t show up. Taking a deep breath, she knocked on the door, more anxious than she’d been the very first day.
Julian was slow to answer, and when he did, she wished he hadn’t. The light in his eyes was gone, his smile a distant memory. His jaw was tight in anger, his gaze burrowing into her as though he were searching her soul for some kind of guilt.
“Come in,” he said, stepping back to let her inside.
This wasn’t the reception she was hoping for, but she wasn’t surprised. She sat down on the couch, clutching her purse in her lap. Without even speaking, she knew their relationship was about to unravel.
Julian picked up his phone from the coffee table and hit a few buttons. He wordlessly handed it to her, his blue eyes daring her to take it.
Gretchen hesitated, finally accepting the phone from him. When she looked down on the screen, she felt the air get sucked from her lungs. It was an article about James. She knew how hard Julian worked to maintain his brother’s privacy, but now the secret was out. No wonder Julian was angry.
“How awful,” Gretchen said, her hand coming up to cover her mouth. “How could anyone have found out about James? You were so careful. Could it have been one of the nurses at the hospital?”
“Good try,” he said with a deadl
y cold tone. “I’m the actor in the room, not you.”
Gretchen’s gaze tore away from the phone to meet his accusatory one. “What is that supposed to mean? Do you think I’m the one that leaked the story?”
Julian crossed his arms over his chest, looking larger and more intimidating than he ever had before. He looked as if he were about to mow down a field of terrorists with an automatic weapon, as in one of his films. “I don’t have a lot of people to choose from, Gretchen. You’re the only one who knows everything. You’re the only one that’s ever met my brother. No one else would have all these details.”
Gretchen stood up. She was shorter than he was, but she couldn’t just sit there and let him hover over her intimidatingly. “Just because I had the information doesn’t mean I would’ve shared it. I told you that I wouldn’t tell anyone about James and I meant it. I said I’d even sign your stupid agreement.”
He nodded. “It never occurred to me that you’d manage to sell your story before I had time to draft the paperwork. A brilliant way to get around it, I have to say.”
“Get around it?” she said, surprising herself with her own shrill tone. “I didn’t get around anything, Julian, because I didn’t sell this story. Did Ross feed you all these lies? I don’t understand how you could think I’m capable of something like that.”
“I didn’t think you were capable of it, either.” Despite his hard expression, Gretchen detected some hesitation in his eyes. He didn’t seem to believe his own accusations, and yet he wouldn’t back down.
“You’re just using this as an excuse,” she said, trying to bait the truth from him.
His brows went up in surprise. “An excuse for what?”
“To get rid of me,” she accused. Ross’s cruel words echoed in her head, fueling her own anger. “Despite all those promises you made in Louisville, you know I’m not the kind of woman that will boost your career.”
Julian seemed baffled by her allegation. “What makes you say that?”
“I heard you talking to Ross,” Gretchen said. “I got off work early and heard you arguing. I know I’m not the right kind of woman for Julian Cooper. I’m fat and I’m awkward. I don’t have an elegant or graceful bone in my body. I know that. I don’t need Ross or you or the press to point that out to me.”
Julian shook his head angrily. “I don’t know what you heard, but I can assure you that isn’t what that discussion was about.”
“It wasn’t? Come on, Julian, be honest. As much as you claim you want to be this serious actor, you’re hooked on that blockbuster lifestyle. You claim you can’t quit because of your brother, but how much could his expenses possibly be? Are they as much as your Beverly Hills mansion? Your sports cars? Personal trainers and private chefs? Expensive baubles for your expensive women? I bet not. You’re going to use this story to drop me because I don’t fit into that lifestyle. I’m not going to help you become a bigger star.”
“You know, this doesn’t have anything to do with my lifestyle or my career. You obviously didn’t hear the whole conversation with Ross or you wouldn’t accuse me of such a thing. I would’ve happily walked the Gretchen I knew down any red carpet. I thought you were beautiful. Special. I meant every word I said to you, Gretchen. But that entire discussion I had with Ross is moot now, because I can’t stand by and let you hurt my family.”
Angry tears threatened to spill from Gretchen’s eyes. She didn’t want to cry. Not in front of Julian, but the harder she fought it, the harder it became to hold the tears back. “I would never do that to you. Or to James. Or your mother. And if you think that I would, then you don’t know me as well as you think you do.”
“I guess not, but it’s only been a few days, right? It’s not like we were in love.”
Gretchen flinched at how ridiculous he made the idea of love sound. She was grateful she had kept her budding feelings to herself. The last thing she needed was for him to throw that in her face.
“What did they offer you, Gretchen?” he taunted. His face was so twisted with anger and betrayal he didn’t look anything like the Julian she knew. “Money? Was the ten grand I’m paying you not enough?”
“No, it isn’t about the money. I don’t care how much they would’ve offered me, I wouldn’t have sold that story to the press. I don’t even want the money from this week.”
Julian rolled his eyes and picked up an envelope from the table. He thrust it into her hands and stepped away before she could reject the parcel. “Why don’t you want the money? Don’t need it after your big story payout?”
Gretchen was so upset, she didn’t even look down at what he handed her. “There is no payout. There is no money. I don’t know how to convince you of that. And I don’t want your money because it feels wrong to take it when it felt like we were...more than just some fake Hollywood relationship.”
His blue gaze tore away from hers, focusing on the beige carpet of the hotel room. “It was just acting, Gretchen. By making you think it was real, you were far more relaxed for the cameras. We never would’ve pulled this fake relationship off if you didn’t think I really liked you.”
That struck Gretchen dumb. Could he really mean that? Had he just played her because she was so stiff and awkward? She knew she wasn’t good with men, but could she really be fooled that easily? He was an actor, after all, but she couldn’t believe he’d misled her like that. He couldn’t make eye contact when he said it. She was certain that there was more between them, but for some reason, he wouldn’t let himself admit to the truth.
Her chin dropped to her chest, her gaze finally falling on the package in her hand. “What is this?” she asked.
“Ten thousand dollars, as agreed. You fulfilled your end of the bargain, and quite pleasurably at that.” There was a gloating expression on his face that she didn’t like. She’d been desperate to rid herself of her virginity, but she couldn’t stand to have him gloat over taking it so easily.
“Obviously,” he added bitterly, “the five-thousand-dollar bonus for keeping quiet about my brother was forfeited when you spilled your guts to that reporter.”
Gretchen closed her eyes. She could feel her heart crumbling in her chest. There was no other explanation for the sharp sensation that stole her breath from her lungs. She had no words, but it didn’t matter because she knew her words wouldn’t make any difference. He’d decided she was guilty, and nothing would convince him otherwise.
And even if it did...what would it change? If he’d been pretending to like her just to get through the week, there was nothing between them to salvage. All she could do was hold it together long enough to get out of this hotel room with some of her dignity intact.
“Obviously,” she said, steeling her nerves and matching his bitter tone.
When she opened her eyes, Julian was emerging from the bedroom with his rolling suitcase. Once again, he avoided her gaze, making a wide berth around her as he made his way to the door. “Enjoy Italy,” he said. “I hope you can put that blood money to good use.” Julian grabbed the handle of the door and flung it open, walking out of the hotel suite without so much as a backward glance.
Gretchen wanted to chase after him, to convince him that she was telling the truth, but her legs just wouldn’t cooperate. She might not think much of herself, but she had too much pride to beg. Instead, her knees trembled and gave out, her body collapsing into the cushions of the couch. Her face dropped into her lap, this morning’s second round of tears flowing freely and wetting the envelope in her hands.
She was a fool. A fool to believe that a man like Julian would ever want something to do with a woman like her. A fool to think that she could find happiness with a person so unobtainable. He was a fantasy.
And now, it had all come to an end.
Eleven
Gretchen had buried herself in work this week. It was easy with her job—t
here was always a wedding to decorate for, a consult with a couple, some design work to finish and send to the printers. Thank goodness. She needed the distraction.
Her two days off had been awful. She’d pretty much sat in her apartment crying and eating cookies. That wasn’t going to help matters at all. But by the time she returned to the office, she had that out of her system. She was ready to focus on work and forget all about Julian Cooper.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t that easy. Not with three nosy friends and coworkers who immediately noticed that the romantic bubble had burst. She’d left their staff meeting on Monday almost beaming and came back Thursday morning in mourning. She’d fought off the questions but gave them enough information to satisfy them: it was over. She didn’t want to talk much more about it when it was so new. So far, they’d backed off, but only because they were busy preparing for the next wedding, too.
When the time came, she wasn’t entirely sure what she would tell them. Getting up from her desk and going into her supply closet, she pulled down the bin labeled for this weekend’s autumn-themed wedding. As she sorted through the paper products, she tried to work out the tale in her mind.
“He accused me of leaking a story to the press and we broke up,” she said aloud. “And really, we were never actually together. He was just playing me.” That sounded silly, especially out loud, despite every word being true.
Of course, the supposed truth was nothing compared to her secret worry. Would he really have used all that as an excuse to break up with her because when it came down to it, he needed to date a pretty actress, not a frumpy artist? He’d insisted that wasn’t true. He’d done nothing but tell her how pretty she was while they were together, but was he just buttering her up for the part? She couldn’t dismiss what she’d heard between him and Ross.
The worst part of it was that she had to admit that Ross was probably right. She wasn’t what people expected. Vain, painted-up Bridgette made a lot more sense in their business, even if Julian didn’t like it. As hard as he worked to keep his brother and family out of the spotlight, protecting Gretchen would be harder. While early press might be positive, eventually, she’d find herself on a cover with a headline that declared Julian demands she lose weight or it’s over.
One Week with the Best Man: Reclaimed by the Rancher Page 13
