Sweetest Obsessions - Anthology

by Anthony, Jane

  That’s when she saw him.

  The same man she’d seen milling around at least three other events, including in Vegas. The hairs on the back of her neck tingled and a shiver of discomfort ran down her back. This guy wandered in stalker territory. A defined lump under his coat near his hip looked out of place on his otherwise slim body. Not to mention the jacket he wore was appropriate for a New York winter, not a California summer.

  Alarm bells went off in her head. This guy was their problem, but there was no way she could get to him through the rest of the photographers. If she tried, by the time she got to where he was, he’d have seen her coming and would be long gone. Her only choice was to get Rex somewhere where this guy couldn’t go—inside the theater.

  “Rex, inside. Now.” Lacey walked up to his side, holding her hand out toward the cameras. “No more pictures.”

  Rex glared at her. “What are you doing?”

  “Saving your ass. Let’s go.” She kept her voice low and steady so only he would hear and motioned for him to continue down the carpet and into the entrance.

  “No, you’re causing a scene.” Rex waved for the cameras still snapping his pictures.

  “He’s here.”

  “Who?”

  Lacey leaned closer. “I think it’s the guy behind the letters.”

  “He won’t do anything here. Too many witnesses.”

  “Rex, this isn’t a movie. People won’t always act how you expect. You’re in real danger.”

  He ignored her.

  She clenched her jaw. She’d make Roxanna listen instead. Crossing in front of them and blocking as much of Rex as she could without seeming like a human shield, she spoke to Roxanna. “I think you need to touch up your makeup.”

  Roxanna gasped. “How bad is it?”

  Lacey scrunched up her face and shrugged. “I’m no model, but it all looks a little sweaty.”

  “Stop it. She looks fine.” Rex sounded as pissed off as Lacey felt.

  “Fine? You think fine is good enough? I need a mirror immediately.” Roxanna grabbed Rex’s hand and pulled him toward the theater.

  Lacey peered back toward the photographers. The man in question still lingered in the back and he’d gone from looking menacing to looking irate. He didn’t seem to like Rex going inside either. Good.

  She breathed a sigh of relief once the doors to the theater closed behind them. Unless that guy had security clearance, he wouldn’t be able to get inside. They were safe, at least for a couple of hours.

  Roxanna disappeared into the restroom. As soon as she was out of sight, Rex turned on Lacey. “What was that? I thought you didn’t want to be another headline. What do you think the press will make of your little stunt?”

  “It wasn’t a stunt.”

  Rex crossed his arms. “Let me guess, you were doing your job.”

  She shoved her hand into her pockets to keep them from accidentally smacking him. “Yes. That man has been at every one of your events. And today he looked like he was carrying a weapon.”

  “Did you actually see a gun?”

  “That’s not something people usually flash around if they’re trying to stay under the radar.”

  “You made a scene because of a hunch? A suspicion that someone might be carrying something, but you’re not entirely sure?”

  “Do not. For one second. Belittle my instincts.”

  “Do not. Ruin my reputation. Over a hunch.” He hovered over her. “And don’t forget where we are. You’re doing your job and so am I. Don’t make a scene again.”

  She plastered her best award-winning smile on her face. “What would you have me do? Want me to ignore something suspicious and let you get hurt?”

  “I want you to stop treating me like someone who’s fragile. I don’t care what threat is out there. I’m not going to run away from the paparazzi. Not now, not ever. Running got my brother killed and I’ll never give them the satisfaction of having another Randall accident splashed across their covers.”

  “Why can’t you trust me to do my job?”

  “Because I don’t trust anyone but myself.”

  And there it was. Even after how close they’d become during the last few weeks, how much they’d shared with each other, he still didn’t trust her. “Whatever you want, Mr. Randall.”

  “What I want is for you to be a convincing assistant, so no one finds out what you really are. Do you think I’ll get hired as an action hero again if I can’t even go to my own movie premiere without a five-foot nothing, female bodyguard protecting me?”

  “If you ask me to fetch you a drink, I will drop you to the ground and I don’t care who sees it.” She might play his assistant, but she would never be a pushover for anyone, not even Rex.

  “Getting drinks is part of my assistant’s job,” he challenged.

  “If you’re on a date, then it’s your job. Unless you want to look like an asshole.”

  What had she ever seen in him? Sure, he was incredibly good looking and built exactly how she liked her men, but he also had a bad attitude. He hired her for a job, and he should be man enough to let her do it properly.

  No amount of fantastic sex could make up for him not believing in her abilities.

  Anger flashed in his eyes and she wondered if he could see the same in hers despite the fake grin on her face. That was it. She’d had enough of him not taking her seriously. If he was so egotistical that he thought he was invincible and still didn’t believe he needed her protection, then she’d never change his mind.

  After tonight, Rex wouldn’t have to worry about her anymore.

  As they settled into their seats in the full theater, the lights dimmed. The screen lit up and everyone cheered as the opening scene came to life with a punch of sound and color.

  Lacey couldn’t see a thing through the blur of tears in her eyes. The last thing she wanted to do was cry over a guy, but Rex wasn’t like any other man she’d ever known. Leaving him would hurt like hell, but the idea of staying and putting up with more of his nonsense was even worse.

  He’d given her no choice.

  Rex lay awake staring at the ceiling, trying to blink the tiredness from his eyes after a long, sleepless night. What was usually a happy occasion had turned into a big mess, thanks to Lacey’s overzealous work ethic, and his inability to manage both his public appearance and what he knew to be true behind the scenes.

  Lacey wasn’t making up what she’d seen in the crowd and she was only trying to protect him. She was good at her job, he’d seen that firsthand, but when she’d tried to rush him off the press line like he was some kind of child being managed by his mother, he’d kind of lost his mind.

  Being told what to do by anyone other than a director, wasn’t something he enjoyed. Even for work, that was a pill he had to swallow every single time. Lacey telling him what to do was so much worse. With a crowd of journalists and photographers watching, it was completely unacceptable. When she’d tried to make him leave the red carpet, she’d made him feel inferior. She might’ve been trying to protect him from a perceived threat, but her stunt had threatened his masculinity.

  He’d handled things badly; he recognized that now. He hadn’t meant to belittle her, but he hadn’t known how to properly react in the moment either. He’d thought she’d wanted him to run away like a dog with his tail between his legs, but after thinking about it most of the night, he knew now that’s not what she’d asked him to do. She’d simply wanted him to stop posing for pictures.

  He’d acted like an idiot and pissed off the only woman he’d ever cared about.

  Damn it. He cared about Lacey a lot more than he wanted to admit. He hadn’t even fully realized it until he’d seen the pain, frustration, and anger flash in her eyes. Later, he’d wanted to say something, but it had been impossible with Roxanna around. Today he’d talk to Lacey and work everything out. He’d apologize for his behavior and explain himself. Hopefully, she’d forgive him.

  Climbing out from the warmth of h
is bed, he pulled on a pair of sweat pants and a T-shirt. After grabbing a coffee from the kitchen, he made his way into the living room and settled in for the usual morning meeting.

  “Where’s everyone?” he asked, noting the distinctly empty room.

  “Alexia called in sick today.” Gabe twisted his hands together. “Lacey is gone.”

  Rex paused with his coffee cup halfway to his mouth. “What do you mean gone?”

  “She packed up and left. I don’t know where and I don’t think she’s coming back.”

  Rex jumped up from the chair so fast he spilled coffee down his shirt. The dogs both startled and barked, looking around for the cause of his reaction. When they found nothing, they wandered over to the spot on the couch where Lacey normally sat and laid their heads on the cushion, whining softly.

  Cursing, he slammed his cup onto the table then strode down the hall to Lacey’s room. He threw open the door. There was no sign of her or her things. The closet was empty, the bathroom vanity cleaned out, and the bed looked as if it hadn’t been slept in.

  He checked the room across the hall. Steven was also gone, but his personal things still lingered in the room. He turned and punched the wall in frustration, cringing as his knuckles connected with a stud.

  Rex flopped back down into his chair in the living room. “Find her. She can’t abandon ship before her contract is over.”

  “There never was an official contract. It was only an agreed upon amount of time that was subject to change if needed.”

  “You just let her leave?”

  “She was gone when I woke up. According to Steven, she had a car come in the middle of the night.”

  “Well tell him to figure out where the car took her, so I can get her back.”

  Gabe shook his head. “I already tried that. He said the car was unmarked and she paid in cash. He’s already tried to track her credit card but without luck. She knows how to protect people, Rex, including herself.”

  She didn’t need to protect herself from him, and the thought that she might believe she did, made his stomach hurt in a way he’d never felt before. On top of that, a stab of anger and annoyance wedged into his chest—Lacey had left him without so much as a goodbye, as if he didn’t matter, as if their time together was nothing.

  Betrayal burned inside of him, but he wouldn’t let her hurt him. He’d said all along how he didn’t need Lacey and now she’d given him the opportunity to prove it.

  “I’m almost done my responsibilities for the movie. I can manage the last appearance without her.”

  “Actually, you won’t have to. I’ve hired a replacement to get you through the last week or so.”

  Rex clenched his jaw.

  “You may not like this, but the fact remains you need armed protection with you right now.” Gabe’s phone chimed. “Speaking of which, he’s here.”

  “If it’s some meathead, I’m telling him to leave.”

  “He’s perfectly suited to be your bodyguard and I’m afraid you’ll have to come up with something better than your assistant if you don’t want people to know. He can be your trainer or something. Regardless, he’s staying. You might be paying the bills, but sometimes you can’t see the big picture. I can. You need him.”

  Gabe walked out of the room and returned a minute later with a Neanderthal in his wake. The guy had to be seven feet tall and built like a brick wall. His biceps were bigger than Rex’s thigh.

  Any hope he had of retaining his tough guy action star status evaporated like fog in the sunshine. Poof. He’d look like a child actor with this lug around.

  “Rex, this is Todd.”

  Rex swallowed his pride not wanting to piss the guy off since the new bodyguard could crush him like an ant. “Hey, nice to meet you. Thanks for coming to help us out on such short notice.”

  “Hey,” Todd responded with a curt nod.

  Well, at least he wouldn’t have to worry about making small talk with this guy. Not like he did with Lacey.

  His chest ached at the possibility of never seeing her again. At the very least, he wanted to apologize for the way he acted at the premiere, but if he was being completely honest, he wanted her back because he already missed her. Knowing she was out of his house, out of his life, felt as though Todd had just punched him in the chest. He hadn’t had an emotional response this powerful since his brother died.

  He needed her back.

  Maybe if he could make friends with the Neanderthal, he could convince him to use his contacts to find Lacey. It wasn’t much of a plan, but it was all he had.

  16

  Rex felt jacked up on caffeine. He hadn’t left the house in days, choosing to hibernate over showing off the new bodyguard. Not to mention, he’d spent every free moment he’d had trying to figure out a way to track down Lacey. So far no one was giving him any leads. Steven was surveillance only and didn’t have contacts in the general protection field, and Rex hadn’t quite figured out what Todd knew since most of his answers were monosyllables.

  It was time to try something different—leaving the house.

  “Hey, Todd. I want to grab a smoothie.” Rex snagged his car keys from the dish on the hallway table.

  “Okay,” Todd replied, lumbering behind him.

  They climbed into his SUV. He preferred the sports car, but Todd would never fit. This would be more comfortable for both of them.

  “How are you settling in?” he asked, attempting to befriend the beast.

  “Fine.”

  “I know it’s been a little quiet these last few days. But it will pick up again this weekend with my last appearances. I bet you were as ready to get out of the house as I was, am I right?” He forced a chuckle, trying to sound casual and carefree.

  “Yep.”

  The car ride was more painful than a root canal with no anesthesia. When they finally pulled in, he couldn’t wait to get out of the small space. There was one more thing he had to mention before going inside. “I’m going to refer to you as my trainer while we’re in public. I expect you to comply. It’s nothing against you, it’s simply that I’m an action star who normally looks the part, but now you’re here and you’re huge. I need you to be my trainer instead. Cool?”

  “Sure.”

  They went into the shop and ordered a couple of smoothies and protein bars, then found a place to sit on the patio out back. Seeing different faces was great, and having the occasional fan glance his way with an expression of surprise and admiration felt awesome. It was exactly what he needed to be revitalized.

  “Todd, I was hoping you could help me out with something.” Todd nodded so he continued. “I need to find my last…trainer. She left unexpectedly, and I need to talk to her. Think you could help me out? Use some of your contacts to track her down?”

  Todd didn’t hesitate before replying. “Nope.”

  “Why not?” He cringed at how pathetic he sounded.

  “Can’t.”

  Rex tried to maintain his cool. Freaking out on Todd in public because he was frustrated wouldn’t help his image. “I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t important. Unless you can give me one good reason why you literally can’t find her for me, then I order you to do it as part of your work.”

  “Classified,” Todd said.

  “Is that like some code of honor between people in your industry?”

  “Kind of.”

  Rex let out a long sigh. “You know, you’re really starting to piss me off.”

  “Ditto.”

  Rex stood abruptly. “That’s it. We’re leaving.” He strode out to the front sidewalk, directly into a crowd of paparazzi. He should’ve expected that, but given his current state of mind, he hadn’t.

  “Rex, where’s your old assistant?” one of them asked.

  He ignored the question and tried to move down the street toward his vehicle. He wasn’t in the mood to smile and answer questions. The flood of photographers, who were way too close for his taste, blocked his path.

  “Back
off,” Todd said, stepping in front of Rex and motioning for the paparazzi to give them some space to walk.

  “Is this your new assistant?” another asked.

  Rex felt as if he didn’t have room to breathe. All around him, photographers crowded in, camera snapped, and questions fired. The urge to run was overwhelming.

  No way. Not now, not ever.

  “This is Todd, my new trainer,” he said with his most charismatic smile. “And my assistant Lacey is…” Should he lie and say she was still around with the hope that he could get her back? Or should he say she’d moved on and deal with it later if she returned? When she returned.

  The crowd tightened around him. He looked for Todd to get everyone out of his way, finding him already engaged in removing people who’d gotten too close. Claustrophobia washed over Rex. He couldn’t think straight. Couldn’t take a deep breath.

  “I’m sorry. I’m running late today. I don’t have time for questions.” That sounded like a viable excuse.

  His words were ignored as the people around him pushed forward with every step he took. His head spun. Why the hell wasn’t Todd managing the situation better? Lacey never would’ve let him get into this mess.

  “Did you fire Lacey because she got more publicity than you, like your brother used to?” a third asked, moving directly into Rex’s path and thrusting a microphone into his face.

  Anger shot through Rex’s body and before he could think about his actions, his fist connected with the photographer’s jaw. A deep sting radiated from his knuckles up to his wrist. The photographer fell backward, dropping his camera and clutching his face.

  The paparazzi collectively stepped back as Rex and Todd shouldered their way forward through them.

  “That’s the money shot,” someone whispered as they passed.

  Fuck.

  This was exactly the press he didn’t need. As if he wasn’t stressed out enough as it was, now the image of him punching a photographer would be all over the news for weeks.