Can't Buy Me Love

by Abigail Drake

  “I think you’re my one, Willa. I think you’re it for me.”

  A heavy, contented throbbing began in Willa’s heart, matching the throb of desire building, pounding at her core. It was a blissful feeling, sending a surge of warmth throughout her entire body.

  When Brody’s lips found hers again, deliciously consuming her, and her hands continued their plight, tugging at his pants and then hers, a silent reply echoed through her mind, and etched itself deep into her soul: I think you’re the one, too.

  CHAPTER SIX

  Even though it had only felt like a short time to her, Willa was pretty sure that a whole day and a half had passed since their little intimate incident on the sofa, then the living room floor, before eventually making it to the bedroom. There they’d stayed for hours and hours, discovering each other, and only leaving for the necessities like food and water, and even then, clothing had been optional. It had been heaven, an idyllic dream. She hadn’t wanted it to end, even though she knew they had to get back to reality at some point. But, as Brody had told her, they could spend every night this way for the rest of their lives.

  She should have been terrified. A commitment like that was constricting, limiting and unspontaneous, all things she’d never been fond of, but with Brody it just didn’t seem that way. She was looking forward to the future with him. It was an unusual feeling for her, but oddly satisfying. He just made her so happy, and fulfilled her in no way she’d ever experienced before.

  Turning off the faucet, Willa stepped from the shower as steam wafted around her in the large, white-titled bathroom. She released a long, satiated breath and then shook her head. She’d been sighing constantly ever since Brody had left at ten that morning to meet up with his personal trainer, Tim. It was the weirdest thing, as though her body was trying to find a way to release all the pent-up happiness she felt, without having Brody there to share it with.

  After drying herself off and wrapping the fluffy blue towel around her middle, Willa sighed again and then moved into the bedroom to find her clothes. Seeing the wrinkly material of her blouse lying unappreciated on the light grey carpet, she remembered she had meant to head down to her houseboat to grab new clothes before her shower. Absentminded as she was at the moment, she shrugged and searched the room for something to wear. In a top drawer, she found a white t-shirt and navy boxer shorts and decided to slip them on until she could find something better or be bothered to head back to her place to get something new.

  While it was a tempting thought to snuggle back under the covers and wait for Brody to return, shower and join her, Willa’s rumbling stomach had other ideas. After heading out into the upstairs corridor, she skipped cheerfully down the eggshell-white marble staircase. When she’d made it to the bottom, she attempted a ballerina twirl on the shiny, slippery surface of the ground floor before stumbling with a giggle. She felt like she was sixteen again and had just been asked out on a date by the popular boy she’d had a crush on since eighth grade. Willa laughed out loud to herself at the thought and the sound echoed joyfully down the large corridor before her.

  A dull thudding sound answered her and had her freezing in surprise. It had come from a room at the end of the long aisle, probably the kitchen, but that shouldn’t have been possible, she was supposed to be alone.

  “Hello?” Willa called out warily, but started to wonder if Brody had come back earlier than expected.

  A smile spread her lips as she thought of him drinking a cold glass of water at the sink, all hot and sweaty with his strong muscles glistening and flexing as he moved. Butterflies flittered around in her stomach from excitement. Her cautious pace quickened as her libido kicked in and she hoped he’d come back early to surprise her. Wouldn’t he be amazed if she were the one to appear beside him instead?

  Stifling another giggle, Willa finally reached the kitchen, but stopped dead.

  Dressed perfectly as usual in a snug mahogany-colored dress, Carmody leaned her curvy hip against the large, white marble island in the center of the room. Her black briefcase was propped beside her, while her hands rested on the stack of paperwork she’d spread around on the countertop. As their eyes met, she offered Willa a sharp smile.

  “Did I wake you?” Sarcasm dripped from her words like venom on the fangs of a viper.

  As anger began to overwhelm her initial excitement, Willa stalked into the room. “What are you doing here, Carmody?”

  Carmody raised her eyebrow and then she tilted her head. “I have a key.”

  Putting herself between Carmody and the door, Willa’s hands went to her hips and she felt her features harden in annoyance. “Brody told you to return that. This is his place. You don’t have the right to come and go as you please if he doesn’t want you to.”

  A dark eyebrow rose. “Who says he doesn’t want me to?”

  Willa felt her jaw drop. “Are you deaf or are you just stupid? I was there on the jetty when he told you and that was well over a week ago.”

  A sardonic grin pulled at Carmody’s red lips. “What he says in front of you and what he really means are two different things?”

  Crossing her arms over her chest defiantly, Willa let out a catty chuckle. “I was wrong on both counts. You’re not deaf or stupid, you’re just crazy.”

  Carmody straightened and stepped away from the marble island, moving menacingly closer before halting just in front of Willa. Being nose to nose would have felt intimidating if Willa didn’t already tower above the haughty brunette woman. Carmody’s russet-brown eyes narrowed, her dark brows furrowing, creating deep wrinkle lines between her eyes.

  “You think you know everything, don’t you, sweetie?” Her condescension was like a physical blow.

  Willa smiled, mockingly. “Well, I definitely know Brody better than you do.”

  Carmody let out a sharp scoffing sound. “Don’t be ridiculous. I’m as good as his agent while he’s in town. I know everything about him, do everything for him. He tells me things he would never even consider telling you.”

  It was Willa’s turn to jeer harshly at the absurdity of Carmody’s announcement. “I think it’s time you realize something, Carmody.” She pointed her index finger at the other woman’s chest. “You’re just a filler. You’re only needed while Brody’s agent is still overseas. You’re just an extra pair of feet, extra hands. You’re a lackey. You do what you’re told and that’s it. It’s better that you come to terms with it now, instead of believing that you’re going to be single-handedly supporting a big client like Brody when he heads back to Hollywood.”

  Carmody’s mouth widened as though in shock and then her expression darkened with anger.

  “He doesn’t care about you,” she spat, retaliating by pointing a finger of her own. “He’s never really cared about you. He only got to know you because I told him about your grandfather, about how it would be a good chance to network if he got in big with someone like Murray Stone. That’s the only reason he’s wooing you, the only reason why he’s screwing you. Once he gets the meet and greet with your grandfather, the ultra-famous director, he’ll drop you like yesterday’s garbage.”

  She revealed her perfect pearly white teeth in a contemptuous snarl.

  Willa rolled her eyes. After her discussion with Brody the other day, she’d been certain Carmody had been doing her best to split them up and this proved it. Brody had been honest with her about her grandfather the first night they’d opened up to each other, there had never been any secrets as Carmody suggested. Willa just couldn’t believe how low this woman would go, especially since she couldn’t see what Carmody was getting out of it? Did she want to kick Kevin out and be Brody’s one and only agent? Or was she interested in a more intimate affair? Either way, Willa was certain Carmody wouldn’t be getting anything she wanted. Brody had already expressed his distaste of her numerous times, explaining that the only reason he continued to keep her on the payroll was due to the fact that Kevin had been right, she was a brilliant personal assistant and excell
ent at PR.

  Even though anger still burned inside her, Willa felt sorry for Carmody. She may have been a stuck-up, obnoxious man-eater, but she was still a woman who was fighting for something she wanted dearly.

  Willa’s hands dropped from her hips and her expression softened with pity. “Look, Carmody. I know you care about Brody as a client. If it’s me you’re worried about, that I’ll somehow hinder his career or get in the way, then you can stop right now. I’m here to support Brody one hundred and ten percent. I want him to achieve his dreams and he feels the same way about me. I’d rather help you than fight with you, so if having a key to his place is something you need to help organize things with him, to help you do your job better, then we can figure something out. It might unsettle me, but what matters most in this is Brody. It’s his place and if it helps him and his career, then I’m all for it.”

  Carmody’s features remained firm as she seemed to analyze Willa’s expression, but then they faltered and relaxed.

  “I don’t need your pity,” she said, sounding more exhausted than irritated.

  With a tired sigh, she turned on her heel and headed back to the paperwork on the top of the kitchen island. As she gathered it together, she glanced back up at Willa.

  “Having a key is useful,” she began, “but not necessary.”

  She opened her briefcase and snatched out a colorful yellow keychain. She tossed it across the countertop toward Willa, the metal of the key and the keyring tinkled together on the smooth surface before hitting the designer fruit bowl near the edge.

  As Carmody gazed up again, a tight grimace creased her facial features making her look much older than her twenty-something years.

  “I know that you think you and Brody have something special.” After a sigh, she shrugged her limp shoulders. “Maybe you do. Whatever. I guess I was just worried about how that would affect his career. You know, sex appeal does a lot for an actor when they’re single, but if they’ve got a partner, things can get more…difficult.” Frowning deeply, she shrugged again. “It doesn’t matter.”

  Willa’s brows knit together and her stomach ached. She’d never thought about how her being with Brody could actually hurt his career. Surely it couldn’t; could it? Willa swallowed. She knew of plenty of actors who had partners or were married and still kept their A-grade status, didn’t she? She tried to think of some, but only came up with a list of divorcees. There was a lump in the back of her throat she couldn’t quite swallow.

  “What do you mean?” Her voice yelped out, sounding as though she was in pain.

  Carmody turned and leaned her hip against the counter. She watched Willa cautiously and then bit her lower lip, looking suddenly anxious. “I shouldn’t be telling you.” Her hands clasped together nervously. “Please don’t tell Brody, not yet. I have to find a way to tell him.”

  “Tell him what?”

  Willa’s heart was pounding. The thought that something terrible enough to affect Brody’s future could have had something to do with her, had Willa absolutely terrified. How would Brody ever forgive her when he found out? She wasn’t sure whether all the love in the world would be enough to keep them together if she’d been a part of the reason why Brody had lost his meaning in life.

  Carmody’s face was sullen as she shuffled through the papers in front of her before pushing a document across the countertop toward Willa.

  “That role he’s been practicing for,” Carmody’s voice had risen in pitch as though it hurt her to speak, “the character he’s committed to, that he’s been doing everything he can to become…well, the company, they have rescinded their offer.”

  Willa’s jaw dropped and she lunged for the paperwork that had been passed to her. “They can’t do that! Everything’s signed.”

  She stared down at the document. It was a letter from the CEO of the film production company. It was all there in black and white, had the official letterhead of the company and was even hand-signed.

  “There’s a clause in the contract,” Carmody continued as Willa read. “If they’re afraid the choice of actor will greatly decrease their expected profit, cinema attendance, etcetera, the company retains the right to void the contract.”

  Only partially hearing Carmody, Willa read further through the document. Apparently, there had been posts on social media of Brody and his new love interest. Pictures of them at The Rocks and even shots of them together on the Sydney Harbor Bridge. Willa knew for certain she had never posted anything. Social media marketing may have been her job, but besides promoting her company, she wasn’t really interested in having her personal life broadcast over the internet. As for Brody, she was also pretty sure if he’d been aware of the clause in his contract and the affect their relationship might have had on his career he wouldn’t have posted anything either. That just left the fans they’d encountered during their adventures out together. At the time, Willa hadn’t thought anything of the photos. Most were only of Brody or him and his overzealous female admirers anyway, but there had been a couple which weren’t. She even remembered that they’d both agreed to let Teagan print one of the snapshots she’d taken of them on the Bridge to post up in the Bridge Climb lobby with all the other photos of celebrity visitors.

  She gasped and covered her mouth with her hand. Her whole body shook.

  “I can’t believe this.” Her voice came out breathy.

  Willa wasn’t usually a fainter, but she felt like one now. She placed a hand on the cool marble of the island and tried to breathe deeply, to calm her racing heart. How could this have happened? She had wanted to prove to him that he was capable of anything, that he already had all of the skills to be able to achieve what he wanted to achieve, he just had to stop doubting himself. But, instead, she’d ruined everything for him. Brody’s greatest loss was her fault.

  “I’m sorry,” Carmody said as she gathered the paperwork and shuffled things back into her briefcase. “I shouldn’t have told you. I just…it’s going to be difficult to tell him. I’m not sure what to do.”

  Willa nodded instinctively, feeling suddenly distant as though everything around her weren’t really happening for real. She handed Carmody the document and watched as she placed it inside the briefcase and then clipped it closed.

  “I should go. I really shouldn’t have told you.” Carmody’s words came out quickly as she headed for the door.

  As she moved to pass her, Willa reached out, gently grabbing her arm. “I’m glad you did,” she said.

  Her expression serious, sincere, Carmody nodded and then left.

  Willa didn’t turn around, didn’t move. She heard Carmody’s heels clip-clop down the corridor, the front door open and then close. Time moved slowly around her and the air seemed suddenly thick and difficult to breathe in. Her limbs felt heavy, her body only supported upright because she’d leaned on the kitchen island. Her whole world was falling apart. She was about to lose the love of her life and she couldn’t do anything to stop it. Brody would hate her, when she’d taken so much from him, been the reason for the destruction of his dreams. She could imagine how he’d feel when Carmody finally told him. She knew how she’d feel if she had been rejected due to something not quite in her control.

  The solution seemed simple. If Brody had never met her, then he would never have ended up in this situation. Her leaving would be the best thing for him and that was what Willa was going to do.

  Finally feeling strong enough to move, Willa walked out of the kitchen, down the corridor and out of Brody’s mansion, out of Brody’s life forever.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  The last thing Brody had expected when he’d arrived home late after an intense exercise session with his personal trainer was Carmody making herself comfortable on his sofa. He’d heard the noise of the television in the living room and had assumed that Willa would be lounging there waiting for him. He had been imagining a repeat of their intimate encounter on the cream-colored sofa as he’d quickly shut the front door and hurried inside. Yet
, those thoughts had rapidly disintegrated when he’d seen another woman in her place.

  Carmody rose to greet him, that perfect, but creepy smile pulling at the corners of her mouth.

  “Did we have an appointment?” His tone was clipped as he moved to put a single chair between them. “I didn’t realize you would be coming around today.”

  She shook her head and stepped closer. “Do I always need a reason to drop by?”

  Brody’s dark gaze narrowed. “Did Willa let you in?”

  He glanced toward the ceiling, wondering if Willa was upstairs putting some much-needed distance between the women.

  Carmody shook her head again and twirled a set of keys on a blue keychain around her index finger.

  “She’s gone. Couldn’t handle the heat. Guess it’ll just be you and me from now on.”

  Brody’s frown became savage. “Why do you still have a set of keys and what are you talking about – gone? Where is she? Where’s Willa?”

  Rolling her eyes, Carmody moved closer to him, but then became surprised when Brody hastened away.

  “She wasn’t good for you, Brody,” she snapped. “I told you that.”

  He felt his lip quirk up in a snarl as he glared at her. “What happened, Carmody? What have you done?”

  She released a frustrated sigh. “What makes you think I did anything? I told you she was flighty. She might have up and left you, just like that.”

  Brody’s expression remained hard. “Carmody.” He said her name through gritted teeth. “What did you do to her?”

  Infuriated, Carmody tossed her arms in the air and stalked away from him. “What had to be done.” Spinning around, she perched herself on the arm of the three-seater sofa. “You’re better off without her. We’ll accomplish more together than you would have ever achieved with her.”

  This time Brody prowled ominously toward her. “Carmody.”