Jo thanked him and walked inside. Well maybe she had one friend she thought morosely. Jo was exhausted and she needed to shower. The shower only worsened Jo’s spirits because she saw all the awful bruises covering her hips and shoulders. She washed her sensitive skin gently. Using her one arm actually pained her so she finished quickly then threw on an old soft tee shirt and a pair of shorts.
In the shower Jo decided she had been battered enough, mentally and physically. Wes had done a number on her head and her heart. She couldn’t believe how two faced he was. She was also concerned that who ever had pushed her into the creek was getting more brazen. Jo needed to distance herself, from Wes and who ever was hell bent to hurt her.
She walked up the street to the deli that she frequented and when the deli owner Ralph saw her he knew something was wrong. He came out from around the counter and placed Jo in a chair.
“Jo were you in an accident?” His concern for her was real.
“Yes, yesterday. I’m okay though, thank you.”
“What can I get for you?” He said thinking she was hungry.
“Actually Ralph, I lost my phone in the accident, could I borrow yours? It will only be for a minute.”
“Of course, wait right here.”
Ralph went into the back and returned with his cell. He walked away to give her privacy.
Jo called her mom's number. It rang twice before she picked up.
“Hello?”
“Mom, hi, it’s Jo.”
“Oh hi honey. Do you have a new number?”
“Believe it or not I lost my phone again yesterday and I’m borrowing a friend's” There was no way she could tell her parents what had happened, they’d be in the car, dragging her back to live with them in a heartbeat.
“Oh Jo you have to start taking better care of your things.” Her mom chastised her like she was a child.
“Yes, Mom I will, so anyway I was wondering if anyone was using the lake house this week?’
“No, nobody why?”
“Well I just thought I'd take a little vacation and I wanted to go up there, but I didn’t want to intrude if you and Dad or Lou were using it.”
“No, Dad and I are heading home from Aunt Janet’s in a few days, but we have things to do at home and Lou hasn’t mentioned going up.”
“So it’s okay if I head up there then?”
“Sweetheart you don’t ever need to ask, of course you can.”
“Thanks Mom.”
“Have a good time sweetie, we miss you.”
“I miss you too, tell Dad hi for me.”
“Will do.”
When Jo hung up she felt better now that she had a plan. Ralph came back and handed her a sandwich, ‘on the house’ he said giving her a fatherly pat on her shoulder. Jo thanked him for the sandwich and for letting her use his phone and then she headed home.
The first thing Jo did back in her house was to write Nick a note; she didn't want him to worry. She packed everything she thought she might need, including her computer and the case file, and put everything in her car. She then walked back to Nick's door and taped the note to it before heading off to her family’s lake house.
Chapter 16
Wes’ Really Bad Week
Wes’ week had gone from awesome to bad to worse. Being with Jo had been everything he had hoped it would be. They hadn’t had sex, but he considered it to have been just as extraordinary. What they had shared that memorable morning was mind blowing. Wes had also had one of the best nights sleep that he’d had in ages, and he knew it was all because he had been holding his Jo.
Jo was passionate and giving. He loved how she had become shaky with need and then how she had come apart for him, saying his name over and over again. Every time he thought back to that moment Wes felt himself harden. Then he received the ill-timed call from one of his team, reporting that Ginger was AWOL that she had slipped her security detail and had been missing since three in the morning.
Wes had spent the rest of Saturday and Sunday trying to track down the wayward star. Leena was positively beside herself and Wes was worried as well. They even had a member of his team prepared to take a call from kidnappers if that’s what was going down. The only reason Wes wasn’t frantic yet, was that Ginger’s entire girl entourage, consisting of Patty, Carrie, Ann, and Beth were also missing. Wes had called in Jace and Andy to help search for the wayward diva. T.U.F.’s impeccable reputation was perilously close to having its first smudge attached to its notable status.
Finally on Monday, late in the afternoon, Wes caught one of the girls, Patty, sneaking in to the suite to pick up all five girl's birth control packs. Wes threatened to have her thrown in jail for trespassing if she did not tell them where Ginger was.
Patty flippantly told Wes that Ginger had decided that she and her girls’ needed to get out on their own for a little fun, away from the scrutiny of Leena, the security guards, and other ‘party poopers'.
She snippily told Wes that they had made friends with one of the bartenders at the club they were at, ditched their security guards, and had been holed up in a swanky hotel that Beth had rented using her brother-in-law's credit card The team had checked on Ginger and her girl's credit cards, hoping to find a clue as to where they were. The brother-in-law's card would not have been looked at. Wes made a mental note to himself to always expand searches to include family members and close friends should this ever happen again. Patty boasted to Wes and Leena that they had been partying hard for the last two and a half days. Wes noted how pleased she was that they had successfully ditched their detail.
When Wes, Jace and Andy walked into the disheveled hotel room that Ginger and her friends were holed up in, it was Monday evening, and Ginger and her crew were totally shit faced. Ginger was out on the balcony with her shirt off yelling down to a group of men who were luckily too far away to recognize her, but close enough to see that they were being treated to the site of a topless well endowed woman. Wes took her by her hand to pull her away from the on lookers and Ginger immediately started hysterically laughing.
Wes firmly placed her on one of the balcony chairs to try to calm her down and that was the precise moment when Jo had called him. He had answered because he had been worried she might be in trouble, but she wasn’t, and the timing couldn’t have been worse for a social call. He felt badly, he hadn’t reached out to her, except for a quick text, since they had been together he knew that was very bad form.
While Wes was talking to Jo, Ginger became agitated and began to whine that he never paid attention to her. Ginger was begging Wes to come to her and when he didn’t she had quickly stood up and tried to burrow under his arm, telling him in a drunken, slurred and not so quiet voice that she would be very good for him, that she was a great girlfriend, and she could get him lots of jobs. Then before Wes even knew what was happening Ginger had grabbed the cell out of his hand and thrown it over the balcony. They were on the twentieth floor! Wes was livid and he knew it would appear to Jo as if he’d just ended the call. Wes looked over the balcony hoping his phone hadn’t hit anyone. Luckily it hadn’t. It had just busted into a ton of little pieces on the sidewalk below.
Jace and Andy helped Wes and Leena escort the girls and Ginger back to the hotel suite, bringing them in a side entrance. The paparazzi had been camped out in the front. They were aware she hadn’t shown up on the movie set in two days and rumors were rampant as to why.
Wes’ week went from bad to worse that evening. Leena was pissed at Ginger for taking off. She had to do damage control. She called the movie director and told her that Ginger was sick. She then sent Ginger’s little group of girl friends packing and told Ginger she was going to a spa in Arizona for a few days to get her head together. She told Ginger she could spin it to the media that she was in need of a little R and R.
At first Wes thought it was a great idea, until Leena informed him that he was still responsible for Ginger, even at the spa. According to the contract T.U.F. was responsible fo
r Ginger’s security until the movie scene in town was complete. Wes was prepared to send one of his team, but Ginger threw a tantrum and told Leena she wouldn’t go unless Wes personally went with her. She then convinced Leena to let one of her girl friends accompany her as well.
So without a phone Wes was put on a private jet late Monday evening. He had no way to get in touch with Jo and he hadn’t memorized her cell number either. Wes took the time in the air to try to sleep. It was the only time he was confident Little Miss Pain in the Ass couldn’t escape. Wes leaned back in the large comfortable seat hoping sleep would claim him, but every time he shut his eyes he kept picturing Jo’s beautiful face. He could not even imagine what she was thinking of him right now. He knew it would not be complimentary. He hadn’t called her and then when she’d reached out to him she thought he’d hung up on her. He ran through different scenarios in his head. What she was doing? What she was thinking? How will she react when he saw her again? Would she even let him try to explain? Wes became agitated all over again at Ginger and her antics.
The jet landed in Arizona and a town car met them. They were driven an hour away, to the middle of no-where, to an exclusive spa. There were very few other patrons at the posh get-a-away. It boasted every kind of relaxing, fitness, and beauty treatment one could imagine. Cell phones and computers were not allowed onto the property and they were far enough removed that there was no cell service anyway. There were no televisions or radios either. The place was known for catering to exclusive clientele who required strict privacy and that included being unplugged from any outside communication.
While Ginger and Carrie found their rooms and crawled into bed, Wes had to inspect the lay out, approve Ginger’s pampering treatment schedule and do a risk assessment. He met with the head of security and enlisted the services of the spa’s security personnel to help him keep an eye on Ginger. It was going to cost him 1000 dollars extra a day, but he figured he’d put it on the final bill. There was no way he could watch her 24-7 and he was running on fumes to begin with. Wes finally got to bed around 4:00am. Ginger had a manicure and pedicure scheduled for 10:00am and he noted that she asked for room service at 9:30am so Wes hoped he could catch a few hours of sleep, before having to trail after her all day.
Tuesday morning and afternoon passed without incident. While Ginger was up to her arm pits in a detoxing mud bath, Wes was finally able to send an email to Jace and Andy, using a computer in the spa’s security office. He let them know what was going on and where he was. They had known Ginger had destroyed his phone and he explained in the email, that he had been talking to Jo when it happened and that he was concerned that she probably thought he’d hung up with her. He asked them to get in touch with Jill and get Jo’s number from her so that when he returned on Thursday he could call her immediately. He then asked Andy to go to her place and just tell her that he was out of town and would call her as soon as he got back.
On Tuesday night, just when Wes was starting to unwind, Ginger made a major play for him. She bribed one of the desk managers into giving her the card key to his room. She told the unsuspecting man that Wes was her boyfriend and she had something very special planned for him. The manager was eager to accommodate the lovely celebrity and without checking with security first, handed the gushingly, grateful Ginger a card key to his room. As Wes stood in his room, draped only in a low-slung towel, after taking a shower, Ginger walked through his door. Her eyes drank in his uncovered body and a coy smile appeared on her face as she approached him.
At first Wes was too shocked to respond, but when he recovered he immediately told her to leave his room. Ginger ignored his harsh tone and tried to entice him by undoing her gossamer robe and letting it fall to the carpet. Wes kept his eyes glued to her face and told her he wasn’t interested. She then tried to make a game out of pulling the towel off of him, but Wes had a good grip on it and finally he was able to take her by the arm and haul her back to her own room. Luckily there were no guests in the hallway because Ginger was totally naked.
Wes called the manager as soon as he got back in his room. The desk person was fired and he had a new card key issued. That night Wes regretted taking the high profile job. It was taking its toll on him professionally and it had screwed with his personal life too. Wes valued his privacy, he always had, and the fact that it also affected his potential relationship with Jo did not sit well with him. He was tired of spoiled little Ginger and her outlandish behavior and he missed Jo, a lot. All he wanted was to talk to her and he knew he’d feel better. He knew that he was probably not her favorite person right now and that ate at him. He also knew he would try like crazy to make her understand what had happened.
Wes wasn’t considered a real people person. He had a few close friends and that was pretty much the extent of his social life. He dated, but he had always been awkward when it came to talking to them. He was much more at ease in front of his computer. For some reason Jo was different. He was comfortable with her and he found himself wanting to talk to her, share things with her. He just prayed she hadn’t already written him off. He was also still concerned about her safety and he was second guessing his decision to send Andy to her townhouse to check on her and explain what had happened.
On Wednesday word had spread that Ginger Lola was at the exclusive Arizona spa and a crowd of fans had collected outside the tall iron gates. Leena called and told Wes that she had set up a time that the press could have access to Ginger. It was for pictures only, no questions were to be answered, and no interviews were to be granted. Leena assured Wes it would only last for a few minutes.
So at 8:00pm on Thursday night Wes, Ginger and Carrie met in a large conference room at the spa, so photographers could take some quick shots of Ginger. Leena had insisted on this because apparently word had gotten out that Ginger was in rehab because of a two-day binge and Leena needed to show the public that Ginger was not in rehab. A press release stated that Ginger was exhausted from doing the movie and was just taking a little break.
Wes watched as Ginger worked the room. He had a smile on his face, not because he was mesmerized by Ginger, but because he was amazed at how she could transform herself into a funny, warm, smiling person for the public and then a mere minute later turn into an absolute conniving bitch that only a few people ever witnessed.
The last picture had been taken and Wes watched the paparazzi being herded from the room. He jerked as he felt a body press up against his back and two arms wrapped around his chest. He turned to find Ginger plastered against him and before he could push her off of him she place her lips on his.
Wes shoved her away and gave her a look that would have sent most running for cover, but not Ginger. She simply laughed it off whispering to him that he had no idea what he was missing and that she would have him. Then she and Carrie went skipping off to have a massage leaving Wes to follow behind them totally disgusted and frustrated with the crazy woman.
Before they entered the massage room Carrie announced that she needed to get something from her room first. Wes didn’t think anything of it at the time, besides his job was to watch Ginger, not her gal pals.
Unbeknownst to Wes and the spa’s security team, who also were more intent on watching Ginger than her buddy, Carrie had befriended one of the young reporters who had been taking pictures. Under the pre-planned, carefully orchestrated instructions from Ginger, Carrie had made her own little video, one that Ginger had starred in and directed. Ginger wanted Wes, so Wes was what she was going to have, even if it was all fabricated.
Carrie had snuck out to where the photographers had been gathering to find the perfect prey. She found a young man and talked him into letting her use his cell phone. She promised him it would be worth his while. Carrie recorded exactly what Ginger had told her to and then she pretended she needed something from her room and snuck back out to meet the young man at the public entrance to the spa. She handed the phone with the self-directed video clip, back to him through the security gate's
bars. She told him the clip had to make National news and that Ginger’s boyfriends name was Wes Tobin. She said that they were madly in love and that Wes was also her bodyguard. The photographer was practically salivating and assured her that both television stations and tabloids alike would be eager to show who Miss Ginger Lola was dating now.
The photographer left quickly before anyone saw him. He was confident this little film that he’d watch the devious friend of Gingers candidly shoot would bring in big money, after all Ginger Lola was a huge star. Carrie, on the other hand, was simply happy that she could do something for her best friend. She hoped this would help Ginger finally get the man she’d been drooling over for the last few weeks.
On Friday evening Wes, Carrie and Ginger stepped off the private jet. The ride home had been quiet. Wes was so steamed at Ginger that he barely spoke to her. The girls were all giggles the entire ride home, laughing at who knew what on their phones. Wes was exhausted and when he turned Ginger over to Leena at the airport, he informed her that he would send two security people to the hotel as soon as he got to his office. He told Leena that he needed a few days to recoup and his team would watch Ginger for the next few days using him for emergencies only. Leena was looking at him strangely, but Wes was too tired to ask why. He was on the verge of telling her about Ginger coming into his room but he was too damn worn-out and he didn’t want to get into it right then.
The limo dropped him at his office and when he walked in Jace and Andy were sitting in Andy’s office having a drink. They watched Wes as he tossed his bag on the floor and sank into one of the leather chairs. Jace poured Wes a drink and waited for him to talk. They’d seen the video on television, everyone had. Both Jace and Andy had been surprised as shit when they’d seen it. They really thought he’d been into Jo, but Ginger Lola, well she was hot.
“Jace can you do me a favor and email the team. Tell them to start the shifts up again and have Gus and Larry take mine.”
One Tough Love Page 11
