No Matter What

by Michelle Betham

  ***

  Reece folded the letter back up and slipped it into his pocket. They kept on coming and no matter what he did, no matter how many times he tried to put a stop to it, it just wasn’t happening. Hadn’t he done enough? Hadn’t he kept to his side of the bargain? He refused to give in any more than he already had done, but then, he couldn’t risk jeopardising everything, not now. It was just the beginning, but he was going to see it through.

  He walked over to the payphone, knowing now probably wasn’t the right time to be dealing with this but he couldn’t see that he had much choice. He wanted them to know that he’d had enough, that they weren’t going to get in the way, not anymore. Nobody was going to get in the way, not now. Reece Brogan was on a mission and he’d see it through to the end. And nobody was going to stop him.

  ***

  “We really shouldn’t be out here, Kenny. Paparazzi could be anywhere.” But India hadn’t exactly put up that much of a protest as Kenny had dragged her outside, away from the party.

  “I was bored,” he said, finally finding a quiet spot by some palm trees. “This’ll do.” He pushed her up against the wall, sliding his hands up underneath her dress. “I thought we could have much more fun out here. Just the two of us.”

  “It’s not polite to go ahead without permission,” she smiled, weakening instantly at the touch of his fingers on her skin. It was funny how these feelings had never been there before yet now she couldn’t stop thinking about him in that way. She wanted him just as much as he obviously wanted her and she wasn’t going to waste time playing hard to get.

  “Like you’re gonna say no.”

  She pulled the belt away from his leather pants, her heart beating ten to the dozen as he slipped her dress down slowly, kissing her breasts.

  “I might.”

  His fingers slid down to her hips, slowly pushing her dress down further, the cool night air hitting her body and it made her shiver slightly.

  Then his eyes met hers, a small smile playing at the corners of his mouth. His totally gorgeous, kissable mouth. “Can I fuck you, India?”

  She laughed, stepping out of her dress, kicking it to one side.

  “As hard as you like, Kenny.”

  ***

  They hadn’t seen the figure sat in darkness by the side of the pool, but he’d seen them.

  He watched as they ran to where they thought they couldn’t be seen, watched as they kissed, watched as they laughed together, touching each other. He watched as they had frantic sex, and he hadn’t really wanted to because it was killing him inside, but to see her naked was something he’d only dreamed of before. The light of the moon caught her skin and even from where he was sitting he could see how perfect, how beautiful she was, despite the fact another man was touching her in ways he desperately wanted to.

  He’d seen enough. Standing up and throwing his cigarette on the floor, stubbing it out with his foot, he took one last glimpse of Kenny and India.

  Michael Walsh now had all the proof he’d ever needed that their relationship was a lot more than just friendship. Which meant he was now going to have to up his game. Big time.

  CHAPTER 11

  1993

  India’s star was rising. She’d been in L.A. for two years now and, as predicted, ‘Rock Stars and Demons’ had been a huge success, a box office hit in a number of countries. It was the movie that had taken India’s career to another level, catapulted her right into the public eye and started her off on a rollercoaster of a journey she’d never dreamed she’d ever have. She’d been in demand in a way she could never have imagined, working almost non-stop, so much so that if felt, at times, as though her feet never touched the ground.

  Her life had changed beyond comprehension. She was Hollywood A-list now and she had it all. She’d bought her own, bigger beach house, a car, a motorbike; everything she could want or need, she had it, and that included having her own stylist, her own hairdresser and make-up artist and an army of people on call whenever she needed them.

  But she preferred to be on her own when she had the chance. Here at the beach she could escape the madness and she needed to be able to do that to keep grounded. That was very important to her. It was so easy to get carried away with everything that went on and she’d wanted somewhere away from it all where she could relax and chill out.

  She’d made two more movies since ‘Rock Stars and Demons’, both of which had also been box office hits. She’d been on countless magazine covers, travelled all over the world promoting her movies; she’d even done some modelling work. She could hardly remember the life she’d had before all of this and it hadn’t even been all that long ago. But she wouldn’t go back to it, she knew that much. She was living a dream and she loved every minute.

  It wasn’t easy though; it had meant a lot of sacrifices. She didn’t see Terry as much as she would have liked, especially at a time when he needed somebody close, and her relationship with Charley had changed somewhat dramatically because Charley was proving to be a problem she’d never quite anticipated.

  But Reece was still a constant figure in her life and for that she was grateful. He was still there guiding her, giving her advice, and travelling with her on modelling jobs or promotion work, if he wasn’t busy. The relationship they had was questioned by many but there was nothing more to it than an extremely close friendship, a bond she couldn’t explain. She just felt safe when he was around. He truly was the force behind her and she’d never forget what he’d done for her. Never.

  And then there was Kenny. Her relationship with Kenny Ross was the one that fascinated Hollywood more than anything because of its ambiguity. They were constantly seen out together, always accompanying each other to premieres and parties, always displaying visible yet subtle signs of affection but always stopping just short of giving the press anything concrete to go on.

  Behind closed doors, though, they were doing everything the press would kill to know about and India smiled at the thought. They were almost doing it on purpose now, going that little bit further each time the paparazzi were about; they were playing with them really, and how long they could continue getting away with it remained to be seen, but they were having fun. She and Kenny always had fun. Being with him had made her life complete. He was a friend like no other. He was always there for her, always there to talk to, to lean on, to give her a hug when she needed it or to listen when she wanted to moan. He read through scripts with her, went shopping with her, even though it wasn’t really his thing, and if she needed him in that way then he was more than happy to make love to her just to help her relax and in turn she was there for him. Whenever he needed her. It worked both ways and she couldn’t imagine her life without him in it. She was an extremely lucky young woman and she knew that.

  She closed the refrigerator door, poured herself an orange juice and walked back to the bedroom of her beautiful beach house, leaning against the doorframe. The windows were slightly open, letting in the sound of the ocean and the seagulls and the surfers – sounds that were fast becoming the soundtrack to her life – and she smiled as she looked around her. This room was her haven, painted white, right down to the floorboards and furniture, with hints of powder blue on the walls. Colour was provided by fresh flowers dotted around the room in plain white and cream vases and the large, over-sized windows were draped with white muslin, the huge king-size bed covered by the best Egyptian cotton sheets.

  She let her gaze wander to the bed where Kenny was still sleeping. He was almost a permanent fixture at the beach house now, his stuff strewn everywhere but she wasn’t complaining. They had a rare few months when they were both working in L.A. so she wanted him around as much as possible.

  She watched his chest rise and fall slowly, looking at his handsome face as he slept. The morning breeze coming in through the open windows gently ruffled his already tousled black hair, his head turned to one side, one arm flung up over his head, and she walked over to him quietly, placing her drink on the bedside
table, sitting down on her side of the bed, gently stroking his cheek. She loved him so much, but for all their relationship was free and easy, it was also incredibly complicated. There were different kinds of love and what she felt for Kenny she couldn’t really explain. They’d never talked about love, never talked about the future, it had never seemed necessary. Both of them just assumed that the other would always be there. Things were perfect as they were.

  She couldn’t stop herself from leaning over and kissing his slightly open mouth, the stubble on his chin rough against her face. She loved that mouth, loved what it could do to her in places only he was allowed to go and her stomach did a million little flips as she remembered last night.

  She stood up and walked over to the dressing room, turning back to look at him again. He moved slightly, turning his head the other way, pulling one leg up which only served to push the white sheet further down past his hips, revealing enough of him to make India just want to get back in there with him and give him an early morning wake up call. But he didn’t need to be woken up just yet.

  She had things to do, though. She’d just started work on another movie, one which saw her reunited with Michael Walsh for the first time since ‘Rock Stars and Demons’, but this time he wasn’t just directing her, he was also her leading man.

  It was nice to be back working with a familiar face and the fact they were filming in and around Los Angeles was a bonus. She hated being away from home. Away from Kenny.

  Looking in the mirror she pushed her hair back off her face and smiled again. There’d be enough time for Kenny tonight. They were going to a beach party with some surfer friends and she always loved those nights, when they could just chill out and kick back and have fun with people who didn’t care who they were. To them they were just their friends.

  She reached for the brush and pulled her hair into a high ponytail, flicking some mascara over her eyelashes and dabbing lip gloss onto her mouth before pulling on jeans, t-shirt and boots, quickly checking her watch. The car would be here any minute to take her to the studio. She didn’t have too many scenes today and hopefully she’d be back this afternoon, back in time to get Kenny into bed for some much needed playtime. It may only have been a few hours since they’d last had sex but a few hours was a long time to wait when you had a man like Kenny Ross.

  ***

  He couldn’t believe everyone was still falling for the bullshit India Steven and Kenny Ross were continuing to tout about. This “we’re just friends” crap was wearing really thin now. Who were they trying to kid?

  For almost two years Michael Walsh had held that secret, kept to himself what he knew about their relationship, but only because he didn’t want anything to hurt India. Everything he did was because of her, because he didn’t want to be the one to hurt her. He’d leave that job to Kenny Ross because it would only be a matter of time before it happened, of that Michael had no doubt.

  It was all working out fine for him right now, though. He’d bided his time, watched from the sidelines as India’s career had taken off and while that gave him great pleasure – she deserved it, she was a rare talent – seeing her getting closer still to Kenny Ross was almost ripping him apart. He’d never forgotten the image of them together that night at the ‘Rock Stars and Demons’ premiere party, and even after all this time he still couldn’t think about it without it hurting like hell.

  To say he loved her was an understatement. He’d fallen in love with her the minute he’d set eyes on her, a cliché he’d never thought would apply to him but with India it had hit him like a head-on crash. What he felt for her invaded his life in every way, every waking moment she was on his mind and when he closed his eyes at night she came into his dreams and loved him back. But dreams weren’t something Michael was willing to live on; he wanted her here, in his life, in his bed. And he knew that time would come soon because he was doing everything he possibly could to ensure it.

  This movie he was directing, producing and starring in was something he’d waited all this time to do, he’d held it back until he’d felt the time was right. But from the very beginning it was only ever going to be India cast as his leading lady. He’d seen to that. It was all being done simply to get closer to her, a vehicle to give him his chance to strike out, to make sure she saw the real Michael Walsh, the one who could give her everything she’d ever need. The one who could love her like she’d never been loved before. He wanted her to see that she didn’t need Kenny Ross, although he wasn’t stupid enough to think she was going to leave Kenny behind easily. Everything would take time, and he’d already waited almost two years, but time was something he was willing to give if it meant India could finally be his.

  He left his trailer and walked out onto set, catching sight of India sitting on the steps of her own trailer, her long hair piled up messily on top of her head, her face made up and ready for the day’s filming. She looked young and pretty, and Michael felt an almost child-like excitement as he thought about the love scenes between them that he’d made sure were present in this film. Soon he’d be able to find out what it felt like to kiss her, touch her, go one step short of really making love to her, and he couldn’t help smiling. Yes, it was all working out very nicely indeed. Not long now and India Steven and Michael Walsh would be the Hollywood couple everyone was talking about. And Kenny Ross would be a thing of the past.

  ***

  The empty bottle of whisky hit the bottom of the bin with a heavy thud. Terry leaned back against the kitchen counter, closing his eyes and rubbing his temples. He had a headache from hell but he could still do with more alcohol. He just couldn’t be bothered to go out and get some.

  He was on a hiding to nothing, he knew that, but his life was so mixed up right now. It felt empty and finished, just like his fast disappearing football career. Ever since his sister’s rise to fame and his split from Charley he just hadn’t been able to cope. He couldn’t deal with everything around him changing, with everybody only wanting to talk about India. It was beginning to feel as though people only wanted to be close to him because he was India’s brother. And the comments he was getting from his team mates, as far as his sister was concerned, were making him feel more uncomfortable as each day went by. It was all part of her work that she was doing photo shoots that made her look like every man’s fantasy, he knew that, he accepted it, but when he had to deal with hearing what they said about her, what they’d like to do to her or say to her, it all became too much for him. She was his sister, his little sister. He didn’t need to hear those things.

  And then there was Charley. What a mistake she’d been. It had taken him less than two months after landing back in the U.K. from the ‘Rock Stars and Demons’ premiere to work out that he’d been nothing but a stepping stone for her to walk all over in order to gain some kind of fame. When he’d outlived his use, when she’d squeezed everything she possibly could out of him she’d dumped him like a bag of rubbish and moved over to L.A. to see what she could find out there, and she’d found fame alright, although not the kind of fame that India was experiencing. Charley Miles was a glamour model and soft porn star, and a fairly famous one at that, but it almost sickened Terry to think that that was what she’d sunk to. Had she been that desperate to be noticed? India told him she saw her out and about every now and again, but she’d also told him how Charley had almost changed beyond recognition, how she seemed to have become a completely different person to the one they’d both known before.

  She could do what she liked as far as he was concerned. She’d got what she’d wanted; let her get on with it. India had seemed concerned about her last time they’d spoken but Terry didn’t want to know anymore. He was past the point of caring. Anything he’d ever felt for Charley had long since disappeared. They hadn’t had the easiest of relationships in the first place, but he’d honestly thought they could have made a go of things. How wrong he’d been.

  He started opening cupboards, trying to locate something that would help numb the f
eelings he was trying to stifle, something to help him forget that everything around him was falling apart.

  India had no idea, of course. No idea of the state things were in. Oh, she knew about the trouble with Charley, obviously, but she had no idea how badly his career had been affected by everything. Over the past couple of years his concentration had slowly gone by the wayside, his heart had just ceased to be in it anymore. He’d always known he was never going to be a world class footballer but he’d always hoped he’d have a steady club career. Now he didn’t even think he could hang onto that. He wasn’t even sure he wanted to.

  Finding nothing in the cupboards he reached for his jacket and grabbed his keys. There was no other option. If he wanted a drink tonight he was going to have to go out and find one. Maybe getting out of the house would be good for him. So the pub it was.

  With a sigh he slammed the door shut behind him and braced himself for another night of questions about his film star sister.

  ***

  Charley Miles was a big name in certain circles in L.A., circles she’d never intentionally intended to be mixing in but the world she’d fallen into was giving her money and a level of fame that afforded her a life she was more than happy with.

  She had her own apartment, her own car, endless nights of partying, and that was enough to make Charley think everything she was putting herself through was worth it. She knew she wasn’t mixing with the A-list crowd, not the conventional one anyway, and she wasn’t starring in the kind of movies that hit the average cinema screens, but she was living her dream. Kind of. And her life in L.A. was so far removed from the one she’d had back in the U.K. less than two years ago that to Charley it was unthinkable to even consider going back there now.