Twisted Reality (Blind Reality #2)

by Heidi McLaughlin

  When I finally cool down, I go to the bedroom only to find the door locked. I try the knob a few times, attempting to shake it loose, but it doesn’t budge.

  “Joey, open the door.” My voice is as quiet as possible. The walls are paper-thin and we’ve already caused enough entertainment for the people next to us.

  “Joey!” I jiggle the handle again, waiting for her to answer. The door remains locked and I can’t hear her moving around on the other side. What the hell is she doing?

  “Baby, come on, please open the door,” I beg as I slide down the door, defeated. My elbow bangs against the door in a last ditch effort to get her to open up. I keep trying until the ache in my arm is too much to bear.

  When I wake, my clothes are stacked on the table and the bedroom door is wide open. I rush in, looking for Joey, only to find that she’s not there. I call out her name, but know in my heart she won’t reply. Her missing suitcase confirms my worst fears, but still hanging in the closet is her wedding dress. The one she bought so we could have our dream wedding.

  I search for my phone and find it sitting on my pile of clothes. Thankfully, it’s charged and I dial her number immediately.

  “Hello,” she answers right off.

  “Why did you leave me? You promised you wouldn’t leave me, Joey. I wake up and you’re gone.”

  “Josh, I’m doing laundry.”

  “What?” I ask as my chest heaves. I’m close to hyperventilating.

  “Take a deep breath. I’m downstairs doing laundry.”

  I do as she says and try to labor my breathing.

  “I thought it would be better if I did our laundry instead of sending it out. I don’t really trust anyone right now.”

  “Oh God, babe. I thought you left me. I thought you gave up on me.”

  “I promised, remember?”

  I sit and try to calm myself down. Tugging at the ends of my hair, I fight back the rush of tears. “Why’d you lock me out last night?”

  She sighs and I can hear her moving around, hopefully to get some privacy. “I needed space, Josh. I think we’re at an impasse where Bronx and Jules are concerned. I trust him, you trust her, and we don’t trust either.”

  “He wants you, Joey, you’re too blind to see it.”

  “Josh, he’s happily married to Rebekah. She was there when we were talking. He’s my friend and right now I need all the friends that I can get.”

  “I know. I’m so sorry that we’re going through this.”

  “I know you are, Josh. We have to find a happy medium and deal with it.”

  “How long until you’re done, baby? I really need to see you before I go to work.”

  Joey is moving again and the noise from the laundry room is getting louder.

  “The timer is about to go off. I’ll be up in a few minutes.”

  “I’ll be waiting. I love you, Joey.” I don’t want for her to say it back before hanging up. I use the opportunity to jump in the shower quickly and wash off yesterday’s events. The make-up artist is going to have a field day with the bags under my eyes.

  By the time I’m out, Joey is walking in. As soon as she sets our clothes down I tackle her onto the bed.

  “Josh, you’re wet.”

  I shake my head, making sure she’s getting the water droplets from my hair.

  “Isn’t that my line?” I ask, winking at her.

  Rolling her eyes, Joey pushes me off of her. I don’t go willingly, but move aside so she can sit up.

  “Is that what you’re wearing today?” She’s dressed in sweats that are pulled up to her knees and a tank top. Her hair is piled high on her head with a crazy bun that makes her look taller.

  “Excuse me?” she says, looking down at her clothes. “What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?”

  I stand and pull her to me. “You’re going to work with me. I’m not risking anything. I don’t want you here by yourself.”

  “I thought I wasn’t allowed on set?”

  Even though she put clothes out for me, I take what I need from the basket she brought up. “You’re not, and if they want to fire me they can. I’m going to have the driver stop at the store for you to pick up some books or whatever and you can bring your laptop. My trailer is small, but you’ll be on set and protected from the media.”

  “I need to change, give me a few minutes.” Joey takes a pile of clothes and disappears into the bathroom. While she’s changing I use the time to call the Blaze PR. They’re a company I’ve used for public relations work and ask them to send someone out for me. They let me know that they’ll send a contact over right away. I can’t trust Matt, let alone use him to get my stuff done, so a PR company is my next best thing. Besides, they’ll be able to issue press releases for Joey and I, saving us from interviews.

  My next call is to the director, letting him know that Joey will be with me as it’s a matter of security. He balks, but finally agrees considering we only have a few days left. It’s not like she’s going to watch filming; she’ll be holed up in my stuffy trailer. It’ll be boring as fuck for her, but at least she’ll be there … for me. And finally to the hotel manager, asking him to make sure there is security downstairs for us.

  When she comes out of the bathroom, my mouth falls open. Standing before me is my wife, who’s completely changed the way she looked. Gone are the sweats—replaced with some stylish pants and a sleeveless shirt—and her hair is down and straight. Light make-up accents her tanned skin, making her picture perfect ready.

  “Wow.”

  “Actor wife presentable?” She spins in a circle with me nodding the entire time.

  “Let’s go to work,” I tell her, reaching for her hand. She stops and grabs her sunglasses, sliding those on as we leave the hotel. As soon as we exit the elevator I slip my sunglasses on as well and make sure she’s right up tight to me.

  “Mr. and Mrs. Wilson, I’m Johnny. Blaze PR asked me to step in until they can send someone to escort you for the remainder of your trip.” Johnny shows me his police badge and all I can think is that Blaze doesn’t fuck around when it comes to their clients. All I asked was for a rep, but some extra security works for me as well.

  I shake hands with Johnny who is wearing a black suit that isn’t shy about hiding the gun resting on his hip. I introduce him to Joey and he tells her that she’ll be safe with him. This gives me a piece of mind, but she’s still going to set with me. I’m not taking any chances even if the threat is Jules. I don’t know how Matt is going to react after last night.

  As soon as we step outside the noise level increases. Questions are screamed at us, some that I never want to hear again, and pictures are snapped. Not once did they ask us to look at them, just started slinging the dirt that will make me do more damage control. Even inside the car with tinted windows, they’re yelling at us, hoping that we’re actually going to answer them.

  Pulling Joey to me, I kiss her forehead. “It won’t be so bad once we go back to Los Angeles.”

  “That’s good.”

  I pick up her hand and kiss her ring. “Maybe while I’m shooting today, you can look for a house, or condo? Something we can put a down payment on?”

  She nods and smiles bigger than I’ve seen in the past twenty-four hours, giving me hope that everything is going to be okay once we get back to our lives.

  Los Angeles is where Josh is most alive. As soon as we left the airport, he started acting like a kid in the penny candy store. There’s a different vibe to him now that we’re back in his city and it makes me miss the early days that we spent in Alabama. He’s talking a mile minute to his newly hired PR rep while I stare out the window at the scenery passing by, although it’s not much to look at from the highway.

  The last few days in Daphne were crazy to say the least. I couldn’t go anywhere, not that I really wanted to, but once I was given a bodyguard it felt like my life was suddenly a cage. A matter of hours after the altercation with Matt, he decided that Josh was no longer a suitable client fo
r him and filed a lawsuit against him for assault. That ignited yet another media storm and the prompt hiring of another lawyer to countersue. Except it’s not Josh suing, it’s both of us. I never knew you could sue for such trivial things, but according to Josh what Matt did was unethical and against his agent/client code—whatever that means. Either way, I’ve been told not to worry. But that’s easier said than done.

  It seems that our marriage is starting off very rocky. So far he’s had to fire his lawyer because of me, and now there’s the situation with his agent because of me. And I can’t forget Jules. No, there will be no forgetting Jules, ever. I can’t even count forward to eighteen years because she’ll never be gone. In my mind Josh and I are married forever and the realization that our forever will include Jules truly sucks. They will always have a bond that Josh and I won’t—and honestly, I’m not sure I can live with that. It’s a hard pill to swallow, knowing your husband’s ex is having his child and you’re not. Even if I thought about broaching the subject of having a baby, I know deep in my heart he’ll shoot the notion down. He doesn’t want children. I knew this at the end of our ninety days and still chose to stay.

  “What do you think?” Josh asks, his voice full of eagerness.

  “I’ve been here before,” I remind him with a smile that matches his.

  “Yes, but now it’s different. We’re different.” He squeezes my hand before leaning over to give me a kiss. He’s right, we are different. When we left, everything seemed to be perfect. I was foolish to live inside a bubble thinking nothing bad was going to happen. I expected something from Jules, but in the way of tabloid fodder, a botched sex tape, or an exposé on how Josh broke her heart when he went on the show. Boy was I wrong on all accounts. Those I could’ve easily dealt with. I’ve watched enough Barbara Walters and TMZ to know what’s real and what’s not, to know when to laugh it all off and when to fan girl. Sadly, the fan girl in me is fizzling out because this Hollywood drama is too much to take.

  We pull into an apartment complex that seems average. There’s nothing striking about it, no security or high walled fence with a passcode keeping people who don’t belong out. When I look over at Josh, he seems excited and I want to ask him if we’re picking someone up, except the driver has parked and is opening my door.

  “We’re home … sort of,” Josh says.

  “Sort of?”

  He shrugs. “Until we find our own place.”

  “Oh …” Is all I can say as the driver reaches for my hand to help me out of the car. I let him because right now my legs are shaking and I need all the help I can get. Between the three of us we carry our bags past the people saying hi to Josh, up the flight of stairs, and down the open-aired hallway. The only thing preventing us from falling to our death—or at least saving us from being critically injured—is a wrought iron railing.

  Josh opens the door, walking in first. I follow and the driver steps in behind me, hitting the back of my legs with the luggage he’s carrying. He doesn’t apologize or even say good-bye as he turns and leaves. The thought crosses my mind that I need to go with him because as I look around I’m having a hard time fathoming that Josh lives here. I know he said his place was small and affordable, but the living room is as big as the bathroom from the hotel we stayed at and that wasn’t even a massive hotel.

  “Welcome, home,” Rob, Josh’s best friend says as he comes out from what I’m assuming to be the kitchen area. I’ve seen him in many photos and a few interviews with Josh, but can’t place which movies he’s been in. He’s good looking with his dark hair and defined cheekbones.

  Josh and Rob hug, patting each other on their backs while I stand here. I feel like I’m intruding on some sort of bromance.

  “You have to meet my Joey,” Josh says to Rob as he turns to face me. I step forward with my hand out to shake his, but Rob pulls me into his arms, catching me off guard.

  “You deserve a gold medal for putting up with him,” he remarks, holding on a little bit longer than necessary. He’s right, I do, but not because of Josh as a person, but the drama that surrounds him.

  “It wasn’t so bad,” I reply, referring to the show. Truth is, up until this past week, everything has been bliss.

  Josh pushes Rob out of the way and takes me into his arms. I’m half expecting him to piss on me right in front of him to mark his territory.

  “Let’s get unpacked,” Josh suggests, but refuses to let me go until Rob reaches for the bags that are on the floor. Josh follows with his arms full, leaving me nothing to carry and no choice but to follow them down a tiny hallway. I stand back when they enter what I’m assuming is Josh’s bedroom and wait for Rob to exit. He winks at me when he passes by and starts whistling as he retreats down the hall.

  “It’s small,” Josh says when I step into the room. I shut the door quietly behind me, wanting privacy. Small is an understatement, but I should’ve expected this. He warned me before that he lived simply because he was afraid to run out of money and yet we’re looking at places to buy when maybe we should rent.

  “It is, but it reminds me of my bedroom.” As I look around I realize Josh and I aren’t much different. Here I am, a college graduate who had to move home because her life went to hell in a hand basket right before her eyes and is living in her childhood bedroom. If we were at my house, Josh and I would be sleeping in a double bed, crammed into the corner with my embarrassing high school photos staring at us from the corkboard hanging on my wall.

  He dumps the bags he’s holding on his bed and hangs my wedding dress in his closet. Before I can blink, he’s pulling me into his arms and kissing my neck.

  “It’s temporary. The first place we like, we move,” he says in between kisses. I burn with desire for him, but quell any thoughts about being with him. I have a feeling we’ll be regulated to the bathroom where the water can block out the noises that we make. It’ll be like being back in the house with prying eyes and eavesdropping ears.

  “Gah, you need to stop that,” I tell him, pushing him away. The smirk across his face tells me that he has no intention of stopping. I shake my head and sidestep him so I can look around his room … our room for the time being. There are scripts on his dresser and a small jewelry box. I’m tempted to open it and snoop, but I refrain. If there is something in there that he wants me to see, he’ll show me.

  A sudden burst of giddiness falls over me. I look at Josh, who is watching my every move.

  “I’m in Josh Wilson’s bedroom,” I say, trying to contain my laughter.

  “Seriously?”

  I nod, biting my lower lip to hold back a squeal of delight.

  Laughing, Josh scoops me up in his arms and lays us roughly onto his bed. “You’re excited because you’re in my room?”

  “Yes. I can’t explain it.”

  “After everything we’ve done, this box is what gets your heart racing?”

  I turn slightly so I can see him clearly. He hasn’t shaved in a few days and his eyes close as I run my fingers through his whiskers, loving the way they tickle my flesh.

  “You make my heart race, Josh. Every time you’re near, when you’re close and when I know I’m about to see you again after a long day of being apart. You know how I feel and how being married to you has been like a dream, a surreal moment in my life and I’m often wondering if I’m going to wake and find that this isn’t my reality. To me, you’re a dream come true, my Prince Charming and my happily ever after. Our relationship is unconventional. We didn’t date, you didn’t have to woo me, and because of our circumstances I was pretty much a sure thing so yeah, being in your room, where you slept each night before you and I started sharing a bed, is a big thing for me. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve imagined where you live or what your room looks like.”

  “You’re such a little stalker,” he says, tickling my side until I bat his hand away. Once my giggling fit subsides everything seems to shift.

  “I can’t wait to see your room, Joey. I want to go to y
our hometown, walk Main Street with you, share ice cream and sit on your back patio and drink a beer with your dad. I want to meet all your family, carry your cousins around on my back, and take a walk with you in the woods.”

  The way he talks about wanting to be at my house makes me question why we even flew to Los Angeles when we could’ve easily flown to Oregon. I want him to meet my family, be immersed in the love that we have for one another and cringe when my great aunt comes toward him to pinch his cheeks.

  “So why are we here then?”

  “I don’t know. I don’t start filming for another month and it’s local. Let’s go,” he exclaims, jumping off of his bed. He picks up our suitcases from earlier and sets them on the bed. “Do we need to even unpack?”

  Sitting up, I look at him questioningly. “We don’t have tickets.”

  He shrugs. “So what? We’ll go to the airport and buy them.” Josh crawls over the bags and toward me until I’m leaning against the wall. His lips are soft and eager against mine. “Let’s be spontaneous. I want to spend some time with your family before I have to start work again. I want to meet the people that created my wife and hear all about her childhood. Can we?”

  Happy tears well in my eyes as I smile with an eager nod. “Yes, we can. My parents are going to be so happy.”

  Josh hops off the bed again, but this time he’s pulling me with him. I laugh at how excited he is.

  After Josh makes a phone call to get a car service, we grab our stuff and head back to the living room, where Rob is watching television.

  “Hey, man, we’re taking off to the beach for a bit,” he tells him. The lie confuses me, but I play along.

  “Yeah, man, I get it. You don’t want me hearing you bang against the wall.”