Ty lowered the mug from his lips and leaned against the sink. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
“Look, I don’t mean to be a smart ass, but I really think you need to give this your full attention.”
The smile faded from Ty’s face. “What are you talking about man?”
Manny went back to his briefcase and rifled around, until he found what he was looking for. He pulled out a stack of newspapers, and slid the one on top across the table. “This appeared yesterday morning in the Times. It’s been the talk of the town ever since.”
Ty pushed himself from the counter and picked up the paper. Carrie watched his eyes scan the page, before he passed it to her beside him.
Movie news. Society gossip. Standard entertainment fare, but it was the picture that caught her attention. It was of the two of them in the diner a few days ago. They were smiling at each other, and his hand was touching hers across the table. The headline read. “Not-So-Undercover Heat?”
She sat down at the table and skimmed through the article below it. Old news. Rumors and speculation. That was the whole point after all. Even her father would understand that. “And so it begins,” Carrie said and slid the paper back at Manny. “I figured we’d make a tabloid here and there.’
“I’m sorry,” Ty said.
“It’s fine. Like I said, I was prepared.”
Carrie waited for relief to register on Manny’s face, but it didn’t. Instead he went back to his pile and whipped out another paper. This time the Daily News. “This appeared just this morning.”
Ty reached for it, but Carrie snagged it first. Phrases like “real life lovers” and “secret affair” caught her eye, as did the photo of Layla that carried the top of the page. Her face scowled in anger, and a fist superimposed as if sounding a battle cry. The headline read “He Drove Me To It! My Husband’s Secret Love Affair with Costar Carrie Ann Langley.”
“Can I see it, Carrie?”
Ty slipped it from her fingers and sat down at the table beside her. His expression gave away nothing, and when he finished, he flipped it back on the table. “Manny you drove all the way up here for nothing. This is old news. There were headlines about us being romantically involved all the time back then. You had me going. I was expecting major dirt.”
“I’m glad you said that, because I think that’s what’s coming.”
Manny shifted in his seat, and Carrie could tell by the way he looked at her, his concern was for her benefit too. She squared her shoulders and took a deep breath. “Okay, so lay it on us.”
“Something about a secret rendezvous in upstate New York and a purchase of prenatal vitamins from a convenience store. When I caught wind of this I figured Layla was blowing smoke as usual. So I made some calls. Got a hold of a guy at “It” Magazine. Turns out they are about to run a story about Ty Hollister’s weekend rendezvous with his pregnant ex-costar.” Manny looked at Carrie then back at Ty. “You two have something you want to tell me?”
Ty slammed his fist on the table. “Damn it! I knew I was in for trouble when I bought those stupid vitamins. I forgot my money clip back here at the house, so I used a credit card.” Again, he cursed and ran his hand through his hair. “Jesus, I’m not new at this. What the hell was I thinking?”
“Oh, man!” Manny dropped his head to the table. “So it’s really true. You’re pregnant Carrie?”
“What? Me? No!” she stammered. “Manny, maybe if you calm down.”
“God Ty, you’ve been in Italy! I know you’re good with the ladies, but even you can’t knock a girl up a continent away. And I thought you guys hadn’t even seen each other in five years until a few days ago.”
“They were for my sister,” Carrie blurted. “The vitamins. Not me.”
“‘It’ Magazine, huh.” Ty leaned back in his chair and shook his head. “See if I ever give them an interview again.”
Manny held a hand over his heart and expelled a breath that looked like he’d been holding since he left New York. “Thank God. So all this talk about secret romances and babies is just Layla stirring the pot.”
“Like you had to ask,” Ty said. “Come on, of course it’s her. She’s unhappy about the divorce settlement, and she’s trying to piss me off.”
Ty had been nominated for three Academy Awards, but even his acting abilities couldn’t hide the terror on his face. His voice had lowered the slightest decibel, and he tapped his foot against the hardwood. Instinct compelled her to reach for his hand, but before she could, he slipped his hand over her shoulder instead. “Where did she get her information anyway?” he asked.
“I don’t know. I contacted them, and of course they won’t reveal their source. They did say, however, that they had a copy of the credit card receipt for those vitamins with your name on it.” Manny cocked his head. “My theory is that the bitch finally cracked and hired someone to tail you?”
“Come on.” Ty rubbed his face and chuckled.
“She’s crazy enough to do it. We can always sue her for slander,” Manny said. “But that’s still going to cost you money.”
The men’s voices fell away, and Carrie’s own heartbeat echoed in her ears. What if Layla was on to them? Her father was one of the most highly respected men in the New York Diocese. His career would be ruined. And what about her? She was to blame for her unborn child’s death. The press would hound her, and she’d be forced to relive the nightmare all over again. There were a ton of reasons why a public debacle would have been torture. Carrie Ann Langley was not cut out for a life in a fishbowl. She spent a year in a recovery hospital as proof of that.
“Carrie Ann?” Ty put his hand on her back. “You okay?”
Maybe she could trust Manny. He seemed to have Ty’s best interest at heart, and maybe if he knew the truth he could somehow prevent it from getting out. “Manny, you can’t sue someone for libel if the story they‘re telling is true.”
Manny’s forehead creased. “What... what do you mean?”
Carrie stood up and pushed her chair back into the table. “How about you two head out for something to eat. I think Ty would like to have a chat with you.”
“I would?”
She sent a silent message with her eyes, and when Ty set his coffee cup down, Carrie knew that he had gotten it. “You sure, Carrie?”
“Manny, get ready to earn your salary. I have a feeling you have your work cut out for you.” She squeezed Ty’s shoulder, before heading up the back stairs.
***
Harvey took a sip of coffee and studied the generous ass of the brunette waitress serving an English muffin to the man in the booth beside him. Not bad. One thing he noticed on this excursion up in this Arctic Circle, women here wore entirely too many clothes. It was hard to ogle when three layers of wool and heavy down jackets stood in the way.
But this breakfast had little to do with pleasure, and everything to do with business, which was why he was glad when the waitress waddled out of sight. The success of this mission depended on him staying focused. Something he had done quite well so far. He contributed it to his sixth sense, and his ability to act on a hunch. A hunch made him drive up to this snowy hell in the first place, and another made him follow Ty into that convenience store. Both had paid off, and the scene with the woman in the back room wasn’t a bad perk either.
Talk about customer service.
The brunette waitress topped off his coffee and headed to Ty’s table behind him. It was ballsy to follow Hollister and his pink-headed assistant here and even more so to snag the adjacent table. But when he saw Carrie leave church with that guy, he knew something was up. No way would Pinky make a trip all the way up here just to see how Ty was. Trouble was brewing. This morning’s news must have hit right where Harvey aimed. Square in the nuts, and if he guessed right, this little meeting was their attempt at damage control.
Sure enough, the earful was simply too good to be true. A love affair, an eating disorder. His jealous lesbian wife. Even the part about hiding the truth from C
arrie Ann’s family was interesting. He only had one question.
What was the truth Ty was talking about?
He’d find out. In the meantime, he’d dig a little deeper. Maybe use that cover as a reporter for “It” magazine. Somebody had to know something about the tale Ty told. Maybe someone willing to talk. He’d have to think about that one.
Moments later, Harvey heard the leather upholstery shift behind him. Ty and Pinky were leaving. He watched them head out the door, then cross the parking lot to the yellow Hummer. They drove away, going in the direction of the farmhouse.
He finished the last of his coffee and tossed a few bills on the table. Layla told him not to bother returning to Los Angeles without something more she could use as ammunition. He smiled. Who needed ammo when you had a smoking gun, and he was on it. He could smell it like sharks smelled blood. And he was moving in for the kill.
Chapter Eight
Carrie awoke to pitch black and the sound of metal striking metal, echoing in the distance. For a moment, she was disoriented, tangled in the sheets in a bed that wasn’t hers. It wasn’t until the scent of cologne drifted across her nose that she realized where she was.
Ty’s room.
She rolled to her side and looked out the frosted moonlit window. After Ty and Manny left, she tried to busy herself with mundane tasks like dusting and folding laundry. It didn’t work, and somehow she ended up here. Her intention was to shut her eyes for a few minutes and try to wrap her head around the impending crisis, but evidently exhaustion took priority.
Again, she heard the rhythmic clanking. Probably Ty doing the same thing she was earlier. Busying himself. Taking everything in. Five years ago, she had laid in a bed a few doors down mulling “what ifs” and “worst case scenarios.” Back then, she relied on Ty to sort it all out. Zapping his strength, while he fought a war on both ends. Her with her issues, and the ramifications they created for everyone else.
But things were different now. The new and improved incarnation of Carrie Ann had no intention of depending on others to clean up her mess. This Carrie Ann was capable. Competent. She had found what the therapists called “mastery,” and if Layla, or anyone else, thought she was an easy target, they were wrong. Suddenly, filled with purpose, she tossed off the covers and headed outside.
Ty worked under the hood of her pickup with the sleeves of a grey Crimson Tide hoodie pushed up to his elbows. The light, attached above him, gleamed off whatever tool he held in his hand, and his eyes squinted in a snarl like he’d been at the task a while, and not necessarily enjoying it. “Hey there, darlin’,” he greeted without looking up. “You were dead asleep when-”
“I have something to say.”
“Well go right ahead, I’m all ears.” He nodded at the tool box beside him. “But first, find me some clean rags in there. You got an oil leak worse that the Exxon Valdez.”
She pushed around him and dug for the rags. When she found them, she shoved them in his face.
“Jesus, Carrie Ann. This thing is shot. The belts are cracked, and the undercarriage is rotted. You’re lucky the engine hasn’t fallen clear out to the ground.” He shook his head. “Does that guy with the lazy eye still service your cars, because I’m not sure he’s done such a great job?”
“I service my own car.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, I take care of my own vehicle. I change the oil, I rotate the tires. I even replaced those cracked belts in the first place. You’d be surprised at what I can do.”
He looked at her with a wrinkled brow. “Why would I be surprised?”
“The car may not run like a top, but the point is I tried. It needed fixing, so I decided to fix it. There was a problem I tried to solve it.”
“Okay but-”
“I know the car is old, and maybe I’m not the best mechanic, but I can say I rose to the challenge. I’m not some helpless wimp, you know.”
He took a step back from the open hood and wiped his hands on a rag. “Well, hell, baby, we’re not talking about the car are we?”
She bit her lip and stared at the ground. “No, I guess I’m not,” she said, drawing a circle in the snow with her toe. “You and Manny sure were gone for a long time. You two must have had a nice chat.”
“Nice enough. Took him down to the Moo Cow for a cup of coffee. And before you ask, no, no one recognized me. Grizzly Adams might not be such a bad look after all.”
“What did you tell him?”
Again, he leaned over the engine and inserted the wrench back into the slimy mess. “I told him about us. Our history.” He glanced at her and shrugged. “I kinda had to. I’m sorry, Carrie Ann.”
“I figured.” She shoved her hands in her pockets. “So which was it? The thirty second sound bite version, or all the gory details?”
“In between, I guess. I told him we had a thing, and about your hospital stay in Connecticut. We decided that maybe I should prepare you, in case it all comes out.”
A wave of heat washed over her. They decided? Prepare her? What was she an infant? “Don’t do that, Tyler.”
“Do what?”
“Treat me like I can’t handle the situation.”
“That’s not what I was doing,” he said casually. “And besides there’s nothing for you to handle. It’s my problem to worry about. So let’s not talk about it anymore.” He stepped back out from under the hood and wiped his hands on a rag. “How about we head down to Hoagie Heaven? Meatball subs on me.”
“And don’t do that.”
“Do what?”
She exhaled loudly. She knew his indifference was an effort to calm her, but now she wasn’t interested in the consideration. “All I’m saying is I don’t want you to run interference for me. Have I thought about the consequences, and the embarrassment it might cause me and my family? Absolutely. But what’s taken me five years and a whole lot of treatment to realize, is that, while I can’t control the actual situation, I can control how I react to it.”
“If you think I meant to insult you-”
“I’d be insulted if you started lying to me.” She tossed her hair over her shoulder and locked her gaze on his. “Tell me the truth, Ty. What’s going on?”
He shut the hood and leaned against it. “Okay fine, the truth is I don’t know what’s going on.”
“Manny seemed pretty worried.”
“Manny’s always pretty worried.” He studied his blackened hands then slipped them into his pockets. “Look, I don’t know where these rumors are coming from. If it’s Layla trying to stir the pot, I’ll sure try my best to stop her. But if it’s just some crafty paparazzi, that might be a little harder to police.”
“How much does Layla know?”
“I didn’t think she knew anything. She worked on the show, so maybe she suspected something. But we were always pretty discrete.”
“And you never said anything to her?”
He looked at her like the question offended him. “That was our business Carrie Ann, no one else’s.”
A very small part of her relaxed. “Well then maybe we’re worried for nothing.”
“I don’t know, darlin’. There’s always someone somewhere who knows something about everything. That’s the one thing I’ve learned in this crazy business.” He fixed his eyes beyond her and sighed. “I know how much you love your quiet life, and I also know how this would affect that. There’s a lot of pressure on you now, and I feel like it’s my fault.”
“And you can stop with that, too.”
He cocked his head and took a step toward her. “Jeez Carrie, now what did I say?”
With her hands on her hips, she squared her shoulders, and shot him the angriest face she could muster. “You know, I realize that you’re a big movie star and all, but even so the world doesn’t revolve around you. I created this mess right along with you. I am half of the “Undercover Heat” duo, and when I signed my contract a decade ago, I knew I’d have to deal with the press. I agreed to the s
ame thing when I signed on to do this press tour.”
“Okay but-”
“And really what’s the big deal if all this gets out? I mean, sure I’ll be mortified, as will my family. My Dad will probably lose his job. We’ll both have to relive everything all over again under the scrutiny of the media. But will the world end? No. But my point is I’d rather it not happen that way, and as your co-worker and ex whatever-I-am, I’d like a shot at saving my own ass.”
Ty ran his hand over his face, and Carrie could tell it was an effort to hide a smile. “Damn, darlin’,” Ty finally said, “if I didn’t know any better I’d say you were channeling a little Lexie Love just now.”
“Well maybe that’s how we should approach this whole thing. Like Lexie and Jax would. Confront the problem methodically and rationally as a totally united front.”
It sounded great to her own ears. Incredibly plausible, and incredibly easy. She felt inspired and strong, but Ty’s laugher indicated he didn’t share the sentiment. “Carrie Ann this isn’t a network crime drama. This is real life.”
“I know, but all I’m saying is, the way I’ve confronted these situations hasn’t worked for me in the past. I’m just trying to help my own cause.”
“Yeah but I don’t like you making yourself a guinea pig either.” He came to her and brushed his hand down her arm. “I want you to leave it to me,” he told her. “And I also think we should reconsider you participating in the press events.”
A snowball in the face would have been less offensive. “Thanks for the vote of confidence,” she said, then spun on her heals toward the house.
“Carrie Ann, wait a minute!”
Clouds of fine flakes jumped from her footfalls as she stomped across the crunchy snow. She heard him closing in behind her, so she quickened her pace to a jog.
“Listen, darlin’, this is a little scary for me too, ya know. You’re important to me, and I don’t want you to get hurt. Would you feel better if I didn’t care how you felt?”
“I’d feel better if you’d let me express my own fears, rather than assign them to me yourself.”
Undercover Heat Page 10
