Player

by T. N. King

  “Whoa down there boy!” Steward responded. “Calm down.”

  “Calm down?” Jacob pinched the bridge of his nose as he spoke, “Some woman was here in my penthouse waiting for me tonight, saying she is Airi’s mother and she is threatening blackmail!”

  “What?”

  “I won’t repeat that again. Find out who this bitch is. She says I have two days and then she is going to the press. She is saying I owned Airi and had her here as a…sex slave or some shit like that!”

  Steward let out a long sigh over the phone. “I thought Airi had no family.”

  “You thought!”

  “Yes, I will look into it. Are you going to pay?”

  Jacob pulled the cell from his ear and stared at it, like he could not believe what he just heard. He put the phone to his ear. “How does FUCK NO! Sound?”

  Steward was laughing. “That’s my boy!”

  Jacob growled and hung up. He walked around in a complete circle. Like he didn’t know what to do, where to go for answers. Where the fuck was Airi? Why would she let that woman in here? Then leave? Then what the hell would happen if this woman made good on her threat? How could he prove that none of this was true?

  The door opened and Airi came in. She smiled then caught his angry expression as she halted in her tracks.

  Yoshi came in behind her with grocery bags in his arms he too was smiling until he caught sight of Jacob. Stepping forward he asked, “Is something wrong?”

  Jacob fought for calm. Airi looked like she had no idea of any of this. He instantly seemed calm. His control at least was still in place. “Please come in, both of you.”

  They all went into his spacious kitchen.

  Yoshi set the bags down and Airi put the food stuff away.

  “There was a woman in my relax room waiting for me when I got home.”

  They both swung wide eyes over to him.

  “What?” Yoshi asked.

  Nodding his head he continued, “She said she is Airi’s mother.”

  Airi gasped and dropped the jar of pickles she had been holding. It hit the floor and splattered everywhere.

  Yoshi jumped back.

  Airi bent down to pick up the glass pieces, then immediately cut her finger.

  Yoshi grabbed her up and took her to the sink. He then turned on the water and rinsed her finger off.

  “Is it bad?” Jacob loomed over his shoulder.

  “No, it looks okay,” Yoshi replied and grabbed a paper towel. “Are you okay Airi?” he asked her.

  She started crying.

  “Oh, baby. It will be okay. It doesn’t look like it will need stitches.”

  She swiped at her tears. “Jacob. I do not have a mother, she die.”

  Yoshi grabbed paper towels and bent down to mop up the pickle mess.

  Jacob felt confused. “You mean you didn’t let a woman into my penthouse today?”

  She shook her head looking confused.

  Yoshi repeated what Jacob had said in Japanese.

  Her eyes widened as she put her hands over her mouth. “No! I never do that!”

  Jacob pushed his fingers through his hair in frustration. “Then how the hell did she get in? And who the hell is she?”

  Yoshi and Airi shook their heads.

  “What did she want?” Yoshi asked as he deposited the glass and pile of vinegar soaked paper towels into the covered trash bin.

  Jacob sat on the stool at his counter bar. “She is blackmailing me.”

  Yoshi’s eyes widened. “What?”

  Nodding, Jacob continued, “She accuses me of keeping Airi as…well, as a sex slave I suppose?”

  Yoshi’s eyes narrowed.

  “She says I have two days and then she will go to the press.”

  “Oh, fuck!” was Yoshi’s only reply.

  Airi looked confused.

  Yoshi turned to her and spoke in his fast Japanese.

  Her eyes rounded and she put her hand to her chest. “No!” She shook her head. “No, he never!”

  Yoshi nodded. “We know this, Airi, but…” He started into Japanese again.

  Gasping, she started to cry. “No. Jacob good man. He help me!”

  Jacob sighed.

  “What are you going to do?” Yoshi asked. “I mean I know it is not my business, but Airi is.”

  Jacob shrugged. “I am not paying her. If I do, that is admitting my guilt and once blackmail starts, it never ends. At least that’s what happens in the movies.” He wanted to laugh at how ridiculous this all was, but he couldn’t. “Old fifty style movies that is, like Ray Milland or Humphrey Bogart.” He glanced up.

  The couple stared at him with blank expressions as if he just spoke in some foreign language that wasn’t English or Japanese.

  Jacob almost smiled, despite the situation. Nobody liked the old black and white noir movies like he did. He shook his head. “If she goes to the press. It will blow up on me. But I will just have to state my side.”

  “No, no. You will be-be…” Airi stopped to think of the word. “Dishonored!”

  Jacob shrugged. “I don’t see that I have a choice Airi. I won’t pay.”

  “All my fault!” Airi got up and ran out of the kitchen weeping.

  Yoshi got up from the other stool. “I will take care of her. Damn, Mr. Cooper, I am so sorry.” He turned and went out.

  Jacob sighed as tore off his jacket and tossed it down. He slipped his shoes off and threw them at the wall. He wanted to yell, or break something. He could not deal with anger well either. He needed a work out a face to punch. Instead, he walked naked into his relax room. HA! There would be no relaxing while facing this shit.

  Chapter Fifteen

  He was in the studio at 6 am, getting his coffee.

  “You beat me in today,” Anna said from behind him.

  Jacob turned around and handed her a mug of coffee that he’d just prepared, he knew she would be here at almost the exact time as he was. “Not by much.”

  Anna took it from his hand and smiled. “You are spoiling me.”

  He smiled at her. Damn, he wanted her. He would spoil her if he could.

  “What is it?’ she asked staring at his face.

  Shit, did he let something show? No way, he had it all covered. How did she know? He sighed. Maybe it was all showing. His career ruined. To be the laughing stock of all the freaks in Hollywood.

  Looking concerned, she took a step forward. “Jacob?”

  Should he tell her? Fuck, now he couldn’t date her! He hadn’t realized this at all before this moment. He had been too preoccupied with the little Asian bitch blackmailer. He couldn’t drag Anna into it by dating her. “Just tired, I guess.”

  She tilted her head at him. “You never get tired.”

  He laughed. “I am human, you know?”

  Anna kept looking at him. “So, you aren’t going to tell me.”

  He wanted to. He wanted to tell her lots of things. He wanted to fly out of here. Take her to Saint-Tropez, to Greece or even just to some rooftop. Just the two of them. He wanted to ask what her favorite color was, what her favorite movie was, her favorite song. Find all her ticklish spots and explore them while she laughed. Then he wanted to have her…till he just couldn’t get it up anymore.

  “Jacob?” she asked with her eyes wide now.

  Fuck! What kind of sappy shit was that? I’m cracking up, losing it. “I suppose I just get the blues when a film wraps up.” He almost winced at the lie.

  “You know that we are friends, right?” She took a step closer and raised her hand to touch his face.

  Jacob almost melted into her fingers as her soft palm cupped his face. It was a soothing feeling. One he’d never gotten from anyone. He then caught himself and straightened his shoulders. “Yes. I hope that we are.”

  “Hope?” She laughed a little. “I never met a man who…” Her voice fell away.

  He stared at her face. Who what? Satisfied you? Challenged you? Worked so well with you that it was perfect take
s every time we did a scene? Even the director said he’d never seen this happen before and probably would never see it again. Two huge stars working with such chemistry and utter perfection. Jacob couldn’t help it, he gazed into her eyes. Those blue eyes were so intense, so deep with some kind of emotion. Dare he think she had true, deep feelings for him? He shook it away. Doesn’t matter now. He couldn’t go near her in that way. The least he could do was to spare her scandal. “I will always be there as your friend Anna. You mean more to me than….” His voice faded away. Any other woman. No, he didn’t say it out loud. Yes! She did mean more to him. Not just sex, not just as a date. As a costar, as a friend. All of it! Shit, he’d finally found it, only to lose it before he could reach out and grab it.

  How ironic.

  Women had chased him, every day, everywhere. Then the one he wanted? He now could not have.

  “Jacob, please tell me what is going on with you,” she whispered as she gazed all around.

  He too, gazed around. But he really didn’t have to, they were the only ones here. He knew this. No one ever arrived before 8 am. He felt so tempted to tell her the truth, but he wouldn’t. He didn’t want this woman’s sympathy. He wanted her. He smiled as he shoved the entire crapload of what he was feeling away. “Let’s talk about this final scene, okay?’

  She narrowed her eyes at him. “You just can’t open up, can you?”

  He stilled. No, he couldn’t, never been able to. He would have with her…he just knew this. The one woman he felt he could trust. One that had not washed out. “I-I…”

  She sighed and turned away with her mug.

  He followed her.

  They sat in their chairs in the quiet of the studio.

  Finally, Jacob took the dive, he owed her at least part of it, “It’s a problem with my housekeeper.” He let out a breath.

  Anna looked over at him. “What?”

  “It is hard to explain, but I can’t tell you all of it as it is personal for her.” He looked into those blue orbs of hers. “I just need to find a way to solve it…”

  Anna placed her hand on his. “Okay. At least you shared that much.”

  He nodded. But why? It led to nowhere. He could not be with her like he wanted. After tonight, he may never be in the same room with her. No, that wasn’t true. They would go to the opening and probably stand right next to each other. Could he skip that? Man, he was going insane. To miss a premier? Where he saw fans, the limelight, the excitement?

  “So, this scene,” Anna finally spoke again.

  He glanced up. Time to switch gears, Jacob. “Yes, umm. It is tender, painful and…”

  She laughed. “You can ace it.”

  Yes, but just not in real life, right? Well, he would be putting real feelings into it. He just knew this as they were teeming inside him, bursting to get out. This would actually be a catharsis for him. Maybe it would help give him closure on the whole, ‘I wanted to maybe have a future with you but can’t’ anxiety he was feeling. “Yes, then just know, I am going to kiss you for real, Anna.”

  She stilled.

  Fuck! Why did he just say that?

  She gave him a tremulous smile. “Is that a promise or a threat?”

  He then smiled. “A threat? My kisses aren’t a threat.”

  She laughed. “No, they certainly aren’t.”

  Then they talked about what would go into this final scene together. Jacob couldn’t be sure but she seemed to be melancholy for a bit. Maybe she felt sad they wouldn’t be working together anymore? He sure felt that way and more. Not to see her anymore in person, at least. He could just see himself now, sitting at his PC scouring the net for any news of her, looking for any images he could find that he hadn’t seen a hundred times before. Watching her movies as she kissed other leading men—Oh, god. He would feel jealousy. NO! He’d never felt that. EVER! He sucked a breath in. How could this have happened to him? Calm it Jacob. Calm.

  “Hey there, stars of the glorious screen!”

  They both looked up to see the director.

  He beamed at them as he walked up. “I mean it. I just have to say what a damn pleasure this has been working with you two. You are gonna win some Golden statues from this one.” He reached out and shook each of their hands. “damn fine team. Professional, easygoing, no personal bullshit or angst. damn fine.”

  They both smiled and nodded saying their thanks.

  Jacob used the time to adjust everything—his expression his breathing, his heartbeat.

  “So today is it!” the director stated the obvious. “You both will be attending the wrap party, I assume?”

  Jacob felt a bit of panic. He sure as hell didn’t want to be around a lot of people not with the jitters he felt.

  “Of course we will,” Anna answered and glanced over at Jacob. “Right?” She looked into his eyes.

  He found himself nodding. Crap! She could ask him to walk the plank, over coals, into a fire and he would just up and fucking do it. “Yes, sure,” he replied and looked at the director. Damn the man.

  “Good, good. Now I expect another mind blowing scene today. I already know you are gonna have that pansy ass AD of mine crying like a damn baby!” He laughed and walked away.

  I might just be crying like a damn baby any fucking second now. Jacob sighed.

  “Jacob?” Anna asked.

  Adjusting his expression again and assuming a fairly relaxed look, he looked over at her. “Hmm?”

  “If you ever need…” Her voice faded away “I-I mean if you…”

  He put his hand over hers. “The same goes for you.”

  Nodding, she bit at her lip.

  Damn it! He held his breath and found he was biting his own lip. He wanted to grab her up and pull that lip out with his teeth then suck on it. He looked away. Well, he would get a chance to do so in a couple of hours. He sure hoped she was prepared.

  They both sat as the crews all flooded in. Many of them stopped to chat. Laugh and joke.

  He and Anna treated each group and each person as if they were the most important person and or people in the place.

  The different crew members all held genuine admiration and even affection in their eyes for both stars.

  It did feel wonderful, Jacob had to admit. You didn’t earn this kind of respect easily. Not with these people. They all had their own specialties and some had been in the business for years. It seemed every one of them, loved him and Anna both.

  “It’s cool right?” Anna asked from next to him as the Boom master walked away after chatting with them both. “The way everyone looks at us?”

  She had been thinking on his page, yet again. “Yes, it is. I feel…” His voice faded away. What the hell was wrong with him? He NEVER started a sentence with that phrase. Simply because he never knew, what he actually felt. “…humbled,” he finished.

  Anna chuckled. “The great actor, Jacob Cooper…Humbled?”

  His gaze shot over to hers.

  She gave him that sweet and sexy blue eyed wink of hers.

  He instantly got hard. Right here on the set with fifty people all around them. At work in the studio. Damn, was the world spinning on its axis? Just because she had given him a damn innocent wink? “Never let it be said that it did not happen just this once,” he joked.

  Anna laughed. “You are the coolest person I know, Jacob.”

  He pulled his head back. That was not something he ever thought to hear from her. “Yeah, but just keep me away from those darn pesky mirrors.”

  Anna laughed loudly.

  He chuckled with her.

  “Call for makeup!”

  They gazed at each other for a moment.

  “Time to get dolled up,” he said.

  With her eyes sparkling, she beamed. “Well, you certainly do not need it.”

  “You don’t either.” It was true. He’d seen her in all kinds of ways, including a morning after her face had even lain smushed against a chaise lounge all night.

  Anna got up and so
did he. No need for either of them to look at lines or the scene at all really. He knew she had the lines memorized, just like he did.

  Lynn greeted him. “Hey, sweet Jacob!”

  He gave her a half smile. “Hey, sweet Lynn.” He sat.

  She poked around on her table. “Mmm, let’s see. For this scene, you need to look…” Her gaze swung up. “…sad and…” Her voice fell away.

  He cleared his throat and tried his damndest to clear all expression from his features.

  “Oh, no. That won’t work, Mr. Cooper!” she admonished as she planted her hands on her hips.

  He shook his head and knew this wouldn’t been an easy one. “What the hell are you talking about now?”

  Lynn raised a brush in the air. “I am supposed to put a bit of strain like dark circles around your eyes as Dade has already hit rock bottom and is about to lose the love of his life too!”

  Jacob shrugged his shoulders, but refused to actually look into her eyes, he wasn’t as solid today as in the past, this woman had seen far too much in him over the past months. “So, do it already.”

  She remained silent.

  His gaze rose up.

  “See?” She nodded as she set the brush down. “I do not have to add that look at all.”

  He stilled and grabbed a hand mirror and raised it up. “What the fuck?”

  Lynn laughed at his now panicked expression, then grabbed the mirror from his grasp. “Faces never lie. You can lie through those pearly white teeth if you want, Mr. Hot Star, but seems to me, someone has…” She leaned down and whispered, “…a broken heart.”

  At this outrageous statement, Jacob nearly jumped in his chair. A broken—no fucking way!

  Lynn stared at him, her eyes wide.

  Jacob switched gears in an instant as he collected himself. Walls up, feelings shoved out. Pain covered. He got up. “Are you done?”

  She mutely nodded. Looking upset and sorry she’d said what she did.

  He sighed and took her hand into his. Raising it up to his lips, he kissed it gently and tenderly. “You, Lynn, are truly special, gifted and a treasure in this world.” He kissed her fingers then slowly dropped her hand.