by Ella Brooke
“God, I can’t even imagine.” May rested a hand on his pecs. “I haven’t had a real day off since . . . Man, probably high school?”
“Then, you definitely deserve one!” Louis smiled. “But if you have things to do, I can find something to busy myself with.”
“What would you normally do if you were just visiting L.A. for fun?”
“Probably as many women as I could muster. Somehow, it’s lost its appeal.”
May clapped her palm against his bare chest. “You’re the worst.”
She slipped out of the bed before he could catch her and headed for the bathroom to take a shower before she had to get to work. She’d expected Louis to follow her in, but surprisingly, he respected her space. Letting the hot water rush over her, she took several deep breaths. She was getting a headache, and her stomach felt a little weird this morning. Probably, one a result of the other. Migraines came with a whole host of troubles. Her medication had usually staved off most of them, but occasionally, too much work or two little sleep aggravated them despite the meds.
After the shower, May toweled off her hair a bit and then tucked the terry cloth around her. She could smell breakfast in the main suite and lingered at the door for a moment while waiting for the elevator door to close. It wouldn’t do for Fitz to see her up here with Louis. Even if Louis could protect her from being immediately fired, in the long run, when he left, that would be the death-knell to her maid days. And it wasn’t a terrible job. It gave her a lot of time to think.
“Refreshed?” Louis asked. He had slipped on a pair of silk pajama bottoms. Louis was more comfortable sleeping in the nude, which was . . . just too appropriate for him.
May covered her mouth and walked over to take a glass of juice. “A bit. I’m a little tired this morning.”
“You were tired yesterday, too,” he pointed out. He frowned. “Would you like some coffee, too?”
May shook her head quickly. “No, no, no.”
“What’s wrong?” Louis rose from where he was reclining and came up to her. “I was right. You do need a rest.”
“It’s not that. I think I’m getting a migraine, and it throws me off. I’ll be fine.”
Louis’s lips pursed together in something admirably like a pout. May smiled a little, in spite of the storm brewing between her brows.
“Maybe I’ll see if I can’t call in today— Just today!” May laughed as Louis’s eyes lit up. “But I still have to go meet Alice and James later.”
“Perfect.”
An expression between smug and relieved crossed Louis’s face. May sipped on her juice, and then walked past him, trailing her fingers over his skin on her way back to the bedroom. She couldn’t say she would mind a little bit more time in bed.
It was a little harder to sneak out of the hotel when May was supposed to be home sick. Thus, it turned out to be a little easier for Louis to help sneak Alice and James up. She’d been hoping to spend some time alone with them but had resigned to Louis being glued to them for the night.
Then, when the three of them had arrived in the elevator, Louis had come up to kiss her goodbye and excused himself for the evening.
“He keeps surprising me,” May admitted as she led her friends to the office, which frankly, she had never seen Louis use.
“Girl. Seriously. Who is this guy?” James demanded.
“I didn’t even know you had a boyfriend.” Alice pulled out her laptop to take notes. “When did this happen?”
“Um, gosh, I think maybe five weeks? We met at Astra’s.” May took a seat and rubbed her forehead.
“Are you getting another migraine? I thought your medication was working,” Alice asked.
“It was. At least this one isn’t progressing. It might actually just be a headache. I’ve been a little nauseated today, but I can still work.” May crossed one leg over the other. “James, tell me about our locations. What can we swing?”
The three of them settled into working for a few hours before May realized she was absolutely starving. She bit her lip and put her laptop on the desk.
“Is anyone else hungry?” May stood, and before Alice could answer, she realized she was starting to tilt to the side. “Oh!”
James shot up and caught her by the arm. “Good grief, girl. When was the last time you ate?”
“I had some soup earlier. It’s okay. I’m fine.” May waved them off and headed out for the kitchenette. She could practically sense Alice and James exchanging judge-y looks, but she was really hoping to grab one of the croissants that she hadn’t eaten from breakfast. “I’ll just set everything out, and you can take whatever you’d like.”
“Honey?” Alice came up to lean on the counter. “You nearly fainted just now.”
“I’ve taken the day to rest. I don’t know what else you want from me.”
“You could go to your doctor. That’s a thought.” Alice rolled her eyes and took a croissant. “I don’t know how someone who has taken care of so many other people can completely ignore when they’re obviously sick. I need you to take care of those migraines, or we’re not going to be able to get this film off the ground.”
“Yeah, you’re holding this thing together.” James bumped May’s shoulder. “You don’t want me and Alice tearing each other apart, do you?”
“Only if I can get it on camera.” May winked. She pulled off a bit of flaky croissant and dipped it in some honey butter. Licking her lips, she turned to grab some of the salty Castelvetrano olives. With a groan, she bit into the green, buttery flesh and took another bite of croissant. “Stop staring at me. Try it.”
“I’m gonna,” Alice shot back with a grin. “I’m wondering if you’re not a little high, though.”
“Maybe if I were, it would help with the headaches.” May took another bite and licked her lips. After not eating most of the day, of course, any snack would seem like the most amazing thing in the world. But Louis was kind of right. She’d been feeling a little run down over the past few days. She licked her lips. “Okay, so let’s go over what I want from the cast again. Alice and I are nearly done with this script, so I want to start thinking about what talent we need.”
“I can start talking to agencies,” James said. “But I definitely want one of you there when we’re doing auditions.”
May nodded, and they got back to work in between bites of croissant and olives and cheese, and when Alice dug through the cupboards in the kitchenette, chocolate. When May mixed the chocolate with the olives, James grimaced and Alice tried it.
“You two are surfing the crimson wave, I swear,” James complained.
“Not until next week,” Alice said around a mouthful of chocolate.
“You’re cute, buddy, but if you’re going to make jokes like that, I’m gonna fire you,” May warned.
James held his hands up. “Fine, fine.”
That night, after Alice and James had left, May spent some more time in the office, ironing out a few script issues. A few times, she wondered when Louis would get back and if it would be needy to text him after he’d done her the favor of clearing out of his own place so she could both take the day off and get work done on her independent film. Eventually, she migrated into the sitting area in front the faux-fireplace, turned on Louis’s sound system, and smiled as she scanned through all the different piano tracks. The man had an obsession.
May got a plate from the kitchen, then looked at the olives they had been munching on earlier. What had possessed her? She bit her lip and considered what James had said. She was expecting her period any day, but that was only because it should have come last week and she was occasionally a little bit off.
A lump formed in her throat. A thought was slipping its way into her mind, but it really shouldn’t have been possible. Not with her birth control patch. But she couldn’t help but think, what if it had failed somehow? May took out a container of pasta they’d taken home from a restaurant the other day and started to pick at it as she wavered back and forth, trying to dismiss the idea
.
When Louis touched her shoulder from behind, May jumped. She hadn’t realized how long she’d been staring at the fireplace with the pasta in her lap, untouched.
“Sorry to scare you, love.” Louis bowed down and kissed her cheek. “Did you get a lot done?”
“Yeah. Tons.” May sucked on her lower lip. “Where did you go?”
“Just out visiting friends. I’ve been derelict on that account.” He rubbed her shoulders. “For some reason. Anyway, I brought home a treat.” He held up a pint of mint chocolate chip ice cream.
“Awww. That’s sweet,” May said.
“Quite literally. And it’s all for me.”
“What?” May laughed.
“I know you prefer the cherry and chocolate, so I got that for you.” Louis winked.
“Oh, man. You got me.”
“Do you want it now, or—” He gestured to the pasta.
“Chocolate. Always.”
Louis grinned and led the way to get some spoons. The two of them settled into bed with their ice cream, and Louis turned on the flat screen. That week they had visited museums after hours, walked Griffith Park, and gone to exclusive clubs, but it was nice to just curl up together. May rested her head on Louis’s shoulder, and his arm curled around her, squeezing affectionately as he prodded her for details about her new project. May informed him, a little distractedly, all about their modern film noir set in Los Angeles. As she started to yawn, Louis offered to take the ice cream back to the kitchen, and May slipped out of bed to go brush her teeth.
While in the bathroom, she spotted Louis’s scale. She might not have gained any weight yet, if she was right. Still, she was tempted, just to see. She ran a hand down over the front of her shirt, feeling over her lower abdomen.
“Let me get in here.” Louis came up from behind and grabbed his toothbrush.
May’s heart skipped a beat. Louis was a wonderful man, but his life was a string of lovers and parties. Could he ever want to slow down with her for more than a night? Would he entertain the idea of fatherhood?
Chapter Nine
Louis
Astra sauntered across the bar and trailed her hand over Louis’s shoulders. He frowned up at her, only to receive a dangerous smile.
“What have I done now, my dear old friend?” Louis drawled.
“Apart from my tiny little bartender?” Astra sat next to him and looked over to May, who was setting up a row of shots for a couple men in less-than-impressive suits. “And Sugar DeLaude?”
“I haven’t set eyes on Sugar in weeks,” Louis protested. “Unless you count those over-dramatic trailers plastered all over every television channel.”
“That’s not what I hear.” Astra pulled out her phone and slid it over to Louis.
He looked at it dubiously, but Astra’s amused expression turned into a glare, and he picked it up to see what she was going on about. On the screen was a picture of him, dressed smartly, with May on his arm wearing the A-line dress he’d bought for her to wear to the museum party. Louis felt anger surging to his face as he skimmed the headline: “European Playboy Prince Cheating on Action Star Fiancée!”
“Miranda Dalton is not my fiancée!” Louis slid the phone back to her. “The last I talked to her, she still hated my guts.”
“Be honest, Lou. Game recognizes game.” Astra crossed her legs and her arms as she dissected him with her eyes. “Are you playing both of these women?”
“I swear to you that I am not. I would never do that.” Louis’s jaw tensed. “I have always striven to make sure the women I am with both know the score and have a good time. I wouldn’t hurt anyone that way, the very least of all May. I lo— I care very deeply about her.”
Astra’s brows rose slowly. “Really? Now that is interesting.”
“So very glad to be your entertainment!” Louis snapped. “If Sugar wanted to pursue this, she’s had more than ample time to contact me about her plans!”
“Why are you so quick to come at her about this?”
“Who else knew about Sugar and me?” Louis challenged. “Apart from you.”
Astra ignored his accusation. “I can’t speak to Sugar’s motivations, but I can tell you where she’ll be tonight. If you can pry yourself away from staring at May.”
“Enough. Just tell me. I’ll handle this.”
“Promise me that you’ll keep your temper in check,” Astra warned.
Louis folded his hands in front of him and took in a deep breath. “I am calm,” he lied.
“If anything happens to her, I’m coming after you, your highness,” Astra warned. She pulled a pen out of her corset (from somewhere) and scribbled quickly on a napkin.
“I haven’t lost my temper for quite some time.”
Louis’s fingers twitched, and when Astra lifted her hand, he snatched the napkin.
“You had better not.” Astra put a hand on his forearm. “That little gossip site won’t make the rounds very quickly. But it could eventually get out, depending on how it’s handled. So if you go making things bigger—”
“I understand.” Louis paused, trying to quiet his raging heart, and looked Astra in the eyes. She was getting older. She reminded him almost inexplicably of the woman his mother had been before his father had died: A law unto herself.
And she did care about him. A little.
“I promise, I will have a measured hand in this.”
Twenty minutes after grabbing the napkin, Louis found himself tossing an impertinent bouncer aside and pushing open the door to a private, unmarked club by himself. The place inside sported soft lighting and gentle string music, and he spotted Sugar right away, sipping some tea with her stunt-double. He’d had the inkling when he’d first seen them together that Sugar was more than a little interested in Karre, and the half-Japanese woman smiled at Sugar with her full lips in a way that suggested her interest was beginning to be returned. None of this should have come as a surprise to Louis, given Sugar’s behavior at the club and how she’d focused in on May and Astra so quickly.
She’d had his sympathies. But that was before this story had leaked.
“Odd to have so much security for a tea room,” Louis said dryly as he approached their table.
“Oh, hello, Louis!” Karre said brightly.
“They serve more than tea. Sometimes.” Sugar looked up at him with a sour expression. “Have you come to let me know you’re going to tattle to my parents? What a horrible daughter I’ve been.”
“No, I’ve come to find out why there’s a rumor that you and I are already engaged, when I’ve not heard a word from you in weeks.” Louis pulled out his phone to show her them the gossip blog.
“She’s pretty,” Karre said.
“I’m not your— Shit.” Sugar pushed her tea away. “Someone on the set might have heard when I was explaining all of this to Karre.”
“One of the make-up girls? Hair?” Karre suggested. “But nothing we said suggested the marriage was on.”
“People misunderstand things. I would just be a matter of time before a rumor like that got around. I would bet there have been star chasers out there hunting a picture of us together and cursing their lives that Louis and I have been nowhere near each other.” Sugar glanced down at the picture again. “So, they found something else to take a picture of.”
“You swear you had nothing to do with this,” Louis pressed firmly.
“If I were going to keep you as a beard, I’d let you know about it first!” Sugar pushed a chair out with her foot for him to sit down. “Stop looming. We need to make a plan.”
Louis threw his hands up. “What plan? What can we do about this?”
“Calm your tits, Louie.”
“Do not call me that.”
Karre took an empty cup and poured him some tea. “Sugar knows a lot about dealing with paparazzi. Are you worried about the girl you were seen with? I bet we can protect her a little.”
Louis felt the anger seeping out of him. Karre seemed like su
ch a sweet woman, for someone whose job was to do dangerous fighting choreography and get shots falling out of buildings and crashing cars.
Sugar narrowed her eyes at Louis’s phone. “Is that the girl from Astra’s? The one who wants to be a director?”
“Indeed.” Louis blinked. “You have a good eye.”
“And she’s working on something right now, isn’t she? Astra said it was some indie noir thing.”
Louis looked between the two women and nodded. Karre set some cookies on a plate and slid it over to him. It was like he was sitting in the middle of a secret conspiracy. Though, he couldn’t say why Sugar would have to have made herself so good at all this manipulation.
“I have a party to go to next weekend. We should all go there together and change the narrative,” Sugar said, seeming more like a military commander than an actress. “I’ll introduce her to people in the industry. A friend of mine. We all know each other through Astra, apart from Karre—”
“That’s okay. I don’t really enjoy parties the way you do. Or subterfuge.” Karre took a cookie and smiled.
Sugar frowned uncertainly at that but rallied on. “If a bigger news outlet is reporting on a different story, the one from this little gossip rag will seem like basic lies. All of it.”
“That . . . would be much better. Thank you,” Louis said. “I just want to do right by May. I know she takes her career very seriously, and I would hate from my family drama to make that future harder than it already is.”
“It’s no problem. To be honest, I did consider just agreeing to your proposal for a while. Then, calling it off when I’d secured my next gig after Ryde or Die. I’m not as cute as Ellen Page, or as beautiful as Ruby Rose, or as funny as Ellen DeGeneres. Damn, that bitch is Teflon. I have to be careful how people see me, or I won’t get roles at all.”
“I don’t really understand that.” Louis shrugged. “But May would. She’s always talking about the politics in the industry. I’m not always following her, but it’s cute to see her fired up.”
