“She was my biggest client to that point, and her problems were more about behavior, or so I thought. She was the first time I ended my relationship with someone on a scandal.”
“It sounds like it was a difficult situation.”
“Yeah.” She looks up at me. “But, hey, life is funny sometimes. Now I’m here in a foreign country spending time with my sis and getting to help you.”
“Not much of a consolation, I’m afraid.”
She laughs softly. “It’s not that bad. I kind of like that you’re not constantly hounded by media. It gives me time to think and plan. In Hollywood, they were everywhere. You couldn’t wipe your ass without someone trying to take a picture of it.”
“That’s quite a visual.”
“Yeah. At least you can go about your daily business without being pursued. For you, they only show up socially.”
“Correct. Except that immediately following the accusations, they would wait at Equis for me or any employee of mine to come out. Most of the women who work with me were questioned by media. Many have received phone calls from reporters looking for proof.”
“But they haven’t found any.”
“No. Because there isn’t any.”
“That’s why I believe we can squash this pretty easily. I think where it’s gone wrong to this point is that there hasn’t been enough public evidence of your true character.”
“I admit I avoided public appearances recently because of this, and as you pointed out, it was noted that perhaps I was guilty and by hiding out I was proving that, but it was difficult to go out and be accosted and have such ugly things yelled at me.” I glance into her eyes, but look away again. She’s so beautiful, it’s distracting. “One night, whilst out with a date, we were at a restaurant enjoying a lovely meal, and then suddenly a mob of paparazzi arrived and snapped photos, but the worse is they asked her if she enjoyed eating meals with a man who does not value women. She was uncomfortable, rightfully so, and left the restaurant without me. Obviously, it was humiliating.”
Avery nods. “I read the article.”
Smiling, I add, “Normally, women don’t walk out on me.”
“I bet not.” Surprising me, she touches my hand briefly and the action makes me feel warm to my core. “As cliché as this probably sounds, she wasn’t the right one. A person who truly cared about you wouldn’t leave when things get tough.”
“I know this, but…” I pause, shaking my head. “I know this.”
“But what?”
“I won’t explain my romantic complications to you. Suffice to say, I’m not looking for the right one, because I don’t believe that exists for me.” I have no idea why I just admitted that to her, but perhaps it’s the genuine concern reflecting in her eyes.
“I’d try to change your mind, but I feel the same way. Some people are lucky and meet someone who makes it all better. Some people never do.”
“You’re still young enough.”
“So are you, Ellis.”
“I don’t want it though.”
“Neither do I.”
We search each other’s eyes for several silent moments. I don’t know what she’s thinking, but I’m fighting the urge to kiss her. As my eyes move down to her mouth, then her neck, then her chest, I notice how she breathes hard. She must be as attracted to me as I am to her. Deciding to take a chance, I lift my hand to her and brush the hair off her shoulder. Emboldened when she doesn’t flinch or make any attempt to move away from me, I move closer, ready to meet her lips with mine, until she blinks and moves back slightly.
“Um, we should talk about next steps,” she blurts, slightly breathless.
I nod, sitting upright again. “Yes, you’re right. I, uh, I should get going, but if you’re available, we can meet tomorrow.”
“All my time is yours, Ellis.” Ah, how I wish that were true. “Text me the time and I’ll be there.”
“Wonderful.”
I stand, unsure if I should address what just happened between us. I know she felt it too. When my eyes meet hers again, she smiles.
“It’s okay, Ellis,” she says, as though reading my mind. “We just need to remember the nature of our relationship.”
“Yes, I agree. I respect you, Avery, very much, but I’d be lying if I didn’t admit I find you extremely appealing.”
She nods, remaining silent.
“You feel the same, yeah? I’m not alone?”
“I don’t really want to talk about it.”
As I step closer, she looks up at me with those pretty blue eyes and lush pink lips. “Perhaps it wouldn’t hurt anything to just admit there is an attraction even though neither of us will act upon it.”
“When something is obvious, I don’t know that it’s necessary to give it life through admission.”
Smiling, I nod, appeased with her response. “A fair point, Avery. Thank you for this morning, for your dedication to me, and for teaching me coffee can be good.”
She laughs softly. “You’re welcome, Ellis. Thank you for trusting me. I understand what a big deal that is for you.”
This is the part where I should walk away and leave, but dammit, I just need to touch her again. Before she can protest, I pull her into my arms and hold her tight to my chest. Her body is tense for a moment, until she relaxes against me, and I feel her hands run down my back. I want her so much it’s clouding my thoughts. This is not good. Releasing her, I step back slowly.
“Until tomorrow.”
“Yep. Bye, Ellis.”
I bow my head slightly and see myself out. Once in my car, I run my fingers through my hair and exhale slowly. As I start the car, I look back at the house. Every nerve in my body is on fire and crying out for the only woman who can make it better.
Avery.
Chapter 10 Avery
Damn! Once Ellis is gone, I plop down on the sofa in the living room and run my fingers through my hair. I cannot allow the line to be crossed, no matter how much I want it. For a few seconds I was sure he was going to kiss me, and dammit, I was going to let him, until my senses kicked in. I cannot fuck a client. No way. No how. Not even one who looks like that. It just can’t happen. It would complicate things too much, maybe even making it impossible to continue our working relationship. I can’t jeopardize this opportunity, not even for a few minutes of what would have to be the best time of my life.
After sitting alone for a long time, I stand to go upstairs just as Annabelle and David are coming down. Annabelle sees me, and tilts her head, looking past me.
“Did Ellis leave?”
“He did. Do you have time to chat?”
“She does.” David leans forward and kisses my cheek. “I’m going out for a bit. See you two birds later.”
“Birds?”
Annabelle laughs. “Women.”
“Ah.”
David leaves and I follow Annabelle to the kitchen where she starts another kettle for tea. I sit on the barstool, leaning my elbows on the counter in a full on pout.
“What happened with you two? One minute it was World War Three, and the next you’re laughing over tea.”
“Oh, Annabelle. I have no idea what to do. Ellis is a magnificent man, but he’s also prideful and easily set off. I can handle those things, but here’s the problem.” I sigh. “I can’t shake my attraction to him, and it’s not one-sided. He nearly kissed me a few minutes ago.”
“What?” she exclaims. “Ooh I knew it. David and I both saw fireworks right before our eyes, but I didn’t think he’d go for it.”
“It was spontaneous. We were talking, and he brushed some hair from my shoulder, then all of a sudden he was moving in. It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done to stop it from happening. God, I want that man to kiss me.”
Annabelle giggles as she grabs two tea bags from the canister on the counter. “Love it. You should’ve let him do it then become righteous about it.”
“What if I couldn’t stop it? What then? The two of you come downs
tairs and we’re going at it on the kitchen island?”
“Well, that would’ve been quite a sight to see.”
Shaking my head, I exhale slowly. “Now I have that image running in my mind.” Looking up at my sister, I continue. “Why does he have to be the sexiest man in London?”
“He’s not, David is, but second sexiest isn’t bad.”
“Fair enough, but you get my drift.”
“I do.” She pulls my hands into hers and smiles. “All you can do is what you’ve been doing and focus on the task not the man. The day may come that the two of you can’t fight it off anymore and give in to the attraction. If that happens, you’re both adults and you’ll figure it out. Wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world to wake up next to Ellis Worthington.”
“No, it wouldn’t. It would be the best thing that’s happened to me in a long time, assuming he can walk his talk.”
“Oh, come on. You know he can.”
“I know.” I chew on my bottom lip for a minute. “That’s why it’s so difficult to resist.”
“Just take it day by day.”
“That’s all I can do. It’s so weird that he’s single.”
“Yeah, he’s quirky about women though. He was dating this woman last year for a couple of months, and we insisted he invite her over to dinner. When I met her, I didn’t get what he saw in her at all, so when I had a chance I asked him and he said…” She pauses to snicker.
“What?”
“He said she gave amazing head.”
I start laughing. “He did not?”
“He did, and he was never planning to see her more than once, but she was so good at it, he was going to tolerate her as long as possible. It only lasted a couple of weeks after that because she took meeting his friends as a step toward being serious.”
“That’s hilarious.”
“He was embarrassed telling me. He didn’t want me to think he just uses women for sex. Then he told me that he sees it as a reciprocal deal. She gets her name in papers, and he gets good head for a few months.”
“Makes sense. He said when he breaks up with a woman she always handles it well.”
“David tells me the same thing. He only had one tough one and it was years ago before I knew David. She turned into a bit of a stalker, and he had to get a bodyguard for a few months. Then she met someone else and moved on just like that.”
“Weird.”
“Yeah.” The tea kettle whistles, pulling Annabelle’s attention away for a moment, then she fills two cups up for each of us. “You have to learn to be a tea drinker here. A lot of times, coffee won’t even be a choice.”
I scrunch my nose. “I’ll try.” After mixing milk and sugar in it just like I did for Ellis, I take a sip and shrug. “It’s tolerable.”
“Let’s sit on the couch.”
“K.”
Taking our tea, we walk over to the couch and sit down, cross legged as usual.
“I’ve been wondering,” Annabelle starts, “You said you’ve had some bad luck lately with men. Anything specific?”
I shrug, suddenly interested in my tea as I stare into my cup. “Not really.”
“Avery? You know you can’t lie to me.”
“Yeah I know.” I look up at her. “I just hate thinking about it.”
“Did someone hurt you?”
“Not physically or anything.” I sigh, swishing my tea around a little. “There was this guy I started seeing right around the time I met Atlanta. He was a model, but nothing was happening for him. I met him at some movie industry event where he was a waiter.”
“Uh huh.”
“He was really hot, and we hooked up that night and the next several nights after that. He was a deep thinker you know? Like he read Shakespeare for fun deep.”
“That’s pretty deep,” she says, sipping her tea.
“Yeah, and it’s so rare to meet anyone with any kind of depth in L.A., especially in my line of work.”
She nods. “I can imagine.”
“It was cool for a while. We spent a lot of non-sex time together, and I really started to like him.”
“Then what happened?”
“He started attending different events with me, making contacts, and getting his name in articles because he was attached to mine. At first, I was happy for him that he was getting some modeling gigs, and I even wrote a press release for him that I used my contacts to get published in a high profile magazine a lot of talent scouts read.”
“He didn’t appreciate it?”
“I don’t know. What I do know is that he started fucking everybody with connections he could get close to. I learned this when he said he couldn’t hang out with me for the weekend because he was gonna be out of town for a shoot, but when I got to the awards show on Saturday night, he was there with this really famous pop star.”
Her eyes open wide. “Shit.”
“That’s not even the worse part. When he saw me, he tried to act like he didn’t even know who I was, but me and said pop star are actually pretty cool. So when she figures it out, she gets pissed, like lose your shit level pissed, and she screams at him in front of everyone, then douses him with the red wine she’s drinking.” I shake my head remembering the scene. “So she stomps out and I’m left standing there with him. Meanwhile the paps are catching all of it.”
“Paps?”
“Paparazzi.”
“Ah.”
“The next day, not only did it not damage his career, it splashed his name all over every gossip site and magazine. It was even trending on Twitter for a while. When people figured out he was linked to the pop star, suddenly they wanted to know everything about him. Now, he’s like some kind of pretty boy socialite just dating famous women.”
“So he used you?”
“Yep. Normally, my bullshit meter is on point, but he got right by me. I’m still waiting for it to blow up on him. It will eventually. It always does.”
“He’s the reason you don’t want to date now?”
“Sort of.” I set my tea cup down and pick at my nail. “It’s more about my lack of judgement and just where I’m at right now. I was blindsided by him. Blindsided by Atlanta. I need to focus on my career, and honestly, I feel like I don’t see as clearly as I used to. That’s why Ellis is trouble. He’s…” I pause, then smile at my sister. “He’s the kind of man I always wanted to find. Not in the industry, intelligent, successful in his own right, and obviously sexy. Sucks that I find him and can’t do anything about it.”
“For now. You won’t be his publicist forever.”
“I could be.”
She shakes her head. “No. Once this whole business is officially dead, he’ll go back to corporate publicists and that’s not you. You could never be behind a desk churning out press releases about things you don’t care about. Damage control is what you do best. You’re the scandal queen and queens don’t work in office buildings.”
I laugh as I reply. “Scandal queen?”
“If the crown fits.”
“I guess I’ll own that title, but I told Ellis my terms were full time employment if I pull this off.”
“A lot can happen in six months.”
I nod. “True. The money I’m getting paid is what I need to get things going again. Maybe I’ll even stay here in England. There’s plenty of scandal here to clean up, right?”
“Sure. Plenty to go around.”
“Yeah. We’ll see.”
“For now, want to go shopping? There’s a lovely boutique over at Carnaby Street where they make custom handbags.” She pats my leg. “You up for it?”
“When in my life have I turned down shopping?”
“To date, exactly none.”
“My streak continues. I’ll go get dressed.”
◆◆◆
Later that evening, I’m sitting with my sister and David at the dinner table, while Annabelle tells him all the treasures we found on our shopping trip today. I love watching them together. David seems
interested in her every word, even asking questions and praising her for finding good sales. He keeps his eyes focused on her as she speaks, and I can tell he truly loves her. If I could find the kind of love they have, I’d be all in, but I wonder if I would even recognize it. Love is some elusive idea that stays outside of my reach.
“So,” David says, turning to me. “I hear things worked out alright this morning with you and the beast?”
“The beast?” I question.
“Ah, yeah, Annabelle didn’t tell you my nickname for the situation?”
Annabelle laughs. “I forgot.”
“You, Avery are the beauty, and my dear Ellis is the beast. I do believe you have what it takes to tame him and possibly even transform him into a proper human.”
I laugh, shaking my head. “He’s not that bad, is he?”
David grins, replying, “that response is exactly why I think you can handle him. He is that bad, and many before you couldn’t handle his intensity. You’ve seen how he angers quickly.” I nod as he continues. “Most are intimidated and become flustered, which Ellis views as a sign of weakness and incompetence. Many have quit or been dismissed simply because they couldn’t manage his personality.”
“He doesn’t scare me.”
“I know,” he says. “I hope you’ve also seen that underneath the prickly bits, he’s a good man. He’s funny, smart, and generous. When he cares about something, nothing can get in his way to protect it. If you matter to him, you matter deeply. Ellis doesn’t have superficial relationships.”
“What about all the women?” I ask.
“They didn’t matter.”
I nod, looking down at my dinner plate for a moment. “I just want him to trust me.”
David grabs my hand, squeezing it softly. “He does.”
“Did he say that?”
“No, but I know him. He’s almost like a brother to me, and I’ve seen his interactions with people over the years. If he was doubting you on any level, he wouldn’t be so open to you.”
Taking a chance, I decide to question further. “Are you sure it’s not just because he’s attracted to me?”
David grins, releasing my hand and sitting back in his seat. “So you’ve picked up on that?”
Mind the Line Page 9
