Acting Happy (Texas Desires #2) (33 page)

Five days later

Kenzie stood in the kitchen, warming a vegetable stir-fry she’d made earlier in the day, listening to the faint sounds of Ty’s voice coming from his office on the other side of the house. She worked quietly preparing her plate of food and decided at the last minute to make a plate for Ty. The small act of making his dinner caused a quick slice of pain to ripple across her heart. They were in day five of the catastrophe she now referred to as Nakedgate and the tension in the house had become palpable. He hadn’t sat to eat a meal with her this week.

Things had gotten so bad that she hadn’t left the house since Monday, not even to go into the garage. Ty on the other hand had gotten to where he only came home to sleep. Another aching slice raked across her heart until a violent noisy crash in the distance made her suddenly jerk in unexpected fear. She looked over her shoulder in the direction of Ty’s office. The string of curse words that followed would have made a sailor proud.

Instead of going toward the problem, Kenzie found herself recoiling. She turned from the food and stood against the cabinet, waiting for whatever was about to come down on her. Her heart slammed violently in her chest as she listened to the sounds of heavy footsteps stalking toward her. Ty appeared in the doorway of the kitchen, his angry glare trained on her.

“Why is it so dark in this damn house all the time?” Ty asked, not necessarily a shout, but she could tell he was doing everything in his power to hold the vehemence at bay. Kenzie didn’t say a word or move an inch; she just stared at him. She tried so hard to tell herself that Ty wasn’t Jason. That not all men escalated anger into abuse, but God, it was hard to rationalize and keep her fear in check. Enough time must have passed that Ty figured out she wasn’t going to answer even under his most expectant stare. “I’ve got filming. I’ll be gone all night.”

Last week when they’d spoken about nights like these, he’d begged her to go with him—spend the night in his dressing room to be close by for whenever he got a break. Now apparently all that was out the window. Technically, they’d never really been out as a couple, so it shouldn’t have hurt that he didn’t want her to go, but it did.

Ty looked at her for several long seconds. All she could decipher was an expression of disgust before he turned and left. That was when she saw the duffle bag slung over his shoulder. Tears sprang to her eyes when she heard the slamming of the front door.

Kenzie lifted a shaking hand to her face, a small hiccup escaped from the emotion she’d tried to hold back. She’d promised herself that she’d never live like that again. Heck, she had sworn off all men for the rest of her life, and look what she’d done—moved in with the first guy who looked her way.

Instead of dwelling on her own stupidity, Kenzie went to the sink and splashed cold water on her heated face. She knew what she needed to do, but that decision sucked so badly. She loved Ty on a level she’d never loved another before.

Forcing her spine to straighten, Kenzie reached for a hand towel to dry her eyes. She had money. She had her sign-on bonus and her first paycheck would come next week. The writing was on the wall for this relationship. If she stayed and prayed, all her effort would only extend the pain of the eventual breakup. The facts were clear. Ty hadn’t had a kind word to say in five days, and they hadn’t had sex since those pictures were first published. The last two nights, they hadn’t slept in the same bed. Now, he was leaving the home. The blows across her heart kept coming. How in the world did she even have a heart left?

Decision made, Kenzie went to pack. Probably the easiest way to get out of town was to rent a car. Surely she’d be spotted at the airport. So she needed to drive home, not fly. And the ridiculousness of that thought didn’t go unnoticed. Why would anyone care? She pushed that aside and went for her new laptop to book a car. Packing wouldn’t take long, she hadn’t come with much and no way was she taking everything he’d bought her. She already owed him so much. It would be impossible to ever pay him back. Maybe the debt owed would be considered paid in full with her leaving on her own, him not having to ask her, and that made her heart hurt, too.

~~~

Ty leaned back in his director’s chair watching the scene they were currently working on just a few feet away. He was in full makeup, waiting for his call. A long, tired yawn slipped free, and he reached over for his cup of coffee, downing the contents in two long swallows.

“Hey,” Julia said, taking the chair next to his. She’d agreed to a four show run this season, one of those shows began filming tonight.

“Hey,” he finally said when he decided silence was probably too rude for someone he called a friend.

“Hmm.”

He never looked up or responded to that because that one word she’d just uttered described his entire mental state.

“I’m off for the next hour. Want to eat, maybe talk some?”

“I’m not hungry.”

Julia got off her chair, faced him, and patted his knee. “Come with me anyway.”

At this point, he could ignore her in front of all these people who were keeping a wide berth or he could go with her. After a minute, he shoved off the chair and followed her toward the food table.

~~~

Less than two hours after Kenzie had booked a car, an Enterprise driver pulled to the front gate and buzzed their arrival. Kenzie went for the buzzer—it took a second to remember the access code to allow someone in—and was surprised when the gate didn’t open. She pressed the speaker. “Hang on. I’m sorry. The code’s not working.”

Perhaps she’d gotten it wrong. Confused, she went back to Ty’s office, rummaged through a drawer for the list of security codes at the same time the doorbell rang. She pivoted on her heels, turning back to the entryway. Maybe they’d gotten in after all. Kenzie lifted on her tiptoes, looking out the peephole to see a big bulked-up man wearing a uniform. Something that looked close to an officer, but not quite the police regardless of the weapon he wore on his hip.

“Can I help you?” she called through the door, completely uncertain what to do. What if this was some sort of paparazzi trick?

“We bypassed the entrance code per Mr. Bateman’s instruction until we can verify who’s driving the vehicle. This is not on the list of approved vehicles allowed entry,” the guy shouted through the door.

“Can I see some ID?” she finally said, having no clue what was going on. After a second, the guy lifted his wallet to show his driver’s license on one side and what looked like a professional identification on the other. After a second of indecision, she opened the door a crack, praying she wasn’t making a mistake.

They both just stared at one another cautiously until she finally spoke again. “Now, who are you?”

“I’m sorry to bother you. We tried to call Mr. Bateman, but he didn’t answer. We have a policy in place that we’re required to follow before we let anyone up here,” he explained and actually took a step backward, probably trying to not be quite so threatening which would be pretty impossible just based on his sheer size.

“It’s a car for me,” she explained, furrowing her brow. Ty had never told her anything about a process for their guests.

“The driver’s not willing to work with us,” he explained and then waited. Probably hoping she’d catch on so he didn’t have to say anything more. She bit her lip and decided she didn’t need to understand any of this; she just needed that car in order to load her stuff and hit the road before her fragile resolve broke.

“I asked for discretion when I placed the order. They’re just dropping the car off for me,” she explained, opening the door farther.

“Can we drive the vehicle up to you?” he asked.

“I guess, if they’ll let you. If not, then please allow them up or I can walk down there,” she said, trying to find a quick solution.

“You’ll need to help us with that. Can you call the company and approve me to take possession of the vehicle for you?”

“Okay. I can try. You should come in,” she said and stepped back for him to enter. It was such a strange moment that she never turned her back on the guy, kept her eyes focused on him and took a step backward.

“I can’t, ma’am. I’m not to enter the home unless there’s a breach.”

Kenzie frowned at that. Had this guy been around the house every night when she thought they were alone?

“Okay, well, I need your name again.” The guy willingly gave her his wallet. She did appreciate the kindness and patience he was showing because she was clearly several steps behind. Kenzie shut the door in his face and wondered how long he’d been employed. It dawned on her as she went for the office that he seemed to know that she didn’t know about his presence. Surely he wasn’t a lone security guard, so who else might be out there watching them when she thought they were alone? The moment validated her decision. Covert security. What did that even mean and why did Ty hide all this? Did this mean she was a prisoner in her own supposed home?

Frustrated and holding on tight to that anger seemed to help put her in survival mode and pushed away the hurt. She dialed the main number to the rental car company and went through process of allowing the security guard to take possession of the car. After only a mere forty-five minutes, which included intermittent moments of exaggerated eye rolls and buckets of tears falling, she was able to load the car and be off, pulling down the long driveway.

After a standoff when the same guard wouldn’t open the gate without her throwing a complete fit and breaking down, sobbing right in front of him, she was finally off. Relief never came. Instead, sadness overwhelmed her on a level she’d never experienced before. Life had taught her she’d get through this. She had to. Another choice didn’t exist.

~~~

After several minutes of picking at the food Julia had gotten for him from the dinner buffet, Ty abandoned the idea of eating and pushed the plate away from him. He lifted his eyes to Julia who looked worried. He appreciated the sentiment, more than she could possibly know, but it didn’t help, and he just wasn’t in the right frame of mind to truly care enough to ease her burden.

“Trust me, she’s not understanding that your anger isn’t directed toward her,” Julia said, leaning across the table closer toward him. Her words were hushed and very direct.

“Then I have something else I have to apologize for. Is that what you’re saying? How many times am I gonna have to apologize until she’s finally done?” he asked hopelessly.

“Ty, you’re being so hardheaded. That woman doesn’t want your apologies. She wants you. None of that other stuff matters more than you,” Julia said adamantly, banging her small fist on the tabletop. The surprising gesture worked. He lifted his gaze back to hers while snapping his brows together.

“You didn’t see her. You don’t see how she looks at me. It’s not the same. I ruined her,” he confessed, this time giving in to the dramatic side of his nature, dropping his head in his hands. His heart hurt so badly that it made coherent thought almost impossible. He could feel Kenzie slipping away, sense her withdrawal from that very first night they’d seen the story, and furthermore, he didn’t blame her. She was goodness and everything right in this world, and he hadn’t been able to keep her safe.

“Ty, we were all destroyed after the first leaked compromising photo. Yet, we’re still here. She’s still here. She’s in that house day after day, waiting for you to get home. She’s here and she’s scared and you’re being a dick,” Julia said, losing the calm she always stayed within, becoming frustrated with him for not seeing it the way she tried to explain.

“I’m sorry to bother you, but the director’s looking for you. He’s been trying to call. You’re needed on set,” a young intern said. Ty reached down to his pocket to feel for his phone only to remember he was dressed for the show, no pockets available.

Well, shit, where was his phone?

Since everyone but Julia was keeping their distance, Ty had to stop the kid’s retreat.

“Hey, you!”

The intern turned around, bewildered, then looked behind him, before turning back, his thumb coming out to poke himself in his chest. “Me?” he asked, confused as Ty shoved away from the table.

“Find my phone and then hang on to it until you’re able to put it in my hands. Got it?” Ty barked.

“Yes, sir.”

Ty walked past the kid and didn’t look back at Julia. She had a point, and more than likely, she was probably right, but that would require self-reflection which was too much to ask with the little to no sleep he was working on. Besides, Kenzie knew how much he loved her. He'd told her no less than a hundred times over the last few weeks. Her leaving was the absolute last thing he’d ever want. She was everything he held dear in the world, and if he crowded her or made light of this incident, she’d believe he didn’t care and there was no way he wanted that outcome.

Exhaustion had her reaching up, slapping her cheek with the palm of her hand, desperately trying to stay awake to meet her first driving goal. She was about thirty minutes shy of Flagstaff, Arizona. With the sun just beginning to rise, Kenzie turned on the radio, hoping to find one of those funny morning show programs that she used to like so much in Austin. That might help keep her awake.

Kenzie pushed the scan button and listened until she found a station that might work. This time of day, there was very little traffic on the interstate. She’d been able to make really good time, which she began to take as some sort of sign that she had made the right decision. Of course, coming to that conclusion took hours of battling her broken heart. For at least the first hundred or so miles, she’d had to fight herself to keep from turning back. Those same old insecurities she’d faced her whole life had resurfaced. If she just loved Ty enough or if she tried harder, maybe she could change his mind, make him want her once again.

In reality, after years of heartache, those thoughts now made her understand she was absolutely in the wrong place. Luckily, the knowledge finally made her resolve stronger. Trying a relationship and leaving when it didn’t work had to mean she’d learned something from her time with Jason, right?

Right! She continued eating up the miles, driving as far away from California as she could get. When she looked down at the time, she did the quick time-zone math. Six thirty in Arizona, meant eight thirty in Dallas. She needed to call Lara and let her know of the changes she planned to make. If she didn’t make it to Tennessee by Monday, she might also have to ask for some flexibility in her schedule. She rolled her eyes at that one. How could she already ask for time off? Maybe she could stop and work during the day, travel at night.

Reaching for her purse, she dug inside for her old cell phone. It was years old, battered and cracked, but hers, and for some unknown reason, she took comfort in knowing her things were good enough for her world.

Carefully she drove, moving her eyes from the phone to the road until she’d dialed Lara’s number and hit send, then she reached forward to turn down the radio volume and put the phone to her ear.

“Lara Hunter,” she answered on the fourth ring.

“Hey, it’s Kenzie. I know it’s early Saturday morning. I hoped you’d be in the office. Are you busy?” she asked.

“Hi. No. What number’s this?” Lara asked, losing that strict professional tone, sounding more like herself.

“This is my old cell phone. I’ve got something to say, and it might put you in a bad position. If I need to quit, I can,” she said, dreading that thought and her next words.

“What’s going on?”

“I left tonight. I’m heading home.” Short, sweet, and to the point seemed the best way.

“What? Why?” Lara asked, her voice full of concern.

“It’s not gonna work between us. Since those last pictures went live, it’s been different. Completely different. He doesn’t treat me the same. Everything we planned and talked about is just gone. He’s mad at me at me all the time, and I can’t go through that again.”

Her voice broke at the hurt those words caused so she just stopped talking.

“Kenzie, he’s so into you. Are you sure he’s not just mad at the situation?” Lara asked carefully.

“It changed, Lara. I gave it time to see if things would get any better, but it hasn’t. He throws things around the house. He snaps at me all the time. We don’t sleep in the same bed or eat meals together. He’s never home anymore. I’ve been gone for hours, and he hasn’t even tried to call me.” Kenzie again stopped talking and took a deep breath, not wanting to really consider the fact that he hadn’t tried to call since she’d left. Either he still didn’t know she’d gone, which was highly unlikely with the way that too-eager security guard acted, or he truly didn’t care. That reality hurt too much to bear, and she searched deep inside herself for the mask she had worn for most of her life. After a second more, she twisted her words, hiding the pain, searching for something positive and not quite so pathetic as her life turned out to be.

“I’m very lucky. Ty was a great way to get over Jason. I’ll owe all of you forever for the kindness you’ve shown me, but I should have known to leave Jason at the first sign of trouble. I can’t make those same mistakes again.”

Her quiet sob broke her voice and again she stopped speaking. The stupid tears started, and she wiped at her eyes with the back of her hand as she slowed the vehicle until she could pull over on the side of the highway.

“Where are you going?” Lara asked quietly after a solid minute of silence. Kenzie dropped her forehead on the steering wheel.

“I guess home. I’m almost to Flagstaff. I thought I’d stop and sleep a few hours then keep going. I’m trying to make it to Tennessee before tomorrow night, but I’m not sure I’ll make it that far. I might need a day off. I’ll stop and be available for whatever you have planned, though, if that’s okay.”

“Why don’t you come here?” Lara asked. Kenzie hadn’t thought of that option, but quickly nixed the idea.

“Reed is Ty’s best friend. He doesn’t need to be reminded of me every time he comes to visit Reed. Besides, you said they tore the rest of that back bedroom up,” she said, closing her eyes and concentrating on breathing. Going back to Tennessee… Her heart sank a little further. Clearly, her parents were never going to be rid of her. Maybe she should stop trying.

“Then stay with Kade. My room’s sitting there unused every day.”

“Kade doesn’t want me there,” she started, but that honestly didn’t sound like such a bad idea.

“I promise he won’t mind. Kade’s the one that suggested I come to California last week. You can be with friends and regroup. Please come here, Kenzie. I think it’ll be good for you,” Lara said.

“I guess I could. How much would he charge me?” she asked and lifted her head, looking out the front window.

“Not much at all. I still pay for half the rent because we we’re in a lease. We can talk about all that when you get here.”

“Well, call him and ask. I’d like to do that. My parents have to be sick of me.” Staying close to Lara might be exactly what she needed to get back on her feet. She could bury herself in the job, work all the time, and maybe she’d be able to someday get past all this hurt in her heart.

“Just come, Kenzie. Head here, and I’ll get the details worked out.”

“Thank you.” For some reason there was a trickle of hope now. She had to cling to that for all it was worth.

“Don’t thank me. Just be safe and call me later.”

Lara disconnected the call before she had a chance to say goodbye. Kenzie was slower to lower the phone and toss it in the cup holder. After a minute more, she pulled back out onto the highway and passed a mile marker showing her about fifteen miles from Flagstaff. She reached over, turned up the volume on the radio, and gave a giant yawn. The radio was the perfect diversion, and Kenzie focused on what had the disc jockeys’ shouting loudly over each other.

“Well, like I called it! It looks like Julia and Ty are back together if these latest pictures are true,” a woman said, sounding very proud of herself. “They just need to stop pretending. We all know they want each other.”

“Those pictures were supposedly taken last night?” a man asked.

“Yeah, look at ’em all huddled up together.”

Okay, well, she knew she shouldn’t listen to anything else they said, but if he were with Julia last night, that explained why he hadn’t asked her to go on set and why he hadn’t called her yet. He probably wasn’t even home. The damn tears were back, and against her better judgement, she did continue to listen.

“I never liked that new woman. She just looks like a gold digger.”

“She looks like a hick to me. He’s so handsome and she’s so not.”

“I like her. I’d do her,” one guy said suggestively. “Maybe she’s on the rebound. I’ll have a chance.”

“You’re only saying that after seeing her naked.”

“Yeah, Julia wouldn’t have ever let them be caught like that.”

“Too bad. Julia’s hot. I’d like to see her naked.”

Kenzie reached over and turned the volume down, not wanting to hear another word. It was remarkable how many blows her heart could take and keep on beating. She hated being talked about. It had been like this for weeks after her arrest.

Deciding the radio was a bad idea, she turned the knob completely off and searched for the first hotel on the highway and took the exit. She’d sleep a few hours, plan her route, and get back out on the road with hopefully a new perspective. She needed that more than anything.

~~~

Backing out of his designated parking space, the early morning sun hit just right, momentarily blinding Ty as he put the sports car in first gear and began to roll forward. It was the two hands banging against the hood that sent his heart racing as he slammed on the brakes. “What the hell?”

He couldn’t see who was there until the intern from earlier walked around the hood toward his side.

“I fucking almost ran you down,” Ty yelled as he lowered his window.

“Yes, sir,” the kid answered, his hands shaking as he extended one through the window, pushing Ty’s cell phone through. “You said to only put it in your hands and I didn’t see you again, sir.”

“Damn,” he muttered to himself, taking the phone. He was so strung out he hadn’t even realized he didn’t have the damn thing on him. If this device would have gotten in the wrong hands, he’d have exposed every person he loved to endless harassment. Hell, this proved what a selfish motherfucker he had been. Those asswipes would have Kenzie’s cell phone information. God, what was wrong with him?

“Thank you,” he finally muttered.

“You’re welcome,” the kid beamed, taking a giant step away from the vehicle.

“Find me tomorrow. I’ll repay this,” Ty said, lifting the phone.

“Not necessary, sir.” The kid shook his head and gave a wave goodbye as he turned on his heel and jogged back toward the building. He stared at the kid until the door shut behind him.

Over the last week, Ty’s entire internal concentration had been focused on all the negative in his life, but that kid was like Kenzie. And like Kenzie, it was so rare to see the genuine kindness that it always seemed to take him off guard.

Dropping the phone on the passenger seat, Ty’s sole focus rested on getting home.

It was early enough that the traffic wasn’t a killer. He used the remote entry to access the gate, lifting a hand at the security guard who waved. Only in his rearview mirror did he see the guy coming to stand in the middle of the driveway, his hands motioning in the air.

Ty stopped, put the car in reverse and backed up, lowering his window. The moment with the intern had been a magical reminder of the good in his life. That simple act relieved the pressure he’d been holding inside all week long. Now all he wanted in the world was to climb inside that bed with Kenzie, apologize for everything, and beg her to always be there with him until death do they part. Somewhere in that mix, he wanted to be buried inside her.

“What’s up?” he asked, eager to keep going.

“I tried to call you several times, sir. We weren’t sure what to do.” Ty lifted a hand to shade his eyes from the rising sun.

“About what?” he asked.

“Ms. Stanton had a car at the gate…” He started, but Ty stopped him midsentence. A needling hint of concern began to prickle up his spine.

“You didn’t let them in, did you?” he asked, lowering his brow.

“Sir, we tried to reach you. She instructed us to let them in.” Ty rolled his eyes and groaned. That fragile balance of calm was already slipping away. He hadn’t told her about the near army he’d hired to watch over her and their home. “She left several hours ago and hasn’t returned.”

“Wait. What?” His brain had to wrap around each of those words before he could continue. “Who the hell did she leave with?”

“She went by herself, sir. She had a rental car delivered.”

“Where the fuck did she go?” he barked.

“She didn’t seem to know we were here and didn’t trust us. She wouldn’t talk,” he said, looking helpless.

Ty left him standing there, gunning the engine up the driveway. He came to a screeching halt in front of the house. He jerked open the door as the car sputtered to a stop. He ran up the front porch steps in one giant leap, busting open the front door.

“Kenzie!” he yelled. One of the housekeepers came to the top of the stairs. “Do you know where she went?” She barely shook her head before he was off, running down the hall toward his bedroom. He crashed inside that room. His heart hitting his feet when he saw the bed made. Dread filled him as he searched the room for a note while digging in his pockets for his phone.

“Goddammit, where’s my fucking phone?” he bellowed at no one. Ty backtracked through the house, stopping by his office to see if she’d left a note there. There was nothing, including none of her new computer equipment. He refused to consider what that might mean as he stalked toward the front doors again.

He went for the cell phone in the car, checking those text messages, then fingered through incoming calls. She hadn’t made contact with him. What the fuck did that even mean? Surely she would have at least told him she was leaving him. He clung to the hope of that thought and went in search of her anywhere in the house. Once in the kitchen, he went out the back door. They hadn’t been outside all week, but she’d loved spending their nights out there. He walked all over the yard while palming his phone, dialing the cell phone he’d given her.