On the Outside (Caught Inside #3) (15 page)

Chapter 29

Though the world didn’t know about ‘Harper and Xavier’ yet, everyone on set certainly did. They were not only understanding about it, they welcomed it.

Everyone except Charlie, that is.

For the first few weeks he still tried his hardest to hit on me every chance he could, and as flattering as it was, I couldn’t help but wonder if he was only doing so to get under Xavier’s skin.

“Are you sure you want that douche and not me? I can treat you like a queen.”

“Harper, I think we’re meant to be.”

“You may be my soul mate.”

It didn’t matter how many times he spat out all his shallow one liners because I obviously ignored all his attempts. Though I must confess that I did give in to my immature side the final time he hit on me and basically told him to take a hike and leave me alone. Unfortunately, given that we worked together that was a bit hard to do. Now at the end of shooting, he only spoke to me during our scenes (which ironically were mostly love scenes) and pretty much left me alone afterwards. Of course that didn’t stop him from throwing dirty looks my way in between takes.

The Monday of the final week I walked toward my makeup trailer with a huge smile on my face. Everything was going great.

#1 All my surf scenes were finished being shot, in fact I even caught a wave on my own. Granted, it was only a fluke but at least Xavier was proud of me!

#2 Despite me ignoring them for the first few months, my other costars actually liked me enough to invite me to places.

#3 Xavier was finally going to tell his family about us—yes, that was the big one on my list!

Yup, life was finally getting back to how I wanted it to when suddenly…

“Kacy?” I gasped when I spotted the tiny brunette perched on the makeup chair beside the one I usually used. Piper stood beside her and shrugged helplessly.

“What are you doing here?” My eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Are you even allowed to be here?”

With a smile that reeked bitchiness plastered on her face, she grabbed onto a lanyard around her neck and held it up with pride. “Amazing what being the sister of a producer can get you, right?”

I gulped in anger. “Xavier got you that?”

The least he could do was tell me!

She shook her head. “No, Wyatt did. Did Xavier ever mention that I knew him from a couple years back?” She nodded her head mischievously. “Yup, Xavier and Wyatt did their very first movie together and since then he’s been a friend of the family.”

That would have been good to know as well.

Her head continued to bob in excitement. “Honestly, I haven’t spoken to Wyatt since the last time I visited town. You remember that, right?”

“How could I forget?” I muttered in irritation.

“Good.” She shot me a fake smile. “Anyway, I didn’t really want to bother Wyatt, but seeing as my brother has been avoiding my calls as of late, I was worried that something bad happened to him and decided to come check on him.”

God, this girl deserved an Oscar. I was actually surprised that she never got into acting considering how great she was at bullshitting—not to mention how catty she was.

“So you called Wyatt.” I pursed my lips in disdain. “I take it he told you everything?”

“Pretty much.”

“And now you’re here to ruin things with me and Xavier.” My voice was growing angrier by the second. Who did this bitch think she was to ruin my life?

Someone Riley cares a lot about.

I pushed the thought out of my mind and sneered. “Look, Kacy, this is the last week of shooting and I really don’t need any added stressors. The movie is about to wrap, can’t you give us one more week in peace?”

“I’m not trying to add stress. I’m just here to watch over my brother.” Surprisingly, her voice and expression were very sincere, but I was still not going to let my guard down.

“Does he know you’re here? You know he’ll kick you out too.”

She shook her head and laughed. “Nah, I don’t think so. He loves my husband more than me I sometimes think.”

Gee, I wonder why.

“He came down with me and is currently shooting the shit with Wyatt. There’s no way Xavier will kick us
both
out.”

Maybe I can talk some common sense to her husband.

As if reading my mind she added, “Needless to say we know where my husband’s loyalty lies. If I feel strongly about something, better believe he is right there with me.”

Oh my God this girl was infuriating and the fact that she was obviously Wyatt’s friend spelled trouble for me.

“Are you…are you going to be watching us shoot?” I asked hesitantly.

A wicked grin stretched across her face. “I’ll be here all week.”

Chapter 30

“I can’t believe Kacy is here!” I practically shouted at Xavier, who pushed me into an empty trailer. Grimacing, he looked over his shoulder and placed a finger against my lips. With anger shooting through me, I quickly pushed him away. “Do not shut me up! You know this wouldn’t have happened if you took my advice and told her about us!”

“Don’t you get it? If I told her earlier she would have done the exact same thing! Would you have wanted her to come here when our relationship was just brand new and fragile?” He growled.

I shook my head in exasperation. “Well, seeing as she’s here now then kick her out!”

“I can’t.” He bowed his head apologetically. “Wyatt is pretty close to her and Miles and—”

“You’re in love with her husband and don’t want to hurt his feelings. Yeah, Kacy told me,” I muttered in annoyance.

“Harper, don’t be mad. I’ll fix this,” he pleaded.

“Yeah, I’ve heard that one before.”

Xavier glanced down at his plastic green watch and frowned. “It’s time for us to get on set. Are you going to be okay?”

“Nope,” I answered, exaggerating the word. “But I’ve gone through worse.”

With a sad look on his face, Xavier pressed a small peck on my lips. “Yeah, I know. I’m also sorry for all this.”

My lips tightened. “Yeah, me too.”

***

“Quiet on the set! Places everyone!”

I shot a look at Kacy, who was sitting primly beside Wyatt with a smug smile on her face. Xavier and a very handsome man I assumed was Kacy’s husband sat farther away from her, both looking extremely uncomfortable. If I had to guess, regardless of what Kacy said earlier, her husband probably got dragged down here.

Biting back a sigh, I faced Charlie, who had a weird look on his face. Not really in the mood for some more bullshit, I whispered, “What is your problem?”

His mouth curled up, revealing his two trademark dimples that fans around the world went gaga for. “Just thinking that patience really is a virtue.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I hissed.

He nodded his head toward Xavier, whose eyes were almost pure black with anger. “It seems to me that lover boy over there might be jumping ship soon.”

“That’s a lie and you know it,” I growled.

Charlie reached out and grabbed a lock of my hair, rubbing his fingers against the bright red strands. “What did I warn you about him? He’ll toss you out like yesterday’s garbage, right?”

I pressed my lips together and didn’t respond.

“Don’t you worry, I’ll be there to scoop you up like the treasure you really are.”

“Action!”

Charlie immediately dropped my hair, getting into character, but I was nowhere near ready. Completely flustered by Charlie’s words, I stumbled over practically every single one of my lines. Not to mention, I could feel Kacy’s scrutinizing gaze burning into my shoulders. I braved one glance at her and spotted her making gagging faces during one of my exceptionally emotional scenes. Losing my train of thought, I threw a desperate glance at Xavier, who immediately popped up from his chair to speak to Wyatt.

Our director looked visibly annoyed. “Okay, cut!”

I let out a sigh of relief, which was short-lived, because Charlie came bounding back toward me with an evil look on his face.

“What?” I muttered, glancing back at Xavier, who was obviously scolding Kacy. As an only child, I never had to deal with the whole sibling dilemma, but watching the two interact, I guess you never outgrew sibling rivalry and all that jazz.

“Is it too soon to ask you out?” Charlie’s accented voice cooed in my ear, almost sending a shiver down my spine.

Cool it, Harper.

“Dude, I’m still dating Xavier,” I snapped in irritation.

“So?”

I let out a sigh and shook my head. “Seriously, what is your deal?”

His gorgeous face scrunched up in a frown. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Why do you act like you’re interested in me?”

Eyes brightening, he replied, “Because I am.”

“That’s a lie and you know it.” I jabbed his bare chest with my finger and couldn’t help but notice how hard it felt. If he wasn’t Superman incarnate, than I don’t know who was.

“Harper, that hurts—”

“Charlie—”

Well, we certainly weren’t going to get anywhere if we continued to speak over each other. Sighing, I motioned for him to speak first.

“Seriously, it hurts me to think that you view yourself so small. Why wouldn’t I be attracted to you?”

“I just think you’re doing this because of some weird vendetta against Xavier. For the record, I do not view myself like that.”

Charlie bowed his head apologetically. “Listen, Harper; I like you because you’re awesome and it sucks to think a dweeb like Xavier scooped you up before I could.”

Okay, that made me really angry.

“Are you fucking kidding me? I’m not some ice cream you can scoop!”

He chuckled, further igniting my fury.

“And like I said earlier, I know you’re just doing this to get back at whatever you’re mad with him about.” I let out a puff of air from my nostrils and gazed back at the siblings, who had suddenly disappeared, most likely moving their fight somewhere else. “I’m not stupid, Charlie. Tell me what it is you hate about him.”

Of course Charlie chose this moment to stay mum. With a shake of his head he replied, “Not the right time. In fact, I’ve rather forgotten about it.”

“Seems to me that you haven’t.”

“Places, everyone!” Wyatt’s voice boomed, interrupting our banter.

I rubbed at my forehead and sighed. “Let’s just get through this week, okay, Charlie?”

Snorting, he nodded his head. “I know I can, but can you?”

Chapter 31

Well, now I knew why Xavier and Kacy disappeared that day on set—she was able to get Xavier to avoid me!

To be fair, it wasn’t as if he were just tossing me to the side or anything, but during that last week of shooting, our calls, dates, and interactions severely diminished under Kacy’s presence. If I did receive a text from him it was usually short, quick, and sometimes just one word.

The one bright side to the whole mess was meeting her husband, Miles. Not only was he as uncomfortable as I felt with all the drama, but he actually disagreed with Kacy’s logic.

I liked him.

“I just think that the fact you apologized and admitted you were wrong should have alleviated the whole situation,” he told me. “Honestly, I think Riley would have been over it a long time ago if it weren’t for Kacy putting thoughts in her head. I tried to talk her out of it, but once Kacy sets her mind on something it takes something momentous to snap her out of it.”

“Heard she was the same way about you. How did that change?” I asked curiously.

“I dated someone else—more to get back at her really, but it made her realize she loved me.” He sounded proud of his plan, but I couldn’t blame him. Seeing how pigheaded his wife could be, I’d be proud too if I managed to change her mind about anything.

I refrained from telling him how hypocritical it was that she fell for someone “dating” somebody else—regardless of Miles’ intentions—when I merely slept with someone who was single! Instead, I asked the question burning in my mind.

“How is Riley?”  

Miles gazed down at me and nodded his head once. “Good. Happy.”

It was all he gave me and at the moment, it was good enough for me.

***

“Last shot of the movie!” Wyatt’s voice boomed above the crowd of extras who had gathered for our last scene which, as stated in the script, was supposed to be an
epic
competition. I was just happy my character wouldn’t be the one competing.

Wyatt took his usual spot on the black fabric chair that had a permanent imprint of his ass and looked around methodically. “Let’s make this good.”

After one last wipe of rouge on my cheeks courtesy Piper, I took my place on a beach towel and shielded my eyes toward the water looking for Charlie. The last scene we’d need to shoot was the one where Jasper enters a surf competition and—
gasp—
wins! I know, I know, very original, right? Regardless, it was kind of perfect that the last shot of the movie would be so intense, given the way my life was going.

As I watched the beating water of the Pacific Ocean I couldn’t help but feel a bit nostalgic remembering the first few lessons I had with Xavier. Recalling the feelings of anguish and even fear, I couldn’t believe I was so apprehensive to open my heart to everything California had to offer, including him. I almost wished I could do it all over, beginning with an open mind.

Kacy was surprisingly missing from set that day and I couldn’t help but hope she had fled back to Mistcoast.

It’ll finally allow you to have a heart to heart with Xavier.

As mad as I was and as angry as I
could
be, I couldn’t help but wonder if there was an ulterior motive for his disappearance. He did always promise me he’d fix things after shooting; maybe he was still holding onto that fallacy. Besides, at least one good thing came out of it—the distance finally got Kacy off my back.

A loud horn broke through my thoughts, nearly causing me to jump five feet. The fake competition was finally underway. Placing my “Samantha” mask over my face, I jumped with little hops and clapped my hands together.

“Go, Jasper!” I screamed at the top of my lungs, causing the extras to go crazy.

Still struggling to catch a glimpse of my leading man, I peered past the breaking waves and let out a slight gasp. Xavier was surfing beside Charlie!

“What the hell?” I murmured, thankful that the cameras could only capture my backside. “Why is he out there?”

Realizing that the budget probably couldn’t afford to hire another surfer/stuntman/extra, I watched the fake competition with a pounding heart.

Remember, you have to cheer for Charlie.

This was definitely going to be the hardest scene of my whole acting career. How could I cheer for Charlie when my heart was with Xavier?

To my disappointment, Charlie was the first to catch a wave, but remembering that the script called for it, I immediately calmed. It was fake. Nothing but an act. I forced a whoop of joy as I watched the actor effortlessly ride the wave, disappearing inside the blue tube before reemerging on the other side. I tried to remain focused on my “love interest” but my gaze would not leave Xavier’s figure, which was bobbing up and down like a buoy.

“Come on, Xavier, you can do this,” I whispered to myself, suddenly feeling like an idiot. Reminding myself that everything was planned out, I watched the two as calmly as possible, despite feeling as if I were in the middle of an actual event.

Just then a gigantic wave began looming in the horizon. It was definitely going to be the best wave of the morning and—

“The one Xavier has to wipe out on.” I cringed, remembering the details of our script, which called for his character to take a pretty bad nose dive, leading him to be subsequently rescued by Jasper.

“Oh, he’s gotta love that,” I muttered, thinking of all the animosity between the two.

And so I waited…I waited and winced, imagining how the scene would play out. Though I knew it was fake I still wasn’t looking forward to seeing Xavier helpless and near death. The only thing that kept me calm was remembering we had medics on scene, waiting patiently in the wings in case the shit hit the fan.

“God, please let me get through this.” I went on my tip-toes and heard another bullhorn above the crowd. This was it. The moment I so wasn’t looking forward to.

Right on cue Xavier fell off his board and was subsequently swallowed by an incoming wave, signaling one of the extras to shout, “Oh my gosh! He’s drowning!”

I winced as I watched Charlie quickly paddle over to Xavier’s deserted board. Though I was too far to see the expression on his face, I could almost imagine the smug look in his eyes.

“Stop stalling and go get Xavier,” I muttered in annoyance. Of course I had nothing to worry about; Xavier had successfully surfaced and was waiting with one of our medics beyond the camera’s span. It was another “trick of production” and would require a different angle to be shot at a later time.

To my relief, Wyatt yelled, “Cut!”

Impatiently, I waited for the two men to paddle back onto shore, but of course I couldn’t run over to check on Xavier. First, Wyatt might kill me, and second, I didn’t even know where I stood with the man.

After the medics gave them a onceover, Wyatt wanted to immediately shoot the scene where Charlie drags Xavier’s lifeless body onto shore.

“Time is money!” our annoying director barked. “Places now!”

After some brief blocking and touchups, I braced myself for the next scene, completely thankful that I’d be off camera. Once I heard the word “Action!” I sucked in my breath and became the most attentive audience member on the beach.

Though I was about twenty feet away, I could easily make out Xavier’s scowl that he was so desperately trying to hide by bowing his head. His limp arm was draped over Charlie’s shoulder and his body was dead weight as he was dragged from the waters onto the beach. In one humph, Charlie practically
threw
Xavier’s body onto the beach so that my boyfriend was face first in the hot sand.

That was definitely an adlib.

I pursed my lips in annoyance, fighting the urge to yell out and throw a tantrum. Instead, I prayed that Wyatt would hurry up and cut the scene.

After what seemed like eternity, Wyatt’s voice finally boomed, “Cut!”

Xavier and I both sighed in unison. I kept my distance, watching him jump to his feet and brush the sand off his face. Water droplets rolled down his bare chest, causing him to
sparkle
—eh, scratch that, he wasn’t a vampire, but he definitely reflected some light.

Charlie strutted over and smacked him on the back—
hard.
“Not the first time I saved your ass, right?”

“Fuck you,” Xavier shot back, spitting on the ground next to him.

That was it. I couldn’t hold back anymore.

Ignoring Piper, who had just taken her place beside me, I sprinted toward the two men and wagged my finger accusingly. “Xavier, why didn’t you tell me you were acting today?”

“You mean your lover doesn’t tell you everything?” Charlie snickered in a way that reminded me of Coby’s dumb ass, further fueling my irritation. He eyed Xavier, giving him the onceover. Though he was visibly more tan and muscular—hey he’s an actor!—Xavier definitely had a swimmer’s body, which I thought was hotter. Of course at that moment I was stewing with anger so I didn’t even notice how handsome both men looked.

Pushing Charlie to the side, I sneered at Xavier. “You’ve been avoiding me all week and I know it’s because of Kacy. Then you do this without even telling me?”

“Did I have to tell you?” he shot back. “Didn’t know I needed your permission.”

My eyes widened in irritation. “Are you being serious right now?”

Charlie began to laugh, but at least he had the decency to walk away, leaving Xavier and I glaring at each other. Feeling my temper rise, I screeched, “Admit it. Kacy got to you! You were too chicken to break up with me so you’ve been avoiding me all week so you wouldn’t have to say it to my face.”

Xavier’s expression darkened. “No, it’s not like that at all. I promise I’ll explain everything to you, okay? For now just believe me when I say I did everything for us.”

“So avoiding me was for us?” I asked in disbelief. “If that isn’t a load of bullshit.”

“It is.” He nodded. “And as for filming today, it was a last minute thing. Our original actor broke his collarbone skating yesterday. Wyatt literally woke me up at four in the morning to ask if I could shoot today.”

I felt myself relax, but couldn’t help but still feel a bit hurt. “You still could have told me. If you can keep something this small from me—though it really is big—what else can you hide from me?” Feeling Charlie’s gaze, I turned back and spotted him throwing a wink at me. I rolled my eyes and peered at Xavier questioningly. “Be frank with me.”

“I am.”

“Okay…were you avoiding me because you were too chicken to dump me face to face?”

He groaned. “I told you this was for us—”

“I don’t see how making me feel like I was this tiny—” I held up two fingers spaced an inch apart, “—was good for us.”

His face lost all coloring. “I’m sorry…I just thought…”

“Thought what?”

“I thought—”

“Xavier! We have to film the drowning scene!” Wyatt combed through the crowd until he was standing right in between us.

Seriously? Can you be any ruder?

“Harper and I just have something to talk about—”

Wyatt turned as if just noticing me for the first time. “What are you still doing here? It’s a wrap for you.”

In all the
excitement
I had forgotten it was my very last scene for
Cali Break
. A combination of relief and sadness washed over me. “But I just needed to talk to him—”

“After this scene.” Wyatt’s curly hair bounced over his eyes, hiding the sneer I knew he was throwing me. “Time is—”

“Money, yeah, yeah.” I slumped over and shut my eyes. Xavier wasn’t an actor, so I had no idea how long his scene would take to shoot. “Fine, whatever. I guess I’ll just have to wait.”

Again with time’s bitchiness!

“Harper, I’ll talk to you later.” Xavier’s voice was firm, but his eyes sincere.

Sighing, I begrudgingly relented. “Fine.”