SASSY IN STILETTOS ARe version (25 page)

What she wanted to say was, “I feel safest with
you.” But she didn’t. Instead, she turned her attention back outside the
window.

“Micha?”

She turned to face him. “Yeah?”

“I meant what I said. Yesterday. I need you to
figure out what you want.”

I want you.
“I need to
think about it.”

Throughout the set walk-through and hair and
makeup, Micha couldn’t concentrate. Instead of going over her questions for
Simon, her mind kept wandering to Caleb and the fat mess that was their
relationship. She
had
been running from him, and
Sabine had been the latest excuse. Question was, what the hell should she do
about it?

Not like she could simply decide to be with him
and have it be that easy. And they had to clear all this bullshit that was
happening. She knew it was possible that what she felt for him could be the
byproduct of the fact that he was her protector.
You’ve
wanted him for years.

“Come on, Micha, get your head in the game.” She
was seeing Simon on-set in thirty minutes. She needed to be thinking about him,
not Caleb. She still had a job to do.

There was a soft knock at the door.

“Come in.”

She’d assumed it was Caleb. Instead, Jax leaned
against the door jamb, his long, lean body filling the frame.

Simon strode in full of confidence and practiced
charm. Just like when she’d seen him at the office, her stomach bottomed out.
Because of him, her whole life had changed.

Every muscle she had tensed, and she bit her lip. She
could get through this. She could do this. She needed to breathe and relax. “Hello,
Simon.” She stuck out a hand for him to shake.

He glared at it and instead enveloped her in a
bear hug.

Caleb walked in as Simon squeezed her hard. A
muscle ticked in his jaw. He made a move toward them, and Micha shook her head.
He had a lethal gleam in his eyes, and she didn’t know what he would do to
Simon. Very deliberately, she placed her hands on Simon’s biceps and eased
herself back while she searched for something innocuous to say. She settled on,
“You look well, Simon.”

He grinned. “Yeah, I’m fantastic. I’m so happy you’re
here doing this interview. I thought our screen test went well. Clearly the
executives liked it.” He clasped both her hands in both of his and held on for
a minute too long.

Over Simon’s shoulder, Micha spotted Caleb’s
glower. She did her best to ignore him and turned her attention on Simon. If
she pretended she didn’t know what he looked like naked and remembered that
Simon the movie star was
not
Simon the man she
thought she loved all those years ago, she could do this.

“Now, Simon, I know we discussed some of the
questions I’ll be asking you today. Your team hasn’t given me an additional
list, so are there things that were fair game last week, that you’re not open
to?”

She always liked to give her interviewees the out.
If they opted to answer one of her questions, fair enough. But she’d play by
the rules-for the most part.  She always had her ways of getting recalcitrant
interviewees to open up. Simon would be tricky because he knew her well, but
that didn’t mean she wouldn’t get a story. After all, they were paying her to
get the best story she could.

“I’m an open book.” He placed a conspiratorial
hand on her arm. “Micha, so I’ve been thinking. Instead of filming in the
house, I want to use the grounds. I think the setting will be better, it’s a
warm day, and the fresh air will be good.”

Micha slid a glance to Caleb. His jaw was set
tight as he stared at Simon’s hand on her arm.  He gave her a curt shake of the
head. She frowned at him. If she could concede something small, she was likely
to get a good interview. But regardless of him acting like a Neanderthal now,
she understood part of his concern was security.
Her
security.

“Jax, that’s a fantastic idea. But actually, I
think the home setting makes you a little more approachable. So why don’t we
start there for part of the interview as we discuss how you’ve branched out and
the more serious side of your career and personal life. Then we can move the
interview to the gardens. When we discuss how you’ve transitioned your career we
can play up the more carefree angles of your personality.”

While he mulled it over, Caleb nodded reluctantly.
Well, there wasn’t much she could do about Simon. He would do what he wanted. He’d
already proven that by showing up at her office last week. He was
unpredictable.

Caleb spoke rapidly into an earpiece, and Simon
frowned at him.  

“Why’s he so uptight? He’s looks like I’ve kicked
his puppy or something.” Simon stood up straighter and assessed Caleb. He was
six feet tall, a little shorter than Caleb. Their builds were similar. Both were
handsome, but there was something prettier about Jax. He had that over-polished
Hollywood look about him, like he’d been manscaped to death.

And then there was that lethal air to Caleb. Even
Jax couldn’t miss it.  Sure, Jax was an action star, but the difference between
the two of them was the difference between having a stunt double and not. Caleb
was the stunt double. Simon was the actor. And it showed in their walks and in
the way they carried themselves. Caleb moved like a panther. Jax had a swagger,
and he was sexy, but next to Caleb, he paled in comparison.

As they made their way out of the prep room, Caleb
stepped in their way. “Mr. Jax, if you don’t mind, walk out ahead of Miss Bennett.
We’ll then have two of our men follow you.”

Micha scowled at him. This was not one of the
protocols they had discussed. His team had already been all over Jax and his
house. Caleb didn’t need to do this.

Simon frowned and looked back at Micha. “Excuse
me?” he said incredulously, then he looked between Micha and Caleb and narrowed
his eyes. “Micha, are you seriously sleeping with the—”

Micha gave him a sharp shake of her head. “I’d watch
your mouth, Simon. Caleb gets cranky about my safety. Seeing as Adele Westhorpe
hired him, he takes his job seriously. If you have something to ask me, you can,
but in an adult manner that does not offend my friend Kujo here.”

Caleb’s expression was impassive as usual.

Jax smirked. “Right. Whatever you say.”

Simon led the way to the living area, and she
followed. When he was far enough ahead of them that he couldn’t hear, she
leaned back to Caleb. “Are you kidding me right now? What’s your problem?”

“No problem,
Miss
Bennett.
I’m just here as your protection. I take my job very seriously.” His tone was
cool. “When you see my
friend
,” he let the word drip
with sarcasm. “Can you tell her Casanova is scamming her? All that lovey-dovey
touching isn’t a good idea. He’s likely to get his hands broken.”

“I can take care of myself, Caleb. Stop acting
like a Neanderthal.”

“Stop letting him put his fucking hands all over
you,” he bit out.

***

Caleb knew he was being an idiot. Shit, Micha didn’t
belong to him, but that didn’t help matters. All rationality was gone when he’d
come in and found that guy with his arms wrapped around Micha.
His
Micha. Conventional wisdom might say that was a hug
between friends, but he knew better. He knew what Simon wanted from her. Because
he wanted it too.

He had to get his head in the game. In his
earpiece he heard Tom and Rodney both clear the outside perimeter. And the
garden. If Lover Boy wanted to take Micha on a walk it would be allowed, but
Caleb didn’t have to like it.
Relax, dufas. She’s buttering
him up for the interview.
It didn’t matter what rational things he told
himself. He was still ticked off and only getting angrier. He hadn’t like the
prick when he’d come to the office, and he didn’t like him now. The guy was too
slick. Caleb would bet cash money that this guy had never had his hands dirty.

As the interview commenced, Caleb watched Micha’s
reaction carefully. He’d worked with her enough this past week and a half to
know she was skipping into journalist mode. This was her favorite part. He could
tell she loved it by the fact she always smiled just a little as her cameraman
signaled the start of the interview. If Simon Jax wanted to take his shot with
Micha, Caleb would welcome a little friendly competition, but he had no
intention on losing Micha. Not ever.

Micha could do this. This was her space. This was
what she did. She just had to pretend she didn’t know her subject so well. “So,
Jax, why don’t you tell me about starting anew. You reinvented yourself after
leaving New York several years ago.”

Jax blinked rapidly as if he was confused she’d
actually gone to the past. But it was on the list of approved questions.

“I wanted a fresh start. I thought I could have a
longer career if I left the stage and diversified.”

“Do you miss the stage acting at all? It was your
home for so long.”

He shook his head. “No regrets.” He angled his
head and gave her a pensive look. “At least not professionally.”

She smiled and easily deflected. Out of the corner
of her eyes, she could see Caleb with his jaw set. “And though you’ve had those
less than stellar numbers for your last movie, you maintain that this move was
still the most ideal for you.”

“Yes, of course. Even when one thing doesn’t go
exactly as expected, you can’t run away. Any actor who wants to make it in this
town had better have a good dose of perseverance to go with their dream.”

And back and forth they went for another thirty
minutes. Her segment producer kept yelling in her ear that they needed to ask
the question about his only regret. They wanted that personal angle. Micha
gritted her teeth. She might not like it, but she still had a job to do. “So
Simon going back to an earlier question. Can you tell us about your biggest
personal regret?”

She thought he’d be pissed. After all, his
personal entanglements were on the list of do not ask questions. She’d side
stepped the restriction, and she didn’t know if he’d bite or not. On the
contrary, he looked anxious to talk.

“I was in love once. I hurt her very deeply. I
regret not making it right with her.”

Micha’s jaw hurt from clenching it so tight. She
inhaled deeply and forced every muscle in her jaw to relax, one by one, so she
could speak. “How would you go about making that right with her?”

He gave a classic Simon smile, but it lacked the
usual depth and warmth. “I destroyed what we had with one lie. I could have
told her the truth, and I didn’t. I will always regret that decision.”

A tight fist gripped her gut as her heart thudded.
Was he really airing their dirty laundry? And then because she couldn’t help
herself, Micha asked, “What stopped you from going back to her? A wise man once
told me when you love someone you keep trying with them until they hear you.” She
couldn’t look at Caleb when she spoke, but she felt his intense gaze on her
skin, searing her flesh.

Simon was silent for a long minute. Her segment
producer was yelling in her earpiece to stick to the script, but Micha kept her
impression schooled and composed. She’d have to teach that woman that screaming
at her would get her nowhere.

Finally Jax spoke. “I was scared. And because of
what I didn’t have the courage to say, I endangered her. I knew I had screwed
up, and I had no idea what to say to her to make her believe me. But I hope she
knows I genuinely loved her. Still do. I’d do anything to have her back.”

***

Caleb followed Simon and Micha from a safe
distance. He didn’t like the asshole. He didn’t trust the guy. But he also wasn’t
an idiot. It was unlikely that Micha was in any real danger with Mr. Wanna-Be-Bad-Ass.

Caleb’s team had the perimeter, and Simon had his
personal security on the premises as well. Micha was safe for now, but Caleb
continued to follow from a close distance. Every now and then, Micha would turn
toward him and scowl.
Tough, princess. I’m not going
anywhere.
Sure, he was acting like a bit of a jealous prick. But what
the hell did he care? He wasn’t going to give up until Micha was talking to him
again. She was running, and he knew why. But that didn’t mean he was going to let
her run.

He’d been too patient, too understanding. Given
too much space. And now Jax was busy giving her the googley eyes. Caleb knew a
man in love when he saw one. Jax was wearing an expression he was well familiar
with. Caleb had been sporting it himself for the last year or so. Too bad Micha
was oblivious.

Micha and Jax rounded the corner on the maze ahead,
and Caleb checked the GPS he had on her pin. He could check in on her without
having to hear every single bit of their conversation. But he couldn’t see what
Jax was up to, and that made him nervous. “Shit, you have got to get a grip.”

His radio buzzed in his ear, and Tom’s voice came
over the airwaves. “Caleb, come in. Over.”

“What is it? Over.”

“We have a suspicious white male, early twenties
coming onto the grounds, using the garden entrance. He made it through all
gates and seems to have a key, but I don’t have him on my list of approved
visitors today. He’s headed toward the cars in the private bay. Over.”

Jax’s people had cleared out the private garage
bay as a nod toward Micha’s safety. Whoever was headed over there had no
business snooping around the vehicles. “Copy. Over.”

Caleb could have Esteban check it out, but he’d
rather do so himself.

The loud bang toward the garage bay had Caleb in motion.
But instead of running toward the garage, he went right for Micha.

In his earpiece, he could hear the scattering and
sounds of his men running to check it out. But their sounds were muted. All he
could think about was Micha.