Twisted Reality (Blind Reality #2) (5 page)

The same can be said about book adaptations. They’re never the same. People are either going to love the book and hate the movie or vice versa. Personally, I love both, especially when they’re different.

Walking through the airport without a security detail is risky, but I figured no one here would really care. I was wrong. Maybe it’s the drawback of first class. Sure, we get on first and get free cocktails, but getting off the plane first in this situation is backfiring. It didn’t take long, maybe a minute or less, for someone to recognize …
Joey
. Not me, but my wife. And while I filled with pride and my ego swelled because Joey is fucking gorgeous, I feared the onslaught that was about to ensue.

Within seconds we were swarmed, stranded out in the middle of the concourse, surrounded by restaurants without a desk agent in sight. Even as I held her tight and tried to push my way through the crowd we weren’t getting anywhere.

That’s when we were saved by the airport transit who all but ran people over in order to get to us. Once we hopped on, the fans groaned in unison, making it sound like they were growling. Growling! Who the hell growls at people in the airport?

“Thank you,” I say to the driver.

“No worries, man,” he replies in a thick Jamaican accent. Hearing him speak gives me another idea for a vacation with Joey. We need a real honeymoon at some tropical island where no one can bother us. I want the seclusion of a private beach without prying eyes and a damn camera.

“Is it always like that?” Joey asks as she nestles into my side. I can feel her heart beating rapidly and mentally kick my own ass for not thinking things through.

“No and that’s my fault. I forgot about the show being recently aired and didn’t think we’d need any security. It won’t happen again.” I pull her closer, angling my body toward her, and kiss her on her forehead. Even now that we’re on the transport, people are taking videos and pointing at us.

Once we get to baggage claim, airport security is there to meet us, as well as our driver. Of course, the sign welcoming me to Alabama isn’t helping matters. Maybe it’s time I develop an alias and start traveling under that. If I do, I want something cool that makes people do a double take.

We’re taken right out to the car, with our bags already secured by security, and finally closed in once the door slams shut. The quiet is somewhat comforting, but the agitated state my wife is in isn’t.

“I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking.”

“It’s fine, Josh.” Placing her hand on my cheek, she pulls me into a kiss. “I wasn’t mentally prepared and I should’ve been. I’ve seen the crazy pictures coming from LAX. I guess I didn’t think it’d happen at all the airports.”

“Can I point out that it was
you
that got us noticed? Not me!” I jab myself in my chest to send the point home, but all she does is laugh.

“Does that make you jealous?”

“Hell no. I only worry about how you’re going to react.”

“I got this,” she says, gracing me with a beautiful smile. “I knew what to expect, and now that I’ve seen it firsthand I’ll be more prepared.”

The driver pulls us into the car rental location and helps us with our bags. At the counter, we hand over our driver’s licenses and wait.

“We need to change yours,” I tell Joey.

Joey looks at me with the most serious expression I have ever seen. “What if I don’t want to change my name? The producers never even asked if I wanted to take my ‘husband’s’ last name. I mean can you imagine if you had the last name Hoey and now I’d be Joey Hoey?”

“Are you saying you don’t want to be Joey Wilson?” As much as I try to hide the hurt in my voice, I can’t and it’s stupid. I never wanted to be married in the first place, but now that I am, now that I’ve had her in my life for the past four, almost five months I want her to be a Wilson. I want the world to know that she’s mine.

Her face morphs into a huge smile causing my heart to beat faster. “I’m just giving you a hard time. I think once I have a permanent address I can get my license changed.”

Draping my arm around her shoulder, I shake my head. “I have a feeling you’re going to keep me on my toes.” Maybe that’s the key to a happy marriage: the jokes, pranks, and reminding ourselves that we can’t take everything so seriously.

When we’re finally on the road and heading toward Daphne, I drop the bomb. “So you know how you love
Sweet Home Alabama?”

Her eyes light up, instantly making me feel like a dick. “Yes, such a sweet second chance love story and Josh Lucas …” She sighs, making me feel about ten inches tall.

“Do you have something for actors named Josh?”

“Yes, but just one mostly. Wilson’s his last name. Have you heard of him?” She winks and I can’t fight the shit-eating grin that spreads across my face. I’ve never felt this way before when receiving a compliment from a beautiful woman. Maybe it’s because I always thought there were ulterior motives and they were only saying these things to get something from me. It’s not like that with Joey. Every time she compliments me, it feels genuine.

“You’re a smooth talker, Mrs. Wilson. Anyway, your favorite movie wasn’t exactly filmed here. There are a few scenes, but most of it was filmed in Georgia.” I try to watch for her reaction and notice that her mouth drops open and shuts quickly.

“Hollywood is such a lie.”

I laugh because it’s true. “I know. I’m sorry that I’m killing all the magic for you.”

“Eh, it’s okay. So you’re filming in Daphne, which is where
my
movie was ‘filmed’, but where is yours based out of?”

“Some coastal town in Texas,” I tell her, trying to recall from my script.

“Unbelievable,” she says, laughing.

The drive is only about an hour from the airport to the hotel, but it ends up taking us almost three. We decided to drive along the coastal line as much we could, stopping in as many towns as possible so we can sightsee, capture memories on our phones, and make out under the Spanish moss covered oak trees like the newlyweds we are.

When we finally pull into our hotel, we’re both tired from traveling. I shouldn’t be staying in Daphne, but I want to be close to Joey and the thought of having to drive or be driven an hour or so away to some ritzy ass hotel doesn’t appeal to me. It’s my hope that our location can remain on the down-low so we can enjoy our time together.

“Don’t feed the alligators?” Joey slams the car door and points to the sign, her eyes wide with a mix of terror and ‘what the fuck’.

“You’re in the south. Stay out of the water unless it’s a pool and you can see the water clearly.”

“But alligators, Josh? Come on? What if one comes ashore and tries to eat me?”

I laugh. “The likelihood is rare. Alligators only attack if provoked. If you stay out of their habitat, they’ll leave you alone.”

Joey checks us in while I hang back in the shadows. We’re hoping that because the room has been booked under her maiden name, no one will recognize her. Once she has our keys, we take the short elevator right to the third floor where we have booked one of their larger suites. If we’re going to live here for a few months, we need some comfort. Sadly for me, my idea of comfort doesn’t seem to match that of the hotel.

“Well this isn’t fancy,” I mutter, dropping our bags on the floor.

“It’s perfect.” Joey walks past me and goes right to the window. “We have a view of the alligators. It’ll be a joy watching them,” she says sarcastically.

When I come and stand behind her, I immediately spot one in the water. I don’t know if she sees it or not, and I’m not planning on pointing it out to her. “You know,” I begin as I kiss her neck, “I won’t be working every day and my hours will shift, so we can do a lot together. You won’t always be by yourself. And as long as you’re not pretending to be Captain Hook, you’ll be fine.”

“If I’m Captain Hook, are you my Peter Pan?” she asks, turning in my arms.

“I’d rather you be my Tinkerbell,” I tell her as I capture her lips.

Whenever I’m on vacation, or even when I’ve just finished a film, I like to sleep in. It’s a luxury that I often don’t have. When I’m not working, I’m still up early and hitting the gym to stay in shape.

But as the sun rises and Joey sleeps in my arms, I’m staring into the morning sun. In our haste last night, we forgot to close the blinds and now I’m paying for it dearly. Tilting my head, I see the red digital number displaying a six and that’s enough to tell me it’s too early to even function. Next week my first call time is at the crack of dawn to film a scene on the beach. The thought of having to change my sleeping habits is enough to make me groan internally.

When Joey stirs I roll us over so I’m lying on top of her. Her arms envelope me, making me feel secure. I can’t believe I almost lost her and all because of Jules, although she can’t be blamed entirely. I’ve always had a hard time saying no to Jules. That was until I met Joey and realized my future was a reality television show and the person I was partnered with lit up my life with a smile.

“I want cake,” I whisper against her skin. She laughs a groggy, sleep-filled laugh.

“You’ll have to wait until we get home.” Her fingers push through my hair, each pass almost lulling me back to sleep.

“Home,” I say, and that’s when a light bulb goes off. I sit up as much as I can without leaving her arms. “We should buy a house.” My sleeping wife one-eyes me before trying to tug me back down to her chest. “I’m serious, Joey. I live in a small, two-bedroom apartment and you live with your parents. We need our own place without roommates, parents, and all the other riff-raff that comes with my baggage. We need something that is our own where we buy a hodgepodge of furniture and make love in every room.”

This time she’s fully awake and looking at me. “Isn’t there some law that we have to have nice furniture for when
People
magazine comes to interview you?”

“I didn’t say it wasn’t going to be nice. I just said we could be different. I don’t want a theme. I want people to come into our home and feel welcomed, like they can sit and not worry about ruining something. I want a home, Joey. Not a structure with walls and uneasy feelings.”

She smiles brightly. “Okay, we’ll buy a house when we get back to Los Angeles.”

“It doesn’t even have to be there,” I tell her, nestling back into her arms.

“It needs to be where you are, Josh. I don’t want to be far from you,” she says quietly as sleep begins to find her again.

“I feel the same way, Joey. I feel the same way.” I close my eyes and try to find a little more shut-eye before we start our first day as tourists. It’s my plan to see as much of the area as I can, or find a nice secluded place where I can make love to her all day before I start work and my days are filled with film crews, memorized lines, and acting like I’m in love with someone I’m not.