Hollywood & Vine (34 page)

As expected, Anders was surprised and a little suspicious. Although, after a long day of filming, he planned on crashing early, so he let it slide.

Walking into his bedroom a couple of hours later, he let out a half-amused, half-annoyed chuckle. He’d planned on leaving her alone, let her work out whatever was bothering her, but he figured a text message wouldn’t hurt. He grabbed his phone and sent her a quick message as he started picking up her stuff.

Your shit is all over the place.

Josie, who was relaxing in her tub, couldn’t help but smile when she peeked at the screen. Drying off her hands, her response was both playful and serious.

I’m just marking my territory.

Anders shook his head and grinned around his toothbrush as he typed out a one handed reply.

Lies. You’re a slob. I’m throwing all your stuff in the trash. If you want to mark your territory, I can think of more creative ways.

Josie’s jaw dropped. He threatened to throw her clothes in the trash every time she left something lying around, but she’d always been there to snag whatever it was before it met its end. She wondered if he’d do it with her not there.

If you throw away my clothes, I’m cooking you dinner for a week. Creative you say? Do tell.

The full belly laugh that burst from Anders’ chest was abrupt and echoed off the walls of his bathroom. Flipping off the light, he crawled into bed and slid between the sheets.

Man, you went straight for the knock out. Fine, I won’t trash them...this time. Yes, creative. It involves you naked in my bed and your nails digging in my back.

Josie ran the towel over her hair and kicked a pile of clothes into the closet. She looked down and laughed before scooping them up and tossing them into the laundry basket. As soon as she was in bed, she read Anders’ message and smiled. He never missed an opportunity to bring up sex.

Smart man. You saved us both from heartburn. Are you gonna take the time to put my clothes away next time I’m in your bed naked and waiting? That’s usually how they end up on the floor in the first place.

Anders smirked as he remembered doing exactly that the night before. Pulling the pillow she slept on against his side, he tried not to think about how much he wished it were her.

Touché. You win this round.

Josie flipped off her bedside lamp, the glow of her phone illuminating her face.

Of course I did. Night, asshole.

Anders shook his head and turned off his light before typing out a reply and tossing his phone on the nightstand.

Night, Ivy.

Josie was in better spirits the next morning. The combination of a good night’s rest and Anders’ flirty texts had muted the nagging voice in her head. She hoped when the time came to see Aubrey she’d be able to hold on to those thoughts. As she walked to her cubicle, it was obvious the feat would be easier said than done. The mere sight of Aubrey’s lingerie made her fists clench.

By noon, Josie had put off the inevitable as long as she could. Grabbing the garment bag, Josie sent a silent prayer that Aubrey wouldn’t be in her trailer. As it turned out, luck was not on Josie’s side. After giving a courtesy knock, she poked her head inside only to be met with Aubrey’s surprised face. “Sorry,” Josie apologized, walking into the room.

Aubrey ignored her apology. “You finished?”

“Yup, and on Wednesday, just like you requested.” Josie didn’t bother to hide the false excitement in her voice.

“Thanks. I appreciate you taking care of this. This week has been stressful since we’re so close to wrapping up filming.”

At this, Josie’s smile was genuine. “Yes! I can’t tell you how excited I am to see this movie wrap. It’s going to be an amazing film,” she added as an afterthought. While Josie was confident the movie would do well, she had no intention of watching it.

“Of course it will be amazing.” Aubrey stuck her bottom lip out in an exaggerated pout. “But I’m going to miss working with Anders every day.” She looked at her nails and sighed. Silence settled between them and Josie was about to bolt when Aubrey looked up and smirked. “Although, the upside will be all the free time we’ll have.”

It took every muscle in Josie’s face to keep her jaw from dropping. The desire to call Aubrey out
―
to ask if she realized people knew the relationship with Anders was fake
―
was so tempting she had to bite the inside of her cheek to keep quiet.

“That’s...great.”

“Isn’t it?” Aubrey grinned and moved toward the back of the room. “The thing about Anders is, underneath that rough exterior, he’s just a guy waiting for the right woman to come along and make his life make sense.” She tossed the garment bag on the dresser and turned back to Josie. “He was never going to find what he needed in those women he associated with. He needs someone on his level, someone who understands his lifestyle and can handle all the pressure of fame. An equal.”

Aubrey’s words were like a punch in the gut. Josie focused all her energy on keeping her expression neutral. Aubrey might have been delusional and a little creepy, but she’d just put into words every fear Josie had about her relationship with Anders.

“And you think you’re that person?”

Aubrey’s laugh was over the top, her expression condescending. “I know I am.”

Josie took a step back; she just wanted to get away from the crazy woman in front of her. “Well, best of luck with that.”

“I don’t need luck. I’m Aubrey Nash. If you’ll excuse me,” she said, turning her back to Josie and dismissing her with a flick of the wrist. When the door closed moments later, Aubrey walked to the clothes rack and pulled down the top for the scene tomorrow as well as its backup. With a quick glance at the door, she tossed the backup top in her bag and zipped it. Using the scissors on her vanity, she cut a small tear on the sleeve of the original garment and tugged. Satisfied the tear was large enough to do what she needed, she replaced it on the hanger and returned her attention to the bag of lingerie.

She smiled as she inspected it. Her window of opportunity to snag Anders was closing. She needed to step up her game. Which was why she planned on sabotaging Thursday’s shoot. If she made it impossible to film the scenes, the director would have no choice but to flip the schedule.

Which was exactly what Aubrey wanted. She wanted to film her sex scene with Anders the same day as their date. She wanted the image of her naked and panting underneath him to be the first thing he saw every time he looked at her that night. A few drinks and some dancing, and there was no way he wouldn’t wake up in her bed the next morning.

Josie had just reached her desk when the phone started ringing. Dropping her things, she answered.

“This is Josie.”

“Little sister. You are alive. Wonderful.”

Josie laughed at Holden’s overly dramatic tone. “Just barely. I’ve cooked for myself enough lately it could be considered a health code violation.”

“Well, that’s not my fault now is it?”

Josie shifted her weight and sighed. “No, it isn’t.”

“Everything okay with you? It seems like I haven’t seen you in forever.”

“Yeah, I’m good. Busy.”

Holden hummed into the phone. “I see. I suppose you’ll tell me when you’re ready, but I wasn’t calling to give you the third degree. There are a few places I want you to see tomorrow night after my shift. I can’t decide which one I like best. Since you’re an investor, I thought you should have a say.”

Josie’s shoulders sagged with relief. Anything that would keep her thoughts occupied tomorrow was welcome. “Yes, of course.”

“Awesome. Come to the restaurant around eight and have dinner. We can go straight from there.”

“Okay, I’ll see you then.”

After dropping the phone in her purse, she grabbed her sketchbook and the new script then headed for her car. She planned to work on her next project and try not to think about delusional divas or fake relationships.

While Josie got to work, Anders spent every second he wasn’t filming trying to dodge Aubrey. She’d been more persistent than usual the past couple of days but in a different way. She seemed more relaxed and laid back. He wanted to believe she’d taken the hint he wasn’t interested, but the way she kept appearing kept him from becoming too hopeful.

When the director told everyone to break for dinner, Anders didn’t waste a second more than necessary getting to his car. He only had a couple of hours, and he needed to see Josie and call Owen. After pulling through the drive-thru of the first fast food restaurant he passed and ordering for himself and Josie, he called Owen.

“Maddox.”

Anders chuckled. “Do you really have to answer the phone like that every time?”

“Every time.” Owen laughed. “I didn’t expect to hear from you now that you’ve hung up your party hat and settled down.”

“Now who’s talking about relationships? Are we going back to braiding each other’s hair again?”

“Fuck you, dick. Glad to see some things haven’t changed.”

“Yeah, yeah. I’m actually calling to see if you want to go out tomorrow night.”

“Really? What do you have in mind?” The surprise was clear in Owen’s voice. It made an uneasy feeling settle in Anders’ stomach.

“Um, yeah. There’s a new club opening and Clarence reserved a booth for me and Aubrey.”

“So you’re ditching her for me? I don’t know whether to be flattered or concerned.”

“No, I’m not ditching her,” Anders sighed. If he could ditch her, he wouldn’t need to call Owen to tag along. “I just thought it’d be cool to hang out. Maybe you can call Molly and Whitney, see if they want to come along.”

“Anders, why the fuck would I bring two women that aren’t interested in men? What’s going on with you?”

“Nothing, man. I just thought it’d be cool to hang out as a group. It’s not a big deal.”

Owen blew a heavy breath into the receiver. “Okay, yeah. I can call them. Walker’s out of rehab now too. He called me yesterday wanting to party.”

“Yeah? Well, bring him too. Look, I gotta run. I’ll text you the info. Later.”

Anders dropped his phone in the seat as he turned into Josie’s neighborhood. He slowed to a crawl, checking his rearview mirror to make sure no one was following him. Satisfied, he pulled against the curb a few houses down. With his hat pulled low and the bag of food clutched in his hand, he jogged to Josie’s and up the stairs.

He grinned at the surprise on her face when she opened the door. “Hey.”

“Hey. What…what are you doing here?” She pushed the door open wider and stepped to the side.

“I was worried you’d try to cook for yourself. I didn’t want you making yourself sick, so I brought

dinner.”

“You’re such an asshole.” She laughed and smacked his arm.

He shrugged and leaned down to kiss the side of her face. Smiling, he moved to her ear and whispered. “Don’t forget cocky. And hot. And
―
”

“Conceited?” she interrupted. “Egotistical?”

Anders chuckled and stood up straight. “And starving. Come on, I don’t have a lot of time. Let’s eat.”

Josie grinned and grabbed the bag. “You really came here to bring me food?

“I was in the neighborhood.”

“Is that so? And what prompted you to leave the studio in the first place?”

At this Anders frowned. “I just needed some space.”

Josie’s face twisted as she nodded. “From Aubrey I presume?”

Anders grabbed the burger Josie held out toward him. “Yeah? How’d you know?”

“I had the pleasure of her company earlier today. She’s, um, very invested.”

Anders groaned. “What did she do this time?”

“She’s convinced that you guys are a real couple. At least that’s how it seems when she talks. I don’t know if she’s putting on a show or if she believes the shit she’s saying. Either possibility is a little scary.”

“Look, I told you not to worry about Aubrey. I can handle her. This thing will be over soon enough.”

“Have you talked to Nathan?”

“No, but I did call Owen. He’s getting a group of people to come out tomorrow night.”

Josie arched her brow. “Does Aubrey know about this?”

“I don’t owe her an explanation for anything.”

“I think you underestimate her.”

“And I think you’re letting her get under your skin. I can handle her.” Anders couldn’t figure out what was more annoying: Aubrey’s constant presence or needing to reassure Josie every damn day.

Silence fell between them as they ate. When Anders made the decision to come over and spend time with her, this wasn’t how he planned for things to go. He looked at his watch and balled up his wrapper. “I better get back.”

“Okay. Thanks for stopping by with dinner.” Josie stood and moved in front of Anders, looping her arms around his neck.

He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her between his legs. “You know I came over here because I wanted to see you. The food was just a bonus.”

“Well, I’m glad you did. I really was about to cook for myself.”

“I see. Using me for my delivery skills.”

“Among other things.” She smiled and leaned in for a kiss.

“I’d ask what those other things are, but I’m afraid I might not get back to the studio on time.”

“Probably not,” she laughed and stepped away. “Thanks for coming over. I kind of missed you too.”

“Of course you did.” He dodged her attempt to hit him. Instead he jumped to his feet and smacked her ass before darting for the front door.

“You better run!”

“I’ll call you later, Ivy.” He chuckled and slipped out the front door, leaving her leaning against the wall with a smile on her face.

Thursday morning started with one disaster after another. Josie overslept, poured coffee down her shirt, and broke the heel off one of her favorite pairs of shoes. And that was before she even made it out the front door. She wanted to throw in the towel, write the day off as a failure, and go back to bed.

However, no matter how appealing that idea was, she knew it wasn’t a possibility. She had a meeting with Craig and needed to submit the new designs for approval. With a tired sigh, she crawled into her car and headed to work. Just as she pulled into the studio lot, her phone beeped with a message from Craig.