Hollywood & Vine (44 page)

She was trapped, unable to move on. If she wasn’t stressing about being outed, she was obsessing about the possibility that he hadn’t slept with Aubrey. It was that possibility that kept Josie awake at night. As awful as it was to admit, she almost hoped she’d been right. That he did sleep with Aubrey. It would make things easier, cut and dry. She could hate him.

The alternative, however, that he hadn’t slept with Aubrey, hurt almost just as much. If he’d stayed faithful, if his promises were true, it didn’t change how he viewed their relationship. That was the crux of it. Anders wasn’t able to commit to her in the way that Madison and Holden were committed to one another, the way her parents were too—with total and complete trust.

In the end it didn’t matter how much she tossed and turned, whether she believed him, or how much she missed him. He wasn’t willing to let her in. He couldn’t let himself trust her.

She admitted she didn’t trust him either, but in truth, it was more for self-preservation than anything else. Had he opened up and asked her to jump with him, she would’ve jumped.

The pounding started again and Josie tightened her hold on the pillow covering her head when she suddenly heard Madison. Her voice, while still muffled, was clearer this time, but the tone was different. Something was wrong.

Throwing her sheets to the side, she leapt from the bed and ran to the front door. The closer she got, the more distinct the sounds from outside became. She wrenched the door open, her forearm flying to cover her eyes as bright flashes of light blinded her.

“Move,” Madison grunted, pushing Josie out of the doorway and slamming the door shut.

Josie’s mouth opened and closed several times as Madison locked the door then moved from window to window, checking the locks and drawing the shades. One hand rested on top of Josie’s head, while the other covered her mouth. Even groggy with sleep, she knew what was going on.

It had taken five days. Five days for her relationship with Anders to be exposed. She stumbled to the couch and eased onto the cushions. Her hands shook and her heart hammered as Madison paced around the room. She parted her lips to speak, but her mouth felt thick, like it was full of sand. Swallowing, she tried again, her words no more than a choked whisper.

“How bad is it?”

Madison winced. With a deep breath, she walked over to Josie and eased onto the coffee table in front of her. “It’s bad.”

Josie clasped her hands. “Of course it is. How did you find out so fast?”

Madison hesitated. She hated to put more stress on Josie, but she wasn’t going to lie to her best friend. “Holden needed a hand at the Farmer’s Market this morning. I rode with him, and we stopped at a breakfast stand on the corner. There were some magazines...” She didn’t need to say any more. Josie got the picture.

“Holden knows.”

“Yeah.”

“Is he pissed?”

Madison shook her head. “He’ll be pissed at both of us later. Right now he’s worried about his baby sister.”

Josie’s chin quivered when she thought about how Holden must have felt reading the front of those magazines. She’d been a terrible sister and dragged her best friend into her drama on top of everything. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize to me. I’m a big girl. Besides, we can’t worry about that right now. I need to give you an idea of what’s being said.”

“Where’s Holden now?”

“He dropped me off and headed to the restaurant to unload the stuff we bought. When he saw those reporters, I thought he was going to run them down with his car. I’m glad Anders isn’t in the state of California. Holden might try to kill him.”

“Fuck,” Josie gasped, her hand flying to her throat. “I have to call Anders. I need to tell him what’s happened.”

“Let me tell you what’s being said, okay? Then you can do whatever you need to.”

“Okay. What did the article say? How many names was I called?” Josie tried to keep her voice even, but it was pointless.

Madison made a sound of disgust. “It said you took advantage of your position, used the opportunity of your time alone with Anders to seduce him, that Aubrey befriended you and you stabbed her in the back.”

“Stop.” Josie couldn’t believe what she was hearing.

“Oh yeah,” Madison said mockingly. “They’ve made Anders and Aubrey the victims. I don’t understand how they can print trash like this and get away with it. It’s all bullshit.”

“Does it say where the information came from?”

“An inside source. They revealed your identity. First and last name, where you met, and what you do for a living. Which is why I’m sure all these assholes outside had no problem finding your address.”

Josie’s eyes slid shut as twin tears trailed down her cheeks. “This doesn’t sound like Amelia or Kate.”

“No, it doesn’t. But no one else knew, Josie. If they didn’t do it, they talked to someone who did. They better be glad the movie is over. If I had to see them, well, it wouldn’t be pretty.”

Josie’s laugh was choked by the sob stuck in her throat. “You’d beat ’em up for me?”

“Hell yes, I would. I’d do anything for you.”

“I know.” Josie leaned forward, wrapping her arms around Madison’s shoulders and pulling her into a hug. “What am I going to do?”

Madison pulled back so she could look at Josie. “You’re going to ignore this as best you can. You’ll go to work and be as strong as an armored tank. Don’t respond to those jerks. They don’t deserve to make money off your comments.”

Josie nodded and wiped under her eyes. “This sucks.”

“I know.”

“I need to call Anders.” Josie stood from the couch and grabbed her phone before walking into the kitchen. With a deep breath, she dialed his number. When his voice mail picked up, she released a sigh and ended the call. She didn’t know if he was avoiding her or if he wasn’t around. If it was the former, leaving a voice mail was pointless. Opening a text, she typed out just three words before pressing send.

We’ve been outed.

“No answer,” she sighed as she moved back into the living room.

“Holden is here. We should go. Why don’t you come stay with us for a couple of days? Just until things calm down.”

Josie nodded and ran a hand through her hair. “I don’t want to be run off from my home, but I also don’t want to deal with this every time I go outside. Let me shower, grab some clothes, and I’ll come over. I need to run a couple of errands first too.”

“Do you want me to come with you?”

“No,” Josie groaned. “I just… I need a little time to myself, okay?”

Madison wanted to argue, but instead she nodded and peeked out the window. “I don’t see anyone. Maybe they were hoping to catch you by surprise. Just be careful, okay?”

After promising to call if she needed anything, Josie locked the door behind Madison. She was in a nightmare come to life. She couldn’t understand why things had to come out now, when they were already over. Every time she tried to move on from Anders, she got dragged right back in.

Turning on the shower, she stepped inside and let the hot water run over her hair and face. No longer concerned with fighting back the emotions battering her from the inside, she braced one hand on the wall and dropped her head, her shoulders shaking with each broken sob.

She wanted to let out everything she was feeling, purge it until she was fatigued and emotionally exhausted. If she got it out now, if she cried until her tears dried, maybe she would be numb when someone called her a slut, a bitch, or whatever other nasty things were in store.

Once the water ran cold, she stepped out of the shower and grabbed a towel. She told herself she’d had her moment of weakness. She was stronger than anything people could say. As she dressed, packed a few things, and moved to her front door, she continued her internal pep talk. She hesitated when she grasped the front door handle, anxiety and fear making her heart leap in her chest.

Shaking her head, she lifted her chin and pulled open the door. Her eyes darted around the street as she descended the steps. It wasn’t until she closed her car door that she was able to breathe. Pulling onto her street, she headed toward the fabric store to pick up her order, unaware of the dark gray car parked at the corner or the smiling man inside.

Josie kept her head down as she jogged across the street and into the fabric store. Pushing the hair from her eyes, she smiled at the woman behind the counter. They’d always been friendly, and their easy small talk as she gathered Josie’s things gave her hope that the situation wouldn’t be as bad as she feared.

“Sorry, hon,” the woman huffed. “It’ll be about ten more minutes. I had to send one of my guys to the other store for the extra five yards you added to your order.”

“No problem. I don’t mind hanging out.”

The woman laughed. “Of course you don’t. Make yourself at home.”

Josie pulled her phone from her bag and flipped it over in her hands. She hated the part of her that wanted him to call. Their entire relationship had been a mess from the beginning, and she knew she shouldn’t want to hear from him, yet when her screen showed no new messages, disappointment lingered.

Rolling her eyes, she distracted herself by looking through spools of fabric. Half an hour later the woman tallied Josie’s purchase and handed her the receipt. “Do you want to pull your car to the front? This is a lot to carry.”

Josie looked over her shoulder and smiled. “Yeah, that would make things easier. I’ll be right back.”

Her smile was still in place as she stepped out the door and onto the sidewalk. All of a sudden, everything changed. Bodies surrounded her out of nowhere, their booming voices vibrating in her ears as flashes blinded her with each click of the camera shutter.

“Oh my God,” she gasped and stumbled forward. She shielded her head with her arms and tried to push forward, but a crowd had gathered and it was like moving through quicksand.

“Josie, did you seduce Anders Ellis?”

Her heart pounded as bodies slammed against her, pushing and shoving her in every direction as they yelled her name and fired off question after question.

“Did you befriend Aubrey to steal Anders?”

“Do you make a habit of fucking guys with girlfriends?”

Her breaths were choppy as panic swelled in her chest and constricted her airway. Her foot caught on someone next to her, causing her to lurch forward and push a couple of people out of her path.

“How many other actors have you slept with on set?”

“Have you always been a slut? Is that how you make it in Hollywood?”

The questions made her want to fall to the ground and curl up in a ball. A sob tore from her chest as the tears she thought were gone streamed down her cheeks.

“Were you after his money?”

Over and over they insulted her. They pushed and shoved with no regard for anything other than a reaction, a comment, a money shot. Her body shook with adrenaline. She lowered her shaking arms and balled her fists as a surge of anger swept over her. Extending her arms, she shoved the guy in her face to the side and pushed past him. She could see her car. She was almost there. She just needed to cross the street.

“C’mon, baby. I’m sure you used that mouth of yours more than this to get Anders Ellis in the sack. Tell us your story.”

She had never been so degraded in her life. Beyond humiliated, she stepped onto the curb just as something slammed into her back and propelled her forward. She stumbled into the street, her arms extended as she fell toward the concrete. A horn blared to her left. She only had time to squeeze her eyes shut before strong arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her out of the road and back onto the curb. Reeling, she lifted her gaze to a pair of concerned bright blue eyes.

“I’ve got you. Are you okay?”

H
ours later and hundreds of miles away, Anders pushed open the door to his cottage and stepped inside. He tugged his shirt over his head, wincing as the material slid across his sunburned shoulders. He’d fallen asleep after swimming and woke hours later with the sun beating down on him. Starved, in pain, and drained from the heat, he trudged up the stairs for a cool shower and something to help him sleep. After eating a sandwich, he fell onto the couch, flipped on the television, and didn’t move again until the sun rose the next day.

He was groggy and disoriented when the sound of his phone ringing woke him. His back ached and his shoulders stung as he sat up and scrubbed his hands over his face. The incessant ringing of his phone grated on his nerves, and when he snatched it off the table, he was irritated and short-tempered.

“What?” he barked, standing and moving toward the bathroom.

“I’ve been calling you since yesterday morning. Where the fuck have you been?”

Anders stopped short of the bathroom door, his face twisted with disbelief. Nathan had never talked to him like that before. Defensive as always, Anders reacted as expected. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize you paid me to be at your beck and call. I thought it was the other way around.”

“My job is to look out for your best interests. I can’t do that if you won’t answer the damn phone. Or maybe you don’t care that your relationship with Josie is all over the Internet and magazine covers. My mistake. Please go back to whatever else was more important.”