Perfectly Scripted (15 page)

“Well, I was wondering if you had time to go over the date dream sequence with me, and I think we should discuss the sex scene.”

Blowing out a breath annoyed, I scrubbed my hands down my face. “Heather, I don’t have time for this. Besides, we aren’t even shooting those scenes until the final week of production.”

“Oh, come on now, Roco,” she said in a cloyingly sweet voice.

Roco had been her pet name for me when we had been together. I fucking hated it. She said that it was her clever way of putting my first and last name together. She was clearly a genius.

“We’ve done this before, Roco, on camera and off. Surely you can make time for a quick discussion.”

“Would you please not call me that?”

Frowning, she huffed out, “Fine, but only if you agree to talk to me about the first sex scene.”

I nodded and motioned for her to take a seat on the couch. The sooner I got this discussion over with, the sooner she could leave. I turned around to refill my tea, asking her if she’d like a cup, to which she replied no. When I turned back around, she was sprawled out on the couch, naked, and on her back.

“Jesus, Heather. What the fuck?” I groaned, whipping around the room, hoping to Christ that all the blinds were closed.

When she propped herself up on her elbow, her hair fell over her breasts. I scrambled to pick up her dress and coat and threw them at her. Then she shot me a petulant look.

“Heather, get dressed right now. I’m being absolutely serious.”

Ignoring my request, she rolled onto her stomach. “We’ve had a lot of good times together. Are you sure you don’t have time to play?” she asked, giving me a lazy grin.

“Yes, I’m sure, and we haven’t had playtime in a very long time. Now, get your ass up, put on your fucking clothes, and kindly leave,” I said firmly, gesturing towards the door.

“You used to like me naked,” she said as she stared at me.

“Heather, those days are long gone. You and I have a working relationship. I am in love with someone else, and last I heard, you were in a relationship.”

“I don’t accept this,” she whined. “How can you want to be with that ordinary girl? My heart aches every time I see the two of you together.”

“Stop it right there. I assure you that you do not want to have this conversation with me.” I eyed her suspiciously. “Don’t you get tired of playing the drama queen? The damsel in distress? The victim?”

“I’m not playing!” Balling her fists, she yelled in protest. “Ronan, I love you!” Her eyes began to water. “Don’t you remember how good we were together?”

“I’m not going down memory lane with you. If you’re looking to rekindle a romance that never truly existed, I suggest you stop. We had some nice times, but you know that a majority of those were maneuvered publicity stunts. That’s all it was between us—business.
Only
business and nothing more. Furthermore, sex is sex. It does not equal love. We were two consenting adults.”

She clutched her stomach and began to sob. “How—how can you forget about
our
baby?”

My mouth gaped. She would say anything to remind me of the past.

I handed her a tissue along with her bra. Bringing up the memory of a dead child was about the coldest thing she could have done to provoke me.

“Thank you Ronan, I knew you still cared,” she said through her sniffling.

I stepped closer to her. “I will never forget the child we lost. I grieved for that loss. But, Heather, if you are
still
having trouble dealing with that pain, you seriously need to get some help.”

She slipped her dress over her head and grabbed her coat. “I don’t need help. I’m fine,” she said firmly.

“Okay. What, then? Are you having a diva tantrum? Is Grady not giving you enough attention?”

She sent me an icy glare. “I’m
not
a diva. For your information, Grady and I are rock solid. He gives me plenty of attention—in and out of the bedroom,” she said, laying it on thick.

“Then why did you come here declaring your alleged love for me—in the nude, no less—if that were true. Your games won’t work with me.”

“No games. I
do
love you.”

That’s it. Time to go.
Most of the time, I could handle my emotions pretty well, but she was crossing a serious line. My tolerance had run out.

“Don’t forget these,” I replied sharply, picking her panties up and shoving them in her jacket pocket. Then I gripped her by the elbow and led her to the door.

“Hey, stop. S
top
shoving me,” she whined. “I just…I wanted to talk to you about the sex scene. I’m sorry about the theatrics.” She wiggled out of my grip to straighten the sleeves of her dress.

Part of me wondered if she was using again. If I should try to get her to a meeting.

No.
Fuck no.
Holliday’s words came back to me, reminding me that I could not give Heather the wrong impression. Besides, her problems were not for me to worry about. She had Grady to help her.

“Listen, Heather, I have to be going or I’ll be late for my appointment.”

“Fine. Fuck you, Ronan,” she spat. “Go. Fucking leave, then.” She stomped out of my trailer like a child, elbowing Desi out of the way in the process.

“What’s with her?” he snorted.

“She’s apparently having a bad day.”

Normally, Heather’s bullshit wouldn’t have had any effect on me, but that altercation gave me a surge of energy. I was more than fired up to work out now.

“You did awesome man,” Gram said, handing me a water bottle.

Gram Lucero was ex-military and an expert in both boxing and kickboxing. He stood an inch shorter than me, his dark hair was shaved short, and tattoos covered his arms like sleeves. This guy was a legit badass by appearance alone. In the ring, I’d watched him and another trainer go a few rounds. He was quick and light on his feet, and he packed a powerful punch. I knew I would learn a lot from his training.

I wiped the sweat off my face with a towel. “Thanks.”

My muscles trembled slightly—a satisfying feeling. Gram hadn’t taken it that easy on me during my first lesson. He’d told me that I had natural grace and great footwork. Footwork wasn’t my concern though. Landing a jaw-busting right hook was.

I wanted to learn more. My need to seek justice for Holliday was driving me to learn more. Tonight, however, was all about the basics, and he didn’t want me to over exert myself.
Fuck that.
I had so much adrenaline coursing through me from just thinking about ripping Derek Saunders to shreds.

“Let’s set you up for another session soon.”

“I’m going out of town for three weeks. Press tour.”

“Well,” he replied, scratching the back of his head. “Call me when you’re back in the city.”

“I’ll do that.”

“Great.” He grinned and extended his hand. His grip was solid and confident.

“Looking forward to it, and again, nice work tonight.”

I decided to cap my workout off with a few miles on the treadmill. At home, I planned to burn more energy with Holliday. Now, did I tell her about my run-in with Heather before or after sex?
Decisions. Decisions.

Holliday

Charlotte and I scrambled all morning to get ready for the final casting call that afternoon. The show was in a matter of days. There was nothing quite like New York City during Fashion Week. It was electric, burning white hot with the extraordinary energy, artistry, glitz, and glamour. We decided to pull out all the stops for our first event to make a splash. We had a huge presence on social media, and with the buzz about Charlotte’s new accessory line, things couldn’t have been going any better.

Jesse, our casting director, and Maya, Charlotte’s assistant, joined us for the auditions. Two groups remained. Thirty models were needed to walk in our ten-minute presentation. This was one of the more crucial tasks, but my sister loved every second of it. I thought she felt a rush of nostalgia for her own days spent going to castings and auditions. I didn’t know how she’d handled the rejection, the pressure, and the low-calorie diet of a fashion model. I loved food too much to even bother with the business.

The competition pool was incredible. Throughout this whole process, we’d been blown away more times that we could count. We’d done fashion show and campaign auditions before, but nothing compared to this. It was fascinating.

We were looking for unique and rare, but the groups were filled with an abundance of bright personalities, ladies with luminous skin and a well-proportioned build. Their bodies were all in top form, which made it hard to choose. Luckily, Charlotte and I agreed more than we disagreed on models, so it was easy to spot the young women who were too perfect for Charlotte’s designs.

Finally, around three in the afternoon, we’d seen all the models. And in record time, no less. I was exhausted, but Charlotte had more energy than she’d had at the beginning of the casting.

“Well, we did it!” she squealed in delight.

“We did.” I smiled, giving her shoulder a nudge.

“She’s incredibly beautiful,” she said, pointing to the model board. “I like her curves. Let’s move her to the permanent side.”

“Yes, she definitely has the look that will work with the theme and your collection.”

After staring at a few more pictures and the shots we had taken from the session, we filled our roster. For the last twenty minutes, my phone along with Maya’s had been going off like firecrackers one right after the other. I had at least fifteen text messages from agents, and Maya had some as well. We had the final list typed up, and Maya had the lovely task of contacting the models we had picked.

After I’d said goodnight to Charlotte and the rest of the crew, I walked back to my office and fell onto the couch, exhausted. My phone vibrated against my thigh. It was Ronan, letting me know that he had an appointment with his new trainer. Good. That would give me plenty of time to stop at the market on the way home and pick up the ingredients I needed for dinner. I’d found a place I loved near The Addison. Lucky for me it was open late. My eyelids felt heavy. A quick nap wouldn’t hurt.

It was nearly seven in the evening when I woke, startled by the sound of my cell phone. Blake had texted me asking if I needed him to pick me up. We’d come to an understanding about guard duty during the days leading up to Fashion Week, but it hadn’t been without much protesting from Ronan.