Tinseltown (17 page)

“I love you,” he said in her ear. He felt like a lovesick fool or a giddy teenager, he wasn’t sure which, but he did know he was suddenly excited about life. His acting career could go away, and he would be happy as long as he could wake just like this — next to Deb — every morning. It was a new experience, but it was intoxicating. It fueled his libido but he tamped it down, knowing the past few weeks had been centered on their lovemaking. He wanted to focus on making her secure in her declaration for him so
he
could be secure that she wasn’t going to run the moment something bad happened. There wasn’t much certainty in life, least of all a woman’s emotions, and things wouldn’t be perfect forever. He had observed his parents’ relationship enough to know that. But he could hope to learn from their mistakes.

Tomorrow, they would fly back to Los Angeles to resume filming. Of course, after a call to Fernbank today, that might be delayed a few days until their cuts and bruises healed. The director wouldn’t be happy about the turn of events, but Zach didn’t really care. Deb knew how serious he was about her and how far he would go to protect her. That was all that mattered.

“Zach?” Deb asked softly.

“Yeah?” He smiled. She was so beautiful. Long hair spilled over the swell of her breasts and she gazed up sleepily at him.

“Are you okay?”

“Yup. Just admiring what’s mine,” he teased.

“I
am
yours, aren’t I?”

“And you have made me the happiest man on earth because of it.”

Cocking an eyebrow at him, she reached between them. “I see.”

He
tsked
, although he felt himself losing control. “You know that’s not what I meant, young lady.”

“Maybe I’d like to pretend it was.”

Yeah, he’d have to work on the whole friendship thing a little later.

* * * *

Deb finished packing her bags as she heard her father’s
yee-haw
at yet another game of chess won against Zach. Shaking her head, Deb smiled as she sat to put her shoes on. It was almost time for them to leave for the airport. Fernbank hadn’t been pleased about the news of their injuries but sent word through Zach he was glad Deb was okay and could rearrange a few shooting schedules to give them time to heal.

“Hey, sis,” Eric said as he wheeled into her room. The ramp up to the bedrooms on the second story was a workout for Eric, and he rarely came up to that floor during the day.

“Hey, what are you doing up here?”

“Just came up to make sure you don’t let this one get away,” He wheeled to a stop in front of her and looked at her earnestly. “I don’t get all mushy-gushy over other men, Deb, but this one’s a keeper. It’s been so plain to all of us he’s nuts about you, and after what happened with Brad, it does me good to know he would do what I would do if I was capable. It gives me a warm-fuzzy about him, you know?”

Deb grinned. “Since it gives you a warm fuzzy…”

Eric frowned. “I mean it, Deb. Brad never even tried to get to know me, because he couldn’t see past the wheelchair. At least Zach talks to me.”

“Zach’s not like everyone else.”

Eric thought a moment. “You’re right. He’s not like everyone else. He loves you. Don’t let the Hollywood hype get to you, sis. He’s it.
Finito
.”

“I know, Eric. You can butt-out now.” She stood, only to turn and sit in her brother’s lap, wrapping her arms around him in a hug. “I’m glad you guys love him as much as I do, and I’m glad you’re looking out for me.”

“You lived most of your life without Hollywood. Don’t let them strip the first good thing since your career.”

Deb pulled back and shook her head, laughing. “You think after all these years I’m going to change who I am?”

Eric smiled at her and pushed her hair back from her face, tweaking her nose. “I’m proud of you, Deb. You break the mold.”

A swell of love for her brother tugged at her heart, and she hugged him again. “No, big brother,
you
break the mold. You’ve got a wife who adores you, two children… You’re happy. There was a time I never thought you would be, but you proved to all of us what a strong, heroic man you are. You’re such a role model for Jesse and Elizabeth. I love you.”

“Aw shucks,” he said with a chuckle and pushed her away. “Now get up. Your butt is so big I can’t feel my legs.”

Laughing at his joke, she obeyed. If her brother, her hero, saw what she saw in Zach, then she had made a good choice.

* * * *

As they boarded their plane a few hours later, Deb was quiet. She and Zach were headed back to reality where filming schedules, promotions, and paparazzi ruled their life. This would be the true test for their marriage. Deb figured in a few months, maybe even weeks, she would know how permanent things would be between them. Once Zach wasn’t forced to be around her every day, their connection might change. He might wonder what on earth he had done marrying her. Or see someone who was prettier.

Looking over at him as the plane taxied the runway, she took his hand in hers. He opened his eyes and rolled his head toward her, smiling.

“Thank you for not making me look like a fool in front of my family.”

He squeezed her hand. “As it turns out, I didn’t have to do much acting. Falling in love with you was the easiest thing I’ve ever done.”

She smiled sadly. “I’m just afraid of what’s ahead for us. Romances like ours are driven apart by paparazzi and just… well… life.”

Zach leaned over and kissed her forehead. “It won’t if we don’t let it. I’m a firm believer that if our relationship is strong enough, we’ll make it through anything. Even our crazy, hectic lives.” His fingertips trailed her jawline. “So stop worrying. We’ve still got another month of shooting, and you might decide you want rid of me later.” He gave her his best Hollywood smile, and Deb rolled her eyes.

“You know,” she said after a while. “Even though your parents weren’t the best in the world, they did a great job at showing you what
not
to be.”

He shot her a sideways glance and frowned. “I’d prefer not to talk about them.”

“Look at me, Zach.” She shifted in her seat toward him. When he complied, she threaded her fingers through his. “You took what your parents were and grew. You’re a better person than most. Very few people rise above their upbringing.”

“It’s taken years of therapy, Deb. I’m not perfect.”

They sat gazing at each other.

“I know you’re not perfect,” she agreed after a deep breath. “If you were perfect, you wouldn’t have taken advantage of me when I was drunk.”

“Ahhh.” He sighed. “We’re back to that.”

“You did.” She straightened in her seat and crossed her arms.

“Sweetheart, I’ve taken advantage of you far more times than just when you were drunk, if you’ll recall.”

She
harumphed
at him and looked away, hiding her grin.

“I see your smile in the window’s reflection there, missy. Don’t worry, I’m nowhere close to being done taking advantage of you.”

Deb ran her fingers through her hair and leaned forward, nervous jitters eating away at her. The fear of the unknown killed her. They were back to reality after all. How would things be now? She shot him a glance. “What
is
going to happen when we get back? Are we going to be staying together in our trailers? Where will we live? Is this something we’re going to be flaunting? What about after the filming?”

Zach’s chuckle met her ears. “Would you relax? I think we should take this one day at a time, Deb. I love you and you love me. That’s all we need to know right now, right?”

Deb sat back and looked out the window at the darkness. Everything was so uncertain Deb wasn’t sure what to expect.

* * * *

Call time was in thirty minutes, and Zach hadn’t seen Deb since they’d arrived back in LA four days previously. Both of them had to take care of some business upon their arrival and since they lived on opposite ends of the city, even though he hadn’t wanted to, he’d agreed to wait until filming resumed to see her again. Zach couldn’t help but feel like each time he spoke with her on the phone she was making excuses to end the call.

They were scheduled to shoot the big love scene between Preston and Amanda today, and Zach hoped to get a little practicing in before the cameras rolled. But eventually, Deb would have to quit avoiding him.

Zach wasn’t clueless and knew Deb was scared out of her mind. She wasn’t necessarily avoiding him per se; it was more an avoidance of the situation. She didn’t know what to expect from him but he would show her. Zach wasn’t going to run with his tail between his legs. He wouldn’t take off with some other actress. And he certainly wasn’t going to give up the best thing to ever happen to him just because he might be a little scared too.

A little? When he admitted it to himself, more than fear held him back. He was tempted to cry like a baby at the mere thought of their marriage failing. But he was a man and would take whatever came. Deb and he might not be a perfect match forever, no one knew the future, but they certainly were right now, in this moment.

It was easy to pretend while they had been secluded in her parents’ home. They had pretended their hectic lives didn’t exist outside the four walls surrounding them. They had ignored that the paparazzi had been standing at the curb waiting for the slightest glimpse of them, for one picture of them together and happy. Furthermore, it was easy to pretend their lives would go on as it had inside of those walls — making love all day, laughing, lots of downtime to spend together, waking next to each other every morning. But the truth was there would be precious little time in the weeks and months to come.

Sure, they were together now, working on the same project. But as Deb had pointed out, what happened next? Even though Zach would do whatever was necessary to keep Deb in his life, there might be a time Deb simply didn’t want him anymore. She said she loved him now. And he knew he loved her, but didn’t life have a way of coming between even the strongest of people?

He hated thinking along those lines, but things needed to stay in perspective. His heart had to stay aware of his brain so nothing got broken or bruised during the process.

But even as he thought it he knew he was in as deep as he could get. He’d be portrayed as the loser, the man who pined away for his lost love. He grimaced at the thought. Talk about losing his man card.

Glancing at the clock, he grabbed his jacket from the desk chair and pulled it on. He hungered for the sight of Deb. Just seeing her would calm his fears. Then he could stop this ridiculous train of thought and focus on the next level of their marriage. If only he could figure out what it was.

When he arrived on set, he took one glance at the bed and grinned. Today was going to be fun, and sex tonight would be amazing after all their foreplay on set today. Before the holidays, any kind of physical romance between them in the script had been forced. Now, it would be dynamite. Their love for each other would bleed on screen and make everything real. Their fans were going to go crazy over this movie.

Zach glanced to his right to see Deb working with Fernbank on where to stand to get the best camera angle. She was dressed in a robe, but black stockings and high-heeled black shoes peeked at him from the bottom of her robe. She was most likely clothed in some sexy lingerie he would take delight in peeling off of her while the cameras rolled. He grinned, remembering now why he loved his job so much.

Deb spotted him a few moments later and shot him a nervous smile with a small wave. He held his hand up in return and winked, loving the sight of her. She had a hard time filming love scenes. She had confided in him on the phone late last night that even though they were in love, she didn’t want to be a faker. It made him grin. She certainly wasn’t a faker in real life.

“Zach!” Fernbank called. “Let’s make sure we’ve got the blocking done before we do our first take.”

This was the first time Zach had seen Fernbank since their last visit with clear instructions to make amends. Zach grinned at Deb as he approached, settling his gaze on her breasts intentionally. When he looked up into her eyes again, she blushed and glanced away.

Hmm, not quite the reaction he had hoped for.

After they covered their bases, Zach and Deb took their positions. She tugged off her robe and threw it to a crew member on the side. Beneath the robe was another black silk robe. Zach swallowed and grinned at her.

A small smile lifted her lips. To the outside world, Deb Atkins was unstoppable, simply Deb Atkins, a prolific actress who had fought her way to the top and succeeded with grace and gratitude. But Zach knew her so much better than anyone else did. Uncertainty lay in her eyes. Tight lines of worry etched her mouth. Her spine was a bit rigid, and she tugged at the bottom of the robe subtly every time she moved.

It was going to take a while for her to warm up to working together again.

“Okay, let’s do this, Deb,” he coached. “Let’s do
it
.”

He got the reaction he was looking for when she rolled her eyes. “This is going to be the end of me, I think,” she grumbled.

“Nah.” He waved his arm. “I’m going to be the end of you when I get my hands on you. Think wardrobe would let you borrow this for a few extra hours?” She was just far enough away he had to say it at the risk of someone overhearing. Sure enough, one of the camera men snickered. Deb shot both of them an angry look.

In this scene, Amanda, Preston’s secretary, who was woefully insecure but gaining confidence, had accompanied Preston, her high school crush, on a business trip. When the scene opened, she was in the bathroom having a little talk with her reflection about how she could seduce Preston. Little did Amanda know, Preston was trying to figure out how to tell her he was in love with her. This scene wasn’t too far away from their own situation, so it wouldn’t be too much for him to remember those emotions he had experienced only a matter of weeks ago.

“Places!” Fernbank yelled. Amanda disappeared into the bathroom, and Zach sat on the edge of the bed, holding the remote. He closed his eyes for a moment, finding his place in character, and when he opened his eyes, he was in character. He
was
Preston.