Forever in Hollywood Page 12

  Andrew caught on to my excitement. As I paced the floor hashing out my plan with Jocelyn, he grabbed my pizza-covered computer. “Where’s she coming from?” he asked.

  “Orlando International.” He nodded and scanned the internet for flights from Orlando to Los Angeles.

  “Mari, stop, I can’t do that. It’s too much, and I’m sure Dan won’t like an intruder living in his house.”

  “That’s over.” My voice sounded distant in my ears.

  “What do you mean? You and Dan aren’t together any more? But you were so perfect for each other.” Jocelyn voiced what all our friends would whisper when news of our divorce reached them.

  “We have a lot of catching up to do,” I said, numb. “Dan cheated on me; we’re getting a divorce. Maybe I need you just as much as you need me?” I understood why she wanted to try and work things out. I did the same thing for far longer than I should have. Relying on the hope that one day, the sting from it would dissipate. “Jocelyn, you have to tell your parents what happened.”

  “I can’t,” she whispered.

  “Then let me. I’ll explain our plan to them as well. Is that okay with you?” I was nervous now how they would take the news. It really wasn’t my place to tell someone their daughter was being abused.

  She was quiet for a minute, thinking, probably trying to foretell the direction this would throw her life. Then she called to her mom.

  Jocelyn’s mom sounded confused when she got back on the phone. I explained what happened to the best of my knowledge. She was silent. I couldn’t tell how she took this new information. I told her Jocelyn would fill her in on whatever I couldn’t.

  When I divulged my plan to save Jocelyn, she wanted the address of where her daughter would stay, but I refused give her the information. If she wrote it down, and he found it, Jocelyn’s safety would be compromised.

  “I promise to have Jocelyn call you the moment she lands and she’ll call every day,” I assured her frantic mother.

  “I wouldn’t tell him where she was. I have to know where my daughter is. I’m sorry I can’t let her go. We can keep her safe. What we can’t do, the police can.” She objected indignantly to my plan.

  “Can you? I moved out of state because the police wouldn’t believe what I told them about him—and I wasn’t married to the guy. You have to let her go…for her safety. If he did this to her, it will only get worse. Don’t risk your daughter’s life just to keep her nearby.” I’d go into details of my horrid past relationship if I had to. I glanced nervously at Andrew, not wanting him to hear this part of my history.

  Stalked, then cheated on, and now Andrew. I was great at picking men.

  He touched my elbow and indicated he’d found the list of flights for tomorrow. I’d really wanted her to come tonight, but I suppose tomorrow would be acceptable as long as it was before Raymond decided to take her home.

  “We don’t have the money to buy a ticket.”

  “I’ve got it covered. Just get her to the airport.” I read off a list of morning flight times for her to choose from. Her continued hesitancy was apparent in her voice.

  “Your daughter is an adult, Mrs. Trailman. Ask her if this is what she wants. Then let her go and start her life over the way it should be, without fear and abuse.

  “You told me yourself once you weren’t fond of him. We’ve…I’ve got the room for her at my house.” It would take some getting used to not saying ‘we’ any more. “You’ve known me almost all my life. I’ll do anything for her! Please, just let me know which time to buy.”

  “We’ll have to talk this over, Marissa.”

  “Talk it over; I’ll call you back in thirty minutes. Does this work for you?”

  “We’ll call you when we decide.”

  “No, Mrs. Trailman, you don’t understand how dangerous someone like this can be. I won’t give you my number on the off chance he breaks in and finds it written on something and traces her back to me. I’ll call you back.”

  No one really understands the mind of a predator until they have lived in one’s shadow. She had the resources to escape him that most women in abusive relationships don’t have. She owned nothing with him and had no children so she could break ties with him rather easy.

  Yes, starting over with nothing was a scary process, but she had someone to help her every step of the way. There was the tricky little part about getting her a divorce, but I was sure there had to be an easy solution for abused women. We could worry about that once she was settled.

  She reluctantly agreed, and I could hear her calling her daughter’s name with questioning surprise as she hung up. I sat and stared at the phone.

  Andrew sat beside me and wrapped his arm around my shoulder to draw me closer. “You’re a really amazing friend.”

  “She’s like a sister to me. I can’t let him hurt her again.” I looked up with tears in my eyes. He had to understand how much she means to me.

  “Do you want me to leave? I know this must be a lot for you.”

  “No. Please don’t leave me tonight.” I couldn’t stand the thought of being alone with my thoughts. Andrew offered comfort one should get from a spouse. Obviously mine didn’t care, and I was thankful for Andrew’s unwavering support. I broke down and sobbed. He sat quietly by, then hashed out a plan to kidnap my friend from her husband. When he understood my plan, he even became an accessory by looking up flights for me. It took a special kind of person to handle this level of crazy. The uneasy feeling that he only looked at me as another conquest eased up a bit.

  He smiled, obviously pleased by my response. “Okay, I will stay as long as you want.”

  “Don’t say that. You might be here longer than the night,” I teased.

  “That would suit me just fine.”

  I knew the reason he came over tonight was to discuss some aspect of our rendezvous. To say I wasn’t looking forward to that talk right now, after everything that happened, would be an understatement. The coward’s way out of this talk would be to let him leave and pretend everything was fine for another day, but with Jocelyn coming, it was now or never.

  “About the other night—”

  He placed a large thumb on my cheek.

  “What happened the other night was…” He gaze jumped from the ground to my face several times. Then he ran his thumbs around his ears gathering his long hair into a nub of a ponytail. “It was more than I expected.”

  More than he expected? Did he mean he didn’t think I, a married woman, would go that far?

  “Everything about last night was perfect.” He smiled and relaxed his arms to his sides. “It’s just knowing you’re going back to Boston…it’s so far away, and your ex still lives there. He’ll try and win you back.”

  “I’m not going back to him, Andrew. I gave him too many chances already.”

  “Good, because I don’t want this to end.” He reached out and took my hand.

  I stared at him in shock. I wasn’t expecting him to say any of that. What was I to him, and why in the world would he be attracted to me?

  My shoulders sagged, and I shook my head. “I don’t know what I am doing; I’m so confused,” I mumbled.

  Andrew moved behind me and placed a hand on each shoulder. I sighed and leaned into his hands when he started to knead the muscles in my back.

  “You’ve had an interesting week haven’t you?” He chuckled softly as his hands relaxed my tense muscles.

  Interesting was certainly an understatement. I’ve ridden enough emotional rollercoasters lately to last a lifetime. From divorce, to waking up next to Andrew, re-living my past, having a close friend re-live my past, and now Andrew was telling me—telling me what? That he liked the idea of us as much as I did at this moment?

  “Yeah. That feels really good, by the way. Where’d you learn how to do this?”

  “I’m very good with my hands, my little secret.” His lips were at my ear; as he spoke, his warm breath tickled the small hairs on my neck. “Don’t tell anyo
ne.”

  “What else can your hands do?” I wanted to leave the past behind. Hoping he heard the meaning behind my question, I chewed on my lip, waiting. His hands slid from my shoulders down the front of my chest. He pulled me into him and skimmed his lips across my neck.

  “I could show you,” he murmured into the hollow behind my ear, his nose softly brushing my hairline. My breathing kicked up a notch. “But I think you might need to call your friend back first.”

  “Son of a bitch, you tease!” I turned around, and his face broke into a triumphant smile. I wasn’t about to let him get away with this. I placed my hands on his chest and gave him a reprimanding shove. He grabbed my wrists and pulled them around his neck, dragging me against his chest.

  Our faces ended up mere inches apart. I moistened my lips with my tongue in anticipation of the moment our lips would meet. The same electricity that had been in the air the other night drew me into him again. He grabbed the back of my neck and kissed me. The way his lips moved against mine should’ve been illegal. I straddled him so I could take control of the moment, but he was always two steps ahead of me. He broke our kiss and pushed the phone into my hand.

  “Call,” was all he said. My breathing was ragged; there was no way I could talk to someone right now. I held up one finger for him to give me a moment.

  When I recovered from what his kiss did to my body, I dialed Jocelyn’s number. This time, when she answered, she sounded a little more upbeat.

  “Are you starting your life over?” I asked in an enthusiastic tone. Andrew and I were still inches apart, and his lips called to me like a siren’s song.

  “Are you sure this is okay?

  “One hundred percent. What time do you want to fly out?”

  “Cheapest flight, I hate that I’m such a burden already. Where am I going anyway?”

  “Los Angeles for now, but I can’t tell you exactly where. Like I told your mom, he can’t have any possible chance to figure it out.” I pulled myself away from Andrew and went to the computer; the flight schedule was still on screen. The soonest available was a late afternoon flight so I booked that. “Okay, your ticket is waiting for you. Write down this confirmation number.” I gave her the number and letter combination. “Arrive at the airport by 5:30 p.m. Go to the Jet Blue check-in and type in the confirmation number. Hop on the plane and I’ll pick you up at the airport.”

  “Okay, I got it.”

  “Okay,” A sigh of relief passed through my lips. The other end of the phone was quiet. “Are you nervous?”

  “Yes, a little.”

  “Better than being scared for the rest of your life though, isn’t it?”

  “Yes, Mari... Thank you.”

  “Don’t worry about it, really. It’ll all work out. Pack only your clothes. Don’t bring any bank or credit cards, no cell phone either. I know his name is on all of it. Oh, can you make it to the local courthouse before your flight?”

  My question caught her off guard. There was a long pause on the other end of the line.

  “I guess so. Why?” she asked.

  “File a restraining order on him before you leave, please.”

  “You know that didn’t stop him before, besides, are they good from state to state?”

  Now it was my turn to be caught off guard. “I don’t know, but I imagine so. That is something to ask the clerk at the courthouse.”

  “Okay. My mom wants to talk to you again,” she said.

  “All right, get some rest and please don’t worry about a thing.”

  When her mom came back on the line, I assured her she would be safer here with me. “Make sure he doesn’t know anything when he comes looking for her, please don’t tell him she’s even talked to me or he will find her.” She agreed and again thanked me before hanging up.

  “I’ll drive you to pick her up if you want,” Andrew said, “this way you can be with her.”

  “Thanks, I really appreciate that and well…everything you’ve done for me tonight.” His quick offer to help surprised me. Dan would have been raising hell at me for ‘butting in on other people’s business.’

  “I haven’t done anything.” He shrugged.

  “No, you’ve done more than you could imagine. I would’ve probably gone mad if you were not here tonight. There is one problem with tonight though,”

  “What’s that?” By the perplexed look on his face it was clear he didn’t understand what Jocelyn’s imminent arrival meant to our budding relationship.

  “It’s the last night we’ll be alone.” I looked into his eyes to try and read his reaction. I was pleased by what I saw. His lips pursed and his eyebrows folded into a V.

  “No, the problem with tonight is you’re all the way over there. Get over here.” He opened his arms for me to move into. I jumped on the bed and snuggled tightly into his embrace. “Now, did you want me to show you what else I can do with my hands?”

  His warm breath tickled the hairs on my neck, but the grasp he had on my hips kept all laughter at bay. Like a sailor, his lower pouty lip called to me like a siren song and held me mesmerized. Without unbuttoning my jeans, he slid his hand inside.

  “God, you’re already so wet,” he groaned when he pushed my panties aside.

  Chapter Fourteen

  When I woke the next morning, I didn’t spare a second before looking at him. But something wasn’t right. His side of the bed was cold and vacant. I sat up and stared at the front door, blinking then turned to grimace at the bathroom door. Much to my dismay, that room was empty as well. This was such a stark contrast to the last night we spent together, when he refused to even let air between us. I was confused and hurt.

  “Andrew?” I called but there was no answer. My luck must have run out, he must have decided he’d had enough of my crazy life and left. My chest ached; I was really looking forward to spending more time with him and his goofy friends.

  This was worse than when Dan confessed to cheating, at least then I had anger to cling to, now remorse was my only crutch. Why would he toy with my emotions like he had? He didn’t need to do that. He could get plenty of women without the effort he put forth on me.

  My body still felt the imprint of his touch. I needed to get it off me quick. Trembling hands set the shower knob to scalding and I stepped in.

  As I washed, I couldn’t shake the feeling of being watched. I felt silly for thinking someone was in the room with me, and even more absurd for wanting to peek my head out of the shower. I decided to rinse off before doing so.

  When I craned my head around the curtain, I panicked. There was someone watching me, leaning against the sink. I screamed. At the same time, my foot squeaked out from underneath me. It only took a second for my eyes to rest on his face and realize it was the man I’d thought abandoned me. I grasped the built in soap dish for support before I hit the ground.

  “Jesus, Andrew. Are you trying to give me a heart attack?” He acted concerned at first but laughed when he realized I wasn’t injured. Drops of water trickled down my skin, as I stood in front of him completely naked. My hair hung limply in my face.

  “Where did you go anyway?” I grumbled, more annoyed at myself for letting my imagination run away with me.

  “I went to get breakfast. We have a problem, though. Your counterpart in the movie.”

  “Billy?”

  He nodded solemnly. “Him and a few of the other cast members walked into the breakfast room when I was getting us something to eat. He saw me there. I’m sorry. I didn’t think anyone would be there so early.”

  “What did you do?”

  “I walked out. I didn’t know what to do. I hope you come up with an excuse.”

  Typical man. “Well, you could have been staying with anyone here, right?”

  “Extras live in the city. They don’t stay in hotel rooms.”

  My heart raced; I stood there staring at him wide-eyed. “What?” I couldn’t form the words. “So…they know, about us?” He nodded again, once.

&n
bsp; “From the expression on Billy’s face, I can imagine they are doing a lot of speculating right now.” He shook his head. “It looked like his head was about to explode. I should go.”

  “Andrew, can I ask you a question?” He paused with his hand on the bathroom door. “Are you going to ignore me on-set now?” The question sounded pathetic and I regretted asking it as soon as it popped out of my mouth.

  He seemed taken aback. “What do you want me to do?”

  More banter started to spew out of my mouth. “Well, I mean, you should do what you want to do. But, ignoring me won’t help. They are still going to think we slept together, right? If you ignore me then everyone is going to assume I was one of your one-night stands.” I took a deep breath before continuing. “I mean, if that’s the way you want things to look, I can’t do anything about it, but I’d rather not be part of the gossip in that respect. I hope this isn’t coming off the wrong way, I don’t mean to ramble. I guess I’m just asking if you could tell me what I should expect.” By the end of my rant, my hands were pink from being wrung together so tight.

  I locked eyes with him. There was a chill from the hotel air conditioner and I shivered, still standing in the tub.

  Andrew reached above the toilet and handed me a towel. “You’re really beautiful when you’re all wet like that.” He didn’t answer my question. I grabbed the towel and hid my face in it. “Okay, but how should we act around each other?” He sounded truly curious now.

  “We should act like we would’ve if no one saw you.” Please agree to this! Being thought of as an adulterer was one thing, but being a one-night stand made things so much worse. I toweled off to give myself an action so I could appear nonchalant.

  “Wait! I’ve got an idea,” he burst out excitedly. “Ride to the set with me. We can say your rental didn’t start and you phoned me to pick you up.”

  “I don’t think anyone would buy that. Why wouldn’t I just ride in with Billy or someone who is staying here?” I shrugged.