Trevor POVMy grip tightens around the steering wheel, while my mind races along with my heart. Jane’s words repeat in my head. “So, you are dating Tiffany now.” Her knowing look and triumphant grin tell me I better not lie, even though I’ve made a promise to Tiffany not to tell anyone. I unfortunately break my promise with her and nod my head. “Yes, I am.” Even though a part of me feels guilty for telling Jane, another part of me confidently and proudly answers. I’m not ashamed of being in a relationship with my co-star. I keep my eyes focused on the road and slam my foot down on the accelerator. My baby is drunk and practically alone. She needs me.Kyle might be my friend, but if he is with Cassandra, he is only concerned about his feisty girlfriend. He hasn’t confessed to me about it yet, but the other day when he went to the mall looking for his cute friend with amazing dimples, his exact words, I knew my hunch had been correct. Kyle’s face always lights up when he tal
Tiffany POVIt has been a week since my drunken night out with my friends and Kyle. Things have been going well, but I get a strange feeling anymore when I’m around Trevor. He frequently talks about punishment with a spark of excitement in his eyes, but I don’t know what he is referring to. I don’t know if I should worry about it or not. He was too busy the day after my late night with my friends to talk about it too much. I did thank him for coming to get me, but something in the back of my mind keeps screaming I’m forgetting something important. I wish I knew what. Since Jane has been informed about the situation with Rhonda, she has been at the set every day, being an additional layer of defense between Trevor and that crazy woman. Luckily, the wacko hasn’t disturbed him this week. I still can’t breathe a sigh of relief yet. I can only do that when she has completely given up on my man and has walked away. I step into the studio, but before I get too far, Jane rushes
Tiffany POV I stumble back into the studio building. My mind is still trying to wrap around and register exactly what Jane has said. I don’t want to admit she is right, but can people around us really know without us saying anything? No. It isn’t possible. Kyle’s words come floating back to me, too. He has implied the same thing, but what are the odds they both say the same thing? No. It can’t be possible. Right? “Tiffany! Where have you been? It is time for your scene! Get into place!” The director waves at me from the other side of the set. I raise my hand. “Sorry.” My mind is still a mess, but I pull my thoughts together and remember what scene we are doing next. I shake my head and put on my professional mask, stepping into character. Jane and Kyle’s words eat away at me, but I push it off to the side for now. I have a job to do first. I take a deep breath and silently run through the lines in my head. “Places everyone!” I scurry across the set to m
Tiffany POV I know Trevor said I shouldn’t worry about Rhonda, and Jane is working to keep the nasty woman from him, but I can’t stop worrying. Rhonda is a crazy stalker and may do anything to keep her claws buried in my man. No. I’m never going to allow it to happen. I should be reviewing today’s scripts for the various scenes we will be shooting, but instead, I’m hiding in the corner and hunting through my contacts, trying to find someone who can help us. As I come to the bottom of the list, I sigh. I’ve found a few willing to help, but they didn’t know much about Rhonda. I gave them whatever information I have on her, and they have promised to help with whatever they can. Some of them are surprised Trevor is having problems, but they all have agreed he is handsome and popular enough to draw some crazy stalkers from time to time. Several have relayed their own personal stalker stories. None of which made me feel any better. I run my thumb up my phone screen a coup
Trevor POVA chuckle rumbles around in my chest as I shake my head. The scene from early is still fresh in my mind, along with Tiffany’s adorable and confused face. She still doesn’t understand what the director was hinting at. I shake my head, and my lips curve upward while my hands dive into the soapy water, hunting for more dirty dishes to wash. Tiffany is too precious for her own good. Ring…ring…ring…I glance over at the counter and my phone. The director’s name flashes across the screen. What does he want? I quickly wipe my hands off and then swipe to accept the call, putting it on speaker. “Hello. Is there something I forgot to do? Or are there changes to tomorrow’s schedule or script?”“No. I wanted to call you on a more personal matter.”My eyebrow rises. “Personal? What would you need to know about that is personal?”“Uhm…”I wipe both of my hands off and step away from the sink. “It can’t be too personal. We have a professional relationship, but you don’t ev
Tiffany POVI run my hand through my hair. Why didn’t Trevor tell me he was talking to the director? I guess I get to put another person on the list of people who know about Trevor and me. The list seems to be growing rather quickly, which I don’t like. It isn’t much of a secret if everyone knows. Dread washes over me.If the executives know, will Trevor or I be banned from acting? Or maybe both of us. I’m finally getting jobs. I don’t want to go back to the time when I didn’t know if I would have enough money for my next meal or rent. It sucks. Even with steady work, I still stretch my money for as long as I can. Every time I get a little ahead, I swear my father can feel it and gets money from me.My gaze lifts from the ground to the front of the studio building. Will the director say something to me? Trevor told me several times this morning to not worry, but how can I not? We are over 70% done filming, and I don’t want anything to cause me or Trevor problems now. I
Trevor POVI step out of the studio to relax and clear my mind, but my mind instantly goes back to Tiffany’s cute, confused look a few days ago. Her dark eyebrows had knotted together while she had stared at the makeup artist. She had an innocent look, but I’m still debating whether she is truly innocent or just acting. I wouldn’t put it past her to be acting, though. Ever since the director found out about Tiffany and me, I’ve been paying closer attention to the staff and their actions. I’m finding out some interesting things. “TREVOR!!!”My blood instantly runs cold and my stomach sinks. No. I thought Jane is keeping her away from me and the set. I quickly look around the area, hoping Jane is somewhere, but to my horror, she isn’t anywhere to be found. No. I spin around on my heels and silently pray I can get back into the studio and somehow disappear before the crazy witch can catch me. “TREVOR!!”Shit! I don’t think of anything else and dart back inside the studio, bu
Tiffany POVIt has been hours since I happily watched the security guards drag Rhonda out of the building. Every time she would kick and scream, a little giggle would bubble around in me while the edge of my mouth would slide out into an evil smirk. She has got exactly what she deserves. I wish I could have been there at the main gate when they threw her out. That would have been the highlight of my week. But I can’t think about that right now. I need to get to Trevor. The director pushed all of Trevor’s shooting scenes back to tomorrow, but the director wouldn’t do it for mine. Every part of me had wanted to follow Trevor out of the building with Jane, but I couldn’t. Jane made sure he got home fine, but from his dazed look, he isn’t fine. The situation has taken a toll on him. I run as fast as I can down the hall to Trevor’s apartment. I pause only long enough for me to type in the code and for the door to unlock it. The image of Trevor’s lost look from earlier pops int
Trevor POVRing…ring…ring…Ugh. I should have turned my phone off, too. I glance over my shoulder at the annoying device on the nightstand, but my annoyance disappears when I spot Black Sheep flashing on the screen and realize I haven’t talked to my cousin or anyone except for Dr. Heartland since the mall event. Jane had sent a message last night saying my cousin had helped with the crazy stalker lady, but she didn’t provide any details. I don’t know if she thought we weren’t in the mood to hear it or we didn’t want to know. I didn’t push it, either. To be honest, I really don’t want to know, but I’m curious. And my curiosity wins.I roll across the bed to the nightstand and snatch my phone off it. “Hey, what’s up?” A hearty chuckle flows from the phone while I wipe the grogginess from my eyes. “You sound much better than I had expected. From what you and Tiffany had told me beforehand, I thought you would have sunken into yourself and wouldn’t have talked to me. Are you ge
Tiffany POVStanding almost frozen in the middle of the waiting room at Dr. Heartland’s office, I slide my trembling hand into my pocket, but I don’t want to pull my phone out. What am I going to do if I don’t want this phone call? Can I unsee who it is once I look? A sense of dread washes over me.My heart hammers against my chest as my phone stops ringing for only a few seconds before it resumes. “Tiffany? Is something wrong? You look pale.”I look towards the door, which leads back to the session rooms. Trevor is standing there with a concerned look, but if I look closely, I can still spot a trace of his scared expression from earlier. I open my mouth and go to say something, but nothing comes out. Ring…ring…ring…I flinch a little and rub my finger along the side of my phone, still in my pocket.Trevor catapults forward and engulfs me in his arms. “What happened? You were just going to the agency to get our car and then come here. Did something happen along the way to
Tiffany POVMy heart races, and my hands tremble as I zoom through the city streets. Like a professional race car driver, I zigzag back and forth and speed around traffic as if my life depends on it. The only thing I can think of right now is getting back to our apartment and being with Trevor. I need him as much as he needs me. He is the only thing that will calm me down right now. I glance in the rearview mirror and make sure no one is following me. If I wasn’t panicking, I would enjoy acting like a spy trying to escape from the bad guy. But there isn’t currently anything to enjoy. Sweat builds up on my palms while I tighten my grip around the steering wheel. I take a deep breath and check all the mirrors again to verify no one is following me. Just to be on the safe side, I go the long way back to the apartment. I breathe a sigh of relief when the luxury apartment building comes into view. Before I turn into the gated parking area, I check one last time to make sure no
Trevor POVMy body trembles as I look back over my shoulder at the mall behind us. The van heads off down the road and back to the agency, but I don’t want to be around anyone associated with them right now. The agency’s driver is as close to the company as I want to be right now. My voice cracks as I softly ask, “Can we go somewhere else? I don’t want to go back to the agency.” In a whisper, I add, “I hate them right now.”Tiffany wraps her slender arm around me and gently pats my shoulder. “Okay. If you don’t want to go there, we won’t. Would you prefer to be dropped off at Dr. Heartland’s office, and then I can pick you up from there after I get the car?”I turn back towards her. Her caring eyes put my frayed nerves at ease while her familiar floral perfume swirls around me. The doctor’s office isn’t quite the place I want to go to, but I can’t think of anywhere else right now. His office will be safe, too. Reluctantly, I nod. “Okay. You will come for me right away?”
Rhonda POV Trevor’s deep voice seeps into the changing room and ignites the butterflies in my stomach. “Don’t worry. I’m coming.” I bite my lower lip. It is time. I’ll finally have him all to myself. Looking around the small room, I make sure everything is set. Wine. Check. Comfortable chairs. Check. My fun bag. Check. My body nearly vibrates with excitement. I quickly grab my purse and take out the last item. A little white pill. I drop it into the wineglass and stare at the stream of bubbles. Will one pill be enough? My smile fades, and I quickly put another pill in the glass. That should be enough. He won’t be able to last long after he drinks it. I need to have him drink it right away. Then I can sit back and wait until the drug kicks in. Nothing is going to stop me from having what is mine. Heavy footsteps outside draw near and get louder. I silently pray this will work, and I’ll get what I desperately want. The footsteps stop in front of the door
Trevor POVMy stomach churns as I stare out the van window. The buildings buzz by in a blur, while the cars on either side of us stay right beside us. The noise from the busy world outside doesn’t register with me and sounds only like a slight buzz in the back of my head.All my thoughts are still stuck on the event and what will happen now. I don’t want to see the crazy witch ever again. There is no way I could be in the same room as her. A cold shiver runs down my back as I remember her wild look in her eyes. This morning, I had tried to tell Jane I can’t do this, but she keeps saying she has had it all work out and it will be fine. My foot bounces as a thin layer of sweat coats my palms and my body. No matter what I do, I feel like I’m dangling from a high bridge by a rope and, any minute, someone will come along and cut it. It isn’t a question of if they will do it, but when. Why won’t anyone listen to me? Tiffany cups my hand and intertwines our fingers. “Honey
Tiffany POVWith a wide grin, I scan the living room. The private hut looks more like a luxurious penthouse instead of some bungalow at a resort.I’m so glad we listened to Kyle and got away for a night. He had promised he could get us the one unit farthest away from the others, which would give us more privacy. I tighten my grip on my bag and spin around. “This is amazing! I want to come back again some other time when we can spend more time here.”A hearty chuckle fills the room. Trevor walks in behind me and chimes, “We haven’t been here long enough to know whether we will like it or not. But I must admit it looks amazing so far. I’ll put it on the list of potential places where we can go on vacation together in the future. We probably won’t have enough time this time to see much of it, though. We need to leave tomorrow.”I sigh and pout. “I wish we had more time. You deserve it.”He deserves so much more than a night away, but I’ll take whatever we can get. With a slig
Trevor POVRing…ring…ring…Tiffany’s sweet voice asks, “Do you want me to get it for you? Or do you want me to let go of you so you can get it?”The warmth inside her embrace is the best medicine for my frazzled nerves, but I can’t make her stay with me all the time. A soft chuckle rumbles around in her chest while I tighten my arms around her. She pats my back. “I’ll grab it. Hold on.”Together, we lean towards the end table next to the couch. As soon as she picks up the phone and looks at it, her eyebrows furrow. “Your phone says black sheep. Who is black sheep?”I take a deep breath. I need to take this call. It is the one I’ve been waiting for. He had called me back several days ago, but something came up as soon as we started to talk, and he had to go. So, I never got to ask him any questions about Tiffany’s father. I turn around but stay within my girlfriend’s comforting arms and take my phone. “Hey, cous. We finally get to talk, or do you have to rush off again?”
Tiffany’s Father POV“Did you think you could hide from us? You still haven’t paid us, and you know we don’t like people running from their debts.” Spit flies into my face as I look up at the thug. His face contorts as rage burns bright in his eyes. Three more thugs stand behind him a short distance in the warehouse waiting to take their turn at me. The stench of smoke and alcohol fills my nose as the thug leans in closer and growls, “But running makes it fun.” A spark shimmers in his eyes, while a cold shiver runs down my back. I frantically shake my head. “I wasn’t running. I was trying to find my daughter. She will pay my debts. She always does.” His eyes narrow and the muscle along his jaw twitches. “The same daughter who you said had valuable things in her apartment to apply against the debt?”I frantically nod again. “Yes. You can take it all and apply it against my outstanding balance. I’m sure there is enough to cut my balance in half. She has a good-paying jo