Chapter 7
SEVEN
B ianca’s flip-flop-covered feet froze on the top step of her set trailer. “Oh!”
Eddie had one foot on her bottom step, and was dressed in dark-washed jeans and a fitted burgundy shirt that made his brown eyes pop with a whole new meaning to the word brooding .
Words. It was past the time for actual words out of her mouth.
She licked her lips. “You’re…here.”
Early. She was supposed to have said You’re early . No wonder she spoke better with a memorized script. On second thought, maybe tonight’s “outing” was not the best idea. He’d been at the set for half the day. He had to be tired, no matter what the fresh set of clothes showed.
His expression proved that yes, indeed, she’d made things even more awkward. “Do you not need me anymore?”
Bianca juggled her lipstick, a clutch, earrings, and two different pairs of shoes in her arms. “I still need you…That doesn’t mean what it sounds like.” Except maybe it did.
Guess she didn’t have time to shoot over to wardrobe and inspect what felt like the fiftieth outfit-and-shoes option she’d tried on in the full-length mirror.
She plopped her black heels that crisscrossed up her ankles down on the top step and tossed her red wedges and beloved flip-flops back into the trailer. “One second. Let me finish getting ready real quick.”
Eddie cleared his throat. “I can go wait in my truck until?—”
“It’s my fault.” Grace raced over. “Sorry. Apparently, I told you both two different times. I promise I won’t make that mistake ever again.”
Bianca secured the last strap on her heels and then slipped in her earrings. “Appreciate your help, Grace.” As Bianca straightened, her nose twitched. “Care to be my mirror? Is this outfit first-date worthy? Sorry. Not date . I mean…whatever we’re officially or unofficially calling this between us.”
Grace tilted her head.
Eddie’s Adam’s apple bobbed.
In the silence, Bianca’s nose twitched once. Then again.
Oh no. She spun around and sneezed into her elbow.
“God bless you,” Eddie’s baritone murmured.
Bianca blinked her watery eyes. “Thanks.”
She brushed her fingers along the imaginary wrinkles on her black halter jumpsuit. At least there were no paparazzi to repeat the horrid picture of her last public sneeze. Which had been on the stands in court. Bad press really was a thing—especially if it produced horrid memes.
Bianca’s gaze lifted, and this time, her attention landed on Grace. Her grin proved how pleased she was with this fake-dating deal.
Please, God, let this not be another mistake.
She, the movie, and even Grace had a lot riding on this outing.
Once her shoes hit the ground, she found the reason for her sneeze. “You brought me flowers.”
Eddie released what might have been a grunt and shifted the bouquet of roses into an upright position from against his thigh. How had she missed those? Red blooms tipped with glitter while their ends were wrapped in gold-and-white chevron tissue paper and completed by a gold ribbon. Ritzy and bright and not at all what she’d picture Eddie might pick out for his date.
Not that she really knew him. But they did look like a bouquet Nathan would have brought home, despite her explaining her allergies countless times.
“Aren’t they gorgeous?” Grace pushed up her glasses. “They barely arrived in time. That’s why I was late. Well, that and Riley stopped me on my way. Perfect with your outfit, right? Though I think they may clash with Eddie’s shirt. Maybe we should go to wardrobe and find him something else?—”
“No,” Eddie answered at the same time Bianca said, “I like his shirt.”
Grace’s gaze bounced between them. “Fine. No wardrobe changes. But at least one of you needs to smile.” She held up her phone. “He can do the whole Heathcliff thing, but, Bianca, you have to be the smitten movie star.”
Right. Always in some kind of role.
Grace waved her hand. “Get closer together for some pictures.”
Bianca’s nose itched, but she reached for the flowers. Except, when she took a step closer, one of her heels sank into the soft dirt, and she wobbled. Then pitched sideways.
Before Bianca could get her hands out to brace herself against a fall, arms wrapped around her and anchored her against a solid body.
Eddie’s concerned gaze zeroed in. “You okay?”
The smell of cedarwood, mint, and a slight citrus scent trumped the flowers and enfolded her as she pressed her hand against his chest. “Apparently, I have a bad habit of picking the wrong outfits.”
Eddie raised his right brow. “I see that.”
But there was nothing wrong with his outfit. If Eddie in a suit made him worthy of a movie contract, the sight of him in a pair of jeans was somehow even better. More like this was the real him—a guy who saved lives. Cared about local kids. The kind of man she could fall for. Which would, of course, be a terrible idea.
“Don’t move.” Grace instructed. “That’s a perfect pose.”
Eddie tensed beneath Bianca’s touch.
“Now…” Grace inspected her phone screen. “Eddie, could you move your lips up on the ends?”
Eddie’s glower deepened. “Whatever happened to allowing me not to smile?”
Which resulted in Bianca’s real smile. The one that ticked up higher on the left.
Grace moaned and stomped behind Bianca. She scooped up something—the forgotten bouquet. “They got trampled.”
She pointed them right under Bianca’s nose, and Bianca released another sneeze.
Eddie stepped between them. “The flowers might do better in some water.”
Grace’s face lit up. “True. We could take some more photos later after they perk back up. Do you have a vase inside, Bianca?”
“Does a coffee mug count?”
Grace stroked the wilting petals. “These guys need more than an old mug.” Her watch buzzed on her wrist, and Grace gasped. “I’ll find us a vase. You better get going. I don’t want you guys to be late.”
As they walked toward the parking lot, Grace headed in the direction of the props trailer, probably in search of a vase.
Eddie slid his hands into his pockets. “If you tell her you’re allergic to those flowers, then both of us will be saved from taking more photos later.”
Bianca’s shoulder brushed against his, and a shiver coursed through her body. “She’s been so awesome, helping me with things. And she looked so excited. I didn’t want to hurt her feelings.”
Eddie huffed. “Good to know. You care about her feelings but not mine.”
“That’s not—” Then she noticed his smirk. She purposely knocked her shoulder into his. “I think you can survive a few more pictures.”
“That’s yet to be decided.”
They passed the staged ambulance that would be the scene location for tomorrow afternoon’s filming, and Bianca clenched her purse in her hand. The flowers did remind her that she needed to send Heidi another bouquet. Grace could probably find Heidi’s home address, since she’d been released after the successful surgery to set her broken leg.
The trees outlining the start of the parking lot swayed in the breeze. “Thanks for all you guys did for Heidi yesterday. She’s been promised a full recovery.”
However, the road there wouldn’t be an easy trip. And if Bianca hadn’t requested a stunt double last minute, then Heidi never would have been injured.
“It wasn’t your fault.” The softness to his voice brought tears to her eyes.
“If I was the supposed target, then it is my fault.”
Eddie’s shoe hit the top of a persistent dandelion that grew through the sidewalk crack. “So far, I personally haven’t found anything on set that would point to you being targeted.”
Bianca shifted her purse to her other hand. “Except the cut boards.”
He pulled out his keys. “Even those don’t prove that you’re the target. The movie in general could be the target.”
She ducked under a low-hanging branch. “Grace must have forgotten to mention that the limo is going to drive us. Perks of dating—I mean having an outing with a movie star.”
Eddie fisted his keys. “Right.”
The limousine idled beside the first row of parking spaces. It wasn’t like the limo driver, Justin, would mind staying in tonight. “If you want to drive, I’ll go tell Justin. I’m sure he’d be glad to have a night off.”
Eddie spun his keyring around his middle finger. “Might want to see my truck before you make your decision. Grouchy lady sure didn’t appreciate it the other night.” A sigh seemed to rumble across his shoulders. “Maybe that’s where I went wrong,” he mumbled.
“Wrong with what?”
He shrugged. “Nothing. I got an email from Janice this week. It didn’t improve my assumptions about her.”
Bianca wrinkled her nose. “I understand now. You’re saying I’m as grouchy as her. Well, that’s not true at all. If you’re more comfortable driving your truck, it’s what I want too.”
He actually smiled. Or at least, it was a half grin that pulled out one dimple. “I’ll go pull it around.”
She had been right. Justin loved the idea of a free night. Eddie brought over his black truck—it was a couple of decades old, but the paint had been buffed into a shiny display.
She opened the passenger-side door and climbed into the seat.
Eddie had his hand relaxed on top of the steering wheel. “Last chance to change your mind.”
Her stomach chose that moment to grumble.
Eddie put his truck into gear. “The mighty actress has spoken.”
She buckled in and pressed her lips together to hide her smile. And remembered that she’d never put on her red lipstick.
She pulled down the visor, but there was no mirror.
At a stop sign, Eddie asked, “What’s wrong?”
She opened her clutch. “Looking for a mirror to put on my lipstick.” She drew out her phone, set it on selfie mode, and then applied her lipstick.
She pursed her lips together and caught Eddie’s lowered brows.
“Did I get some on my face or on my teeth?” She checked her phone again, but the red hue was only on her lips.
He shrugged and turned the truck toward the left. “Thought you looked fine before.”
Fine? “Is that your way of saying the lipstick looks bad?”
His focus remained on the road. “Never said that.”
“You didn’t not say that either. I don’t know you well enough yet to be able to read you.”
He grunted and then slowed down the truck.
Bianca glanced out the window. “The buildings are really tall, pressed up together here.”
Eddie laughed. “Says the girl who lives in LA.”
“Lived.” She adjusted her seat belt across her chest. “I don’t anymore.” She didn’t know where she wanted her new home to be. “I mean, this downtown looks different from the one I grew up in. The tallest building there was the church. Its steeple used to be taller than the courthouse until someone supposedly climbed it and sawed it off.”
Eddie tapped his thumb along the steering wheel. “I think that’s why I like Last Chance County so much.”
Bianca leaned her shoulders back and glanced at Eddie. “It reminds you of your hometown?”
Eddie wrinkled his nose. “No.”
“Where did you grow up?—”
“We’re almost there.” Eddie flipped down his sun visor.
Only a country music song filled the truck cab.
Back to business, apparently.
Pops of color on the store signs filled the street in front of them. None of them gave Bianca the right words to ask more about Eddie’s hometown.
Perhaps, like her, his past wasn’t filled with only happy memories but also mistakes that still affected him.
He turned down a one-way street and stopped for a row of people on the crosswalk. He released a low whistle. “Main is packed. Guess the picketers have to eat sometime too.”
Bianca secured her purse against her lap. “Better here than breaking into the studio again.”
That stunt had cost them two hours of filming. Longer production time meant she went longer without her much-needed bigger paycheck.
Eddie put on his turn signal. “We’re going to have to walk. Those heels may not have been a good idea. If you want me to swing back by your trailer to get you another pair of shoes, I can. Or I can drop you off at the door and then park.”
In the movies, this moment would be when the audience murmured an “aww . ” Instead, Bianca simply smiled. Was it really him thinking of her needs, or was he postponing going out with her?
The money for the kids’ rec center was probably the only reason he hadn’t already made a U-turn. “As much as I want to be in a pair of flip-flops, I’ve got to play the part. We both need to walk.”
Eddie put on his turn signal. “More pretending it is.”
Silence fell until he finished parallel parking.
She went to open her door, but a car zipped past her window.
He opened his driver’s-side door and paused. “Want me to come around and open your door, or do you want to slide across and climb out my door? Though the second option won’t exactly be movie-star worthy.”
She slid right over the truck’s bench and then realized her mistake. He hadn’t exited fully, and she was pressed right against his side.
He swallowed. Then hopped out. But instead of leaving her to catch her breath, he extended his hand to her.
She took his offer, his grip strong and warm, and the urge to lace her fingers through his shot through her.
She dropped his hand and locked all her fingers around her purse.
Boundaries, like in acting with any attractive costar, needed to be set. Didn’t matter that the butterflies in her stomach were confused.
People flowed down the sidewalk ahead, some looking at their phones, others carrying shopping bags. One woman struggled with the wheels of her baby stroller.
Someone here would recognize her, and the plan would run smoothly.
Bianca slipped her hand onto his elbow.
Eddie tensed and stopped walking.
She removed her hand. “Sorry. I’m so used to?—”
“Pretending.” His voice was flat.
She shifted on her heels. “Are you changing your mind about tonight?”
About our deal.
He extended his elbow. “No, we both still need each other. I’m not used to…”
Dating. Actresses. Me.
He slid his keys into his pocket. “To the spotlight.”
She rested her hand on his elbow, and they strolled past a store that had teddy bears in the windows. “You picked up on my flower allergies, offered to take me back to get more comfortable shoes, and you helped me from your truck.” She tapped her finger on his arm. “I have a feeling you know exactly how to make this a memorable evening. Remembering to smile once or twice wouldn’t hurt.”
“No promises.”
As the people on the sidewalk stared, he drew closer to her. “We may have a bit of a wait at the restaurant. I know it’s a weeknight, but you’d be surprised how many hit up Rachael’s.”
Bianca put on her smile. “I read the reviews. But Grace called and made a reservation.”
He stepped past an elderly couple shuffling into a card store. Then he dipped his head closer to her. “Rachael’s only makes reservations for parties of ten or more.”
She had not read that online. “I guess they made an exception for us.”
Eddie put space between them. “You mean for you . I think I’m starting to understand.”
“Understand what?”
“Did Grace call the restaurant and then hope gossip would take over? Or has she planted specific people to take pictures this evening? Like that woman with the stroller.”
Bianca held her smile as they passed a blonde teen, who did a double-take. “Sometimes paparazzi are called directly,” Bianca whispered. “But I don’t think anyone was tipped off tonight. I thought organic and low-key would be better. Someone will take a photo of us somewhere and tag me, and then the rumor mill will start, and if not, Grace will?—”
“She is here!” the blonde teen screeched.
A group of teen girls each waved a phone and a notebook in their hands. However, it was actually the mom pushing the jogging stroller that beat the others to Bianca.
The mother positioned the stroller horizontally on the sidewalk, slowing the teens, and pulled out her phone. “Selfie! My followers are going to love this.”
The teen with a skirt and tank top held out her notebook. “Can I get your autograph, Bia?”
“Wait!” Her shorter friend shimmied her legs and shoved over her notebook. “Can we get a picture first? I can’t believe you get to be in a movie with Carter Cane.”
The girl wearing her hair in a bun grinned. “How many times do you get to kiss him?”
Eddie stepped away from Bianca.
She tightened her hold, but he still slipped from her. He leaned against the nearest shop window and crossed his arms.
Hard to get pictures together when they were so far apart.
Notebook girl’s arm dropped against her thigh. “Hold up, is this your boyfriend?”
Bianca’s gaze locked on Eddie’s.
Bun girl gasped. “He’s the firefighter who saved her life. Oh my goodness, you guys are totally together. I need his autograph too.”
A storm of emotions settled in Eddie’s eyes. The man’s one condition was that they didn’t lie. How was she supposed to accomplish that?
Eddie hooked his thumb down the sidewalk. “I’m going to make sure our table’s ready.”
Bianca blew him a kiss. “You’re the best.”
See, that wasn’t a lie. They could do this.
But Eddie clenched his jaw before marching away.
Bun girl let out another squeal. “Him or Carter? How did you even choose?”
The shorter girl held out her camera. It was streaming live. “You saw it here, guys. Bia and her new beau.”
Bianca’s smile curved down a bit before she caught herself. This was exactly what she wanted to happen. People believing that she and Eddie, the hero, were dating.
She placed her purse underneath her elbow. Except they weren’t.
Instead of frowning, she sent a wink to the camera and then put her finger over her lips as if she was keeping a secret.
The girls around her giggled, and then Bianca sent them a wave. “I better go catch up to my hero.”
Another truth.
A round of aww s hurried Bianca’s steps. Eddie had been right. Heels had not been a good idea. “Eddie.”
He picked up his pace and crossed the street.
Her heels clicked against the concrete, and the cute but evil black fabric pinched her pinky toes. “Eddie!”
This time, he stopped.
She hated that she had to choose between him and her fans.
When she reached the crosswalk, it flashed the okay to go. Except halfway across the street, a horn blasted back at the light, and Bianca whipped her head in that direction.
Only to find a car barreling straight for her.