Before A Perfect World: Movie Trilogy, Book Two (The Movie Trilogy) (5 page)

I wanted to protect her.

As she tenderly brushed her fingers over her own stomach, I covered her flattened palm with mine.

“
I don’t want you to leave.”

My words lingered between us, even as the elevator door opened.

I lead her to the car waiting for us out front, and the driver held the door for her as she crawled in the back.
Once settled in the seat next to me, she reached for my hand again.

“Don’t be nervous,
” she said quietly.

My eyes fell on her soft fingertips, and I ran my thumb over her wrist.

“How do you know I’m nervous?”

She lifted her sooty lashes, those clear blue eyes diving into mine. “Your leg. When you’re nervous, it bobs up and down.”

I instantly became aware that I was doing exactly that, and stilled.

“You’re nervous,” I countered.

She only nodded, turning to look out the window of the Mercedes.

“I’ll make sure you have the best trailer on site, while we’re filming,” I promised. “You can sleep in each morning, and I want to be wrapping up b
y five each day. No late nights, kiddo.”

Her cheeks lifted in a
half smile, though she continued to stare at the traffic with a distant look in her eyes.

“Talk to me,” I ordered.

She quickly looked my way, her hand automatically going to her hair to tangle. “What do you want me to say, Keaton? I’m so grateful for you. I know you. You wouldn’t cast me if you didn’t truly believe I could do this. But… if you didn’t cast me, that would be okay too.”

He raised his eyebrows. “Are you asking me if I cast you solely on our relationship?”

She shrugged and turned back to the window. I reached for her chin, guiding her face back to mine.

“Yes,” she finally breathed.

“I’m not going to risk my career over anyone, Vivian. If you didn’t have what it takes, you wouldn’t have gotten the part.”

She searched my eyes, blinking twice at the moisture that brightened her gaze.

“What do you want?” I asked, non-specifically, pleadingly. “What do you really want, V?”

She took a deep, steadying breath, leaning in. Her smooth, silken skin played on my fingertips as she turned her head, letting her bottom lip brush my thumb. “
I want the fairy tale too. I want a knight in shining armor.
But I don’t know if I deserve one.
”

T
he car slowed to a stop along the curb of the medical building, and the driver got out to open the door for Vivian.

She was closest to the curb, and he held his hand out to her.

“Vivian, wait-”

The hum of the press buzzed to a roar, and before I could fully exit the
vehicle, the cameras were flashing.

“Miss Hale! Miss Hale! Is it true you’ve been offered the lead role in
Round-Up
?”

“Vivian, look over here!”

“
Keaton?
” she cried.

Her breathy voice locked down my defenses, and I wrapped my arms around her, glancing around for the security guards that were both ahead and behind us.

“
Vivian, are you here to see a doctor? Are you pregnant?
”

“
Keaton, can you confirm that you and Miss Hale are having a baby?
”

I gripped her to my side, forcing a po
lite smile. “We’re running late but we’re
so
glad you hunted us down,” I drawled, gesturing to Vivian. She looked startled for a moment, but then bestowed on them her most brilliant smile. I turned to the camera, grinning. “Yes, we’re here to see a doctor. And I’ll be the luckiest guy in the world…
if
she’s having my baby. Now, if you’ll excuse us.”

“
Thank you Keaton!
” someone shouted, and Vivian’s mouth still hung open as I ushered her inside.

“Keaton!
You practically told the entire world!”

Several heads snapped in our direction, and I took her by the elbow, firmly leading her to the elevator.

“I just said what they would have printed anyway. This way, I make them think I’m giving them something. Then, everyone loves us. It’s important to be loved here.”

“Matthew’s going to see
it,” she moaned, resting her head against the elevator wall.

“Maybe you weren’t present for the fistfight in my office earlier.”

“Your eye is swelling.”

“You should kiss it.”

She twisted her mouth into my favorite pout, reaching for the sides of my head to tug my face closer to hers. “
You
should kiss it.”

“Kiss what?”

“My ass, Keaton.”

“I’ve been kissing your ass since you got here.”

She arched an eyebrow, sighing deeply.

“Well Mav
,” she began, gently prodding the area around my eyelid. “You need more ice.”

The elevator stopped on the sixth floor, and I dropped my arm, resting my hand on the small of her back.

“I’ll live.”

Through the thin material of her dress, I felt her take a nervous, shuddering breath.

“
What am I doing?
” she murmured suddenly. I could actually
see
her mind working overtime, and the telltale hives began to form a rash over her neck.

“What do you mean?”
I asked, narrowing my eyes and walking to the receptionist desk. I grinned at the woman behind the counter, and she bit her lip, blushing.

“Mr. Thane, so glad you’re here. Welcome… here,” she stuttered, and I smirked.

“Miss Hale, Mr. Thane, please, come on back,” a man called from the doorway, and Vivian turned to me with wide eyes.

“Are you coming back with me?”

“I wouldn’t be anywhere else on Earth,” I assured her, keeping my hand firmly on her back.

Dr. Phillip Grey took us directly to his office after an unnecessary introduction that included a brief résumé.

Grey was known for not only his knowledge and expertise, but also for his discretion among the famous in Hollywood. His thinning, black hair was combed neatly to the side, and he slid a pair of horn-rimmed glasses over his nose. “Before I examine you, Miss Hale, I wanted to give you and Mr. Thane both the opportunity to tell me a little about yourselves, your lifestyle, and to ask me any questions that are on your mind.”

“Call me Keaton. You’re an expert in complicated pregnancies?” I demanded, trying like hell to adhere to the formality bullshit.

He gave me a comforting smile. “What makes you think this pregnancy will be complicated, Keaton?”

I explained, using all the wrong terminology, what Vivian had gone through.

He only nodded, sitting back and glancing occasionally at Vivian. I wondered why she was being so quiet; usually, she was the first to speak up, and cut me off with her witty words.

When I realized that her face had grown ghostly pale, I knew then that she was scared to death.

“And Matthew is…?” Dr. Grey asked calmly.

“He’s at the hotel,” Vivian forced, her voice breaking. I knew she was holding back tears.

Dr. Grey leaned forward, reaching for Vivian’s hand. “May I, my dear?”

She was confused for a moment, finally letting him take her hand.

He held her fingers firmly, meeting her eyes.

“We’re dealing with
two factors. A complicated past, and a complicated present. There is no need to complicate the future,” he reminded us.

“Hmm,” I deadpanned, sitting back and stretching my legs out. “I’m not sure that I take you seriously.”

“
Keaton,
” Vivian hissed, sitting back in her seat as the doctor let go of her hand.

“T
ell me why, Keaton,” Dr. Grey encouraged.

“I need someone who knows how to make everything perfect for the next nine months. In here,” I pointed at Vivian’s stomach, and then her head. “Not up here. If I wanted the fucking Dalai Lama, I’d have called him.”

Vivian glared at me. “
Really?
” she demanded, obviously embarrassed.

Dr. Grey laughed, a hearty chuckle that eased the tension in the room. “
Mind and body. The two are connected. Her stress level, and the baby’s health. What I’m proposing is that we do our best to find even ground, so that Vivian can relax and enjoy the way this child is going to change her life.”

I glanced at Vivian, and she countered with a silencing glare.

“Fair enough,” I said, finally, turning back to Dr. Grey. “Now, when do I get to see my baby?”

V

Keaton had a list of questions, many of which I already knew the answer to, but I let Dr. Grey talk for as long as possible to hold off the inevitable.

Bloodwork. Needles.

I remembered to lie down on the table while they drew the necessary number of vials, and Keaton let me grip his hand.

“Do you want me to distract you?”

“Yes,” I forced in a quick breath.

“Okay.” He lifted his eyes to the phlebotomist, smiling that excruciatingly charming smile of his. “How much would it cost for you to pierce her ears while we’re here?”

The woman
narrowed her eyes, and I dropped my jaw. “Keaton!”

“You’ll need a dermatologist,”
the technician replied, obviously irritated as she continued to switch vials from the needle jabbing me in the arm.

“So, not some uneducated mall employee?” Keaton prodded, repeating my words from our conversation in the Ferrari.

“Right.”

“I told you so,” I forced, exhaling sharply as she removed the needle. He only grinned my way, and the other nurse returned to take us in for the exam and ultrasound.

Keaton moved behind me with the paper gown, helping me pull the sundress over my head. I jumped as his mouth lowered to my shoulder for a fleeting moment. He moved around to face me, drawing his kiss over my neck as he circled slowly.

“
Only once.
” His breath was hot on my skin, and I closed my eyes. “We only made love that one time.” His hand splayed over my stomach, his touch warm through the paper gown, lingering before he moved to cup my face in his hands. “I must have done something good, kiddo. I’ve never felt blessed before. I used to laugh at that word. Now, I can’t think of any other way to describe this love.”

“
Keaton
,” I whispered. I couldn’t answer him. I didn’t possess the words to tell him what was happening inside of my heart.

He
took a shaking breath, moving to tie the gown, his fingers drawing over my bare back.

The knock at the door startled us both.
The doctor bustled in with a hearty smile, and in minutes I was up on the table, legs spread, and trying not to blush. Keaton stayed near my head, watching everything that was happening with a nervous smile.

“
What?” I demanded, wincing as the doctor examined me.

“Nothing. Everything. I’m fascinated. My baby’s in there. I can’t wrap my head around it.”

I couldn’t resist a smile if I wanted to. Holding my hand out to him, I felt him grip my fingers securely.

“I understand,” I assured him, turning toward the computer screen.

I almost didn’t believe it was real.

The whooshing of the ultrasound machine hypnotized us both.

Dr. Grey shifted the internal wand slightly, and I smoothed the paper gown over my knees, trying to ascertain some modesty.

Keaton rested one hand on my shoulder, the other hand
holding mine.

“Right… there,” the doctor
murmured, tapping the keyboard to freeze a series of screen shots.

Keaton’s
soft exhale near my ear sounded like
God
, and I couldn’t turn away from the screen.

“
Everything looks great. I’ll call you tomorrow with the results of your bloodwork. We’ll set the due date for March thirtieth. I know I answered many of your questions earlier, but do you have any more that you can think of?” Dr. Grey encouraged as he pulled the wand away.

H
is nurse stepped forward with my clothes, explaining how I could clean up and she’d help if I needed anything.

“I will,” Keaton promised. “I just can’t… think right now.”

Dr. Grey washed and dried his hands, nodding and reaching to pat Keaton’s shoulder. “Call me anytime, Keaton. Vivian, relax. Be filled with joy. Alright?”

I nodded, kind of loving Dr. Grey’s introspective personality.

When the heavy door clasped shut, I lay still, staring at the monitor.

“V?”