Idolized (Hollywood Stardust Book 3) (49 page)

That’s my favorite part.  You’re like a planet or a star, I just look up and you’re there.

CHARLES

Maybe you needed to look more often.

(He motions toward the telescope.)

ROXY looks inside and smiles.

CHARLES

How’s the acting?

ROXY

Not what I thought, but I love Los Angeles, always have. I’ve been doing more coaching and teaching. If you need any pointers, let me know.

CHARLES

Actually, I’ve been asked to do some spots on the local news.  I’ve never been the public speaking kind of guy.

ROXY

(Faces him)

I think that makes you exactly the kind of guy who should be speaking to the public.

CHARLES shrugs.

ROXY straightens his collar.

ROXY

You know I think the best advice I can give you is to be yourself and let your passion shine through.  All those little facts you know are amazing and different and charming and exactly what everyone needs.

CHARLES

What if I told you what I need is you there coaching me?

ROXY

I would say just turn your head, and look off to the side, and I’ll be right there.

(She slides her hand down his arm.)

CHARLES

Then that’s where I’ll be looking.

Chapter Twenty-Four

FROM THE TRAILER in Arizona, Cora stared out the window at the non-action on her movie.

“Cora.” Coffee in hand, Rodger tiptoed toward her.

Before she even had a chance to ask what, the door opened and Viktor entered.

“Cora.” Laptop open, Viktor charged toward her.

She opened her mouth.

“Cora.” Ivy Alexander knocked on the open door and poked her head in the trailer.

Cora tore her focus away from the window over at her.

“Cora.” Madeline snuck inside and practically crawled into the trailer on all fours.

“If one more person says my name and doesn’t ask a question after it, they will be fired on the spot.” She crossed her arms.

“
Mi Corazon
.” Ryder bounded into the trailer.

Everyone else turned to her.

Cora huffed.

“Technically, he didn’t say her name.” Madeline snorted and laughed.

At least that’s what Cora thought came out of her screenwriter.

Ryder waded past the crowd. “Why is everyone in here?”

Since she was going to ask that question too, she decided to cherry-pick who spoke first and chose the lesser of all evils and pointed at Ivy.

“I wanted to interview you for Chargge.com, talk about Erin’s baby shower, and I have a personal thing.” Ivy said, widening her eyes.

All right. Cora supposed girls had personal things, and how she got dragged into Erin’s baby shower she would never know, but at least she was included. “Go sit down, I’ll be there in a moment.” She took in her options and looked at Rodger.

“I wanted to ask what you needed next.” Roger handed her the cup of her favorite drink.

“Thank you.” The coffee offering seemed like a pacifier. “Can you go make this movie?”

“Though my talents are vast, unfortunately I do not have the eye for cinematic greatness.” Rodger shrugged. “We do need to go over your schedule, and I have a couple of personal things.”

More personal things. “Take your seat on the couch next to Ivy.”

Ryder cleared his throat.

“Viktor.” With a nod, she chose her next victim.

“I have a work thing and a personal thing.” Viktor raised his eyebrows.

“What’s the work thing?” Her stomach twisted, but she wasn’t sure at exactly what.

“It kind of relates to the personal thing.” Without being prodded, Viktor walked by her and took his seat behind Rodger.

This was netting her no forward movement.

“CC,” Ryder whispered in her ear.

She patted him and waited for Madeline.

Madeline was now leaning on the open door looking at her phone.

Apparently the screenwriter didn’t know how this worked.

“Madeline!” Cora barked.

“Oh!” Madeline fumbled and dropped her phone along with everything else. “Sorry, I came in here to ask you a question about the script, but now I see that your sex photos are all over the Internet. Maybe I should come back.”

“What!” Her entire body heated and Cora spun back to to everyone sitting on the couch.

In unison, Rodger, Ivy and Viktor all stood.

“No one move!” She put her hand over her eyes.

“That’s what I was trying to tell you.” Ryder’s deep voice rumbled through her ear.

“Rodger.” As if she weren’t even in her own body, she lowered her hand.

Tablet at the ready, Rodger came over and turned the device to her.

There on the
National Reporter’s
front page was a picture of her and Ryder under the blanket outside the cabin, but they definitely captured the essence of the moment, complete with her arching her back. At least it was under the blanket.

“That’s a really good shot.” Ryder nodded. “That was right after I told you I loved you for the first time.”

Both Ivy and Madeline let out an
aww
.

“Read.” She might as well face it.

“‘The campfire was hot, hot, hot for Hollywood lovers Ryder Scott and Cora Caine,’” Rodger read the caption, “‘we only wish we had the audio to go along with the images. At least we know why there was a delay on the
Hollywood Stardom
set. No one will ever know how much this little rendezvous cost the studio.’”

No sooner had Rodger finished than her phone rang.

“McAllister’s office.” Viktor held her phone up.

“Don’t answer it. We need a plan first.” Not an expert in crisis communications—and this was most definitely a crisis—she could only stand there.

“The plan better include what to do about the two advertisers Chargge lost this morning. One of them was Booming Baby Food, the other is that television station we may want to let go since we’ve had problems with them in the past,” Viktor blurted out the words, but also guided her. “They cited the pornographic pictures.”

“Those are hardly pornographic.” Ryder took the tablet from Rodger and zoomed in. “We didn’t even have a nip slip.”

In no world would she talk to George McAllister, CEO of Ultracom, in the midst of an ad revenue issue. She would only call after it was resolved, and it was going to get resolved right now.

“Give me my laptop, get John from Booming Baby Food on the phone and get Drew and Erin in here.” Needing some space to breathe, she walked to the far end of the trailer.

Rodger rushed the laptop to her and dialed the phone.

“Before I call George back we need to tell him that we have an ad revenue increase of at least one percent.” She ran her advertising algorithm. “Ryder, what brand condom did we use?”

“Good thinking.” Viktor came to her side.

“Cora, we don’t use those anymore.” Ryder joined her.

Viktor groaned, Ivy chuckled.

She gave him the look, the couple look, the one that told Ryder not to question her actions, just support her.

“Stallion Maxum.” As if the whole world didn’t already know about their sex life, he cupped his hand around his mouth.

“I got it. Let me call advertising.” Viktor took the other end of the trailer.

Rodger held the phone out to her. “Cora. John is on the line.”

“John.” Cora breathed into the phone.

“I know why you’re calling Cora, and I have to say I appreciate it, especially after everything, but I can’t have the brand associated with those types of pictures.” He hit her head on.

Good this wouldn’t take long. “John, I am one keystroke away from pulling your ads and I will sweep my site clean of any reference to your baby food, but I’m going to give you a choice.” Biding her time for one minute, she paused.

Right on time, Erin and Drew rushed into the trailer.

“Hold on one moment.” She put her hand over the phone and went to the soon to be parents. “If I give you fifty percent off Hollywood Glow advertising on Chargge, once your little bundle of joy is born, will you say you love Booming Baby Food?”