Secrets Collide (Bluegrass Brothers) (21 page)

“Isn’t she the one with that sex tape out right now? She’s supposedly horribly upset that someone got their hands on it. But as you pointed out in your exclusives section last month, there’s a rumor she’s the one who leaked it,” a tiny woman with her hair permed within an inch of its life said from the crowd.  “Oh, and it’s nice to meet you. I’m Edna.”

“Hi, Edna. How did you know that was me? I write under a pen name with a fake picture.” Edna just smiled innocently and Gemma was starting to think it was
Inside Peek
that could learn a thing or two from Keeneston. “Yes, that’s right. She ended up selling the rights and has made a fortune off it. Now she’s trying to be taken seriously and wants to go into acting.”

“But who is she?” Miss Lily asked.

“All I know is her mother was some Las Vegas showgirl who got pregnant and nine months later delivered a baby girl with a huge trust fund. She used the money to get a spot on some soap opera. Mama wasted no time getting Sarah in the spotlight, either. She was modeling by the time she was thirteen, dating the hottest teenage actors soon after, and even tried her hand at becoming a rock star. All failed and then suddenly this sex tape comes out with one of Hollywood’s most talked about up-and-coming actors. And the sex tape is superior quality. Very fishy,” Gemma told the group.

“What could she have to do with this criminal y’all are after?” Marcy asked from where she stood next to Jake and some of the local farmers.

“I don’t know. Do you have any ideas?” Gemma asked Cy.

“No, but I do have an idea how to find out.” Cy grinned as if he were the cat that swallowed the canary.

Cy almost laughed at Gemma’s large eyes. They opened wide when they entered the ornate lobby of the luxurious hotel he booked for their stay. They grew even more at the sight of the suite they were sharing. A huge king-sized bed draped in rich material adorned a separate bedroom. A mahogany table lined with matching chairs offset the plush living room space.

“We could've just stayed at a friend’s house or at your apartment. This must've cost a fortune.”

“It did, but I heard that Sarah not only stays at this hotel occasionally for the privacy, but it sets up my cover story perfectly.”

“What cover story?” Gemma asked as she looked out the window to the lush landscape below.

“That I’m a producer. I’m looking for the next big show about an up-and-coming celebrity and her challenge to make it big,” Cy said proudly. It was a darn good idea. He knew women in Hollywood, and this was the perfect way to get her talking.

“Right. You were a stuntman, not a producer. There’s no way she’ll believe you. We need to come up with something else.” Gemma turned and saw him on his phone. “What are you doing?”

“I just sent a tweet out that I’m looking to cast a reality show and am excited about this next phase of my life. Then I sent a couple texts to some people I know that I’m back in town and will be at a certain club tonight.”

“And you think that’s going to work?”
Dink, dink, dink, dink
. “Oh, shut up.” Gemma turned and went into the bathroom as he tried not to gloat.

“What?”
Dink
. “I didn’t say a thing.”
Dink
. And with that, he failed to not gloat.

*     *     *

Cy had a hard time keeping his eyes off Gemma. Now he knew how she got into the VIP sections of clubs so easily. She was a knockout. She wore a black dress with a plunging neckline. A wide red belt showed off a narrow waist while the tight skirt emphasized her amazing curves and long legs. She finished the outfit with red spiked heels.

Her hair cascaded down her back in soft waves as she greeted Joe, the doorman. He was the perfect doorman: handsome, athletic, and had enough dings and dents to show overzealous patrons that he wasn’t afraid to get his hands dirty if they got out of line.

“Joe, this is my friend Cy. We both really appreciate your help on this.”

“Cy? Cy Davidson, the producer who’s looking to cast a reality show about trying to break into the industry?”

Cy shot a triumphant grin to Gemma as he held out his hand to Joe. “That’s me. From what I hear, you’ll want this more,” Cy said as he handed Joe a card.

“Doug Mac’s private number,” Joe said reverently as the looked at the business card.

“Tell him Cy told you to call. I have a feeling working with him will be more suited for you.”

“Thank you. Oh my God, Gem, I totally owe you. And you, too, of course, Mr. Davidson. “

“You could call it even by letting Sarah Flannery know I’m here. Just don’t let her know I was asking about her.”

“You got it.” Joe took out his wallet and looked at the card once more before safely tucking it away.

Cy followed Gemma into the club. The loud music coursed through his body as the lights bounced off the people dancing. They passed the bar and Gemma gave the bartender a quick wave before another club employee unhooked a velvet rope and allowed them up a set of stairs to the VIP area overlooking the dance floor.

Before they even sat down, the first expensively perfumed starlet enveloped Cy. Gemma rolled her eyes and sat down before she lost a seat. Cy smiled and laughed and played his part. It was something he was good at. While he wanted to be himself, Cy Davidson was a part of him, too, after all these years, and it felt good slipping back into character.

“Ladies—I’ve missed you all so much that I decided to come back for a bit,” Cy laughed at Gemma sticking her finger down her throat as she sat on the couch behind the gaggle of fawning women.

“Here’s my card.”

“Here’s my number.”

“I’d be perfect for your show.”

“I’m sure y’all would be perfect. But give all your information to my assistant over there so it’ll be safe. You never know where I’ll end up tonight and I’d sure hate to lose your card.” Cy sent Gemma a wink just before all heads whipped around to look at her.

Cy used the time to cast a quick glance around the club. It was almost full as night turned into early morning. He caught sight of the very tall and leggy blonde as she strode into the club with her posse. Cy headed back into the pack of women before Sarah could reach the VIP area and was totally engrossed in conversation by the time she arrived and took her seat.

Gemma could only imagine this was what hell looked like. Her eyes were watering with perfume, her ears were ringing with their twittering, and two of them had “accidentally” stabbed her foot with their heels. Then there was
him
. Just sitting in the middle of the pack. She could see his head getting bigger and bigger as they flattered and flirted with him. Maybe she’d take her heel and pop his ego with it.

She also didn’t know what to think of the quick transformation back to the man she met here just a short while ago. He’d been this carefree, hot-to-trot kind of guy her mother had warned her about. But after arriving in Keeneston, he seemed to drop the fakeness. He had actually seemed a little lost at times, but when they were together she felt as if they were both free. They both dropped all defenses and just enjoyed being together.

Gemma was knocked out of her reflections when Cy caught her eye and gave a slight nod toward a sitting area next to them. Sarah Elizabeth Flannery was draped across a chair and surveying her domain, which currently included Cy. Her two friends, both slightly less attractive and completely doting, were whispering in her ears.

“I’m sorry, I have to get a drink for Mr. Davidson, “ Gemma said to the small crowd trying to hand her cards and headshots. She made her way to the private bar and took a seat to wait after ordering two drinks.

She didn’t have to wait long for Sarah to take a seat next to her at the bar. “Hi. I’m Sarah.”

“Gemma, nice to meet you.”

“Same. So who’s your boss over there? Seems pretty popular.”

“Cy Davidson. He was a stuntman, but now he’s gone into producing.”

“Oh, that’s Cy Davidson. I’ve heard a lot about him. I see the talk is true. Yummy! What’s he producing?”

“A new reality series. He’s trying to find someone young and new to follow around as they audition for major roles. Basically, he wants to document them becoming an A-list actor.” Hook, line, and sinker, Gemma thought as she saw the excitement in Sarah’s eyes.

“Really? What does
new
mean?”

“Well, they need a little family history in Hollywood so they may actually get their foot in the door, you know?”

“Of course. I completely agree with that. Oh, here,” Sarah said as she winked at the bartender in the VIP section. “Let me get those. You sit here and take a minute to recover from those vultures. I’ll take this to your boss.”

Gemma sighed with relief. “Really? Thank you so much, Sarah.”

Cy saw the second Sarah picked up his drink. Gemma had pulled it off. He turned to the women around him and asked for a couple minutes to relax. His assistant had their numbers and headshots and he’d look over them soon.

“I guess I have good timing,” Sarah purred as she handed him his bourbon.

“I guess you do,” Cy responded as he blatantly checked her out. “For bringing me my drink, I’ll give you five minutes.”

Sarah smiled, thinking she had succeeded. “I’m Sarah Flannery. My mother, Cashmere Flannery is a soap opera star. I’m twenty-one and looking to make it big in the industry. I have almost six million followers on Twitter and have a lot of buzz around me right now after that horrid sex tape was leaked.”

“Horrid. Too bad. If it were a good sex tape, then you’d be interesting.” Cy took a sip of his drink and turned away from Sarah.

“Oh, it’s good. It was just horrible that it was leaked. Someone hacked my phone and stole it.”

“I guess that means they want more of you. My assistant has a list of questions with her that we use during interviews. Why don’t we sit down and go over them. If I’m interested, I’ll get back to you in a couple days and you can come back for an audition.” Cy led Sarah over to their couch and waved for Gemma who came looking very professional with her tablet.

“Miss Flannery has captured my interest. Now let’s see if she can keep it.”

“Oh,” Gemma said, feigning surprise. “Let me pull up our background questions. Okay, here we go. Tell us about your immediate family, including any acting experience, how much money you had growing up, and where that money came from.” Gemma looked up. “You know, old money from Granddad’s oil days, new money from your mother’s technology company, stuff like that. And then what your family does now. Jobs, hobbies, and how close they are to you.”

“Well, my mother is so talented. She’s on
Summer Heat
, the soap opera. Before that she was a Vegas showgirl in town. She would be perfect for the show. I'm an only child, but I have two super-close girlfriends from prep school that add the sisterly feel. I don’t know my dad, though. Is that a problem?”

“You don’t know him? Surely you know a name,” Gemma asked as she typed all of Sarah’s responses onto her tablet even though it was recording the conversation.

“Nope. Mom said there was some massive party in the Hills one night and she was too drunk to remember what happened. See, her parents, my grandparents, were big in casinos and they passed away leaving a huge fortune to my mother. She said it was too painful to stay in Vegas because it reminded her of her parents. She hasn’t been back once in twenty-two years. Anyway, she picked up and moved to Hollywood. She was celebrating getting her role on
Summer Heat
when she went to this party and got knocked up. Doesn’t have a clue who my father is.”

“That could be an interesting line for filming . . .” Cy murmured.

“Oh. That would be so cool. We could find my dad and interview a whole bunch of famous actors to see if I’m their daughter. Although, I’m super close to my mom and she wouldn't like it. But if I’m on the show, maybe she’ll help out, too. It would be a real family bonding episode.” Sarah’s hands were gently crossed over her heart as she played up the show.

“Good point. Now, how is this sex tape going to play in? Are your lawyers getting it removed? Can we mention it or is it a no-go?” Cy asked.

“No, you can mention it. I decided to sell my rights to it so I can at least make money off it. As I said, it's very good.”

“We’ll need to talk to the man who starred in it with Sarah. Get his permission to be on the show as a guest a couple of times,” Cy told Gemma.

“You can’t do that,” Sarah said as her voice cracked.

“Why not? This show is about your life and this is a big part of it,” Cy reminded her.

“I know. It’s just that Seth was killed. He was murdered right after the tape came out. They haven’t caught the guy yet. Hey, could that be used on the show? A big shot investigative reporter is going to write a story on it, too, so I bet it would be really interesting to have it featured on the show. Very emotional and all. Hey, she kinda looked a lot like you. Ha! You have a twin out there and you didn’t even know it.”

Cy saw Gemma freeze and knew he needed to get her out of there fast. But he had an idea and he needed Gemma to play along one last time. “Gemma, let’s take a picture of all of us.” Gemma snapped out of it and handed the tablet to a waiter before joining them.

“Thanks for the picture, Sarah. We’ll be in touch with you.” He shook her hand and hurried Gemma from the club.

He opened the door of the limo the hotel provided and ushered Gemma into it before tossing one last glance at the club. Sarah was by the door with her cell phone out, no doubt checking him out. She saw the name of the hotel on the limo and smiled. He had a feeling he’d be hearing from her soon.

Cy closed the door and pulled Gemma close. She was shaking even though the club had been hot. “It’s okay, sweetheart. You did it. We got all the information we needed.”

“Was the picture really necessary? The thought of my sister talking with her just  . . . I had this really weird feeling this is what got my sister killed.”

“The picture was definitely necessary. Didn’t you find it weird what she said about her father and her grandparents? And then her sex tape partner being murdered. Too many coincidences for me.”