Vegas Envy (4 page)

‘Admit what?’

‘That you’ve missed me.’

‘Don’t flatter yourself.’

Kyden stopped and turned the camera on himself. ‘This woman is a liar.’

Envy giggled.

He turned the device back toward her again. ‘Time for the truth. Have you had a decent orgasm since we broke up?’

‘Why on earth would you ask me that? I never had a decent orgasm when we were together.’

It was Kyden’s turn to laugh. ‘Okay, now she’s a pathological liar.’ He spotted a messy room service cart and snatched the open bottle of champagne, draining what little remained of it.

Envy rolled her eyes. ‘That’s disgusting.’

He shrugged. ‘I’m broke, baby. You do what you gotta do.’

She stopped in front of the door of her Princess Diana suite and just looked at him. Kyden was still astonishingly handsome. But his pretty boy matinee idol looks had given way to a rugged masculine beauty. It was the kind of aging that hinted less at the passage of time and more at the combination of hard living and lost chances.

Envy took the Flip camera out of his hand and closed it. There was a certain finality to the snapping sound. ‘We’re not going to do this.’

Kyden sighed heavily. ‘There’s a guy . . . a lawyer . . . he knows how to broker these things. He did Kendra’s tape – Hef’s ex-girl. Do you know how much she banked?’

‘I don’t care.’

His face turned grim. ‘This isn’t selling out, baby. It’s just selling. And it’s poetic. You got screwed out of your money. So earn it back by screwing. How brilliant is that?’

‘I’m not having this conversation anymore.’

‘You just need to relax. Have another drink. Maybe smoke a joint. Once we get into it, you won’t even know—’

‘Kyden, stop it! I’m not doing this!’ She tossed the camera onto the floor and spun around, fumbling for the room key, tears of frustration and fatigue misting her eyes.

His hands found her shoulders and steadied her as his lips pressed softly against her neck. ‘I’m sorry, baby. I’m being a world-class asshole.’

‘Finally, we’re in agreement on something,’ Envy whispered. She found the key and opened the door, then turned around to face him. ‘It’s late, Kyden. And I’m tired. Besides, I’m sure those two brain surgeons you were with earlier would be more than happy to star—’

He kissed her again.

Envy found herself melting into it . . . perhaps out of sheer fear and loneliness . . . but there was a connection. And right here, right now, it felt wonderful. They were inside the suite, tongues declaring erotic war, hands tugging unnecessary clothes.

The jangle of Envy’s mobile ringtone cut into the atmosphere of desperate lust.

‘Let it go,’ Kyden breathed.

But Envy pulled away, suddenly filled with a million morbid thoughts. Phone calls this late were almost always life-changing news. And not in a good way. ‘I just want to see . . . ’ Her voice trailed off as the caller ID screen became visible. It was Him. Mr. Movie Star. ‘I have to take this.’ She snatched the phone and disappeared into the bathroom. ‘Hello?’

‘Envy?’ His voice – strong, confident, and radiating authentic concern – instantly soothed her. ‘I just got your messages. I’m shooting in Australia. What the hell?’

She shut her eyes in regret. ‘I’m sorry. I had too much to drink and lashed out. Forgive me.’

‘Done. Now tell me what’s wrong?’

‘Have you heard of Marc Cohen?’

‘Shit. One of my co-stars on this film was with him. Not you, too?’

Her silence was her answer.

‘How bad?’

‘As bad as it can be,’ Envy said stoically.

‘Anything you need. I’ll get you through this.’ His tone was absolute. ‘I’ll have Eric call you tomorrow.’

Envy nodded. Eric was his business manager. She liked him. And he liked her, too. The relief that everything would be okay brought on a torrent of tears. ‘I feel so stupid . . .’

‘The last thing you are is stupid. Cohen conned a lot of people. And some of them had a lifetime of experience in the markets. He was that good. But forget him. He’s going to prison. And you’re going back to work.’

‘What do you mean?’

‘My next picture. It’s a retread of The Bodyguard called Triple Threat. But the screenplay is fantastic – a romantic action thriller with real surprises. Your name came up in a casting meeting. We need a supermodel beauty who can act. We need a singer. We need a dancer. We need you.”

Envy just stood there, practically frozen with disbelief. The reversal of fortune seemed impossible. This was A-list. This was mega-budget. This was blockbuster marketing avalanche. This was her all-access pass back into the Hollywood game. ‘I don’t know what to say.’

‘Say you’ll read the script and take a meeting with the producers.’

‘Yes!’ Envy squealed. ‘I’ll do that!’

He laughed. ‘Okay!’

She said goodbye and dashed out, anxious to share the incredible news.

Kyden was waiting for her in the bedroom – naked, almost aroused, and sporting a new tattoo of the seven deadly sins on his ripped torso. The body art that Envy remembered was a Hebrew prayer running down the back of his neck. It always puzzled her that the people least acquainted with church and reading seemed the most motivated to see religious texts permanently inked onto their skin.

‘The most amazing thing just happened—’

Kyden grabbed her hand and pulled her down on top of him. ‘Tell me later.’

Envy parted her lips to protest.

He silenced with an urgent kiss, positioning her astride him as he started to work the elaborate buttons of her fur vest.

Playfully, she pushed his hands away. ‘I have news.’

His fingers went back to the buttons. ‘Share it later. I plan on being here all night.’ And once again his mouth was on hers. He tugged her hair with a delicious roughness and began feasting on her neck.

Envy’s hands ran across the taut skin of his sculpted chest. He felt good. This felt good. For just one night . . .

And then she spotted it, right there on the nightstand, camouflaged by Kyden’s discarded T-shirt—the Flip camera, the lens eye pointing straight at them.

Slowly, she climbed off and attempted to pull him away from the bed. ‘Let’s take a shower together.’

He smiled. But his resistance was total. ‘Later. I want you right here, right now.’

‘Oh, Kyden,’ Envy cooed. She started toward him at half-speed.

His eyes sparkled like rhinestones.

‘You’ve got me so hot.’ Her tone was canned seductress all the way.

‘Prove it,’ Kyden said thickly. The son of a bitch was beyond stupid.

‘You know what I want to do to you right now?’

‘Tell me, baby.’

And then Envy picked up the Flip camera and smashed it into the fireplace. ‘Kick your sorry ass out of my suite!’ In a storm of fury, she gathered up his shirt, jeans, belt, boots, and underwear, hurling them out the door and into the corridor.

Kyden chased after his clothes and began dressing in a panic, his hard-on completely deflated. ‘What the fuck? You crazy bitch!’

‘For spending one lousy second with you tonight, I must have been crazy.’

‘The camera cost me two hundred bucks!’ he sputtered. ‘You owe me for that!’

‘I owe you nothing. But I’ll leave you with this: You might want to make a repeat visit to the tattoo parlor.’ She pointed to his bare chest. ‘There are two Ts in gluttony.’

Kyden looked stricken and glanced down at what he thought was a masterpiece. ‘Really?’

‘Dumb ass.’ Envy closed the door. She stripped off her club gear. She drew a hot bath. She slept well. And the next morning she packed her suitcase and drove back home to Beverly Hills. The script that would change her life was waiting at the front door.

Triple Threat. And that’s exactly what Envy was . . .