Page 129 of He's The Reason Why

“You think I’m your girlfriend?” All the heat had gone out of her voice, leaving her sounding a little breathless.

His shoulders sagged. He was so tired, and getting this off his chest left him feeling a little deflated but also at peace. “Yes. If you don’t feel the same, I’ll back off.”

“I hadn’t really thought about it.” Piper shook her head like she was having an argument with herself. “That’s not true. I kept telling myself we were just friends, you know? With benefits.”

“I think we moved past that over Christmas.” A smile crept onto his face at the memory of a certain phone call. “I’ve never had phone sex before.”

Her lips quirked up, and a ghost of the dimple he loved so much appeared. “Me either. I wouldn’t mind doing it again though.”

“Me either.”

She bit her lip and glared at the wall, then looked back at him. “You think I’m worth twenty million dollars?”

“More than.” He pulled her into his arms. She didn’t resist, though she didn’t melt into him either. “I know you think I’m being a boneheaded idiot, but I grew up in Hollywood and I watched plenty of relationships fall apart over stupid shit like who gives money to who, and who gets what part. I can make deals, and I can get more money, but I won’t ever find another you.”

Her lips twisted as she considered him. “True.”

He kissed her gently on the cheek, then worked his way over to her lips.

She turned her head away before he could get more than a quick taste. “We’re not done with this. It’s not the end of the world if my investment doesn’t pan out.”

“No, but it could be the end of your acting career. It’s notworth the risk. When we show up at the premiere, it’ll give the rags enough to chew on. They don’t need the extra fuel.”

A smile crept onto her face. “We’re going together?”

“I hope so,” he murmured. “I want to see what you’re wearing, and then I want to take it off you.”

Her eyes flashed with desire. “You’re trying to distract me.”

“Is it working?” He nuzzled her earlobe.

“Maybe.” She let out a long breath. “This won’t be the last time I get mad at you. People get mad. It happens. If I can forgive Della for splitting up our family, I can forgive you if the movie fails.”

“It took you six years to forgive your sister,” he pointed out, then brushed his lips across hers.

Her shoulders relaxed, and she returned his kiss, lingering just long enough to get his blood flowing south before she broke it off. “It’s late. We need sleep. We can talk about this later.”

“I’ll be right there. I need to send a snotty text to John first.”

“Okay.” She started down the hallway, then paused. “Be sure to tell him I’ll mobilize the Bellamy Babe Brigade if he doesn’t back off. If he’s got any sense, he’ll leave you alone. My fans can be brutal when provoked.”

Chapter Twenty-One

After a month in the desert, Piper decided it would be an excellent place to take a vacation. There was something magical about being so far away from people. There was no traffic out here. No paparazzi. No smog. Just quiet, cactus, and billions of stars.

Somewhere under all those stars, she realized that, just like Princess Jewel and Tessa, she’d fallen in love with Blake Ryan.

It was almost torture to pretend they were just friends during the day. Keeping her distance wasn’t easy, but it wouldn’t be long beforeConnedwrapped and they could stop worrying about what people would say.

Time passed so fast, Piper felt like she’d blinked and it was the middle of February.Scorched’s Valentine’s Day premiere meant puttingConnedon a brief hold while she, Marshall, and Blake headed to Los Angeles.

Piper had been to a lot of red carpet events over the years, all related to music. They could be outrageous, with everyone trying to one-up each other for best- or worst-dressed, depending on the show. Everyone wanted to see and be seen,and everyone wore things that might go better in a strip club than a red carpet.

This premiere, though, was a family event.

The Rio Grande Theater had been transformed into a castle surrounded by hundreds of live trees to mimic the forest. The carpet was green instead of the usual red. A section of it was enveloped with fog to simulate the Merry Myst. A cave filled with gold chocolate coins and trinkets waited for children to explore, and visitors had to traverse a bridge over an actual river.

Piper, Blake, Gina, and Jeremy were in full costume and arrived at the back so that they could travel unseen down a hidden hallway behind the set pieces. Tamar wanted to create an illusion for the three rows of children at the front.

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