Page 40 of Overexposed

If I absolutely had to give up the apartment and move back in with Dad, I would. I’d been prepared to since his diagnosis. But for both of our sakes, it would be better for him to maintain his independence, illusion or not.

In front of my closet, I stared at my options. The address Ollie sent me was for a huge house in Malibu. Phone in hand, I checked the area around the location. Getting in to private parties was challenging, even more when it was onsecuredproperty. Didn’t mean it was impossible, but I wanted to see what I could seefirst.

The house itself was not far from Carbon Beach near Billionaires Row. Swanky. The location off the PCH made it a lot harder to get to. They’d probably have a shuttle or valets. Valet…

I snagged a red vest, then a black one, and flipped through my hangers to find a button-down white blouse. The location near the beach said fancy but also casual. A skirt it was, even if pants would be easier. I also pulled out the quintessential little black dress.

It was a practical slip of fabric. I was taking all of this with me. The nice thing about this dress, I could compress it down; then if I got inside, I could always change so I looked more like Ibelonged. For now, though, I’d rather keep my distance and get my shots.

Clothes ready, I changed into something basic and then grabbed a snack and water before going over the equipment. Some of it was new, so I made sure I knew what I was doing. Not even being this prepared settled the jittery feeling bouncing around inside of me.

It was where I was going…

Not a lot of other paps, isolated location, and a real chance I could be cornered by some nutjob like Dillon. He’d hardly been put off by being in public or visible to the street when he went after me at the car.

Yeah, going there alone, without a backup or anyone knowing where I was going? Bad idea. Flirting with Ollie was fun, but better safe than sorry. I grabbed my phone and scrolled through my contacts.

Pulling up Rod Mills’s number, I hit text. He was one of Dad’s oldest and best friends. He had slid me a tip more than once. This was just returning the favor. It also meant someone else I trusted would be in range.

Not perfect but definitely better.

chapter

sixteen

Gemini

Seven had really quickly reminded us why we preferred him in a relationship. When he wasn’t fully immersing himself in the role he was currently reading for, he was bored. And when he was bored, he was a pain in our asses. Big time. All the time he usually dedicated to Clara Belle and her expensive tastes was now shifted onto antagonizing me and Ollie and we’d both had damn gutsful of it.

So when Ollie asked if I wanted to attend theMesozoicwrap party, I jumped at the chance.

We didn’t bother inviting Sev… He was still desperately trying to salvage the Carriage Pictures deal and they required he basically live like Prince Charming twenty-four seven. He had to be squeaky fucking clean, and theMesozoiccast parties were anything but.

Ollie had played the antagonist of the movie—his usual typecast role—and had made plenty of “friends” on set who all wanted to congratulate him on our arrival at the Malibu house where the party was held.

“No paps here?” I murmured curiously, sliding a pair of sunglasses over my eyes. It was early evening and the sunsetover the ocean was bright enough to blind. “How’d they manage to keep it quiet this time?”

Ollie grinned, shrugging. “No one was given the address until a couple of hours ago. I’m sure press will catch wind of it sooner or later, but for now…” He peered back at the entryway we’d just come through like he was waiting for someone.

“Couple of hours ago? You asked me this morning.” Then again, this was Ollie I was talking to. The guy had his sneaky fucking fingerseverywhere, so him knowing the party location in advance was really no great shock.

Again, he just grinned, then headed over to the fully stocked bar on the balcony. For the most part, the cast and crew ofMesozoicwere okay. I only had to correct a handful of people that I was not my brother and surprisingly got into an enjoyable discussion with the stunt coordinator from the franchise. He’d had to choreograph people literally riding dinosaurs and kaiju, being tossed from the jaws of hundred-foot-tall beasts and some fight scenes of epic proportions.

That was the sort of work I wanted to get into—moving the chess pieces rather than being repeatedly shoved onto the front lines as a pawn. My body was going to break for real eventually, and then where would I be?

“Seven? What are you doing here?” a slightly slurred voice interrupted us. It was like nails on a fucking chalkboard honestly.

I sighed. “Clara, it’s Gem. What are you doing here? You’re not in this movie.” Then again, neither were dozens of other celebrities floating around the house. Once word got out, these parties tended to turn pretty wild—a literal magnet for all the loose units of Hollywood to get messy and have a good time. Or just to snag a salacious headline to revive a sinking career.

She was already way too drunk to process my words and draped her arms around my neck with a sloppy pout. “Seven,baby, you’re not still mad at me for breaking up with you, are you? It wasn’t personal, sugar, and I’d still totally let you fuck me upstairs if you need to blow off some steam. I saw a whole room set up with bondage stuff if you wanna do that thing?—”

“Clara!” I snapped, physically removing her arms from around my neck. “Go the fuck away. Seven isn’t here. But if he were, I canguaranteehe would not take you up on that offer. Gross.”

Her face twisted in an ugly sneer, the realizationfinallysinking in. “Gem, what the fuck? Ew, stop pretending to be Seven. That’s so pathetic.”

I rolled my eyes, not caring enough to hide my disgust for my twin’s ex. Talk about a social-climbing bitch. Slick really had done Sev a huge favor by tossing a grenade on that relationship.

“You’re the one throwing yourself at your ex-boyfriend’s brother. If anyone is pathetic here, Clara Belle, it’s you.” I turned my back on her and searched the party for my best friend. It’d gotten a whole lot busier while I chatted with Dan—the stunt guy—and I winced when a vase broke somewhere nearby.

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